Alert archive / South Carolina / Mesoscale Discussions in 2012

Mesoscale Discussion 379

March 29, 20124 states

The Storm Prediction Center issued this mesoscale discussion at Mar 29, 2012, 3:19 PM EDT for 4 states. It was in force for 116 min.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Mar 29, 2012, 3:19 PM EDT (19:19 UTC)
Expired
Mar 29, 2012, 5:15 PM EDT
In force
116 min
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 43 counties

Elbert County, GA, Franklin County, GA, Habersham County, GA, Hart County, GA, Rabun County, GA, Stephens County, GA, Towns County, GA, Union County, GA, White County, GA, Buncombe County, NC, Cherokee County, NC, Clay County, NC, Graham County, NC, Haywood County, NC, Henderson County, NC, Jackson County, NC, Macon County, NC, Polk County, NC, Rutherford County, NC, Swain County, NC, Transylvania County, NC, Abbeville County, SC, Anderson County, SC, Cherokee County, SC, Chester County, SC, Fairfield County, SC, Greenville County, SC, Greenwood County, SC, Laurens County, SC, McCormick County, SC, Newberry County, SC, Oconee County, SC, Pickens County, SC, Saluda County, SC, Spartanburg County, SC, Union County, SC, Blount County, TN, Knox County, TN, Loudon County, TN, Monroe County, TN, Morgan County, TN, Roane County, TN, Sevier County, TN

The radar

The Greer radar (KGSP), 84 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 19:21 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

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), launched 12:00Z, 7.3 hours before the alert went out and 232 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, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 12:00Z on 2012-03-29Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 37 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, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 12:00Z on 2012-03-29The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 17 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
37 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-97 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1020 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
26 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
17 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-9 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

361 
ACUS11 KWNS 291920
SWOMCD
SPC MCD 291919
SCZ000-NCZ000-GAZ000-TNZ000-292115-

MESOSCALE DISCUSSION 0379
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
0219 PM CDT THU MAR 29 2012

AREAS AFFECTED...PARTS OF ERN TENNESSEE/WRN NORTH CAROLINA/NE
GEORGIA AND WRN/CNTRL SOUTH CAROLINA

CONCERNING...SEVERE POTENTIAL...WATCH UNLIKELY

VALID 291919Z - 292115Z

DEEPENING CONVECTIVE DEVELOPMENT IS UNDERWAY ACROSS THE HIGHER
TERRAIN...AS SURFACE HEATING CONTRIBUTES TO A DESTABILIZING BOUNDARY
LAYER.  CAPE NOW AROUND 500-1000 J/KG SHOULD INCREASE FURTHER
THROUGH LATE AFTERNOON.  THUNDERSTORMS HAVE ALREADY BEGUN TO FORM ON
THE WESTERN SLOPES OF THE SOUTHERN APPALACHIANS...AND DEVELOPMENT ON
THE EASTERN SLOPES...ACROSS THE WESTERN CAROLINAS ...APPEARS
INCREASINGLY LIKELY THROUGH 21-22Z.  AIDED BY A MODESTLY SHEARED
20-30 KT WEST NORTHWESTERLY DEEP LAYER MEAN FLOW...STORMS WILL TEND
TO ADVECT OFF THE HIGHER TERRAIN INTO THE SOUTH CAROLINA AND
NORTHEAST GEORGIA PIEDMONT...WHERE THE BOUNDARY LAYER IS BECOMING
MORE STRONGLY HEATED AND DEEPLY MIXED.  STRONGEST STORMS WILL BECOME
FOCUSED WITHIN A NARROW CORRIDOR OF HIGHER PRECIPITABLE WATER /UP TO
AROUND 1 INCH/...WHERE PRECIPITATION LOADING AND SUB-CLOUD
EVAPORATIVE COOLING WILL SUPPORT POTENTIAL FOR AT LEAST LOCALIZED
STRONG...AND POTENTIALLY DAMAGING...WIND GUSTS.

..KERR.. 03/29/2012

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

ATTN...WFO...CAE...GSP...MRX...FFC...OHX...

LAT...LON   36368529 35748282 35378174 34298066 33888134 33788234
            34618377 35568471 36368529

Nearby

Mesoscale Discussions in South Carolina, 2012Mesoscale Discussions in North Carolina, 2012Mesoscale Discussions in Georgia, 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.