Alert archive / Montana / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 115, NWS Billings, MT

August 6, 2002Treasure County, Montana

NWS Billings, MT issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Aug 6, 2002, 4:49 PM MDT for Treasure County, Montana. It was in force for 56 min. 1 report came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
Aug 6, 2002, 4:49 PM MDT (22:49 UTC)
Expired
Aug 6, 2002, 5:45 PM MDT
In force
56 min
Issued by
NWS Billings, MT
Area
Whole counties

County Treasure County, MT

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Aug 6, 4:55 PM MDTHail 0.75Bighorn, MT

NCEI Storm Data entries that began inside the alert's area while it was in force. Before 2003 the local storm report archive is thin, so this is the record of what happened rather than what was phoned in.

The watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Aug 6, 4:15 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Glasgow Intl Airport, MT (KGGW), launched 12:00Z, 10.8 hours before the alert went out and 229 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Glasgow Intl Airport, MT at 12:00Z on 2002-08-06Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1041 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Glasgow Intl Airport, MT at 12:00Z on 2002-08-06The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 110 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
1041 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-138 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
676 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
45 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
110 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
140 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Billings, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Aug 6, 2:52 PM MDT, 1 hour 57 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 6, 2:52 PM MDT, 1 hour 57 minutes before
SOUTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST MONTANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BILLINGS MT
252 PM MDT TUE AUG 06 2002

.SHORT TERM...VALID FOR WED...THU...FRI...

JET LOCATED NORTHWEST OF THE CWA WILL REMAIN NEARLY STATIONARY AND
PROVIDE SOME LIFT FOR THE CWA.  HOWEVER...18Z ACARS STILL INDICATES
THE CWA IS WELL CAPPED.  SOME COOLING WILL TAKE PLACE IN THE MID LEVELS
THIS EVENING OVER NORTHWESTERN SECTIONS...BUT FEEL ONLY ISOLATED
CONVECTION WILL GET GOING.  MORE CONVECTION MAY DEVELOP OVER WY AND
SPREAD INTO EASTERN SECTIONS LATER TONIGHT...SO WILL GO WITH CHANCE
POPS THERE.  CONDITIONS LOOK MORE FAVORABLE FOR CONVECTION ON
WEDNESDAY AS THE UPPER TROF OVER THE PACNW APPROACHES. A GREATER MID
LEVEL MOISTURE WILL BE PRESENT WITH A WEAKER CAP AND STRONGER JET
FORCING. STORMS SHOULD HAVE GOOD STRUCTURE CONSIDERING THE FORECAST
SHEAR.  WILL GO WITH HIGH CHANCE POPS FOR WEDNESDAY AND WEDNESDAY NIGHT.
THE TROUGH WILL BE SITUATED OVER THE STATE ON THURSDAY...LEAVING THE CWA
IN FAVORABLE POSITION FOR COOLER TEMPERATURES AND THUNDERSTORMS. WILL
KEEP CHANCE POPS GOING. MOORE

.LONG TERM...VALID FOR SAT...SUN...MON...TUE...

SAT...EXTENDED TEMPS WILL BE MORE LIKE TEMPS FOR EARLY SEPTEMBER THAN
EARLY AUGUST. ALL MODELS INDICATE A TROUGH IN THE VICINITY OF SOUTHERN
BRITISH COLUMBIA AND ALBERTA SATURDAY RESULTING IN A ZONAL FLOW ALOFT
ACROSS OUR FORECAST AREA. IN ADDITION...AN ELONGATED AREA OF HIGH
PRESSURE WILL STRETCH FROM WESTERN MONTANA DOWN INTO COLORADO. PRESSURE
FIELDS IN THE MODELS DIVERGE AT THIS POINT. THE MRF PLACES A STRONG AREA
OF LOW PRESSURE ACROSS EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA. THIS COMBINED WITH THE AREA
OF HIGH PRESSURE OVER THE NORTHERN ROCKIES WOULD RESULT IN WINDY
CONDITIONS.
SUN...TROUGH ACROSS SOUTHERN CANADA STRENGTHENS AND SLIDES JUST TO THE
NORTH OF THE BORDER MAKING FOR A NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT. BOTH MRF
AND ECMWF ARE IN AGREEMENT THAT A LEE SIDE TROUGH WILL DEVELOP
WITH PRESSURE GRADIENTS TIGHTENING ACROSS THE WESTERN HALF OF OUR
FORECAST AREA. UKMET IS THE ONE IN DISAGREEMENT AND DOES NOT HINT AT
MUCH OF A TROUGH. SUNDAY SHOULD HAVE BREEZY NORTH WINDS BUT NOT AS
BREEZY AS SATURDAY.
MON & TUE...TROUGH CONTINUES TO MOVE ACROSS SOUTHERN CANADA WHICH WILL
CONTINUE OUR NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT. COOLER AIR ALOFT COUPLED WITH
NORTHWEST FLOW SHOULD HELP TO PRODUCE MOSTLY CLOUDY SKIES ACROSS THE
FORECAST AREA. BEST CHANCES FOR PRECIP WILL BE ACROSS THE FAR EAST AS
MOST OF THE PRECIP FROM THE TROUGH IN CANADA MOVES ACROSS THE DAKOTAS.
HOOLEY

    WED     THU     FRI     FRI     SAT     SUN     MON
-----------------------------------------------------------
BIL 060/084 056/075 050/075 053/081 053/077 050/075 049/075
    03/T    44/T    43/T    20/B    00/E    00/B    00/E
LVM 049/079 048/071 045/073 048/079 049/076 049/073 045/073
    04/T    44/T    42/T    00/B    00/E    00/B    00/E
HDN 057/086 053/077 048/075 048/083 053/079 049/077 047/077
    03/T    44/T    43/T    22/T    00/E    02/T    20/E
MLS 067/087 061/078 053/073 052/081 054/079 053/077 050/077
    22/T    44/T    43/T    03/T    00/E    23/T    32/T
4BQ 064/086 059/077 052/071 052/081 053/078 053/076 051/076
    22/T    44/T    43/T    23/T    00/E    22/T    22/T
BHK 063/085 058/078 051/072 051/080 051/079 052/075 049/075
    32/T    44/T    43/T    03/T    00/E    33/T    33/T
SHR 057/087 056/077 047/074 047/080 048/078 049/073 045/073
    23/T    44/T    43/T    30/U    00/E    02/T    20/E

.BYZ...
MT...NONE.
WY...NONE.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Billings, MT issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 5, 6:19 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBYZPowder River56 min
Aug 5, 6:39 PM MDTFlash Flood WarningBYZPowder River2 hr

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Montana, 2002Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2002

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.