Alert archive / Missouri / Severe Thunderstorm Watches in 2012

Severe Thunderstorm Watch 90

March 19, 20125 counties in Arkansas; 18 counties in Missouri

The Storm Prediction Center issued this severe thunderstorm watch at Mar 19, 2012, 10:35 PM CDT for 5 counties in Arkansas; 18 counties in Missouri. It was in force for 3 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Mar 19, 2012, 10:35 PM CDT (03:35 UTC)
Expired
Mar 20, 2012, 2:00 AM CDT
In force
3 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
Largest hail expected
1 in
Strongest gust expected
60 kt
All 23 counties

Baxter County, AR, Boone County, AR, Marion County, AR, Newton County, AR, Searcy County, AR, Barry County, MO, Christian County, MO, Dallas County, MO, Dent County, MO, Douglas County, MO, Greene County, MO, Howell County, MO, Laclede County, MO, Maries County, MO, Ozark County, MO, Phelps County, MO, Pulaski County, MO, Shannon County, MO, Stone County, MO, Taney County, MO, Texas County, MO, Webster County, MO, Wright County, MO

The radar

The Springfield radar (KSGF), 78 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 03:35 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.

What SPC expected

The probabilities SPC published with the watch, for the watch area over its life.

Two or more tornadoes
20%
One or more EF2 to EF5 tornadoes
5%
Ten or more severe wind reports
30%
One or more gusts of 65 knots or more
30%
Ten or more severe hail reports
30%
One or more hailstones of 2 inches or more
20%
Six or more combined severe hail and wind reports
70%

Warnings issued inside it

1 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 20, 12:09 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSGFChristian, Douglas, Greene, Webster41 min

Discussions around it

SPC mesoscale discussions over the same counties from four hours before the watch to its end.

The nearest sounding before it

Springfield, MO (KSGF), launched 00:00Z, 3.6 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, Springfield, MO at 00:00Z on 2012-03-20Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 173 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, Springfield, MO at 00:00Z on 2012-03-20The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 221 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
173 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-17 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1207 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
38 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
221 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
369 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.2
Supercell composite
3.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

649 
WWUS20 KWNS 200332
SEL0
SPC WW 200332
ARZ000-MOZ000-201000-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 90
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
1035 PM CDT MON MAR 19 2012

THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF

       NORTH CENTRAL ARKANSAS
       SOUTHERN MISSOURI

EFFECTIVE THIS MONDAY NIGHT AND TUESDAY MORNING FROM 1035 PM
UNTIL 500 AM CDT.

HAIL TO 1 INCH IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 70
MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH AREA IS APPROXIMATELY ALONG AND 40
STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST OF A LINE FROM 35 MILES SOUTH
SOUTHWEST OF HARRISON ARKANSAS TO 5 MILES NORTH NORTHEAST OF FORT
LEONARD WOOD MISSOURI.  FOR A COMPLETE DEPICTION OF THE WATCH SEE
THE ASSOCIATED WATCH OUTLINE UPDATE (WOUS64 KWNS WOU0).

REMEMBER...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE
FAVORABLE FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH
AREA. PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR
THREATENING WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS
AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND OCCASIONALLY
DO PRODUCE TORNADOES.

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...CONTINUE...WW 87...WW 88...WW 89...

DISCUSSION...BOWING SQUALL LINE OVER NORTHWEST AR WILL TRACK
NORTHEASTWARD INTO SOUTHERN MO DURING THE NEXT FEW HOURS.  STORMS
ARE IN A REGION OF ONLY MARGINAL INSTABILITY...BUT VERY STRONG
ENVIRONMENTAL WIND FIELDS AND PRESENCE OF LOW LEVEL BOUNDARY WILL
PROMOTE A RISK OF DAMAGING WINDS AND HAIL IN THE STRONGEST CELLS.
THE POTENTIAL FOR QLCS TORNADOES IS ALSO NON-ZERO.

AVIATION...A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL SURFACE AND ALOFT
TO 1 INCH. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS.
A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 450. MEAN STORM MOTION
VECTOR 23035.


...HART

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 19, 7:28 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCHoward, Little River, Miller, Sevier9 hr
Mar 19, 8:48 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBenton, Carroll, Crawford, Madison, Sebastian, Washington57 min
Mar 19, 10:17 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBaxter, Boone, Marion, Newton, Pope, Searcy58 min
Mar 20, 1:48 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCArkansas, Ashley, Bradley, Calhoun, Cleburne, Cleveland and 22 more117 min
Mar 20, 2:55 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCArkansas, Baxter, Bradley, Calhoun, Cleburne, Cleveland and 25 more7 hr
Mar 20, 5:57 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCArkansas, Fulton, Independence, Izard, Jackson, Monroe and 4 more93 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Watches in Missouri, 2012Severe Thunderstorm Watches in Arkansas, 2012Every severe thunderstorm watch 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.