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Tornado damage path: 6 months later

By Scott Bachmeier •

MODIS true-color RGB image [click to enlarge]

MODIS true-color RGB image [click to enlarge]

The MODIS true color image (above) centered over northeastern Wisconsin on 03 December 2007 is from the SSEC MODIS Today site. Note the narrow white swath running from southwest to northeast near the center of the image — this feature is the tornado damage path from an EF-3 tornado that went through that area on 07 June 2007, nearly 6 months earlier. Much of northeastern Wisconsin received about 5-9 inches of snow during the 2-3 days prior to this MODIS image, so the fresh snow cover was more evident within the relatively “treeless” tornado damage path (compared to the darker appearance of the heavily-forested surrounding area). The darkest, semi-square area seen on the image (along and south of the tornado damage path) is the more thickly-forested Menominee and Stockbridge Indian Reservation.

The narrow “cloud street” features oriented perpendicular to the tornado damage path were lake-effect cloud bands streaming inland from Lake Superior. In addition, due to recent cold temperatures (+7º F / -14º C at Green Bay WI, and -8º F / -22º C at Athelstane WI on 01 December), you can also see that ice was beginning to form around the edges of Green Bay — and most of the inland lakes across northeastern Wisconsin were also frozen and snow-covered on that day.

Categories: General interpretation, MODIS, Winter weather