Favorable mountaintop conditions and northwest flow aloft combined to produce a mountain wave near Clark. The wind came from chaotic directions with speeds varying wildly over the course of several hours.
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The episode as NWS RIW wrote it up.
Favorable mountaintop conditions and northwest flow aloft combined to produce a mountain wave near Clark. The wind came from chaotic directions with speeds varying wildly over the course of several hours. The strongest gust was 87 mph near the foothills west of Clark. Another sensor along State Highway 120 south of Clark recorded a 65 mph gust.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Riverton, WY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 16, 10:29 AM MST, 27 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RIVERTON WY 1029 AM MST TUE FEB 16 2016 UPDATED AVIATION DISCUSSION FOR 18Z TAF ISSUANCE .PREV DISCUSSION... .SHORT TERM...TODAY THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT LIGHT SNOWFALL LINGERS THIS MORNING...ESPECIALLY OVER THE NORTHWESTERN PORTION OF THE STATE. HOWEVER...THIS SNOWFALL IS DIMINISHED FROM WHAT WAS EXPERIENCED ON MONDAY. SNOWFALL COVERAGE IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE TO WEAKEN TODAY. GUSTY WIND WILL ALSO BE FOUND AND MAY BRING SOME INSTANCES OF BLOWING SNOW THROUGH THE AFTERNOON. MEANWHILE...MODELS CONTINUE TO INDICATE THE DEVELOPMENT OF VERY STRONG WIND OVER THE ABSAROKA MOUNTAINS AND CODY FOOTHILLS THIS MORNING. H7 WINDS OF 50 TO 65 KTS ARE EXPECTED...WITH THESE STRONGER WINDS REACHING INTO THE EASTERN PORTIONS OF THE CODY FOOTHILLS. A HIGH WIND WARNING HAS BEEN ISSUED TO COVER THIS SCENARIO. STRONG WIND WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THE EARLY EVENING HOURS...AND SHOULD WEAKEN OVERNIGHT. PLEASE SEE THE HIGH WIND WARNING PRODUCT FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON INTENSITY...TIMING...AND IMPACTS. HIGH PRESSURE WILL BE FOUND OVER THE AREA ON WEDNESDAY...HELPING TO BRING A PERIOD OF WIDESPREAD DRY CONDITIONS THROUGH WEDNESDAY EVENING. THE AXIS OF THIS RIDGE WILL MOVE THROUGH THE AREA WEDNESDAY...WITH A MORE SOUTHWESTERLY FLOW DEVELOPING BY WEDNESDAY EVENING. ANOTHER PACIFIC SYSTEM WILL MOVE OVER THE WESTERN UNITED STATES WEDNESDAY EVENING...AND THE SOUTHWESTERLY FLOW WILL BRING SOME MOISTURE OVER THE SOUTHWESTERN PORTION OF THE STATE BY THE EARLY HOURS OF THURSDAY...INTRODUCING ANOTHER ROUND OF SNOWFALL. AS THIS PACIFIC SYSTEM PROGRESSES EASTWARD...A STRONG PRESSURE GRADIENT WILL DEVELOP OVER THE AREA...WHICH WILL BRING A RETURN OF STRONG WIND FOR MUCH OF THE AREA. SPECIAL NOTE IS THE WIND CORRIDOR FROM ROCK SPRINGS TO CASPER WHICH LOOKS FAVORABLE FOR VERY STRONG WIND THURSDAY AFTERNOON. STAY TUNED FOR ANY NEEDED WIND PRODUCTS REGARDING THIS SYSTEM. ADDITIONALLY...MODELS DO INDICATE THE ARRIVAL OF A FAIR AMOUNT OF INSTABILITY FOR THURSDAY AFTERNOON WHICH MAY RESULT IN SOME THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY. THE SURGE OF THE LOWEST LIFTED INDEX VALUES MOVE THROUGH THE AREA FAIRLY QUICKLY THURSDAY AFTERNOON...WITH MORE STABLE CONDITIONS EXPECTED BY THURSDAY EVENING. AS STABILITY INCREASES...MOISTURE DOES BECOME MORE LIMITED WITH A DECREASE IN SHOWER ACTIVITY EXPECTED THURSDAY NIGHT. .LONG TERM...FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY A QUICK MOVING SHORTWAVE IS EXPECTED TO PUSH EAST ACROSS MONTANA LATE FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY. THIS SYSTEM COULD RESULT IN SOME SNOW SHOWERS...MAINLY OVER THE NORTHWEST/NORTHERN MOUNTAINS...WITH COVERAGE AND AMOUNTS ON THE MINOR SIDE. THE MAIN IMPACT WILL BE BREEZY TO WINDY WEST TO SOUTHWEST WIND IN THE TYPICAL WIND CORRIDORS AND FOOTHILLS THAT TYPICAL BLOW IN A STRONG WESTERLY FLOW SUCH AS THE CODY FOOTHILLS. IN WAKE OF THIS WAVE...DRY WITH SLIGHTLY ABOVE AVERAGE TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED SUNDAY. GLOBAL MODELS CONTINUE TO DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY WITH THE EVOLUTION OF SOME STRONG PACIFIC ENERGY PUSHING INTO A WEST COAST RIDGE EARLY NEXT WEEK. THE 00Z GFS...FOR THE SECOND NIGHT IN A ROW...SHOWS A STRONG SHORTWAVE TROUGH PUSHING THROUGH THE RIDGE...WITH IT DIGGING SOUTHEAST ACROSS THE NORTHERN/CENTRAL ROCKIES MONDAY INTO MONDAY NIGHT. THIS SCENARIO RESULT IN A GOOD CHANCE OF PRECIPITATION MONDAY INTO MONDAY NIGHT WITH A DECENT COLD FRONT. ON THE OTHER HAND...THE ECMWF KEEPS THE WEST COAST RIDGE...DEFLECTING MUCH OF THE ENERGY INTO SOUTHWEST CANADA WITH ONLY A HINT OF THE FEATURE IN THE NORTHWEST FLOW EARLY NEXT WEEK. SINCE ENSEMBLE DATA IS MIXED HAVE DECIDED TO LEAN TOWARD THE DRIER AND WARMER ECMWF MODEL AT THIS TIME. .AVIATION.../18Z ISSUANCE/ WEST OF THE DIVIDE...KJAC/KRKS/KPNA/KBPI ROUTES SCT SHSN WILL OBSCURE THE HIGHER MTNS WITH OCCNL MVFR CIGS REMAINING IN THE VCNTY OF KJAC. A DRIER WESTERLY FLOW WILL BEGIN TO MOVE IN LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND WILL PREVAIL THROUGH THE TAF PERIOD WITH SHSN ENDING AND CEILINGS LIFTING. GUSTY WEST WINDS AT 20-30KTS WILL OCCUR ALONG THE INTERSTATE 80 CORRIDOR THROUGH EARLY EVENING. VFR CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL FOR THE TAF PERIOD. VERY WINDY CONDITIONS AND LOWER CIGS RETURN LATE WEDNESDAY NIGHT WITH -TSRASN AND WIND GUSTS IN EXCESS OF 50KT POSSIBLE THURSDAY AFTERNOON. EAST OF THE DIVIDE...KCPR/KCOD/KRIW/KWRL/KLND ROUTES A STRENGTHENING WESTERLY FLOW WILL BRING AREAS OF LLWS VCNTY KCOD- KDUB-KLND WITH STRONGER SFC WINDS LIKELY MIXING DOWN INTO VCNTY KCOD THROUGH THE DAY. ELEVATED TO OCCASIONALLY BREAKING MOUNTAIN WAVE POSSIBLE ALONG THE ABSAROKAS AND CODY FOOTHILLS. OTHERWISE ...VFR CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL ACROSS THE AREA FROM WITH SCT-BKN FL150 ACROSS NORTHERN WYOMING. VERY WINDY CONDITIONS AND LOWER CIGS RETURN LATE WEDNESDAY NIGHT INTO THURSDAY WITH -TSRASN AND WIND GUSTS IN EXCESS OF 50KT POSSIBLE FOR THURSDAY AFTERNOON ALL TERMINALS. .FIRE WEATHER... PERIODS OF STRONG WIND ARE EXPECTED ACROSS PORTIONS OF NORTHERN WYOMING TODAY...MAINLY ACROSS THE ABSAROKA MOUNTAINS AND INTO THE CODY FOOTHILLS. OTHERWISE...SNOWFALL ACROSS WESTERN WYOMING WILL WEAKEN WITH WIDESPREAD DRY CONDITIONS EXPECTED WEDNESDAY. THIS REPRIEVE FROM PRECIPITATION WILL BE FAIRLY SHORT LIVED...WITH ANOTHER PACIFIC SYSTEM APPROACHING WEDNESDAY EVENING. ACTIVITY WILL RETURN TO SOUTHERN WYOMING THURSDAY MORNING...WITH ACTIVITY SPREADING THROUGH THE DAY. MODELS DO SHOW THE POTENTIAL FOR SOME LIMITED THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY THURSDAY AFTERNOON. ADDITIONALLY... STRONG WIND MAY RETURN TO THE AREA BY THURSDAY AFTERNOON... ESPECIALLY ALONG THE WIND CORRIDOR BETWEEN ROCK SPRINGS AND CASPER. WIND AND PRECIPITATION WILL WEAKEN THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT. RIW WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... HIGH WIND WARNING UNTIL 8 PM MST THIS EVENING FOR WYZ002-003. SHORT TERM...BRANHAM LONG TERM...WM AVIATION...AEM && .RIW WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... HIGH WIND WARNING UNTIL 8 PM MST THIS EVENING FOR WYZ002-003. && SHORT TERM...BRANHAM LONG TERM...WM AVIATION...ALLEN FIRE WEATHER...BRANHAM
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RIVERTON WY 226 AM MST TUE FEB 16 2016 WYZ001>020-022>030-171200- YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK-ABSAROKA MOUNTAINS-CODY FOOTHILLS- NORTH BIG HORN BASIN-SOUTHWEST BIG HORN BASIN- SOUTHEAST BIG HORN BASIN-OWL CREEK AND BRIDGER MOUNTAINS- BIGHORN MOUNTAINS WEST-BIGHORN MOUNTAINS SOUTHEAST- NORTHEAST JOHNSON COUNTY-SOUTHEAST JOHNSON COUNTY- TETON AND GROS VENTRE MOUNTAINS-JACKSON HOLE- WIND RIVER MOUNTAINS WEST-WIND RIVER MOUNTAINS EAST- UPPER WIND RIVER BASIN-WIND RIVER BASIN-LANDER FOOTHILLS- GREEN MOUNTAINS AND RATTLESNAKE RANGE- NATRONA COUNTY LOWER ELEVATIONS-CASPER MOUNTAIN-STAR VALLEY- SALT RIVER AND WYOMING RANGES-UPPER GREEN RIVER BASIN FOOTHILLS- UPPER GREEN RIVER BASIN-SOUTH LINCOLN COUNTY- ROCK SPRINGS AND GREEN RIVER-FLAMING GORGE-EAST SWEETWATER COUNTY- 226 AM MST TUE FEB 16 2016 ...HIGH WIND WARNING FOR THE ABSAROKA MOUNTAINS AND CODY FOOTHILLS THROUGH 8 PM... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN AND CENTRAL WYOMING. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT STRONG WIND WILL DEVELOP THIS MORNING ACROSS THE ABSAROKA MOUNTAINS AND CODY FOOTHILLS AND CONTINUE THROUGH THE EARLY EVENING HOURS. THESE WINDS ARE FAVORABLE TO PRODUCE STRONG CROSSWIND FOR ROADWAYS ACROSS THE CODY FOOTHILLS. PLEASE SEE THE HIGH WIND WARNING PRODUCT FOR ADDITIONAL DETAILS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY THURSDAY...ANOTHER PACIFIC SYSTEM WILL BRING A RETURN OF SNOWFALL EARLY THURSDAY MORNING. POTENTIALLY SIGNIFICANT SNOWFALL ACCUMULATION WILL BE POSSIBLE ACROSS WESTERN WYOMING. ADDITIONALLY... THIS SYSTEM MAY RESULT IN AREAS OF STRONG WIND. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT WIND GUSTS GREATER THAN 45 MPH. THANK YOU. TEAM RIVERTON
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Winds gusted as high as 87 mph at the sensor 5 miles WNW of Clark. A gust to 65 mph was reported 8 miles SSW of Clark.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Wyoming in 2016Every state in 2016This day in weather historyWarnings in Wyoming, February 2016
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 612153.