Alert archive / Illinois / Mesoscale Discussions in 2021

Mesoscale Discussion 552

May 6, 202116 counties in Illinois

The Storm Prediction Center issued this mesoscale discussion at May 6, 2021, 1:10 PM CDT for 16 counties in Illinois. It was in force for 2 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 6, 2021, 1:10 PM CDT (18:10 UTC)
Expired
May 6, 2021, 3:15 PM CDT
In force
2 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
Concerning
Severe potential...watch unlikely
Chance of a watch
5%

Counties Champaign County, IL, Christian County, IL, Coles County, IL, Cumberland County, IL, DeWitt County, IL, Douglas County, IL, Edgar County, IL, Effingham County, IL, Ford County, IL, Iroquois County, IL, Macon County, IL, Montgomery County, IL, Moultrie County, IL, Piatt County, IL, Shelby County, IL, Vermilion County, IL

The radar

The Lincoln radar (KILX), 73 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 18:10 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

Lincoln, IL (KILX), launched 12:00Z, 6.2 hours before the alert went out and 19 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, Lincoln, IL at 12:00Z on 2021-05-06Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 16 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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, Lincoln, IL at 12:00Z on 2021-05-06The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 203 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
16 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-111 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1453 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
34 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
203 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
211 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

420 
ACUS11 KWNS 061810
SWOMCD
SPC MCD 061810 
INZ000-ILZ000-062015-

Mesoscale Discussion 0552
NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK
0110 PM CDT Thu May 06 2021

Areas affected...Central/East-Central IL

Concerning...Severe potential...Watch unlikely 

Valid 061810Z - 062015Z

Probability of Watch Issuance...5 percent

SUMMARY...Unique environment capable of brief landspouts will exist
across the region for the next few hours.

DISCUSSION...Filtered diurnal heating ahead of the front has
resulted in steep low-level lapse rates in a narrow corridor ahead
of the cold front across central/east-central IL. Steep mid-level
lapse rates exist atop these steep low-level lapse rates, resulting
in a thermodynamic profile characterized by at least 7.0 deg C/km
lapse rates from the surface to above 500-mb. Additionally,
increased surface vorticity exists in the immediate vicinity of the
frontal boundary. 

Combination of the steep low-level lapse rates and surface vorticity
results in the unique environment where developing/deepening
updrafts could produce in brief landspouts. Limited and brief nature
of this threat precludes watch issuance.

..Mosier/Grams.. 05/06/2021

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

ATTN...WFO...IND...LOT...ILX...LSX...

LAT...LON   40308904 40788830 40758745 39608765 39018842 39218960
            40308904

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 6, 9:52 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBond, Calhoun, Clinton, Greene, Jersey, Macoupin and 7 more83 min
May 6, 10:05 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAlexander, Franklin, Gallatin, Hamilton, Hardin, Jackson and 10 more85 min
May 6, 12:02 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAlexander, Hardin, Jackson, Johnson, Massac, Pope and 4 more118 min
May 6, 12:38 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAlexander, Edwards, Franklin, Gallatin, Hamilton, Hardin and 13 more5 hr

Nearby

Mesoscale Discussions in Illinois, 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.