Alert archive / Kentucky / Mesoscale Discussions in 2003

Mesoscale Discussion 993

May 15, 200374 counties in Kentucky; 12 counties in Tennessee

The Storm Prediction Center issued this mesoscale discussion at May 15, 2003, 6:52 AM CDT for 74 counties in Kentucky; 12 counties in Tennessee. It was in force for 2 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 15, 2003, 6:52 AM CDT (11:52 UTC)
Expired
May 15, 2003, 9:15 AM CDT
In force
2 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 86 counties

Adair County, KY, Allen County, KY, Barren County, KY, Bell County, KY, Boyle County, KY, Breathitt County, KY, Breckinridge County, KY, Butler County, KY, Caldwell County, KY, Calloway County, KY, Carlisle County, KY, Casey County, KY, Christian County, KY, Clay County, KY, Clinton County, KY, Crittenden County, KY, Cumberland County, KY, Daviess County, KY, Edmonson County, KY, Estill County, KY, Floyd County, KY, Fulton County, KY, Garrard County, KY, Graves County, KY, Grayson County, KY, Green County, KY, Hancock County, KY, Hardin County, KY, Harlan County, KY, Hart County, KY, Henderson County, KY, Hickman County, KY, Hopkins County, KY, Jackson County, KY, Knott County, KY, Knox County, KY, Larue County, KY, Laurel County, KY, Lee County, KY, Leslie County, KY, Letcher County, KY, Lincoln County, KY, Livingston County, KY, Logan County, KY, Lyon County, KY, Madison County, KY, Magoffin County, KY, Marion County, KY, Marshall County, KY, McCracken County, KY, McCreary County, KY, McLean County, KY, Menifee County, KY, Metcalfe County, KY, Monroe County, KY, Muhlenberg County, KY, Ohio County, KY, Owsley County, KY, Perry County, KY, Pike County, KY, Powell County, KY, Pulaski County, KY, Rockcastle County, KY, Russell County, KY, Simpson County, KY, Taylor County, KY, Todd County, KY, Trigg County, KY, Union County, KY, Warren County, KY, Wayne County, KY, Webster County, KY, Whitley County, KY, Wolfe County, KY, Campbell County, TN, Clay County, TN, Fentress County, TN, Henry County, TN, Macon County, TN, Montgomery County, TN, Pickett County, TN, Robertson County, TN, Scott County, TN, Stewart County, TN, Sumner County, TN, Trousdale County, TN

The radar

The Louisville radar (KLVX), 97 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 11:52 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

Nashville Metro, TN (KBNA), launched 00:00Z, 11.9 hours before the alert went out and 117 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, Nashville Metro, TN at 00:00Z on 2003-05-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 106 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, Nashville Metro, TN at 00:00Z on 2003-05-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 73 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
106 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-84 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
724 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
25 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
73 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
113 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

006 
ACUS11 KWNS 151153
SWOMCD
SPC MCD 151152 
KYZ000-VAZ000-TNZ000-INZ000-ILZ000-MOZ000-151415-

MESOSCALE DISCUSSION 0993
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
0652 AM CDT THU MAY 15 2003

AREAS AFFECTED...WRN/SRN KY...PARTS OF NRN TN

CONCERNING...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM POTENTIAL 

VALID 151152Z - 151415Z

AREA WILL BE MONITORED FOR POSSIBILITY OF A WW LATER THIS MORNING.

WEAK OUTFLOW BOUNDARY HAS PROGRESSED SOUTH/EAST OF THE HUNTINGTON
WV/LEXINGTON AND LOUISVILLE KY AREAS OVERNIGHT...IN WAKE OF REMNANTS
OF CONVECTIVE SYSTEM NOW SPREADING INTO WEST VIRGINIA.	AIR MASS
ALONG/SOUTH OF BOUNDARY...ACROSS SOUTHERN AND WESTERN KENTUCKY
REMAINS RELATIVELY MOIST AND SUFFICIENT BREAKS IN CLOUD COVER EXIST
TO ALLOW QUICK SURFACE HEATING INTO THE 70S BY MID MORNING.   THIS
WILL OCCUR AS MID-LEVEL THERMAL TROUGH GRADUALLY ROTATES EASTWARD
THROUGH THE LOWER OHIO VALLEY...CONTRIBUTING TO FURTHER
DESTABILIZATION.

MODELS SUGGEST CAPE IN EXCESS OF 1000 J/KG...SUPPORTIVE OF VIGOROUS
CONVECTIVE DEVELOPMENT...PARTICULARLY WHERE VERTICAL SHEAR PROFILES
AND FORCING BECOME ENHANCED BY MID-LEVEL JET STREAK...PROGGED TO
NOSE SOUTHEASTWARD ALONG A CARBONDALE IL...HOPKINSVILLE/BOWLING
GREEN AXIS BY 18Z.  POTENTIAL FOR LARGE HAIL WILL CONTINUE AS
THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY INCREASES THIS MORNING.  ACTIVITY MAY EVOLVE
INTO MORE ORGANIZED CLUSTER...WITH POTENTIAL FOR GUSTY WINDS
INCREASING WITH DEVELOPMENT OF SURFACE COLD POOL/MESO HIGH.

..KERR.. 05/15/2003

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

ATTN...WFO...MRX...JKL...LMK...OHX...PAH...MEG...

37898785 37878639 37648526 37788432 38048364 37478225
36588359 36348427 36368624 36398724 36258848 36588960
36938899 37258849

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 14, 8:15 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCrittenden, Henderson, Hopkins, Livingston, McLean, Union and 1 more60 min
May 14, 8:30 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCCaldwell, Crittenden, Livingston, Union4 hr
May 14, 9:24 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCarroll, Henry, Oldham, Trimble96 min
May 14, 10:10 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBallard, Caldwell, Carlisle, Crittenden, Fulton, Graves and 5 more2 hr
May 15, 10:15 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAnderson, Bath, Boone, Bourbon, Boyle, Bracken and 53 more6 hr
May 15, 12:22 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAdair, Barren, Bell, Boyle, Breathitt, Casey and 37 more53 min
May 15, 12:50 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAdair, Barren, Bell, Boyle, Breathitt, Casey and 41 more5 hr
May 15, 2:20 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAdair, Allen, Anderson, Barren, Bath, Bell and 90 more85 min
May 15, 4:42 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAllen, Caldwell, Calloway, Christian, Graves, Logan and 9 more63 min
May 15, 5:10 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAllen, Christian, Logan, Monroe, Simpson, Todd and 1 more6 hr
May 15, 11:08 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCarter, Johnson2 hr
May 15, 3:10 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCCarter, Cocke, Greene, Hamblen, Jefferson, Sevier and 2 more6 hr
May 15, 5:06 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCarter, Cocke, Greene, Hamblen, Jefferson, Sevier and 2 more84 min
May 15, 6:39 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCSevier2 hr

Nearby

Mesoscale Discussions in Kentucky, 2003Mesoscale Discussions in Tennessee, 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.