Alert archive / North Carolina / Mesoscale Discussions in 2012
Mesoscale Discussion 152
The Storm Prediction Center issued this mesoscale discussion at Feb 24, 2012, 9:05 AM EST for 5 states. It was in force for 25 min.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- Feb 24, 2012, 9:05 AM EST (14:05 UTC)
- Expired
- Feb 24, 2012, 9:30 AM EST
- In force
- 25 min
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
All 82 counties
Alexander County, NC, Alleghany County, NC, Ashe County, NC, Avery County, NC, Buncombe County, NC, Burke County, NC, Caldwell County, NC, Catawba County, NC, Cherokee County, NC, Clay County, NC, Cleveland County, NC, Davie County, NC, Forsyth County, NC, Gaston County, NC, Graham County, NC, Haywood County, NC, Henderson County, NC, Iredell County, NC, Jackson County, NC, Lincoln County, NC, Macon County, NC, Madison County, NC, McDowell County, NC, Mecklenburg County, NC, Mitchell County, NC, Polk County, NC, Rutherford County, NC, Stokes County, NC, Surry County, NC, Swain County, NC, Transylvania County, NC, Watauga County, NC, Wilkes County, NC, Yadkin County, NC, Yancey County, NC, Cherokee County, SC, York County, SC, Blount County, TN, Carter County, TN, Cocke County, TN, Grainger County, TN, Greene County, TN, Hamblen County, TN, Hawkins County, TN, Jefferson County, TN, Johnson County, TN, Monroe County, TN, Polk County, TN, Sevier County, TN, Sullivan County, TN, Unicoi County, TN, Washington County, TN, Bedford County, VA, Bland County, VA, Botetourt County, VA, Buchanan County, VA, Carroll County, VA, City of Bristol, VA, City of Galax, VA, City of Martinsville, VA, City of Radford, VA, City of Roanoke, VA, City of Salem, VA, Craig County, VA, Floyd County, VA, Franklin County, VA, Giles County, VA, Grayson County, VA, Henry County, VA, Montgomery County, VA, Patrick County, VA, Pulaski County, VA, Roanoke County, VA, Russell County, VA, Scott County, VA, Smyth County, VA, Tazewell County, VA, Washington County, VA, Wythe County, VA, McDowell County, WV, Mercer County, WV, Monroe County, WV
The radar
The Knoxville radar (KMRX), 143 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 14:07 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
Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC (KGSO), launched 12:00Z, 2.1 hours before the alert went out and 175 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 150 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -118 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 742 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 68 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 271 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 345 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.3
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
266
ACUS11 KWNS 241405
SWOMCD
SPC MCD 241405
VAZ000-NCZ000-WVZ000-SCZ000-TNZ000-GAZ000-241430-
MESOSCALE DISCUSSION 0152
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
0805 AM CST FRI FEB 24 2012
AREAS AFFECTED...SWRN VA...ERN TN...AND WRN NC
CONCERNING...SEVERE POTENTIAL...WATCH NEEDED SOON
VALID 241405Z - 241430Z
WW WILL BE COORDINATED SOON FROM PARTS OF ERN TN/WRN NC INTO SWRN
VA.
SINCE 1230Z...REGIONAL RADAR IMAGERY/LIGHTNING DATA SHOWED AN
INCREASE IN TSTM DEVELOPMENT ALONG A COLD FRONT ADVANCING EWD INTO
CENTRAL WV...FAR ERN KY...ADJACENT FAR SWRN VA...AND SWWD THROUGH
ERN TN. THIS ACTIVITY HAS DEVELOPED WITHIN A MARGINALLY UNSTABLE
AIR MASS WITH MUCAPE OF 300-500 J/KG. HOWEVER...EFFECTIVE BULK
SHEAR IS MORE THAN SUFFICIENT /AROUND 50 KT/ TO SUPPORT ORGANIZED
ROTATING UPDRAFTS. SOME LOW LEVEL HODOGRAPH CURVATURE PER KGSO/KRNK
12Z SOUNDINGS AND WSR-88D VADS AT MRX/CRW FAVOR A NON-ZERO TORNADO
THREAT WITH ANY SUSTAINED STORMS. IN ADDITION...THE ONGOING STORMS
ARE MOVING QUICKLY TO THE NE AT 50-60 KT...WHICH WOULD POSE A THREAT
FOR DAMAGING WINDS WITHIN THE INSTABILITY CORRIDOR. THE OVERALL
SEVERE WEATHER THREAT MAY BE CONFINED TO THE INSTABILITY CORRIDOR.
..PETERS.. 02/24/2012
...PLEASE SEE WWW.SPC.NOAA.GOV FOR GRAPHIC PRODUCT...
ATTN...WFO...RAH...RNK...RLX...GSP...MRX...
LAT...LON 36318351 37388198 37658084 37737957 37307921 35868041
34948103 34988340 35118478 36318351SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 24, 6:56 AM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Cherokee, Clay, Cleveland, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson and 4 more | 94 min |
| Feb 24, 9:17 AM EST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Alexander, Avery, Buncombe, Burke, Cabarrus, Caldwell and 22 more | 7 hr |
| Feb 24, 11:10 AM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Bladen, Brunswick, Columbus, New Hanover, Onslow, Pender and 1 more | 65 min |
| Feb 24, 12:00 PM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Buncombe, Burke and 27 more | 60 min |
| Feb 24, 12:43 PM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Alamance, Anson, Beaufort, Bertie, Bladen, Brunswick and 51 more | 92 min |
| Feb 24, 1:19 PM EST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Alamance, Anson, Beaufort, Bertie, Bladen, Brunswick and 55 more | 7 hr |
| Feb 24, 1:50 PM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Bladen, Brunswick, Columbus, Robeson | 85 min |
| Feb 24, 3:24 PM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Buncombe, Burke and 27 more | 66 min |
| Feb 24, 4:45 PM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Alamance, Beaufort, Bertie, Bladen, Brunswick, Camden and 51 more | 90 min |
| Feb 24, 8:48 AM EST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Abbeville, Aiken, Bamberg, Barnwell, Calhoun, Chester and 17 more | 7 hr |
| Feb 24, 10:49 AM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Aiken | 56 min |
| Feb 24, 12:04 PM EST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Allendale, Beaufort, Berkeley, Charleston, Colleton, Dorchester and 2 more | 7 hr |
| Feb 24, 4:11 PM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Allendale, Beaufort, Berkeley, Charleston, Colleton, Dorchester and 2 more | 64 min |
| Feb 23, 10:46 PM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Cheatham, Clay, Jackson, Macon, Overton, Pickett and 5 more | 89 min |
| Feb 24, 2:00 AM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Anderson, Bledsoe, Blount, Bradley, Campbell, Claiborne and 31 more | 2 hr |
Nearby
Mesoscale Discussions in North Carolina, 2012Mesoscale Discussions in Virginia, 2012Mesoscale Discussions in Tennessee, 2012Every mesoscale discussion in 2012
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.