Alert archive / California / Tornado Warnings in 2002

Tornado Warning 1, NWS Sacramento, CA

March 17, 2002Solano County, California

NWS Sacramento, CA issued this tornado warning at Mar 17, 2002, 3:45 PM PST for Solano County, California. It was in force for 30 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Mar 17, 2002, 3:45 PM PST (23:45 UTC)
Expired
Mar 17, 2002, 4:15 PM PST
In force
30 min
Issued by
NWS Sacramento, CA
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Solano County, CA

The radar

The Sacramento radar (KDAX), 25 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:48 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

Oakland, CA (KOAK), launched 12:00Z, 11.8 hours before the alert went out and 79 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, Oakland, CA at 12:00Z on 2002-03-17Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 11 joules per kilogram.LCLEL10008507005003002001001 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, Oakland, CA at 12:00Z on 2002-03-17The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 32 square meters per square second.1939587897117136Sfc1 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
11 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-3 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
928 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
67 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
32 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
161 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
WFUS56 KSTO 172345
TORSAC
CAC095-180015-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SACRAMENTO CA
345 PM PST SUN MAR 17 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  EASTERN SOLANO COUNTY IN CALIFORNIA

* VALID UNTIL 415 PM PST

* AT 345 PM PST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A 
  TORNADO NEAR VACAVILLE...OR ABOUT 6 MILES WEST                     
  OF DIXON...MOVING SOUTH AT 15 MPH. THE TORNADO IS                  
  JUST EAST OF THE 505/I-80 JUNCTION AND IS OVER I-80.

*THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR...
  VACAVILLE AT 350 PM PST

REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER TO THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY.
THEY WILL RELAY YOUR REPORT TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST
OFFICE.

LAT...LON 3845 12200 3833 12197 3836 12185 3848 12188

RB/JM

The office that day

Everything else NWS Sacramento, CA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 17, 3:28 PM PSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSTOSolano62 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in California, 2002Every tornado warning in 2002Tornadoes 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.