Alert archive / Wyoming / Mesoscale Discussions in 2018

Mesoscale Discussion 539

May 27, 201810 counties in Wyoming

The Storm Prediction Center issued this mesoscale discussion at May 27, 2018, 11:36 AM MDT for 10 counties in Wyoming. It was in force for 2 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 27, 2018, 11:36 AM MDT (17:36 UTC)
Expired
May 27, 2018, 2:00 PM MDT
In force
2 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
Chance of a watch
80%

Counties Albany County, WY, Carbon County, WY, Converse County, WY, Fremont County, WY, Hot Springs County, WY, Johnson County, WY, Natrona County, WY, Niobrara County, WY, Platte County, WY, Washakie County, WY

The radar

The Riverton/Lander radar (KRIW), 156 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 17:39 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

Riverton, WY (KRIW), launched 12:00Z, 5.6 hours before the alert went out and 150 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, Riverton, WY at 12:00Z on 2018-05-27Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 52 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Riverton, WY at 12:00Z on 2018-05-27The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 58 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
52 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-196 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1809 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
47 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
58 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
145 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

421 
ACUS11 KWNS 271736
SWOMCD
SPC MCD 271736 
WYZ000-272000-

Mesoscale Discussion 0539
NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK
1236 PM CDT Sun May 27 2018

Areas affected...Much of central into eastern Wyoming

Concerning...Severe potential...Watch likely 

Valid 271736Z - 272000Z

Probability of Watch Issuance...80 percent

SUMMARY...Storms should increase in coverage and intensity through
the afternoon, with damaging wind and/or hail possible.

DISCUSSION...A moist air mass has spread into central WY due to east
and northeast surface winds, resulting in an unstable air mass.
Heating will persist as well, with MUCAPE in excess of 2000 J/kg
into eastern WY where moisture is most substantial. Meanwhile, lapse
rates are steep through a deep layer courtesy of the upper trough.
Although mid and upper flow is not strong, these southerlies atop
low-level northeasterlies is elongating hodographs and will be
supportive of organized storms over the entire region. Storms are
already forming near the Wind River mountains due to upslope flow,
and these storms will gradually expand southeastward toward a
developing CU field near the south central mountains of WY. Damaging
winds will be possible given the expected elongated/somewhat linear
storm mode, but embedded cells, and/or any isolated cells that may
form will be capable of large hail given the cold air aloft.

..Jewell/Hart.. 05/27/2018

...Please see www.spc.noaa.gov for graphic product...

ATTN...WFO...UNR...CYS...RIW...

LAT...LON   42280824 43250919 43690920 44340868 44170629 43950522
            43510457 42680432 41610465 41210515 41110566 41300642
            41600730 42280824

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 27, 12:05 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAlbany, Carbon, Converse, Fremont, Goshen, Laramie and 3 more9 hr
May 27, 2:25 PM MDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAlbany, Carbon, Converse, Fremont, Goshen, Laramie and 2 more2 hr
May 27, 4:42 PM MDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCConverse, Goshen, Laramie, Natrona, Niobrara, Platte93 min
May 27, 5:06 PM MDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCampbell, Crook, Weston84 min
May 27, 5:27 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCCampbell, Crook, Weston6 hr

Nearby

Mesoscale Discussions in Wyoming, 2018Every mesoscale discussion in 2018

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.