Alert archive / Texas / Mesoscale Discussions in 2012

Mesoscale Discussion 302

March 20, 201219 counties in Texas

The Storm Prediction Center issued this mesoscale discussion at Mar 20, 2012, 2:43 AM CDT for 19 counties in Texas. It was in force for 92 min.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Mar 20, 2012, 2:43 AM CDT (07:43 UTC)
Expired
Mar 20, 2012, 4:15 AM CDT
In force
92 min
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center

Counties Aransas County, TX, Bee County, TX, Calhoun County, TX, Colorado County, TX, DeWitt County, TX, Duval County, TX, Fort Bend County, TX, Goliad County, TX, Jackson County, TX, Jim Wells County, TX, Karnes County, TX, Lavaca County, TX, Live Oak County, TX, Matagorda County, TX, Nueces County, TX, Refugio County, TX, San Patricio County, TX, Victoria County, TX, Wharton County, TX

The radar

The Corpus Christi radar (KCRP), 67 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 07:45 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

Corpus Christi, TX (KCRP), launched 00:00Z, 7.7 hours before the alert went out and 77 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, Corpus Christi, TX at 00:00Z on 2012-03-20Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2851 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, Corpus Christi, TX at 00:00Z on 2012-03-20The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 121 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
2851 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-113 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
778 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
40 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
121 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
88 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.6
Supercell composite
3.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

778 
ACUS11 KWNS 200743
SWOMCD
SPC MCD 200743 
TXZ000-200915-

MESOSCALE DISCUSSION 0302
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
0243 AM CDT TUE MAR 20 2012

AREAS AFFECTED...PARTS OF S CNTRL TX INTO MID/UPPER TEXAS COASTAL
AREAS

CONCERNING...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH 91...

VALID 200743Z - 200915Z

THE SEVERE WEATHER THREAT FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH 91
CONTINUES.

CONVECTION ON THE SOUTHERN FLANK OF A MORE EXTENSIVE SQUALL LINE
APPEARS TO BE INTENSIFYING AND SHOWING SIGNS OF INCREASING
ORGANIZATION TO THE SOUTH AND SOUTHEAST OF SAN ANTONIO.  HEAVY
PRECIPITATION LOADING AND EVAPORATIVE COOLING IN DOWNDRAFTS APPEAR
TO BE CONTRIBUTING TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF A SIGNIFICANT SURFACE COLD
POOL...WHICH APPEARS TO BE IN THE PROCESS OF SURGING EASTWARD AT UP
TO 40 KT.  THE RISK FOR STRONG...POTENTIAL DAMAGING...WIND GUSTS
APPEARS TO BE INCREASING AS ACTIVITY SPREADS EAST NORTHEASTWARD INTO
VICTORIA AND ADJACENT MIDDLE TEXAS COASTAL AREAS THROUGH THE 09-11Z
TIME FRAME.  IT DOES NOT SEEM OUT OF THE QUESTION THAT NORTHWARD
INTENSIFICATION OF ACTIVITY COULD OCCUR INTO AT LEAST SOUTHERN
PORTIONS OF THE HOUSTON METROPOLITAN AREA SHORTLY THEREAFTER.

THERE ALSO APPEARS AT LEAST SOME POTENTIAL FOR ISOLATED SUPERCELL
DEVELOPMENT JUST AHEAD OF THE EASTWARD ADVANCING COLD POOL...IN THE
PRESENCE OF MODERATELY LARGE BOUNDARY LAYER CAPE...AND STRONG
LOW-LEVEL SHEAR BENEATH A 50-70 KT SOUTHERLY 850 MB JET.  IF THIS
OCCURS...A RISK FOR TORNADOES MAY ALSO DEVELOP.

..KERR.. 03/20/2012

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

ATTN...WFO...HGX...CRP...EWX...BRO...

LAT...LON   27829913 28429837 28739810 29649689 29719570 29639527
            28779562 28029680 27439781 27289884 27369927 27829913

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 19, 7:28 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCAnderson, Bell, Bowie, Camp, Cass, Cherokee and 30 more9 hr
Mar 19, 8:22 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBandera, Bell, Bexar, Blanco, Burnet, Comal and 30 more53 min
Mar 19, 9:46 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBandera, Bell, Blanco, Burnet, Coryell, Ellis and 18 more119 min
Mar 19, 11:53 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAtascosa, Bastrop, Bell, Bexar, Burleson, Caldwell and 28 more67 min
Mar 20, 12:48 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAransas, Atascosa, Austin, Bastrop, Bee, Bexar and 52 more9 hr
Mar 20, 5:26 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBrazoria, Calhoun, Fort Bend, Harris, Liberty, Matagorda and 3 more2 hr
Mar 20, 9:03 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCChambers, Galveston, Hardin, Jasper, Jefferson, Liberty and 6 more87 min
Mar 20, 9:46 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCHardin, Jasper, Jefferson, Newton, Orange, Sabine and 3 more7 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.