Alert archive / California / Mesoscale Discussions in 2005

Mesoscale Discussion 252

March 4, 20059 counties in California

The Storm Prediction Center issued this mesoscale discussion at Mar 4, 2005, 3:55 PM PST for 9 counties in California. It was in force for 65 min.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Mar 4, 2005, 3:55 PM PST (23:55 UTC)
Expired
Mar 4, 2005, 5:00 PM PST
In force
65 min
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center

Counties Kern County, CA, Kings County, CA, Los Angeles County, CA, Orange County, CA, San Diego County, CA, San Luis Obispo County, CA, Santa Barbara County, CA, Tulare County, CA, Ventura County, CA

The radar

The Los Angeles radar (KVTX), 76 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:58 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

Vandenberg AFB, CA (KVBG), launched 12:00Z, 11.9 hours before the alert went out and 187 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, Vandenberg AFB, CA at 12:00Z on 2005-03-04Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1 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, Vandenberg AFB, CA at 12:00Z on 2005-03-04The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 66 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 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
1 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
536 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
12 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
66 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
96 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 
ACUS11 KWNS 042356
SWOMCD
SPC MCD 042355 
CAZ000-050100-

MESOSCALE DISCUSSION 0252
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
0555 PM CST FRI MAR 04 2005

AREAS AFFECTED...SRN CA

CONCERNING...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM POTENTIAL 

VALID 042355Z - 050100Z

ISOLATED STRONG TO SEVERE STORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE UNTIL AROUND
SUNSET.  HAIL WILL BE THE PRIMARY THREAT...ALONG WITH A FEW STRONG
WIND GUSTS.  THE GREATEST THREAT IS EXPECTED TO EXTEND ACROSS KERN
AND WRN SAN BERNARDINO COUNTIES THROUGH AT LEAST 00Z.

REGIONAL RADARS INDICATED AN INCREASE IN THUNDERSTORM INTENSITY
SINCE 2230Z FROM KERN INTO SAN BERNARDINO COUNTIES.  DESPITE MODEST
SURFACE DEWPOINTS IN THE UPPER 40S TO AROUND 50...COLD MID LEVEL
TEMPERATURES /-24 C AT 500 MB/ ARE ATTRIBUTING TO STEEP LAPSE RATES
AND MARGINAL INSTABILITY /MLCAPE AROUND 500 J/KG/.  DEEP LAYER SHEAR
AROUND 25 KT WITHIN A MARGINALLY UNSTABLE ENVIRONMENT WILL BE
SUPPORTIVE OF MULTICELLS UNTIL AROUND SUNSET...WHEN THE AIR MASS
SHOULD BEGIN TO STABILIZE.  UNTIL THAT TIME...STEEP LOW-MID LEVEL
LAPSE RATES WILL SUPPORT A HAIL THREAT AND STRONG WIND GUSTS.  0-1
KM SHEAR AT 20 KT PER EDW VAD SUGGESTS A THREAT FOR AN ISOLATED
TORNADO.

..PETERS.. 03/04/2005

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

ATTN...WFO...PSR...VEF...SGX...HNX...LOX...MTR...

34492019 35302058 35932088 36182037 36271906 36121786
35431699 34831639 33841599 32871635 32931713 33611770
34151864

Nearby

Mesoscale Discussions in California, 2005Every mesoscale discussion in 2005

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.