Alert archive / Texas / Mesoscale Discussions in 2021

Mesoscale Discussion 673

May 18, 20214 states

The Storm Prediction Center issued this mesoscale discussion at May 18, 2021, 2:30 PM CDT for 4 states. It was in force for 2 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 18, 2021, 2:30 PM CDT (19:30 UTC)
Expired
May 18, 2021, 4:30 PM CDT
In force
2 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
Concerning
Severe potential...watch possible
Chance of a watch
40%
All 34 counties

Clark County, AR, Columbia County, AR, Hempstead County, AR, Howard County, AR, Lafayette County, AR, Little River County, AR, Miller County, AR, Montgomery County, AR, Nevada County, AR, Pike County, AR, Polk County, AR, Sevier County, AR, Bossier Parish, LA, Caddo Parish, LA, Choctaw County, OK, McCurtain County, OK, Bowie County, TX, Camp County, TX, Cass County, TX, Cherokee County, TX, Franklin County, TX, Gregg County, TX, Harrison County, TX, Hopkins County, TX, Lamar County, TX, Marion County, TX, Morris County, TX, Panola County, TX, Red River County, TX, Rusk County, TX, Smith County, TX, Titus County, TX, Upshur County, TX, Wood County, TX

The radar

The Shreveport radar (KSHV), 112 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 19:30 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

Shreveport, LA (KSHV), launched 12:00Z, 7.5 hours before the alert went out and 115 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, Shreveport, LA at 12:00Z on 2021-05-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 56 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, Shreveport, LA at 12:00Z on 2021-05-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 41 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
56 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-268 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
968 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
16 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
41 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
37 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

403 
ACUS11 KWNS 181930
SWOMCD
SPC MCD 181930 
ARZ000-LAZ000-TXZ000-OKZ000-182130-

Mesoscale Discussion 0673
NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK
0230 PM CDT Tue May 18 2021

Areas affected...Portions of northeast TX into southeastern
OK...southwestern AR...and northwestern LA

Concerning...Severe potential...Watch possible 

Valid 181930Z - 182130Z

Probability of Watch Issuance...40 percent

SUMMARY...A strong to damaging wind threat may gradually increase
this afternoon. Isolated severe hail could also occur. Watch
issuance is possible.

DISCUSSION...A band of convection has persisted early this afternoon
from north-central into northeast TX and far southeastern OK. Ascent
associated with a subtle mid-level vorticity maximum and modest
low-level warm advection are probably aiding these storms. Gradual
destabilization of the boundary layer should continue downstream of
this activity across the ArkLaTex region through the remainder of
the afternoon, with the development of MLCAPE around 1000-1500 J/kg
probable. Mid-level flow is expected to fairly modest across this
region through the rest of the day (generally 20-30 kt), and the
lack of stronger effective bulk shear may limit overall storm
organization and intensity to some extent. Still, the ongoing
activity should eventually encounter a more unstable airmass with
eastward extent as convective inhibition continues to weaken this
afternoon. A small cluster similar to the current radar depiction
would pose mainly a strong to damaging wind threat, although
isolated, marginally severe hail may also occur with stronger
embedded updrafts. Other storms may form along an outflow boundary
farther south based on recent visible satellite and radar imagery.
It remains unclear whether any of these storms will strengthen
enough to justify watch issuance, but observational trends will be
closely monitored.

..Gleason/Guyer.. 05/18/2021

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

ATTN...WFO...LZK...SHV...TSA...FWD...

LAT...LON   33479568 34109572 34659499 34669419 34519346 34209303
            33559304 33009323 32489365 31919447 31839484 31859536
            32339532 32609543 33079555 33479568

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 18, 3:51 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCClark, Garland, Hempstead, Hot Spring, Howard, Lafayette and 11 more5 hr
May 18, 5:39 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCClark, Conway, Crawford, Faulkner, Franklin, Garland and 20 more2 hr
May 18, 3:10 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCJefferson, Lafourche, Orleans, Saint Charles, Saint John the Baptist, Saint Tammany and 1 more95 min
May 17, 7:04 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCotton, Jefferson, Stephens, Tillman86 min
May 17, 7:23 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBeaver, Cimarron, Texas2 hr
May 17, 9:28 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBeaver, Beckham, Cimarron, Ellis, Roger Mills, Texas2 hr
May 17, 7:32 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCBrown, Callahan, Coke, Coleman, Concho, McCulloch and 4 more3 hr
May 17, 7:37 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCallahan, Coke, Coleman, Glasscock, Howard, Jones and 6 more83 min
May 17, 8:04 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCArcher, Clay, Comanche, Eastland, Erath, Hamilton and 11 more5 hr
May 17, 8:34 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAtascosa, Dimmit, Frio, La Salle, McMullen, Maverick and 2 more116 min
May 17, 9:44 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCArmstrong, Borden, Briscoe, Childress, Collingsworth, Cottle and 15 more91 min
May 17, 10:23 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCArcher, Brown, Callahan, Clay, Coke, Coleman and 16 more97 min
May 17, 10:35 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAndrews, Borden, Brewster, Crane, Crockett, Dawson and 13 more85 min
May 17, 10:58 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAndrews, Borden, Brown, Coke, Coleman, Concho and 22 more7 hr
May 17, 11:37 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBosque, Brown, Comanche, Denton, Eastland, Erath and 9 more83 min
May 18, 1:02 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBrooks, Duval, Jim Hogg58 min
May 18, 1:29 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCoke, Concho, Crane, Crockett, Ector, Glasscock and 13 more91 min
May 18, 5:07 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCoke, Concho, Irion, Reagan, Runnels, Schleicher and 2 more53 min
May 18, 1:18 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAtascosa, Austin, Bastrop, Bexar, Brazos, Burleson and 28 more117 min
May 18, 1:57 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBailey, Castro, Deaf Smith, Parmer, Randall, Swisher3 hr
May 18, 2:29 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCAnderson, Atascosa, Austin, Bastrop, Bexar, Blanco and 30 more7 hr
May 18, 3:52 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBastrop, Caldwell, Colorado, Fayette, Gonzales, Guadalupe and 2 more83 min
May 18, 5:10 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCLa Salle, McMullen, Webb95 min
May 18, 6:07 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCArmstrong, Borden, Briscoe, Carson, Castro, Cochran and 17 more113 min
May 18, 6:13 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAustin, Brazos, Burleson, Colorado, DeWitt, Fayette and 14 more92 min

Nearby

Mesoscale Discussions in Texas, 2021Mesoscale Discussions in Arkansas, 2021Mesoscale Discussions in Louisiana, 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.