- 2000 CONVECTIVE FIELD STUDY A
- Convective Field Study #7a
Day 1
7:55 Pictures have been taken
Discussion: The discussion looks like the plan is to first head to the Lincoln (IL) NWS office. The outlook discussion looks like northwest flow with Lincoln predicting some possible severe weather, which includes hail today. CAPE looks to be 1000 to 2000 J/kg with LI's around -5. The plan is to reach Lincoln around noon to get further Day 1 and Day 2 outlooks. We look to be possibly staying in west/central Illinois tonight.
8:28 Official departure time. We start the trip, and there is a little bit of rain falling.
8:34 Some excitement happens with the scanner. Lafayette is apparently next door.
8:35 We make our first stop at White Castle/Amoco to look for a scanner adapter. We're still in Valpo. The rain has ended.
8:42 Back on the road, heading for city limits on 2.
8:46 Russ and Chris are now toilet trained.
Car names are chosen (Drivers are listed first):
Anvil Crawlers - Ty Shesky, Kelly Smith, Mike Karosen, Aneela Qureshi
2000 Flushes - Joe Charlevoix, Rich Weiss, Chris Kuhlman, Russ Chibe
Theta-e - Wes Terway, Bart Wolf, Leslie Durham, Melissa Ellsworth
Assume the Wave - Emily Kowalski, Jason Reese, Jon Schiemann, Tracy Goyette
9:03 Left Porter county
9:41 Temperature/Dewpoint reading: 68/57. 15 miles north of Kentland, IN on US 41.
10:03 2000 Flushes and Theta-e cross Indiana state line into Illinois
10:06 Anvil Crawler and Assume the Wave cross Indiana state line into Illinois and into Iroquois County, "The Buckle of the Corn Belt." A traveling house in front of us turned right.
10:31 Temperature/Dewpoint reading: 71/60. Large boat passes us on road much to our surprise, traveling opposite direction
10:33 Passed sign for Camp Wa Ha Na Ha
11:05 Temperature/Dewpoint reading: 71/60. Near Forrest, IL.
11:20 We see some interesting looking clouds caused by warm advection out the window
11:32 Temperature/Dewpoint reading: 73/60. 2 miles north of Lexington, IL on I-55. We passed a few more houses on trucks (maybe they were trying to attract tornadoes?).
11:53 Passing through the Bloomington/Normal metro area.
12:25 Lunch stop at Burger King in Lincoln. This is off exit 126 on I-55.
1:19 Left Burger King. The little bit of rain that had started again around noon has ended.
1:22 We pull in for gas at Phillips 66 where gas is $1.62.9 a gallon. We got the "Superclean Unleaded Regular". Leslie says to report that at this gas station, conveniently located off exit 126 on I-55, they have one of the nicest, cleanest restrooms that she has seen.
2:05 We find Logan County Airport with the Doppler Radar off in the distance. A sign reports that we are at 593 feet in elevation. The question is whether our navigation skills in finding this weather office are up to par or not. As we turn around, two guys at the airport stare at us.
2:09 We successfully find our way to the Lincoln, IL NWS office.
2:36 We leave the weather service office after hearing that Southern Missouri looks more promising that Illinois. Our target for the night: Springfield, MO. Supercell formation over Missouri looks promising, but we may not reach it in time. Illinois has stabilized.
3:03 Temperature/Dewpoint reading: 79/57. Near rest area on I-55 just north of exit 100 around south Springfield.
4:29 Temperature/Dewpoint reading: 87/56. Exit 13 of I-255 east of St. Louis.
4:37 We crossed from Illinois into Missouri.
4:50 Cumulus towers are going up southeast of us.
5:22 We get some rain.
5:34 We are under a severe thunderstorm watch between Joplin, MO and Alton, IL (? Miles each way). Issued at 3:50 PM and valid until 11:00 PM.
5:44 We stop at Citgo for gas that is $1.39.9.
6:15 Severe thunderstorm warnings for Boone and Audrain counties, but since we're near Rolla, they are too far north to catch.
6:34 Rolla is reporting a T/D of 81/63. Our reading is 85/60.
* We have to visit the exotic animal paradise - We've already been there, it's Christ College.*
7:52 We arrive at the Best Western in Springfield, MO for the night.
We ended up not seeing any storms due to the cap. Although we saw some towers going up and a top that sheared off, as we drove west, the cap was stronger and thus less was developing.
Day 2
9:00 Discussion: There is a slight risk today over much of Missouri extending eastward. St. Louis discussion mentions quite a bit about supercell development, however the thought also is there of going to western Missouri south of Kansas City. We decided to hold off making a decision.
9:35 Temperature/Dewpoint reading: 83/60 at our Best Western in Springfield. We decide to wait for later convective outlooks.
Due to a stong cap and no data indicating a go, we hung around the motel all day and relaxed. Activities for the day included cards, music, naps, TV, newspapers, with a little swimming as well. We ate lunch at Pizza Hut and dinner at Schlotzskys. It
was hot and sunny today, and around 90.
9:15 We see a tower to the north around Kansas City (a good ways away). This signals the cap has broken, but it is around nightfall. This is the most excitement of the day. The cap was much too strong all day.
Day 3
8:00 Discussion: There appears to be a good chance for severe weather today, with a slight risk over southern Kansas and northern Oklahoma. There also is a small area in the experimental outlook that has a possibility of tornadoes, and there is a hatch area for hail as a result of upslope flow. The motel tonight is the Best Western in Enid, Oklahoma.
8:28 Official departure time from the Best Western.
8:35 Temperature/Dewpoint reading: 79/70
9:20 We saw our first cumulus of the day.
9:23 Winnebago tries to run Ty off the road.
9:34 We pass into Kansas from Missouri by leaving I-44 for US 166/400. Emily stresses about the unmarked PD that is actually a marked postal service vehicle (the OTHER men in blue. . . er, occasionally women as well for all those politically correct)
9:43 We turn onto Highway 69
9:51 Temperature Dewpoint: 83/70.
10:02 We see our first dead armadillo on the road.
10:05 We stop at Johnson's General store in Chetopa, KS for gas at $1.49.9. The locals give our vehicles funny looks. Preliminary outlooks for tomorrow suggest we may be headed for the panhandle region of Oklahoma.
10:26 Officially the hat went on. We're still waiting for the official anthem of Da's.
10:57 Temperature/Dewpoint: 85/73. Just west of Coffeyville, KS.
11:43 Temperature/Dewpoint: 85/73. On US 166 about 7 miles east of the Cowley county line.
12:01 We are now under a moderate risk for the area we are chasing.
12:17 Temperature/Dewpoint: 86/73. Arkansas City, KS.
12:42 We cross the state line from Kansas into Oklahoma on I-35. The "Da" anthem is heard across the CBs.
1:57 Temperature/Dewpoint: 90/70. Enid, OK.
2:01 Gassed up at Citgo, where gas is $1.49.9 a gallon. We also got food at Subway and Taco Bell.
2:31 Back on the road to find some storms.
3:53 A tornado watch was issued for between 30 miles south of Amarillo, TX to 30 miles northeast of Garden City, KS., 80 miles either direction. We've been sitting around for about an hour a little northwest of Enid (in Carrier) waiting for development.
4:05 Temperature/Dewpoint: 88/71. Still camping out.
4:50 We start heading west from Carrier towards Woodward, OK.
5:53 Temperature/Dewpoint: 88/71. 8 miles east of Mooreland, OK.
6:35 Temperature/Dewpoint: 85/71. Near the cows of Mooreland (north of). We're camped.
6:40 A tornado watch has been issued from 30 miles ENE of Wichita to 30 miles SW of OKC, and 120 miles east and west of that line, in effect until midnight.
6:55 Temperature/Dewpoint: 83/69. Wind is out of the ENE at 20-25.
* There's been a development on the toilet in the last 10 minutes.
7:20 Temperature/Dewpoint: 80/69. Melissa put the sweatshirt on.
8:23 Joe straddles a barbed wire fence to get a frisbee out of the field.
8:25 We leave to pursue a storm
8:40 Transverse rolls are spotted in the southeast.
9:20 We tape lightning just south of the motel.
10:30 We go back south again after seeing some nice clouds right out the window and a lot of lightning. A shelf cloud, (possible) wall cloud, and spectacular lightning are seen.
While we didn't see anything during the day as a result of the cap, at least the night storms gave us something to see. Storms formed further south of us because the system went further south than forecasted. As a result of the nocturnal low level jet, we had an MCS that brought a lot of lightning and rain.
Day 4
9:05 Discussion: Today it looks like we will be heading to the caprock area of the panhandle. The boundary is supposed to be moving back north, with the thunderstorms and supercells forming just north of the boundary. We'll be in a moderate risk of convection covering parts of the panhandle and Kansas, with a hatched area for both tornadoes and hail.
11:02 We leave Conoco (where gas is $1.45.9) and head to Alva. We watch as Joe's car sucks gas out of the pump much more than anyone else's.
11:18 Tracy and Jon got toilet trained
11:34 Temperature/Dewpoint: 77/66. Much northeast of Carrier.
11:48 We reach Jet, OK, "Goose Hunting Capital of Oklahoma"
11:53 The new Day 1 convective outlook is out. The moderate risk is now further south so we have to abort going to Alva and head for Texas/southern OK.
12:20 Temperature/Dewpoint: 72/65. Just about 1 mile south of the 417/8/60 junction on US 60.
1:29 Temperature/Dewpoint: 68/66. 9 miles north of Clinton on US 183.
1:58 Temperature/Dewpoint: 67/66. Elk City on I-40.
2:20 We got gas at United in Elk City for $1.42.9 a gallon.
3:02 We leave KFC/Taco Bell to head for Texas on I-40.
3:24 Temperature/Dewpoint: 74/68. Western Oklahoma south of I-40 exit 12.
3:41 Temperature/Dewpoint: 77/72. Near Delhi.
3:53 Temperature/Dewpoint: 76/70. South of I-40 exit 20 on 283.
4:12 Temperature/Dewpoint: 82/70. Delhi airport.
* If you (Joe) go stand over there we can have Joe and the volcano.- Bart
This came after spotting a large rock formation.
5:18 Temperature/Dewpoint: 82/71. Haystack mountain. Tornado watch issued 60 miles southwest of Lubbuck to 30 miles SSE of Altus and 55 miles each way.
5:29 We start to head towards developing supercells
* Russ: "I could sure go for some mashed potatoes"- code phrase for a cell
* We're in the suck zone - Bart
* The Horse likes Joe
* Bart, can we take the horse home with us?
* Joe your horse is cheating on you
* I think in Oklahoma they're legally married
* Tomorrow, we're going briefless
We again didn't see anything due to the cap. We were right on the convergence but things again didn't fire until the low level jet kicked in. That gave us good (awesome) lighting with Toilet recording around 480 strikes a minute from the MCS. These were especially strong to the north and southwest. The most excitement was a horse we named Lightning (probably not his real name). He was a good horse that got fed by everyone and kept us company while we were in the middle of nowhere. He lives about 4 or 5 miles north of Magnum just off 9 on 28 02 1920. He took a liking to Joe especially and liked to eat grass. This was thus far the most exciting thing to happen on this chase.
Day 5
8:00 Discussion: We have discussion which looks at the SPC products. We are again in a moderate risk, but the tornadoes are supposed to be in Kansas/Missouri. However, on the updated products there also looks to be action with hail and tornadoes along the dryline. Therefore we're heading into Texas to look for dryline moisture convergence.
10:00 We head to Radio Shack to fix electronics (TOILET and a broken CB antenna). Toilet then goes to an electronics store to get fixed where it is discovered the audio/video cable is malfunctioning. The people of Elk City treat us well.
12:00 We get gas at United for $1.42.9 per gallon.
12:58 We leave Braum's ice cream store (that also has burgers) to head for Texas.
1:05 Temperature/Dewpoint: 79/69. Just west of Elk City.
1:27 Alto castolanus clouds in sky, we're now heading for southwest Oklahoma.
1:35 Temperature/Dewpoint: 84/75. Just a mile north of Magnum.
1:37 We enter Magnum - Home of Braden Looper.
1:41 Quanah and south of Vernon is where the genesis area supposed to occur.
1:50 Aneela and Mike got Toilet trained
* Maybe they'll issue a PDS watch. If they do, we'll go to the motel and have a swim.
- Bart
2:14 We stop for gas at $1.44.9 at the Conoco in Altus.
3:10 While stopped just SW of Altus we see turkey towers going up and getting sheared off. We get ready to head west.
4:00 Temperature/Dewpoint: 96/70. West of Altus on 82.
4:00 Tornado watch is in effect 20 miles SSW of Abilene to 50 miles NNW of Altus for 90 miles each way until 10:00. We're sitting on the side of the road watching just west of Altus. Bart's cell phone is not working right as a result of a problem with the cell phone company.
* Where's my wedge? - Russ
6:15 We leave McDonalds in Altus to head for a cell that may be going up to the west. (The McDonalds on the west side of the town of Altus is nice because it has TVs for the Weather Channel and a cool train that runs around the building complete with whistles to play with)
6:18 Temperature/Dewpoint: 96/67. Just west of Altus.
6:35 We stopped a little west of Altus. Temperature/Dewpoint: 97/67.
6:39 A severe thunderstorm warning has been issued for Foard and Wilbarger counties.
6:50 We head back to the Altus McDonalds to reevaluate storms (do we go south or west?). We look to have two good storms here.
6:58 Some fun with Joe's car battery (dead, but rekindled to life by jumper cables) in the parking lot while everyone else is inside looking at data.
7:03 Temperature/Dewpoint: 91/71. Altus McDonalds.
7:10 We decide to start heading for the south storm.
7:14 Southeast Jackson county has a severe thunderstorm warning until 8:00 PM.
7:27 Splitting supercell headed for Altus at 55 mph.
7:43 Hendrick county is under a severe thunderstorm warning with golfball size hail.
7:56 A severe thunderstorm warning for Kiol county with the storm moving NE at 40 mph dropping tennis ball size hail. We're moving north towards it.
7:59 Some slow people get in front of us, but luckily they turn.
* All those trees are in the way. That always happens.- Tracy, as we watch the supercell while driving down the road in southern Oklahoma
8:20 Kipwa and Washataw counties have severe thunderstorm warnings.
8:22 A tornado watch has been issued for south central Oklahoma until 2 AM.
8:41 Flood warning for northern Caddo county.
8:43 Tornado warning for Eaky county. However, it's rain wrapped.
* Casper's getting sucked up into the anvil. He's going to heaven.
* Light's on for legality- Bart
* I'm good at flashing - what can I say
We watched the sunset and lightning strikes. Also, we got to see some rain shafts, hail shafts, mammatus clouds, huge anvils, the inflow, outflow, and some nice anvil crawlers. There was a tornado not too far from us, but it was rain wrapped and it was getting too close towards night to chase it.
Day 6
Without there being too much discussion (discussion didn't go as planned due to computer/internet problems), we leave for northern Texas due to there being a moderate risk being mostly between Dallas/Ft. Worth and extreme southern Oklahoma and Abilene to SW Oklahoma. While there wasn't much discussion of supercell development, there is still a 15% experimental for tornadoes and 25% experimental for hail and wind.
10:17 We leave the Best Western in El Reno, OK to head for northern Texas.
10:21 Temperature/Dewpoint: 78/61. Around mile marker 129 on I-40.
10:26 We pass Yukon, OK, home of Garth Brooks.
11:45 Temperature/Dewpoint: 80/69. Around exit 51 on I-35.
11:57 Temperature/Dewpoint: 81/70. Mile marker 35 on I-35.
12:25 We cross the state line and enter Texas on I-35 from Oklahoma.
12:41 We get gas at the Gainesville Exxon at $1.49.9 a gallon. We find that Wes' trunk key rode all the way from El Reno in the lock without coming out. Bathrooms were very nice, and several people were into the Mexican blankets they were selling.
12:50 Everyone goes to Subway and Pizza Inn to eat. Jon walks the third of a mile to the Whataburger and wins a free cookie.
1:55 After returning to the Gainesville Best Western where we are staying and checking in, we see on the weather channel that storms are starting to fire, including a tornado warning for Archer county. We bolt from the room to attempt to catch it.
2:03 Tornado is confirmed as on the ground in Archer county.
2:28 A tornado watch is in effect for north central Texas and a few counties in southern
Oklahoma.
!!!! 1080 AM is a good station for weather information near Dallas/Ft. Worth
2:32 Temperature/Dewpoint: 96/72: US 380 on Wise/Denton county border
* Doing your own retirement planning is like doing your own appendectomy - quote we heard on the radio
2:45 Storm just west of us goes tornadic in Jack County
2:50 Severe thunderstorm warning in Young county until 3:15 with baseball size hail SE of 25
3:01 Toilet is at 110 strikes per minute close.
3:17 Tops are near 60,000 ft. near Graham.
3:26 We start heading back east on 380 and pull off just east of Bridgeport.
3:53 We head east after seeing dust foots and hail north and to the west of us. There are other chasers on the road today that we see.
4:03 Sirens are going off in Bridgeport, which we just left. We're headed south on 51.
4:12 We receive damage as the antenna blows off the lead car. It is put back on, and we continue.
4:15 Parker county is now under a warning.
4:32 Flash flood watch is in effect for the area.
4:42 Lowering on NW side of the cell coming into the Terrant/Denton county line.
4:49 While we manuever through Weatherford, there are strong winds to the north.
4:53 Eastland county has a severe thunderstorm warning. People on I-35 are blocking the overpasses by stopping under them.
5:08 Collin and Coleman counties under severe thunderstorm warning.
5:34 Tornado warning for Fannin county
5:35 Temperature/Dewpoint: 89/75: Exit 30 on I-35W.
5:41 We get gas for $1.47.9 per gallon at Exxon next to I-35W and US 67
5:43 Severe thunderstorm watch issued by SPC until 11 PM for northeast Texas.
5:46 Severe thunderstorm warnings for Collin and Dallas counties.
5:58 Tornado on the ground in Hunt county
* Bart: "I lost my nuts!"- apparently his peanuts had fallen to the floor of the car
7:00 Severe thunderstorm warning at Hill county near Itasca moving SE 10 - we're near county road 1304 - going back towards the rest stop where we were sitting. This is a storm that was forming over us as we were sitting there.
7:40 We go through rain, see lightning, feel lots of wind, see some nice clouds, but decide to call it a day after sitting west of Hillsboro.
8:30 Going through Ft. Worth, Texas. There was still damage visible from the March tornado that ripped through the city.
* That's the world's largest light bright!
* Oh my god! There's a bug. . . and I'm naked - Leslie while in the bathroom commenting on the occupants we shared the night with in the Gainesville, TX Best Western.
We saw storms occur today as a result of the outflow boundary. Storms today quickly went severe as a result of there being little or no cap. There was also a lot of moisture and heat since temperatures were in the 90's and dewpoints in the middle 70's.
Although there was at least one confirmed tornado, there was very little shear so rotating supercells were not the main focus. However, there was a fair amount of large hail associated with these storms.
Day 7
* I'm in a moderate mood on a slight day - what Russ said about Bart.
8:36 We leave Best Western in Gainesville. This was definitely not the best place that have stayed on this trip. There were complaints of roaches in the rooms, a lukewarm shower and not enough clean towels.
8:45 We leave Exxon gas station where gas was $1.49.9 a gallon. The plan is to head north towards South Dakota where there is a slight risk on the SPC Day 1 convective outlook with upslope winds giving us possible LP supercells.
8:53 We cross from Texas into Oklahoma on I-35.
11:55 Chance Storm (aka Mr. Roboto) gives us the weather on Wichita weather radio.
11:58 We cross from Oklahoma into Kansas on I-35.
12:16 We stop at the travel plaza on I-35 just north of Wellington for food at Hardees and get Coastal gasoline for $1.53.9 a gallon.
12:48 We leave the travel plaza to keep heading north. They had weather radio in the bathroom.
1:09 We're passing through Wichita, KS.
3:25 We enter Nebraska from Kansas on US-81.
4:19 We stop at the Texaco on US-81 near I-80 for gas at $1.63.9 a gallon.
6:48 We enter Norfolk, NE where we are going to stay the night at the Super 8. The town is also home to Johnny Carson.
* I want a live one, not a slab of meat. It's not the same thing. - Melissa in reference to cows.
We would have had to head much further west to find where they predicted possible storms to occur. However, there was little development to the west.
Day 8
9:00 Discussion: The Day 1 outlook shows storms to be taking place in western Nebraska and possibly South Dakota. There is a slight risk of convection for this area.
9:44 We leave Super 8 to head west on US 275 towards Valentine.
11:09 Temperature/Dewpoint: 68/59. 10 miles east of Atkinson, Nebraska on US 20.
11:41 Temperature/Dewpoint: 73/62. 3 miles west of Bassett, Nebraska on US 20.
12:00 We enter Ainsworth, Nebraska - according to the sign, home of Mike Baxter, 1995 World Champion Auctioneer.
12:02 We check in at the Comfort Inn where we will be staying and then go eat at Pizza Hut.
1:53 We're at the Ainsworth Texaco station where we stop and get gas for $1.62.9 a gallon. The plan is to head northwest.
2:52 Crossed into the mountain time zone from the central time zone.
2:53 Temperature/Dewpoint: 81/62. Just west of Kilgore in the middle of nowhere Cherry county.
3:30 Temperature/Dewpoint: 85/55. Just west of Merriman, Nebraska.
3:48 Temperature/Dewpoint: 84/58. 1 mile east of the Cherry/Sheridan county line.
4:17 We stop for gas at the Sinclair station in Gordon
4:24 We stop just south of Gordon along the road
4:37 We're still stopped. Temperature/Dewpoint: 89/55.
* Are we going to book it or magazine it? - Mike
4:47 We decide to head south as TOILET is picking up some lightning there.
6:00 Severe thunderstorm warning for Sheridan County, Nebraska.
6:30 A severe thunderstorm watch is issued from 80 miles WNW of Muller to 60 miles NE of Farwell, 70 miles each way north and south.
6:39 Thunderstorm we're watching is now supposedly dropping golfball size hail as we're east of 61, 24 miles north of 2.
* I want a Twister shirt, darn it! (in reference to the radio station, see below) - Bart
95.5 "The Twister" is our favorite radio station for northwest Nebraska (OK, so it's the ONLY station in northwest Nebraska). Not only do they play country and oldies; they also threw in some Native American music during the day.
The forecast for today didn't hold up. After forming one short lived supercell in western Nebraska, a line formed further east ahead of the front during late evening. However we did see some really nice mammatus clouds and a double rainbow.
Day 9
9:00 - Discussion: We saw that as of early this morning, there was a moderate on the SPC Day 1 outlook for eastern Wyoming/western Nebraska panhandle. However, there were low stratus clouds and winds from the north there, so due to the time it would take to get there, we held off on the decision on whether to go there or chase further east in Nebraska and Iowa. They said the winds with a deepening low were supposed to shift to the northeast or east, but had not yet as of 11:00 AM CDT. Right before we made our decision to leave and go east, SPC had updated to having a moderate risk over western Iowa along the cold front with the chance for some supercells.
11:58 We leave the Comfort Inn to head for eastern Nebraska/western Iowa.
12:00 Kelly (Kelly services to us on the trip) announces the first of many T/D checks of the day on the 10's as Aneela takes the readings. Temperature/Dewpoint: 55/55 - just east of Ainsworth, NE.
12:10 Temperature/Dewpoint: 57/56 - just west of Bassett, NE.
12:19 Temperature/Dewpoint: 57/57
12:30 Temperature/Dewpoint: 59/59 - Stuart, NE.
12:40 Temperature/Dewpoint: 61/60 - Atkinson, NE.
12:50 Temperature/Dewpoint: 62/62 - just east of Emmet, NE.
1:00 Temperature/Dewpoint: 68/67 - O'Neil, NE.
1:10 Temperature/Dewpoint: 70/68 - just east of Emmet, NE.
1:20 Temperature/Dewpoint: 75/71 - Ewing, NE.
1:30 Temperature/Dewpoint: 77/72 - Clearwater, NE.
1:45 Temperature/Dewpoint: 79/71 - Oakdale, NE.
2:00 Temperature/Dewpoint: 78/71 - Meadow Grove, NE.
2:15 Temperature/Dewpoint: 81/69 - Norfolk, NE.
2:16 We stop for lunch at Wendy's in Norfolk.
2:46 We leave Wendy's and are back on the road.
3:07 Temperature/Dewpoint: 87/72 - just east of Norfolk, NE.
3:09 The hat goes on! Professor Knox has called and informed us of a moderate risk setting up in eastern Iowa.
3:44 Temperature/Dewpoint: 83/70 - US 77 and Nebraska 51.
3:56 We cross the Missouri River and the state line from Nebraska into Iowa on 175.
4:05 Temperature/Dewpoint: 86/72 - I-29 just north of Exit 105.
4:22 Temperature/Dewpoint: 88/74 - mile marker 87 on I-29.
4:34 We stop at US 30 and I-29 for gas at Amoco gas station where gas is $1.59.9.
5:26 Temperature/Dewpoint: 94/75 - mile marker 42 on I-80 in Iowa.
5:43 Temperature/Dewpoint: 91/72 - Exit 64 on I-80 in Iowa.
5:47 Bart says, "Incredibly deep!"
6:00 We're at a rest area near Exit 83 monitoring TOILET and the DTN.
7:03 We leave the rest area to chase a developing storm that is within 50 or 60 miles.
7:18 Tornado watch until 1 AM.
7:26 There is a severe thunderstorm warning issued for Boone county until 7:45 PM.
7:33 There is a tornado warning issued for southern Boone county.
7:44 We see a rotating wall cloud on the storm that earlier dropped the tornado. The storm is about 7 miles NNE of us.
7:50 There is a tornado warning for Dallas county near Woodward. We're watching from the southern side of the storm.
7:58 We have spotted a tornado on the ground. 1040 AM is giving us lots of information.
8:24 Severe thunderstorm warning for Polk county until 9 PM. We're observing a bear's cage forming with this classic supercell.
8:31 The storm has become a huge HP supercell.
8:33 Doppler radar indicated a tornado warning for Polk county until 9 PM, which includes the city of Des Moines. We're on the north side of Des Moines on I-35/80. If there is a tornado, it is now rain wrapped.
8:35 Severe thunderstorm warning for Dallas county until 8:45 PM.
8:46 We may have seen a power flash.
8:56 Supercell is 7 miles NNW of us while we are stopped at a rest area to quick check the DTN. It is still north of Des Moines. We decide to quickly get east towards our Best Western.
8:59 Tornado warning being extended for Polk county. Tornado may pass right near the rest area we just left. It is supposed to go 7 miles west of Mitchellville.
* We can hear the tornado sirens going off - It's kind of a comforting sound. - Des Moines radio station as they hear sirens in the studio.
9:13 We reach our Best Western in Newton, and start watching the TV coverage and radar pictures.
* When green meets red, go under the bed
9:47 We are out of the way of the storm, but stuff is continuing to form to the north and head towards us.
* Thank God we didn't go west! - Referring to how NOTHING happened in western Nebraska and eastern Wyoming except cold, cloudy conditions.
* When the tornado hits your house, and you wake up dead in the morning... - Des Moines TV
10:37 The power goes off in the motel for 30 seconds.
11:17 After watching a strong rainstorm with lots of lightning, we experienced some post thunderstorm heat bursts.
After wondering all morning whether we should go to go west to the panhandle of Nebraska or east to Iowa, we made the right decision. The heat and moisture built up all day under the cap along the stationary front and then in the evening, things exploded. We were right on top of the storm as it formed, and got to see a brief touchdown of the tornado. Later, as severe thunderstorms started dropping large amounts of rain passed by our motel, we observed pea size hail and at least one piece that was dime size.
Day 10
9:47 We leave Best Western in a hurry. There are already storms off to the northwest on radar. TOILET is going nuts.
9:49 We stop at Phillips 66 in Newton, IA where we get gas for $1.59.9 a gallon.
10:02 We are back on the road heading east. Discussion is on the road: There is a slight risk in the Day 1 Convective outlook. The system we're watching in Iowa is expected to track across into Illinois and Wisconsin. There is a weak cap, and CAPE values are expected to be at 2000-3000 J/kg.
10:16 We stop at a rest area on I-80 to look for DTN data.
10:24 16 miles from Waterloo, extreme damage reported from storm. It's moving 80 mph.
10:27 Severe thunderstorm just blew up west of Des Moines and is supposed to go through the southern suburbs. We turn back to try and catch this storm.
10:53 Severe thunderstorm northeast of Des Moines.
11:03 TOILET is picking up 552 strikes/min.
11:13 There is now a flash flood warning along with numerous severe thunderstorm warnings.
11:29 There is a tornado warning for NE of us in NE Linn county until noon. We're still west of the storm. Also for NW Jones county there is a tornado warning in effect.
11:51 There is a tornado warning for Jones county until 12:15. Possible developing tornado 8 miles east of Anamosa. We're at mile marker 229.
12:34 Severe thunderstorm warning 14 miles north of Davenport for Scott county.
1:02 We cross from Iowa into Illinois on I-280.
1:50 We leave Mobil gas station, exit 27 off I-80.
3:15 We leave Dairy Queen where we ate lunch.
4:41 We finish going through Chicago on I-80/94 and enter into Indiana from Illinois.
5:24 We stop at Family Express in Valpo for gas is $1.79.9 a gallon, which is the highest price seen on the trip.
5:40 We get back to VU, and the weather is the same as when we left (rainy, or looking ready to rain at any time).
We did not really get to see much today other than some really heavy rain, as the cap broke early in the morning. Much of the more severe weather ended up in front of us, and was moving too fast to catch us.