Alert archive / Arizona / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 47, NWS Tucson, AZ

July 28, 2003Pima County, Arizona

NWS Tucson, AZ issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 28, 2003, 3:37 PM MST for Pima County, Arizona. It was in force for 23 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
Jul 28, 2003, 3:37 PM MST (22:37 UTC)
Expired
Jul 28, 2003, 4:00 PM MST
In force
23 min
Issued by
NWS Tucson, AZ
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Pima County, AZ

The radar

The Tucson radar (KEMX), 98 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:37 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.

Did it verify

Not verified. The Iowa Environmental Mesonet's Cow found no qualifying storm report inside this severe thunderstorm warning while it was in force. That is not proof nothing happened: reports are thin where few people live.

Cow counts a report within 15 km of the polygon while the warning was in force: a tornado for a tornado warning; hail of 1 inch or more, a gust of 58 mph or more or wind damage for a severe thunderstorm warning; a flash flood report for a flash flood warning.

The nearest sounding before it

Tuscon, AZ (KTUS), launched 12:00Z, 10.6 hours before the alert went out and 75 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, Tuscon, AZ at 12:00Z on 2003-07-28Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 371 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, Tuscon, AZ at 12:00Z on 2003-07-28The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 8 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
371 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-169 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1621 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
16 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
8 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
101 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WUUS55 KTWC 282237
SVRTWC
AZC019-282300-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ
337 PM MST MON JUL 28 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TUCSON HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  CENTRAL PIMA COUNTY IN ARIZONA
    THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF SELLS

* UNTIL 400 PM MST

* AT 327 PM MST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 7 MILES NORTHWEST OF KITT PEAK...OR ABOUT 16
  MILES NORTHEAST OF SELLS...MOVING SOUTHWEST AT 20 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
  SELLS AT 400 PM MST

DAMAGING WINDS OF 60 MPH OR GREATER CAN BE EXPECTED. GO INSIDE A
STRONG BUILDING AND STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

LAT...LON 3191 11145 3224 11153 3207 11203 3177 11187

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 Tucson, AZ wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Jul 28, 2:40 PM MST, 57 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 28, 2:40 PM MST, 57 minutes before
SOUTHEAST ARIZONA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ
240 PM MST MON JUL 28 2003

.SYNOPSIS...PLENTY OF MOISTURE COMBINED WITH AN UNSTABLE ATMOSPHERE
WILL CONTINUE TO PROVIDE SCATTERED MAINLY AFTERNOON AND EVENING
THUNDERSTORMS TO SOUTHEAST ARIZONA THROUGH THE COMING WEEK AND INTO
NEXT WEEKEND.

.DISCUSSION...ANOTHER DISTURBANCE MOVING AROUND UPPER RIDGE WILL BE
THE FOCUS OF STRONG THUNDERSTORM ACTION TONIGHT. WATER VAPOR IMAGERY
THIS AFTERNOON...AS OF 2 AM...SHOWED THIS DISTURBANCE OVER NEW
MEXICO BOOT...MOVING SOUTHWEST AROUND 20 MPH. SHEAR PROFILES NOT AS
GREAT AS YESTERDAY...BUT GOOD ENOUGH FOR THE THREAT OF ORGANIZED
STORMS. ACTIVITY STARTING OFF MUCH EARLIER THAN SUNDAY AND MOVEMENT
OF STORMS A BIT FASTER ALSO. STILL THINK THAT DRIER/SUBSIDENT AIR
MOVING INTO EASTERN ZONES WILL LIMIT ACTIVITY IN THE ISOLATED TO LOW
SCATTERED VARIETY. BEST THREAT WILL BE FROM TUCSON WEST WHERE BEST
MOISTURE PROFILE EXISTS ALONG WITH UPPER DIVERGENCE ARES. STORMS
THAT FIRE ON THE HIGHER TERRAIN...LIKE THE RIM...WILL HAVE NOT
PROBLEM MARCHING DOWN INTO THE DESERT. SOME OF THE STORMS THIS
AFTERNOON ARE SHOWING THIS. BEST AREA FOR HEAVY RAINFALL WILL BE
FROM TUCSON WEST. WILL HAVE TO WATCH AMOUNT OF RAIN IN CENTRAL PIMA
COUNTY WHERE RAINFALL OVER THE PAST SEVERAL NIGHTS HAVE LED TO RISES
ON VAMORI WASH WHERE WATERS ARE NOW OVER BANKFUL. ISSUED SMALL
STREAM FLOOD WARNING EARLIER TODAY...FIRST UNTIL 4 PM...BUT HAVE
DECIDED TO EXTEND IT UNTIL 10 PM. LATER SHIFTS WILL HAVE TO MONITOR
RAINFALL TOTALS TO SEE IT THE WARNING WILL HAVE TO BE EXTENDED.
STANDARD MONSOON FORECAST WILL CONTINUE UFN.

THIS DATE IN WEATHER HISTORY: ON JULY 28 1952...A STRONG
THUNDERSTORM WITH HEAVY RAIN AND LARGE HAIL...HIT THE COMMUNITIES OF
SAINT DAVID AND BENSON IN COCHISE COUNTY. HIGH WINDS DAMAGED CROPS...
BUILDINGS AND LIVESTOCK. HAIL AVERAGED ONE INCH IN DIAMETER...WITH
THE LARGEST STONES UP TO TWO INCHES. HAIL WAS REPORTED TO BE 3 TO 10
INCHES DEEP.

.TWC...SMALL STREAM FLOOD WARNING FOR ZONE 31 (VAMORI WASH)
       UNTIL 10 PM MST TONIGHT.
Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 28, 12:04 PM MST, 3 hours 33 minutes before
AZZ019-029>035-291400-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ
1130 PM MST MON JUL 28 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTHEAST ARIZONA

.DAY ONE...TODAY

SYNOPSIS...THE DESERTS ARE MOIST AND PRIME FOR STORMS TODAY IF
ENOUGH SURFACE HEATING CAN OVERCOME SOME COOLING THEY HAD LAST NIGHT
FROM STORMS. TUCSON AND WEST SEEMS THE LIKELY AREA FOR THE STRONGEST
STORMS TODAY. THE EAST IS STILL RATHER DRY AND WILL BE INACTIVE
DURING THE DAY ALTHOUGH MODELS HINT AT OVERNIGHT STORMS PUSHING OUT
OF MEXICO INTO SOUTHEAST ARIZONA LATE TONIGHT.

DISCUSSION...DRY AIR STILL IN EASTERN ZONES AND THAT SHOULD KEEP
THAT AREA DOWN THIS AFTERNOON BUT MODELS SHOW A COMPLEX DEVELOPING
IN NORTHERN MEXICO SOUTH OF DOUGLAS WILL PUSH INTO COCHISE COUNTY
LATER TONIGHT AND SPREAD UP TOWARDS TUCSON OVERNIGHT.

TUCSON AND WEST...MODELS SHOW BIG DAY WITH STORMS ON RIM MOVING WEST
TO SOUTHWEST AND STORMS DEVELOPING IN TUCSON VALLEY AND MERGING WITH
RIM STORMS THEN JUST RUNNING ACROSS THE LOW DESERTS. ONLY NEGATIVE
FACTOR TO THIS SOLUTION IS THE REALLY COOLED PHOENIX SOUNDING. BUT
THIS MAY NOT BE VERY REPRESENTATIVE OF THE ENTIRE VALLEY OUT THERE
AND MIXING DURING THE DAY MAY EVEN THE CAPE OUT SOME. SO SEVERE WISE
EXPECTING AN UP DAY. AS FOR HEAVY RAIN...THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCING
TERRIFIC RAINFALL RATES LAST FEW DAYS...AND EVEN WITH FAST MOTION OF
STORMS ITS EASY TO GET AN INCH OF RAIN.

THEREFORE...BOTH THE CHANCE OF SEVERE STORMS AND ONE INCH RAIN IS
HIGHER THAN CLIMATOLOGY TODAY FROM TUCSON WEST...SLIGHTLY BELOW
CLIMATOLOGY EAST OF TUCSON ALTHOUGH THERE IS SOME CONCERN OF STORMS
LATE TONIGHT PRODUCING HEAVY RAIN IN COCHISE COUNTY.

MOVEMENT OF THE STORMS WILL BE TO THE WEST AT 15 MPH.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY

THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW.

SUFFICIENT MOISTURE WILL BE IN PLACE FOR A STANDARD SUMMERTIME
THUNDERSTORM SEASON FORECAST. EXPECT SCATTERED MAINLY AFTERNOON AND
EVENING SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER
CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Tucson, AZ issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 27, 5:55 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningTWCSanta Cruz30 min
Jul 27, 6:30 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTWCPima60 min
Jul 27, 7:33 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTWCPima42 min
Jul 27, 7:55 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTWCPima35 min
Jul 27, 8:31 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTWCPima44 min
Jul 28, 3:56 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTWCSanta Cruz34 min
Jul 28, 4:45 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningTWCPima, Santa Cruz30 min
Jul 28, 4:55 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTWCPima50 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Arizona, 2003Every severe thunderstorm warning 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.