Fancy Weather
I'm getting an education in several meteorological terms. Both of the new words have entered my vocabulary because of events associated with recent severe thunderstorm activity in the area. To put the terms in perspective, you should know that they are found at opposite ends of a certain weather pattern continuum that includes these terms--highest to lowest, referring to territory covered: derecho (a family of down burst clusters), down burst cluster, down burst, micro burst.
On Sunday South Hutchinson had a micro burst, with 120 mph winds coming straight down from the sky, with a destructive outflow in all directions at ground level-like sauce on a pile of spaghetti. For those who are familiar with this locality, this occurred in a relatively small area near the intersection of Blanchard (old 61) and K17, at the "Doskocil" corner. Down burst winds can reach 150 mph, but they usually last for less than five minutes. According to our daily paper, this occurs in a three-step sequence. 1) Dry air enters a thunderstorm 2) Rain evaporates, cooling the dry air 3) Cooled, heavier air plunges down. The micro burst destroyed parts of buildings and churned trees into broken heaps of brush. Micro bursts can not be predicted in advance. They can occasionally be spotted on radar while they are in progress, but common sense and severe thunderstorm warnings are all the "heads-up" information people can expect.
About a month ago, our area had a derecho, which is a straight-line wind at least 58 mph and at least 240 miles long. This one originated in Harvey County, just east of Reno, where we live. A derecho is comparatively rare, but this one went on a long rampage, traveling east, through adjacent states, all the way to the east coast, according to the National Weather Service. Derechos are usually widespread, fast-moving, long-lived and violent, producing heavy rain and hail, along with the powerful straight-line winds. They are associated with a bow-shaped line of thunderstorm activity. On May 8, there was a strong air flow aloft, and moist, unstable air overhead. Thunderstorms that developed in NW Kansas intensified fast when they reached South Central Kansas. The derecho formed under these conditions.
Tornadoes are high-wind events associated with super cells, with a roving eggbeater wind pattern. As I understand it, the sequence goes something like this. 1) Warm air rises from the surface and bumps into a river of fast moving (cooler?) air aloft 2) The horizontal flow cuts across the vertical flow, creating wind shear. 3) The wind shear sets in motion a horizontal spiral of air movement. 4) Continuous updraft gradually turns the horizontal spiral into a vertical one 5) The updraft, which originally flowed upward, gets sucked into the rotating motion of the wind-shear generated spiral, and a tornado is born. Tornadoes are more predictable than a micro burst, and generally cover a smaller area than a derecho. (We're looking for bright spots here in a tornado scenario.)
Me? I could do with a little less weather-generated excitement. I love knowing what words mean, but I could even remain happily ignorant about derechos and micro bursts.
On Sunday night, we got wind, over an inch of rain, and some dime-sized hail. The storm evidence we saw the next morning was golf-ball-sized hedge balls on the ground, leaf litter on the ground and tears in the leaves of garden crops, along with several broken-off tips on the well-pruned tomato vines.
Today looks like another weather doozy. Severe thunderstorms are on deck, with the possibility of hail up to baseball size. Watching that kind of show would not be my idea of a great spectator sport. A front is slated to stall out along a line from Hutchinson to Marion, which puts Partridge roughly along that line, extending to the west. The most intense activity is likely to occur along that line.
I'm in a quandary. I still have some plants to get in the ground. Do I hurry to do that ahead of the next rain, and risk the chance of seeing them shredded, or do I leave them in the greenhouse, where they're less likely to see the shredding fate, but more likely to deteriorate and then finally be planted in hot, windy, dehydrating weather.
For now, I'm headed out to pull weeds. That, at least, is safe, no matter what kind of weather is in the future.
On Sunday South Hutchinson had a micro burst, with 120 mph winds coming straight down from the sky, with a destructive outflow in all directions at ground level-like sauce on a pile of spaghetti. For those who are familiar with this locality, this occurred in a relatively small area near the intersection of Blanchard (old 61) and K17, at the "Doskocil" corner. Down burst winds can reach 150 mph, but they usually last for less than five minutes. According to our daily paper, this occurs in a three-step sequence. 1) Dry air enters a thunderstorm 2) Rain evaporates, cooling the dry air 3) Cooled, heavier air plunges down. The micro burst destroyed parts of buildings and churned trees into broken heaps of brush. Micro bursts can not be predicted in advance. They can occasionally be spotted on radar while they are in progress, but common sense and severe thunderstorm warnings are all the "heads-up" information people can expect.
About a month ago, our area had a derecho, which is a straight-line wind at least 58 mph and at least 240 miles long. This one originated in Harvey County, just east of Reno, where we live. A derecho is comparatively rare, but this one went on a long rampage, traveling east, through adjacent states, all the way to the east coast, according to the National Weather Service. Derechos are usually widespread, fast-moving, long-lived and violent, producing heavy rain and hail, along with the powerful straight-line winds. They are associated with a bow-shaped line of thunderstorm activity. On May 8, there was a strong air flow aloft, and moist, unstable air overhead. Thunderstorms that developed in NW Kansas intensified fast when they reached South Central Kansas. The derecho formed under these conditions.
Tornadoes are high-wind events associated with super cells, with a roving eggbeater wind pattern. As I understand it, the sequence goes something like this. 1) Warm air rises from the surface and bumps into a river of fast moving (cooler?) air aloft 2) The horizontal flow cuts across the vertical flow, creating wind shear. 3) The wind shear sets in motion a horizontal spiral of air movement. 4) Continuous updraft gradually turns the horizontal spiral into a vertical one 5) The updraft, which originally flowed upward, gets sucked into the rotating motion of the wind-shear generated spiral, and a tornado is born. Tornadoes are more predictable than a micro burst, and generally cover a smaller area than a derecho. (We're looking for bright spots here in a tornado scenario.)
Me? I could do with a little less weather-generated excitement. I love knowing what words mean, but I could even remain happily ignorant about derechos and micro bursts.
On Sunday night, we got wind, over an inch of rain, and some dime-sized hail. The storm evidence we saw the next morning was golf-ball-sized hedge balls on the ground, leaf litter on the ground and tears in the leaves of garden crops, along with several broken-off tips on the well-pruned tomato vines.
Today looks like another weather doozy. Severe thunderstorms are on deck, with the possibility of hail up to baseball size. Watching that kind of show would not be my idea of a great spectator sport. A front is slated to stall out along a line from Hutchinson to Marion, which puts Partridge roughly along that line, extending to the west. The most intense activity is likely to occur along that line.
I'm in a quandary. I still have some plants to get in the ground. Do I hurry to do that ahead of the next rain, and risk the chance of seeing them shredded, or do I leave them in the greenhouse, where they're less likely to see the shredding fate, but more likely to deteriorate and then finally be planted in hot, windy, dehydrating weather.
For now, I'm headed out to pull weeds. That, at least, is safe, no matter what kind of weather is in the future.
posted by Mrs. I at
6:32 AM
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