Severe Weather

As we navigate the midst of Atlantic hurricane season (June to November), being prepared for the potential hazards presented by these storms is crucial. Tropical cyclones, with their powerful winds, rainfall, and waves, can lead to disasters, and it might surprise you to learn that a significant portion of tropical cyclone fatalities occur post-storm. Over the past decade (2013-2022), the National Hurricane Center (NHC) has identified the primary causes of weather and water-related deaths resulting from these cyclones, shedding light on the dangers associated with these natural phenomena.

On May 17th, 2019, an unusual bimodal severe weather setup unfolded across the Central and Southern Plains. Focusing on the Nebraskan border near McCook, convergence, moisture, and instability combined to create a severe weather setup, leading to the formation of a picturesque white elephant trunk tornado. This tornado, rated EF-2, lasted around five minutes, causing damage but no injuries. My dedication to storm photography and reporting severe weather hazards demonstrates my commitment to both artistic passion and public safety communication.

10%–30%—The amount that California’s solar power production during peak hours decreased following wildfires in the state in September 2020, due to smoke darkening the sky.

Scientists from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impacts have developed a new mathematical approach that they say can substantially improve the prediction of extreme weather events. Analyzing the connectivity and patterns between geographical locations, it could potentially save thousands of lives and avoid billions in economic losses. Prediction times for events like El Niño, monsoons, droughts or extreme rainfall could be increased substantially, to a month or in some cases even a year in advance, depending on the type of the event.

Over the past four summers, community scientists in over 50 US cities have set out to measure the distribution of ambient heat across urban environments as part of a national campaign ("Heat Watch") led by CAPA Strategies and NOAA's National Integrated Heat Health Information System (NIHHIS). The highly engaging program has involved hundreds of community participants as data collectors with simple-to-use equipment, engaging training material, and meaningful input to study design and interpretation of the resulting ambient heat maps. Gaining an element of civic legitimacy through the participation of local communities, the generated datasets are used by municipal planners, health departments, academic researchers, and others to identify heat vulnerabilities and rapidly advance local heat resilience efforts. 

Hailstones are a rare sight in Hawaii due to the high temperatures (averaging 22°C near the coast in February) and a steady trade wind layer shallower than 3 km. However, in winter, midlatitude fronts hit the islands and cumulonimbus associated with them often produce snow at the tops of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa (4202 km and 4172 km in height, respectively). The combination of well-developed cumulonimbus and low temperatures at the surface sometimes leads to the observation of hailstones at ground level even in Hawaii. 

Here are a few of the news stories from the weather and atmospheric sciences and space that we've been following the last two weeks. Do you have a story we missed? Share it in the community!

Higher waves in the Arctic create ice-containing clouds

A team of scientists led by Dr. Jun Inoue of the National Institute of Polar Research, Japan, sought to answer a peculiar question: can higher waves in the Arctic Sea promote the development of ice-containing clouds? This question may seem strange at first, because most people would not have fathomed that a link could exist between those two natural phenomena. But the findings of this study indicate that there most likely is a connection. 

New research locates geographic hotspots for lightning “megaflashes.”

Technically defined as “a mesoscale lightning flash that is at least 100 km long” megaflashes can span hundreds of miles and create multiple lightning strikes far away from the convective core of thunderstorms, coming seemingly out of the blue or calm gray skies. This phenomenon has only recently been described and is still the subject of research. By exploring megaflash characteristics and locating the areas where these types of strikes most often occur, this study argues for the need to increase the precision and effectiveness of lightning safety warnings. 

In this presentation from the 2022 AMS Weather Band Community and Citizen Science Symposium, Ted Best illustrates through case examples how the use of citizen weather observations can elucidate mesoscale convective events. A convective wind event, a long-lived thunderstorm with hail, and a mesoscale convective system with heavy rain show how individual observations can be collected to form a more detailed picture of an event for study. A combination of storm spotting, storm reports, CoCoRaHS observations, and radar images is presented for each case. These observations can call attention to events that might otherwise be missed in a busy and complex environment and can be helpful for improving future forecasts.

In this webinar, a panel of distinguished guests discuss Superstorm Sandy's legacy, its lasting impacts, and the lessons we have learned from that remarkable storm. 

Take a step into the studio at a national weather network to see how a 24/7 production of weather forecasts works.

To scientists who study them, there are two mysteries surrounding hurricanes that stand above the rest: Why do they exist at all, and why aren’t there many more of them? This may strike you as a paradox, but these are serious questions that arise when burrowing deep into the theory, modeling, and observations of these storms. And they bear on the question posed by the title of this essay.

The Great New England Hurricane of 1938 undoubtedly IS the one to which all other New England hurricanes are sooner or later compared. There have only been three others of comparable combined strength and widespread devastation since the colonization of the region.

Tanja Fransen's presentation from the 2022 AMS Community and Citizen Science Symposium covers the increasing issues with wildfire smoke intrusions and public health and how a Weather Ready Nation needs to include partners in the public health arenas.  

Here are a few of the news stories from the weather and atmospheric sciences world that we've been following this week. Do you have a story we missed? Share it in the community!

In this presentation from the 2022 AMS Community and Citizen Science Symposium, Candice Erdmann describes how, during a severe windstorm on Labor Day 2020, several wildfires began to tear through parts of the Oregon Cascades Range. This includes a discussion of the topography, air quality monitors used, and data verification processes.

The lowest wind chill temperature in U.S. history was recorded on February 3, 2023, at the top of Mount Washington in New Hampshire, reaching an astounding –47°F due to powerful winds and freezing temperatures.