Alert archive / Texas / Mesoscale Discussions in 2012

Mesoscale Discussion 2180

December 19, 201225 counties in Texas

The Storm Prediction Center issued this mesoscale discussion at Dec 19, 2012, 9:00 PM CST for 25 counties in Texas. It was in force for 2 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Dec 19, 2012, 9:00 PM CST (03:00 UTC)
Expired
Dec 19, 2012, 11:00 PM CST
In force
2 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
Chance of a watch
40%
All 25 counties

Anderson County, TX, Camp County, TX, Cherokee County, TX, Dallas County, TX, Ellis County, TX, Falls County, TX, Freestone County, TX, Gregg County, TX, Henderson County, TX, Hill County, TX, Hopkins County, TX, Houston County, TX, Hunt County, TX, Kaufman County, TX, Leon County, TX, Limestone County, TX, McLennan County, TX, Navarro County, TX, Rains County, TX, Rockwall County, TX, Rusk County, TX, Smith County, TX, Upshur County, TX, Van Zandt County, TX, Wood County, TX

The radar

The Dallas/Ft Worth radar (KFWS), 100 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 03:02 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

Fort Worth, TX (KFWD), launched 00:00Z, 3.0 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, Fort Worth, TX at 00:00Z on 2012-12-20Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 211 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, Fort Worth, TX at 00:00Z on 2012-12-20The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 240 square meters per square second.1939587897117Sfc1 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
211 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-28 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1492 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
70 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
240 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
233 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.2
Supercell composite
5.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

125 
ACUS11 KWNS 200300
SWOMCD
SPC MCD 200300 
TXZ000-200500-

MESOSCALE DISCUSSION 2180
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
0900 PM CST WED DEC 19 2012

AREAS AFFECTED...NORTH-CENTRAL/NORTHEAST TX

CONCERNING...SEVERE POTENTIAL...WATCH POSSIBLE 

VALID 200300Z - 200500Z

PROBABILITY OF WATCH ISSUANCE...40 PERCENT

SUMMARY...TSTMS SHOULD CONTINUE TO INCREASE IN COVERAGE/INTENSITY
ACROSS PORTIONS OF NORTH-CENTRAL/NORTHEAST TX THROUGH LATE EVENING
AND INTO THE OVERNIGHT. THE EXTENT OF THE SEVERE THREAT IS A BIT
UNCERTAIN...BUT ISOLATED DAMAGING WINDS/HAIL WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH
THE STRONGEST TSTMS.

DISCUSSION...TO THE SOUTH OF TORNADO WATCH 686...TSTMS HAVE STEADILY
INCREASED SINCE 0215Z FROM NEAR THE RED RIVER TO THE DFW METRO
VICINITY AS OF 0245Z. THIS IS OCCURRING INITIALLY NEAR A DRY
LINE/PRE-FRONTAL THROUGH...WITH TSTM COVERAGE LIKELY TO ONLY
INCREASE THE REMAINDER OF THE NIGHT AS THE COLD FRONT
ACCELERATES/OVERTAKES THE PRE-FRONTAL BOUNDARY. 

LOW-LEVEL WINDS HAVE BEEN NOTED TO VEER WITHIN THE LOWEST FEW KM
AHEAD OF THE SURFACE BOUNDARY PER SURFACE OBS AND PROFILER/WSR-88D
VWP DATA. THIS MAY BE INDICATIVE OF A MORE MODEST MASS RESPONSE ON
THE SOUTHERN PERIPHERY OF THE PLAINS CYCLONE. THIS MAY INFLUENCE
TSTM COVERAGE/VIGOR TO A DEGREE...SUCH THAT EXTENT OF THE SEVERE
THREAT TONIGHT IS A BIT QUESTIONABLE. THAT SAID...ISOLATED SEVERE
TSTMS WILL BE POSSIBLE WHERE STORMS DO MATURE TONIGHT...GIVEN
ADEQUATE INSTABILITY AND VERY STRONG DEEP LAYER SHEAR /70 KT 0-6 KM
PER 00Z FORT WORTH SOUNDING/. WHILE AN ISOLATED TORNADO AND/OR HAIL
CANNOT BE RULED OUT...INITIATION/CONVECTIVE MODE SUGGEST THAT
DAMAGING WINDS WOULD BE THE PRIMARY RISK. CONVECTIVE TRENDS WILL
CONTINUE TO BE MONITORED FOR A POSSIBLE WATCH.

..GUYER/WEISS.. 12/20/2012

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

ATTN...WFO...SHV...HGX...FWD...

LAT...LON   31139791 32919685 33289624 32969438 31039522 31139791

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Dec 19, 7:07 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBowie, Camp, Cass, Collin, Dallas, Delta and 15 more53 min
Dec 19, 7:36 PM CSTTornado WatchSPCBowie, Fannin, Grayson, Lamar, Red River6 hr
Dec 19, 9:56 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAnderson, Camp, Cass, Cherokee, Delta, Franklin and 20 more5 hr
Dec 19, 10:22 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCLamar83 min
Dec 19, 11:55 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAnderson, Angelina, Cherokee, Gregg, Harrison, Houston and 18 more95 min
Dec 20, 1:07 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAngelina, Jasper, Newton, Sabine, San Augustine, Tyler5 hr

Nearby

Mesoscale Discussions in Texas, 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.