Alert archive / Tennessee / Mesoscale Discussions in 2011

Mesoscale Discussion 918

May 24, 201124 counties in Kentucky; 33 counties in Tennessee

The Storm Prediction Center issued this mesoscale discussion at May 24, 2011, 5:24 AM CDT for 24 counties in Kentucky; 33 counties in Tennessee. It was in force for 96 min.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 24, 2011, 5:24 AM CDT (10:24 UTC)
Expired
May 24, 2011, 7:00 AM CDT
In force
96 min
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 57 counties

Adair County, KY, Allen County, KY, Barren County, KY, Bell County, KY, Casey County, KY, Clay County, KY, Clinton County, KY, Cumberland County, KY, Harlan County, KY, Jackson County, KY, Knox County, KY, Laurel County, KY, Leslie County, KY, Lincoln County, KY, McCreary County, KY, Metcalfe County, KY, Monroe County, KY, Owsley County, KY, Perry County, KY, Pulaski County, KY, Rockcastle County, KY, Russell County, KY, Wayne County, KY, Whitley County, KY, Anderson County, TN, Bledsoe County, TN, Campbell County, TN, Cannon County, TN, Claiborne County, TN, Clay County, TN, Coffee County, TN, Cumberland County, TN, Davidson County, TN, DeKalb County, TN, Fentress County, TN, Grainger County, TN, Grundy County, TN, Jackson County, TN, Knox County, TN, Macon County, TN, Morgan County, TN, Overton County, TN, Pickett County, TN, Putnam County, TN, Rhea County, TN, Roane County, TN, Rutherford County, TN, Scott County, TN, Smith County, TN, Sumner County, TN, Trousdale County, TN, Union County, TN, Van Buren County, TN, Warren County, TN, White County, TN, Williamson County, TN, Wilson County, TN

The radar

The Nashville radar (KOHX), 113 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 10:26 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, 10.4 hours before the alert went out and 120 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 2011-05-24Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1402 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 2011-05-24The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 181 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
1402 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-74 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1214 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
56 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
181 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
213 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
1.1
Supercell composite
7.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

612 
ACUS11 KWNS 241025
SWOMCD
SPC MCD 241024
KYZ000-VAZ000-TNZ000-241200-

MESOSCALE DISCUSSION 0918
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
0524 AM CDT TUE MAY 24 2011

AREAS AFFECTED...MIDDLE/EASTERN TN INTO SOUTHERN/EASTERN KY

CONCERNING...SEVERE POTENTIAL...WATCH POSSIBLE

VALID 241024Z - 241200Z

A SEVERE THREAT IN THE FORM OF HAIL/PERHAPS DAMAGING WINDS...AT
LEAST ON AN ISOLATED BASIS...WILL CONTINUE TO SPREAD
EAST-NORTHEASTWARD THIS MORNING ACROSS MIDDLE/EASTERN TN INTO
SOUTHERN/EASTERN KY.

A FORWARD PROPAGATING/NORTHEASTWARD MOVING CLUSTER OF TSTMS HAS
EVOLVED INTO MIDDLE TN OVER THE PAST 1-2 HOURS. THIS ACTIVITY IS
OCCURRING ON THE NORTHERN EDGE OF STRONG MIXED LAYER ALOFT/CORRIDOR
OF MODERATE ELEVATED INSTABILITY...AS PER REGIONAL 00Z OBSERVED
RAOBS AND MORE CONTEMPORARY RUC SOUNDINGS. WITH SOURCE REGION MUCAPE
ESTIMATED TO BE ON THE ORDER OF 1500-2500 J/KG...MARGINALLY SEVERE
HAIL WILL LIKELY BE THE DOMINANT CONCERN. A RELATIVELY STABLE
BOUNDARY LAYER AND MODEST POTENTIAL FOR EVAPORATIVE COOLING /PER RUC
SOUNDINGS/ SHOULD LIMIT THE SEVERE WIND THREAT...ALTHOUGH MODERATELY
STRONG MEAN SOUTHWESTERLY FLOW/RELATIVELY STEEP LAPSE RATES ALOFT
MAY CONTRIBUTE TO SOME STRONGER DOWNDRAFTS TO THE SURFACE.

..GUYER.. 05/24/2011

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

ATTN...WFO...MRX...JKL...LMK...OHX...HUN...

LAT...LON   35968721 37038625 37618435 37298294 36118339 35238591
            35968721

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 23, 7:31 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCBath, Boyd, Carter, Elliott, Fleming, Greenup and 6 more3 hr
May 23, 7:47 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAdair, Allen, Barren, Butler, Caldwell, Christian and 21 more58 min
May 24, 6:01 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAdair, Allen, Barren, Bell, Breathitt, Casey and 38 more8 hr
May 24, 7:34 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBell, Breathitt, Clay, Floyd, Harlan, Jackson and 13 more116 min
May 24, 11:55 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAdair, Allen, Barren, Bell, Clay, Clinton and 15 more65 min
May 24, 12:57 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAdair, Allen, Barren, Bell, Clay, Clinton and 14 more6 hr
May 24, 2:33 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCHarlan87 min
May 24, 3:27 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBell, Harlan, Letcher, Whitley63 min
May 24, 6:46 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAnderson, Bledsoe, Blount, Campbell, Carter, Claiborne and 26 more59 min

Nearby

Mesoscale Discussions in Tennessee, 2011Mesoscale Discussions in Kentucky, 2011Every mesoscale discussion in 2011

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.