Alert archive / Texas / Mesoscale Discussions in 2021

Mesoscale Discussion 624

May 15, 20214 counties in New Mexico; 15 counties in Texas

The Storm Prediction Center issued this mesoscale discussion at May 15, 2021, 4:56 PM MDT for 4 counties in New Mexico; 15 counties in Texas. It was in force for 94 min.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 15, 2021, 4:56 PM MDT (22:56 UTC)
Expired
May 15, 2021, 6:30 PM MDT
In force
94 min
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
Concerning
Severe thunderstorm watch 172

Counties Curry County, NM, Harding County, NM, Quay County, NM, Union County, NM, Bailey County, TX, Castro County, TX, Cochran County, TX, Dallam County, TX, Deaf Smith County, TX, Hale County, TX, Hartley County, TX, Hockley County, TX, Lamb County, TX, Lubbock County, TX, Oldham County, TX, Parmer County, TX, Potter County, TX, Randall County, TX, Swisher County, TX

The radar

The Cannon AFB radar (KFDX), 79 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:57 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

Amarillo Airport, TX (KAMA), launched 12:00Z, 10.9 hours before the alert went out and 108 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 2021-05-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 390 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, Amarillo Airport, TX at 12:00Z on 2021-05-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 107 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
390 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-372 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1465 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
14 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
107 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
167 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

913 
ACUS11 KWNS 152257
SWOMCD
SPC MCD 152256 
TXZ000-OKZ000-NMZ000-160030-

Mesoscale Discussion 0624
NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK
0556 PM CDT Sat May 15 2021

Areas affected...eastern New Mexico through western Texas

Concerning...Severe Thunderstorm Watch 172...

Valid 152256Z - 160030Z

The severe weather threat for Severe Thunderstorm Watch 172
continues.

SUMMARY...Isolated large hail and downburst winds remain possible
through early evening with storms spreading east through the High
Plains of eastern New Mexico and western Texas.

DISCUSSION...Scattered high-based storms continue developing across
the High Plains and spreading east off the higher terrain of eastern
NM. Winds aloft are relatively weak with 20 kt at 500 mb resulting
in less than 30 kt effective bulk shear. This environment is
promoting outflow dominant multicells. Given the large number of
storms, the convective outflow boundaries should congeal and
contribute to development of a forward-propagating line of storms
through west TX where the atmosphere is moderately unstable in the
presence of a strengthening southerly low-level jet. As storms grow
upscale, the threat should transition from isolated large hail and
downburst winds to mostly damaging wind before storms weaken toward
late evening as the boundary layer begins to stabilize.

..Dial.. 05/15/2021

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

ATTN...WFO...LUB...AMA...MAF...ABQ...

LAT...LON   33400332 35510387 36610392 36860315 36620241 35110161
            33620131 33200252 33400332

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 15, 1:25 PM MDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCChaves, Curry, De Baca, Eddy, Lea, Roosevelt3 hr
May 15, 1:57 PM MDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCColfax, Harding, Mora, San Miguel, Union2 hr
May 15, 2:49 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCCurry, Harding, Quay, Roosevelt, Union7 hr
May 15, 3:06 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCLea7 hr
May 15, 5:35 PM MDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCLea85 min
May 14, 7:45 PM MDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCArmstrong, Bailey, Briscoe, Carson, Castro, Childress and 16 more90 min
May 15, 11:48 AM MDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCameron, Hidalgo, Willacy87 min

Nearby

Mesoscale Discussions in Texas, 2021Mesoscale Discussions in New Mexico, 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.