I notice this drought pattern is getting a bit persistent from year to year (see graphics below). Almost every year, the drought is centered somewhere in the Texas to Central Rockies region, with normal or above-average precipitation in the Midwest through the Great Lakes Region.

What is most concerning is that the winter months are THE most important time for recharging soil moisture and aquifers in the Great Plains, since vegetation is dormant and evaporational losses are... [Read More]

Just thinking about the recent outbreak over the South, and then watching a TWC story on the Enterprise, AL tornado where high school students spent 1 hour and 45 minutes in shelter before the tornado actually hit.

Also, considering the diminishing benefit of warning lead times much over 20 minutes, as has been discussed on here several times.

One has to wonder....at what point will evacuations become a reasonable pre-caution in advance of tornadic storms? Seems... [Read More]

I chased the northern fringes of yesterday's tornado outbreak setup in extreme northeastern AR and southeast MO. Mileage for the day was 550. Here is a log with some photos and video:

http://stormhighway.com/blog2012/jan2312a.shtml

This has been the most active winter chase month I've had in 18 years. Counting winter weather outings (snow and ice), I'm already over 1,000 chase miles... [Read More]

Looks like a nocturnal tornado event shaping up over Dixie Alley. I'm not considering chasing this event given the location and timing, but thought it would be worth starting a forecast thread for those considering taking the plunge or for the local chasers who will be out anyway.

Both the GFS and NAM have been fairly consistent bringing in an impressive negatively tilted trough and ejecting a 90 knot shortwave over the southern states tomorrow evening. Surface temps and dews in... [Read More]

In Hot Persuit- Near Greenville, TX.jpg

Before I bought my good waterproof snapshot camera, I captured especially precious storm intercept moments by way of sketch pad.

This provided both a sense of closure/completion of that hunt as well... [Read More]