Alert archive / Texas / Mesoscale Discussions in 2021

Mesoscale Discussion 439

April 27, 2021Comanche County, Cotton County, Tillman County, Oklahoma; 11 counties in Texas

The Storm Prediction Center issued this mesoscale discussion at Apr 27, 2021, 5:52 PM CDT for Comanche County, Cotton County, Tillman County, Oklahoma; 11 counties in Texas. It was in force for 113 min.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Apr 27, 2021, 5:52 PM CDT (22:52 UTC)
Expired
Apr 27, 2021, 7:45 PM CDT
In force
113 min
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
Concerning
Severe thunderstorm watch 113

Counties Comanche County, OK, Cotton County, OK, Tillman County, OK, Baylor County, TX, Dickens County, TX, Foard County, TX, Hardeman County, TX, Kent County, TX, King County, TX, Knox County, TX, Scurry County, TX, Stonewall County, TX, Wichita County, TX, Wilbarger County, TX

The radar

The Altus AFB radar (KFDR), 100 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:53 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

Amarillo Airport, TX (KAMA), launched 12:00Z, 10.9 hours before the alert went out and 241 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, Amarillo Airport, TX at 12:00Z on 2021-04-27Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Amarillo Airport, TX at 12:00Z on 2021-04-27The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 96 square meters per square second.1939587897117136Sfc1 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
4126 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
53 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
96 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
143 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

675 
ACUS11 KWNS 272253
SWOMCD
SPC MCD 272252 
OKZ000-TXZ000-280045-

Mesoscale Discussion 0439
NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK
0552 PM CDT Tue Apr 27 2021

Areas affected...Parts of the Texas South Plains into southwestern
Oklahoma

Concerning...Severe Thunderstorm Watch 113...

Valid 272252Z - 280045Z

The severe weather threat for Severe Thunderstorm Watch 113
continues.

SUMMARY...Additional supercell development is possible across the
region during the next few hours, which may pose the risk for large,
potentially damaging hail, and a tornado or two, before tending to
evolve into an increasingly organized cluster of storms during the
7-9 PM CDT time frame.

DISCUSSION...Although a subtle mid-level perturbation may now be in
the process of migrating off to the east-northeast of the region,
the primary, much more significant short wave trough is still well
upstream.  As this feature continues to dig across parts of the
lower Colorado Valley/Gulf of California vicinity, it appears that
the stronger downstream difluent mid/upper flow will remain focused
across the Texas South Plains/Northwest Texas vicinity.  Beneath
this regime, boundary-layer convergence and lower/mid tropospheric
warm advection remain focused along an axis northwest of Sweetwater,
TX into areas west of Wichita Falls, TX, where new thunderstorm
development appears in the process of gradually intensifying.

In the presence of thermodynamic profiles characterized by steep
lower/mid tropospheric lapse rates and CAPE on the order of
1000-2000 J/kg, at least some further erosion of mid-level
inhibition is expected to allow for rapid intensification during the
next few hours.  Deep-layer and low-level shear remain supportive of
supercells, before activity tends to grow upscale and organize
through the 00-02Z time frame.

..Kerr.. 04/27/2021

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

ATTN...WFO...OUN...SJT...LUB...MAF...

LAT...LON   33390104 34140022 34699917 34869836 34609808 34219822
            33619896 32920029 32660086 32840128 33390104

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 27, 1:17 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBeckham, Blaine, Caddo, Canadian, Comanche, Custer and 16 more118 min
Apr 27, 1:57 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAlfalfa, Beckham, Blaine, Caddo, Canadian, Comanche and 18 more7 hr
Apr 27, 3:30 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCFoard, Knox, Wilbarger90 min

Nearby

Mesoscale Discussions in Texas, 2021Mesoscale Discussions in Oklahoma, 2021Every mesoscale discussion in 2021

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.