Version 1 of the NOAA/CIMSS LightningCast model uses GOES-R ABI images to predict the probability of lightning in the next 60 minutes at any given location. It is being transitioned to NOAA/NESDIS operations. LightningCast v2 has been developed and is being evaluated at NOAA’s Hazardous Weather Testbed. Version 2 incorporates MRMS Reflectivity at -10oC, which is... Read More
Altocumulus castellanus clouds (ACCAS) unexpectedly developed in southern Wisconsin yesterday morning, producing beautiful cloud features and eventually a severe thunderstorm. ACCAS form due to mid-level instability and manifest in towering billows that can often produce pileus clouds as they burst through a more stable layer.The rooftop cameras of the UW-AOSS building caught... Read More
A shortwave impulse spawned numerous supercell thunderstorms in a highly unstable and well-sheared environment in the Southeast U.S. ProbSevere v3 readily tracked numerous severe and tornadic storms across the region.One storm in particular produced tornadoes in Madison, Alabama, and prompted a tornado emergency warning. In this example, the ProbTor v3 was much higher... Read More
A negatively tilted shortwave trough and associated dynamical response created a rapidly deepening surface low in the Dakotas on May 15. These features worked together to bring high theta-E air from the southern U.S. up into Minnesota and Wisconsin, creating ample instability in the region. A strong mid-level jet streak... Read More
