Alert archive / Texas / Mesoscale Discussions in 2012

Mesoscale Discussion 241

March 11, 20125 parishes in Louisiana; 15 counties in Texas

The Storm Prediction Center issued this mesoscale discussion at Mar 11, 2012, 11:31 AM CDT for 5 parishes in Louisiana; 15 counties in Texas. It was in force for 89 min.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Mar 11, 2012, 11:31 AM CDT (16:31 UTC)
Expired
Mar 11, 2012, 1:00 PM CDT
In force
89 min
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center

Counties Bossier Parish, LA, Caddo Parish, LA, De Soto Parish, LA, Red River Parish, LA, Sabine Parish, LA, Angelina County, TX, Chambers County, TX, Hardin County, TX, Jasper County, TX, Jefferson County, TX, Liberty County, TX, Nacogdoches County, TX, Newton County, TX, Orange County, TX, Panola County, TX, Polk County, TX, Sabine County, TX, San Augustine County, TX, Shelby County, TX, Tyler County, TX

The radar

The Lake Charles radar (KLCH), 134 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 16:34 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

Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 12:00Z, 4.5 hours before the alert went out and 135 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 12:00Z on 2012-03-11Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 182 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 12:00Z on 2012-03-11The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 246 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
182 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-71 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
452 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
26 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
246 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
294 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
1.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

441 
ACUS11 KWNS 111632
SWOMCD
SPC MCD 111631
LAZ000-TXZ000-111800-

MESOSCALE DISCUSSION 0241
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
1131 AM CDT SUN MAR 11 2012

AREAS AFFECTED...ERN TX INTO NWRN LA

CONCERNING...SEVERE POTENTIAL...WATCH POSSIBLE

VALID 111631Z - 111800Z

RECENT TRENDS HAVE BEEN FOR STORMS MOVING INTO SERN TX TO INCREASE
IN INTENSITY. THIS ACTIVITY COULD BECOME CAPABLE OF PRODUCING
ISOLATED DAMAGING WIND AND PERHAPS A COUPLE OF TORNADOES. CONVECTIVE
TRENDS ARE BEING MONITORED FOR A POSSIBLE WW.

TREND HAS BEEN FOR STORMS DEVELOPING ALONG PRE-FRONTAL CONVERGENCE
BAND FROM WEST OF THE HOUSTON METRO AREA NWD TO NEAR HUNTSVILLE TO
INTENSIFY AND BECOME A LITTLE BETTER ORGANIZED AS LINES. THE RECENT
INTENSIFICATION APPEARS TO BE OCCURRING AS THE CONVERGENCE BAND
BEGINS TO INTERACT WITH THE THETA-E AXIS WITH DEWPOINTS IN THE UPPER
60S AND TEMPERATURES IN THE LOW 70S SUPPORTING 500-800 J/KG MLCAPE
OVER SERN TX. THE ATMOSPHERE SHOULD DESTABILIZE SLOWLY NWD WITH
TIME. VWP DATA INDICATE 0-1 KM STORM RELATIVE HELICITY ON THE ORDER
OF 150-200 M2/S2 AND 0-6 KM SHEAR FROM 35-45 KT. TENDENCY WILL BE
FOR LOW LEVEL FLOW TO GRADUALLY DECREASE ACROSS SERN TX AS THE LLJ
SHIFTS NWD INTO THE LOWER MS VALLEY. HOWEVER...VERTICAL WIND
PROFILES WILL REMAIN SUFFICIENT FOR EMBEDDED ORGANIZED STORM
STRUCTURES INCLUDING SUPERCELLS AND BOWING SEGMENTS NEXT FEW HOURS.

..DIAL.. 03/11/2012

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

ATTN...WFO...LCH...SHV...HGX...

LAT...LON   29389509 29999533 32509432 32809338 31799333 29899396
            29389509

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 11, 11:55 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCAllen, Beauregard, Bienville, Bossier, Caddo, Calcasieu and 18 more7 hr
Mar 11, 2:47 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAllen, Beauregard, Bienville, Calcasieu, De Soto, Grant and 10 more118 min
Mar 11, 5:36 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAvoyelles, Caldwell, Catahoula, Concordia, East Carroll, Franklin and 12 more84 min
Mar 11, 6:42 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCAcadia, Allen, Avoyelles, Caldwell, Cameron, Catahoula and 20 more8 hr
Mar 11, 7:56 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAngelina, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Hardin and 15 more3 hr

Nearby

Mesoscale Discussions in Texas, 2012Mesoscale Discussions in Louisiana, 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.