Damaging Wind in Wyoming, June 1, 2002

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RIVERTON WY
308 PM MDT SAT JUN 1 2002

RIDGING STILL VERY APPARENT OVER THE REGION AS SHOWERS AND STORMS
CONTINUE TO ROTATE AROUND PERIPHERY JUST NORTH OF WYOMING.  DECENT
LITTLE COMPLEX JUST SKIRTING THE NORTHWEST CORNER OF YELLOWSTONE...
BUT MOST OF ITS EFFECTS SHOULD MISS YELLOWSTONE.  AN AREA OF MAINLY
MID AND HIGH CLOUDS ROTATING INTO SOUTHWEST WYOMING HAVING A TUFF
TIME HOLDING TOGETHER AS THEY ENTER THE HIGHER PRESSURE.  TROF
SWOOPING RATHER QUICKLY INTO THE WEST COAST AS THINGS GET SORT OF
BUNCHED UP IN THE INTERMOUNTAIN REGION FOR A SPELL.  NOT MUCH IN THE
WAY OF MECHANICAL FORCING TODAY IN THE ANTICIPATED ABSENCE OF ANY
SHORTWAVE ACTIVITY.  HOWEVER...A DAY FOR THERMODYNAMICS AS
ATMOSPHERE EXPECTED TO BECOME MODERATELY UNSTABLE ACROSS THE NORTH
AND NORTHEAST.  COINCIDENT WITH THE INSTABILITY IS GOOD LOW LEVEL
CONVERGENCE/UPPER LEVEL DIVERGENCE AND THETA-E RIDGING.  MODEL
SOUNDINGS IN THIS AREA INDICATES GOOD POTENTIAL FOR STRONG WIND AND
LARGE HAIL...THO WET BULB IS A LITTLE ON THE HIGH SIDE.  SURFACE LOW
CROSSING WYOMING TODAY SHOULD BE MOVING INTO THE PLAINS
TONIGHT...BRINGING GOOD VEERING OF LOWER LEVEL WIND ACROSS THE
NORTHEAST AND EAST PARTS OF THE CWA.  SUNDAY THE TROF MOVES CLOSER
WITH WYOMING IN GOOD SOUTHWEST FLOW EARLY...THEN A COLD FRONT MOVES
INTO THE NORTH BY LATE AFTERNOON...PROVIDING A GOOD FOCUSING
MECHANISM FOR ENHANCED CONVECTION AS THE ATMOSPHERE ONCE AGAIN
EXPECTED TO BE QUITE UNSTABLE WITH GOOD LOW LEVEL CONVERGENCE/UPPER
LEVEL DIVERGENCE ACROSS THE NORTH AND EAST ONCE AGAIN.  FRONT THEN
MOVES SOUTH ACROSS THE REGION SUNDAY NIGHT PROVIDING NORTHEAST FLOW
FOR MOST INTO OR THRU MONDAY.  TROFINESS HANGS AROUND FOR MUCH OF
THE EARLY PART OF NEXT WEEK...MAKING FOR UNSETTLED AND COOLER
CONDITIONS.  OVERALL FORECAST TREND UNCHANGED...ONLY MINOR CHANGES
MADE.

FIRE WEATHER...RED FLAG WARNING TODAY FOR SOUTHWEST WYOMING FIRE
ZONES AS WINDY...DRY...AND WARM CONDITIONS PERSIST WITH VERY LOW RH
VALUES AND POSSIBILITY OF DRY THUNDERSTORMS.

.RIW...RED FLAG WARNING TODAY WYOMING FIRE WEATHER ZONES 277 AND 279.