Alert archive / Kentucky / Mesoscale Discussions in 2003

Mesoscale Discussion 939

May 11, 200374 counties in Kentucky; Wayne County, West Virginia

The Storm Prediction Center issued this mesoscale discussion at May 11, 2003, 4:16 AM CDT for 74 counties in Kentucky; Wayne County, West Virginia. It was in force for 59 min.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 11, 2003, 4:16 AM CDT (09:16 UTC)
Expired
May 11, 2003, 5:15 AM CDT
In force
59 min
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 75 counties

Adair County, KY, Anderson County, KY, Barren County, KY, Bath County, KY, Bell County, KY, Bourbon County, KY, Boyd County, KY, Boyle County, KY, Bracken County, KY, Breathitt County, KY, Carter County, KY, Casey County, KY, Clark County, KY, Clay County, KY, Clinton County, KY, Cumberland County, KY, Elliott County, KY, Estill County, KY, Fayette County, KY, Fleming County, KY, Floyd County, KY, Franklin County, KY, Garrard County, KY, Grant County, KY, Green County, KY, Greenup County, KY, Harlan County, KY, Harrison County, KY, Jackson County, KY, Jessamine County, KY, Johnson County, KY, Knott County, KY, Knox County, KY, Laurel County, KY, Lawrence County, KY, Lee County, KY, Leslie County, KY, Letcher County, KY, Lewis County, KY, Lincoln County, KY, Madison County, KY, Magoffin County, KY, Marion County, KY, Martin County, KY, Mason County, KY, McCreary County, KY, Menifee County, KY, Mercer County, KY, Metcalfe County, KY, Monroe County, KY, Montgomery County, KY, Morgan County, KY, Nelson County, KY, Nicholas County, KY, Owen County, KY, Owsley County, KY, Pendleton County, KY, Perry County, KY, Pike County, KY, Powell County, KY, Pulaski County, KY, Robertson County, KY, Rockcastle County, KY, Rowan County, KY, Russell County, KY, Scott County, KY, Shelby County, KY, Spencer County, KY, Taylor County, KY, Washington County, KY, Wayne County, KY, Whitley County, KY, Wolfe County, KY, Woodford County, KY, Wayne County, WV

The radar

The Jackson,KY radar (KJKL), 83 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 09:16 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 watches that followed

Watches SPC issued over any of the same counties within four hours of this discussion.

The nearest sounding before it

Cncnati-Daytn, OH (KILN), launched 00:00Z, 9.3 hours before the alert went out and 209 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, Cncnati-Daytn, OH at 00:00Z on 2003-05-11Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1265 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, Cncnati-Daytn, OH at 00:00Z on 2003-05-11The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 411 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
1265 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-64 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
897 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
71 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
411 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
392 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
3.2
Supercell composite
17.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

282 
ACUS11 KWNS 110917
SWOMCD
SPC MCD 110916 
WVZ000-KYZ000-VAZ000-OHZ000-TNZ000-111015-

MESOSCALE DISCUSSION 0939
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
0416 AM CDT SUN MAY 11 2003

AREAS AFFECTED...CNTRL AND ERN KY

CONCERNING...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM POTENTIAL 

VALID 110916Z - 111015Z

DAMAGING WIND/ISOLATED TORNADO THREAT IS EXPECTED TO PERSIST ACROSS 
CNTRL AND ERN KY FOR THE NEXT FEW HOURS.

LOUISVILLE KY RADAR DATA INDICATES DISCRETE STORMS /PERIODICALLY
EXHIBITING SUPERCELL CHARACTERISTICS/ OVER HART/GREEN COUNTIES IN
CNTRL KY AND AND COMMA HEAD ON THE N SIDE OF A SHORT SEGMENTED BOW
ECHO OVER CLAY COUNTY IN NRN TN. JACKSON KY VWP INDICATES FAVORABLE
DIRECTION/SPEED SHEAR PROFILES FOR ORGANIZED TSTMS...INCLUDING
SUPERCELLS WITH 0-2KM SRH OF 400 M2/S2 AND 0-6KM AGL SHEAR OF 30
M/S. 

THE AIRMASS AHEAD OF THE ONGOING CONVECTION REMAINS MODERATELY
UNSTABLE WITH MLCAPES OF 1000-2000 J/KG AND GIVEN THE FAVORABLE WIND
SHEAR...IT APPEARS THAT THE SEVERE WEATHER THREAT WILL CONTINUE
ACROSS CNTRL AND ERN KY FOR THE NEXT 2 TO 4 HOURS. ALTHOUGH DAMAGING
WINDS WILL REMAIN THE PRIMARY SEVERE WEATHER THREAT...ISOLATED
TORNADOES WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE WITH THE AFOREMENTIONED DISCRETE
STORMS.

A NEW WW WILL LIKELY BE REQUIRED SHORTLY.

..MEAD.. 05/11/2003

...PLEASE SEE WWW.SPC.NOAA.GOV FOR GRAPHIC PRODUCT...

ATTN...WFO...RLX...MRX...JKL...ILN...LMK...OHX...

36668598 37058592 37748553 38388519 38788473 38748387
38668339 38568289 38098236 37498233 37168260 36638341
36618420 36618548

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 10, 7:06 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBallard, Calloway, Carlisle, Crittenden, Fulton, Graves and 5 more54 min
May 10, 8:28 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBreathitt, Floyd, Johnson, Knott, Magoffin, Martin and 1 more62 min
May 10, 8:45 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCBallard, Carlisle, Fulton, Graves, Hickman, Livingston and 2 more5 hr
May 10, 9:10 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCOldham5 hr
May 10, 10:04 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAllen, Barren, Breckinridge, Butler, Caldwell, Calloway and 23 more116 min
May 10, 11:20 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCAdair, Allen, Anderson, Barren, Bourbon, Boyle and 38 more6 hr
May 10, 11:28 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBoone, Bracken, Campbell, Carroll, Gallatin, Grant and 2 more2 hr
May 11, 1:46 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAllen, Anderson, Barren, Bourbon, Boyle, Breckinridge and 46 more89 min
May 11, 5:05 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCBath, Bell, Bourbon, Boyle, Breathitt, Casey and 38 more4 hr
May 11, 5:55 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCBell, Harlan5 hr
May 11, 9:30 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBrooke, Doddridge, Hancock, Harrison, Marion, Marshall and 9 more2 hr
May 11, 10:45 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCBrooke, Hancock, Marshall, Monongalia, Ohio, Wetzel5 hr
May 11, 1:52 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBrooke, Hancock, Marshall, Monongalia, Ohio, Wetzel113 min
May 11, 2:18 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBerkeley, Jefferson, Morgan117 min

Nearby

Mesoscale Discussions in Kentucky, 2003Mesoscale Discussions in West Virginia, 2003Every mesoscale discussion in 2003

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.