Alert archive / Missouri / Tornado Watches in 2002
Tornado Watch 783
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Dec 18, 2002, 9:30 AM CST for 4 states. It was in force for 6 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- Dec 18, 2002, 9:30 AM CST (15:30 UTC)
- Expired
- Dec 18, 2002, 3:00 PM CST
- In force
- 6 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
All 43 counties
Adams County, IL, Cherokee County, KS, Adair County, MO, Audrain County, MO, Barton County, MO, Benton County, MO, Boone County, MO, Callaway County, MO, Camden County, MO, Cedar County, MO, Chariton County, MO, Christian County, MO, Cole County, MO, Cooper County, MO, Dade County, MO, Dallas County, MO, Greene County, MO, Henry County, MO, Hickory County, MO, Howard County, MO, Jasper County, MO, Johnson County, MO, Knox County, MO, Lawrence County, MO, Lewis County, MO, Macon County, MO, Marion County, MO, Miller County, MO, Moniteau County, MO, Monroe County, MO, Morgan County, MO, Newton County, MO, Pettis County, MO, Polk County, MO, Ralls County, MO, Randolph County, MO, Saline County, MO, Shelby County, MO, St. Clair County, MO, Stone County, MO, Vernon County, MO, Craig County, OK, Ottawa County, OK
The radar
The Pleasant Hill radar (KEAX), 100 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 15:30 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.
Open the radar archive at this moment
The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.
The nearest sounding before it
Springfield, MO (KSGF), launched 12:00Z, 3.5 hours before the alert went out and 144 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 894 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -3 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 549 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 69 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 425 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 449 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 2.4
- Supercell composite
- 8.2
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 WWUS20 KWNS 181536 SEL3 SPC WW 181530 ILZ000-KSZ000-MOZ000-182100- URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 783 STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK 930 AM CST WED DEC 18 2002 THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF EXTREME WEST CENTRAL ILLINOIS EXTREME SOUTHEAST KANSAS SOUTHWEST...CENTRAL...AND NORTHEAST MISSOURI EFFECTIVE THIS WEDNESDAY MORNING AND AFTERNOON FROM 930 AM UNTIL 300 PM CST. TORNADOES...HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS. THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 55 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST OF A LINE FROM 25 MILES WEST SOUTHWEST OF MONETT MISSOURI TO 35 MILES NORTHWEST OF QUINCY ILLINOIS. REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA. PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS. OTHER WATCH INFORMATION... CONTINUE...WW 782... DISCUSSION...SEVERAL SHORT LINES OF CONVECTION HAVE FORMED ACROSS CENTRAL/NE MO. 12Z SGF SOUNDING SHOWS NO CAP AND 1500 J/KG CAPE ONCE SURFACE TEMPERATURES WARM TO THE LOWER 60S...THUS ADDITIONAL STORMS COULD FORM ACROSS SW/CENTRAL MO IN THE NEXT FEW HOURS ALONG AND E OF AN EWD MOVING COLD FRONT. THOUGH LOW-LEVEL FLOW HAS VEERED SOME THIS MORNING...INSTABILITY AND VERTICAL SHEAR REMAIN FAVORABLE FOR SUPERCELLS WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF TORNADOES. OTHERWISE...LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS WILL BE POSSIBLE THROUGH EARLY-MID AFTERNOON. AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 450. MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 24045. ...THOMPSON 364,0951 401,0924 401,0903 364,0931
SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 17, 10:40 PM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Calhoun, Cass, Greene, Jersey, Macoupin, Madison and 7 more | 5 hr |
| Dec 18, 2:15 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Adams, Hancock, Henderson | 6 hr |
| Dec 18, 3:30 AM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Calhoun, Greene, Jersey, Macoupin, Madison, Monroe and 3 more | 5 hr |
| Dec 18, 4:35 PM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Calhoun, Cass, Christian, DeWitt, Greene, Jersey and 8 more | 5 hr |
| Dec 17, 7:35 PM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Cherokee | 5 hr |
| Dec 18, 7:20 AM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Christian, Dent, Douglas, Howell, Iron, Laclede and 12 more | 6 hr |
| Dec 18, 2:30 PM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Butler, Carter, Dunklin, Howell, Mississippi, New Madrid and 4 more | 7 hr |
| Dec 18, 5:50 PM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Dunklin, Pemiscot | 3 hr |
| Dec 18, 1:10 PM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | McCurtain | 8 hr |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in Missouri, 2002Tornado Watches in Oklahoma, 2002Tornado Watches in Illinois, 2002Every tornado watch 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.