Thought this was an interesting PNS (Public Information Statement) from the BHM NWS office...
NOUS44 KBMX 012042
PNSBMX
ALZ011>015-017>050-012145-
PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
345 PM CDT WED JUN 1 2005
...TODAY IS NOT ONLY THE BEGINNING OF THE 2005 HURRICANE SEASON...BUT ALSO THE START OF CENTRAL ALABAMA'S WET MICROBURST SEASON...
MOST PEOPLE ARE AWARE OF THE DESTRUCTIVE FORCES OF HURRICANES...BUT FAR LESS ARE AWARE OF THE DANGEROUS PHENOMENON KNOWN AS A MICROBURST. A MICROBURST IS SIMPLY A RAPIDLY DESCENDING COLUMN OF AIR...ASSOCIATED WITH A THUNDERSTORM...2.5 MILES OR LESS IN DIAMETER...LASTING FOR JUST A FEW MINUTES. MICROBURST WINDS CAN REACH SPEEDS EQUIVALENT TO A CATEGORY 3 HURRICANE...AND PRODUCE SIMILAR DAMAGE...BUT ON A MUCH SMALLER SCALE. DUE TO THIS SMALL SCALE...DAMAGE PRODUCED BY MICROBURSTS IS OFTEN MISTAKEN FOR TORNADO DAMAGE.
MICROBURSTS COME IN TWO FORMS...WET AND DRY. HERE IN CENTRAL
ALABAMA...DRY MICROBURSTS ARE VIRTUALLY NON-EXISTENT...MAINLY DUE TO OUR PROXIMITY TO AN ABUNDANT MOISTURE SUPPLY...THE GULF OF MEXICO. ALL MICROBURSTS ARE INITIATED BY COLD AIR DESCENDING FROM A THUNDERSTORM. THE KEY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WET AND DRY MICROBURSTS IS IN THE MEANS BY WHICH THEY PROPAGATE TO THE SURFACE. DRY MICROBURSTS ARE FUELED ALMOST EXCLUSIVELY BY DRY AIR ENTRAINMENT... WHILE WET MICROBURSTS ARE A PRODUCT OF PRECIPITATION LOADING... ENHANCED BY DRY AIR ENTRAINMENT.
SOME INTERESTING FACTS/STATISTICS CONCERNING WET MICROBURSTS:
-WET MICROBURSTS ACCOUNT FOR UP TO 70% OF ALL WIND RELATED SEVERE WEATHER EVENTS IN ALABAMA DURING THE PERIOD FROM JUNE THROUGH SEPTEMBER.
-THE PEAK TIME FOR THE OCCURRENCE FOR MICROBURSTS IS AROUND 4 PM CDT.
-MICROBURSTS HAVE A FAIRLY EVEN GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION AROUND THE STATE.
ALTHOUGH THERE IS NO "OFFICIAL" END TO THE WET MICROBURST SEASON IN CENTRAL ALABAMA...IT GENERALLY ENDS AFTER THE PASSAGE OF THE FIRST COUPLE OF COLD FRONTS IN SEPTEMBER. HURRICANE SEASON ENDS ON NOVEMBER 30.
THE 2005 HURRICANE SEASON IS EXPECTED TO BE MORE ACTIVE THAN
AVERAGE ACCORDING TO THE LATEST PREDICTIONS BY THE NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER. TWELVE TO FIFTEEN TROPICAL STORMS ARE EXPECTED...SEVEN TO NINE BECOMING HURRICANES.
FURTHERMORE...THREE ARE EXPECTED TO ATTAIN MAJOR HURRICANE STATUS...A CATEGORY 3 OR HIGHER. LONG-TERM AVERAGES FOR THE NUMBER OF TROPICAL STORMS AND HURRICANES ARE TEN AND SIX...RESPECTIVELY.
Wet Microburst Season!
June 1, 2005, 9:15 pm
by James Spann
in General Thoughts
Intern Time In The Weather Office
June 1, 2005, 5:08 pm
What exactly does it take to become a meteorologist today...and a successful one? As a rising Junior at Mississippi State University, I am beginning to learn the process. The geoscience major at MSU is titled a Broadcast Meteorology concentration. What a challenge! Not only must I become competent in the science of weather, but I must also communicate well. Fortunately, I love both subjects! Nonetheless, this career demands much time in and out of the classroom.
First, there is the broadcast component. For some of my fellow students, this comes naturally. I have always enjoyed public speaking and welcome every opportunity to do so. However, there are still many areas for improvement and learning. At State, the weather students take classes in news writing, television production, broadcast performance, mass media, and voice and articulation. We not only learn to communicate weather but also learn to broadcast news or perform live shots and stand-ups. For this area, students probably will not improve without much practice at home. When a resume tape determines job placement, broadcasting becomes an important element. The ability to adequately inform viewers and to help the public gives this study even more purpose.
Secondly, the subject of weather, and passion of many, is crucial for continuous study by meteorologists. The junior and senior years at State are packed with science classes. At this point in my academic career, I have only had a handful of meteorology classes, but those that I have taken greatly intrigued me. The significant classes are in geography, thermodynamics, synoptic, and practicum. The responsibility that a meteorologist has to know at least a little about many other sciences is even more challenging. When a natural disaster occurs, who do television stations turn to? This expectation leads to classes like natural disasters, water resources, and others. Science is continually advancing and always complex, requiring myself and others to study hard in class and in the field.
Overall, this intense and intriguing major keeps me busy, exactly the way I like to be. The more meteorologists work at the science, the more comfortable they become at communicating the complex areas of weather. The two subjects go hand in hand for on-air meteorologists. So, if your interested in this career, get ready for challenging classes, personal work, internships, and a really awesome job!
First, there is the broadcast component. For some of my fellow students, this comes naturally. I have always enjoyed public speaking and welcome every opportunity to do so. However, there are still many areas for improvement and learning. At State, the weather students take classes in news writing, television production, broadcast performance, mass media, and voice and articulation. We not only learn to communicate weather but also learn to broadcast news or perform live shots and stand-ups. For this area, students probably will not improve without much practice at home. When a resume tape determines job placement, broadcasting becomes an important element. The ability to adequately inform viewers and to help the public gives this study even more purpose.
Secondly, the subject of weather, and passion of many, is crucial for continuous study by meteorologists. The junior and senior years at State are packed with science classes. At this point in my academic career, I have only had a handful of meteorology classes, but those that I have taken greatly intrigued me. The significant classes are in geography, thermodynamics, synoptic, and practicum. The responsibility that a meteorologist has to know at least a little about many other sciences is even more challenging. When a natural disaster occurs, who do television stations turn to? This expectation leads to classes like natural disasters, water resources, and others. Science is continually advancing and always complex, requiring myself and others to study hard in class and in the field.
Overall, this intense and intriguing major keeps me busy, exactly the way I like to be. The more meteorologists work at the science, the more comfortable they become at communicating the complex areas of weather. The two subjects go hand in hand for on-air meteorologists. So, if your interested in this career, get ready for challenging classes, personal work, internships, and a really awesome job!
Rain For Everyone
June 1, 2005, 1:45 pm
The Wednesday afternoon map discussion video is on the server:
http://beta.abc3340.com/weather/video.hrb
Plenty of rain for everyone during the past 24 hours... an excellent, widespread, and beneficial rain for the state. We don't get them like this in early June all that often; no severe weather and no flooding to deal with. J.B. Elliott posted a comprehensive list of rainfall reports on the blog below this post... and the numbers are still going up in many places.
RIGHT NOW: A broad surface low is near the Alabama/Mississippi border, and is no hurry to move anywhere. The WRF has it over northwest Alabama at midday tomorrow, so we still expect lots of clouds and occasional passing showers and storms tonight and tomorrow. The most numerous showers could very well be east of I-65.
FRIDAY: The upper trough axis will be east of Alabama, and with sinking air behind the wave we figure Friday will be the driest day of the week. We can't totally rule out the chance of a few widely scattered showers, but most places should be dry. Temperatures will recover into the 80s as some sunshine finally returns.
THE WEEKEND: Lots of low level moisture will mean the risk of scattered afternoon showers or storms on Saturday. Those showers might be a little more numerous on Sunday, but there will be some good intervals of sunshine both days with temperatures peaking in the mid 80s.
NEXT WEEK AND BEYOND: Very moist air will stay in place, and upper heights won't be excessively high. This means no really hot weather, lots of humidity, and the daily opportunity of at least scattered showers and storms. Looks like the summer of 2005 will begin with relatively mild and wet weather.
HURRICANE SEASON BEGINS: The Atlantic basin is pretty quiet right now, but water temperatures are warm and we will be watching for any sign of early season development in the Gulf over the coming weeks.
http://beta.abc3340.com/weather/video.hrb
Plenty of rain for everyone during the past 24 hours... an excellent, widespread, and beneficial rain for the state. We don't get them like this in early June all that often; no severe weather and no flooding to deal with. J.B. Elliott posted a comprehensive list of rainfall reports on the blog below this post... and the numbers are still going up in many places.
RIGHT NOW: A broad surface low is near the Alabama/Mississippi border, and is no hurry to move anywhere. The WRF has it over northwest Alabama at midday tomorrow, so we still expect lots of clouds and occasional passing showers and storms tonight and tomorrow. The most numerous showers could very well be east of I-65.
FRIDAY: The upper trough axis will be east of Alabama, and with sinking air behind the wave we figure Friday will be the driest day of the week. We can't totally rule out the chance of a few widely scattered showers, but most places should be dry. Temperatures will recover into the 80s as some sunshine finally returns.
THE WEEKEND: Lots of low level moisture will mean the risk of scattered afternoon showers or storms on Saturday. Those showers might be a little more numerous on Sunday, but there will be some good intervals of sunshine both days with temperatures peaking in the mid 80s.
NEXT WEEK AND BEYOND: Very moist air will stay in place, and upper heights won't be excessively high. This means no really hot weather, lots of humidity, and the daily opportunity of at least scattered showers and storms. Looks like the summer of 2005 will begin with relatively mild and wet weather.
HURRICANE SEASON BEGINS: The Atlantic basin is pretty quiet right now, but water temperatures are warm and we will be watching for any sign of early season development in the Gulf over the coming weeks.
MILLION DOLLAR RAIN--Mid-morning Update
June 1, 2005, 9:38 am
NOTE: Please scan down to see other posts including James Spann's morning discussion and his excellent story on the hurricane season which officially starts today. Remember, the last post on this blog automatically is the top one. Often you can scan down to 8 or 10 earlier posts that still have valid and useful information.
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Yes indeed, probably much more than a $Million rain when you consider statewide savings from not having to water lawns for several days in a row.
At mid-morning, much of Alabama was getting a temporary break from rain. Rainfall amounts in the last 24 hours have been substantial and widespread. Since many areas needed rain, we would like to give you this extensive list of rainfall just in the last 24 hours. (Also see a report about a South Alabama tornado at the end of this report)
1.84 inches at Black Creek, NE Etowah County (very little until last night)
1.76 at Birmingham Airport
1.92 at Tuscaloosa Airport
0.93 at Anniston Airport
0.58 at Montgomery Airport (I think that report could be in error)
1.58 at Mobile Airport
0.76 at Huntsville Airport
3.24 in Selma
0.77 in Pinson
1.85 in Greystone Cove (North Shelby County--James Spann)
1.71 in NE part of Trussville (my location)
1.45 at Ashland
1.83 at Anniston's Alabama Power station
1.15 at Ashville
2.92 in North Auburn
1.53 at Blue Pond (Cherokee County)
1.34 at Bald Rock (near Cook Springs, St. Clair County)
1.60 in Blountsville
1.81 at Bankhead Dam
1.21 at Blount Springs
1.34 at Logan Martin Dam
1.12 at Childersburg
1.40 at Lay Dam
1.30 at Cordova
1.17 at Carbon Hill
3.70 at Yates Dam (Tallapoosa-Elmore)
1.84 at Crudup (Alabama Power facility north of Gadsden)
1.09 in Fort Payne
1.81 at Gaylesville
1.52 at Horseshoe Bend
1.59 at Hollins (Clay County)
1.10 at Haleyville
1.45 at Jasper
1.69 in Jasper
1.15 on Mt. Cheaha
1.14 at Oneonta
1.43 at Pell City
1.15 at Henry Dam near Ohatchee
0.91 atRoanoke
1.69 at Sayre
1.02 at Sylacauga
2.00 at Steele (north edge of St. Clair County)
1.68 at Holt (east edge of Tuscaloosa)
2.48 at Martin Dam
1.56 at Trafford
2.38 at Mitchell Dam
1.01 at Wasley
1.21 at Blount Springs
3.06 in Auburn
2.74 at Brookley Field near downtown Mobile
1.63 at Shelby County Airport
2.70 in Evergreen
1.30 in Cullman
1.00 at Muscle Shoals
All of the above totals are just for the last 24 hours. If we were to add in the weekend amounts (especially last Sunday) places like Birmingham would have more than four inches!
SOUTH ALABAMA TORNADO REPORT
It happened around 6 o'clock and soon after last evening...based mainly on storm spotter reports. It touched down in the Heath Community in Covington County unroofing a mobile home around 6:15 pm. A posible tornado also damaged a mobile home north of Andalusia around 6:06 pm. A few minutes later there were several reports of a possible tornado on the ground near Cold Creek, on Highway 29 north of Andalusia.
FINAL NOTES: Not trying to be the New York Times ("all the news that is fit to print"
on this blog, but thought you would like to see an extensive list of rainfall)
The surface low pressure area is centered along the Mississippi-Alabama border at mid-morning...on track where we thought it would be at this time.
Conditions not really favorable for those South Alabama tornadoes late yesterday. But I suppose that is another reason that weather is so interesting. It does not always worry about fitting a mold.
Let me get out-of-here...life goes on...
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Yes indeed, probably much more than a $Million rain when you consider statewide savings from not having to water lawns for several days in a row.
At mid-morning, much of Alabama was getting a temporary break from rain. Rainfall amounts in the last 24 hours have been substantial and widespread. Since many areas needed rain, we would like to give you this extensive list of rainfall just in the last 24 hours. (Also see a report about a South Alabama tornado at the end of this report)
1.84 inches at Black Creek, NE Etowah County (very little until last night)
1.76 at Birmingham Airport
1.92 at Tuscaloosa Airport
0.93 at Anniston Airport
0.58 at Montgomery Airport (I think that report could be in error)
1.58 at Mobile Airport
0.76 at Huntsville Airport
3.24 in Selma
0.77 in Pinson
1.85 in Greystone Cove (North Shelby County--James Spann)
1.71 in NE part of Trussville (my location)
1.45 at Ashland
1.83 at Anniston's Alabama Power station
1.15 at Ashville
2.92 in North Auburn
1.53 at Blue Pond (Cherokee County)
1.34 at Bald Rock (near Cook Springs, St. Clair County)
1.60 in Blountsville
1.81 at Bankhead Dam
1.21 at Blount Springs
1.34 at Logan Martin Dam
1.12 at Childersburg
1.40 at Lay Dam
1.30 at Cordova
1.17 at Carbon Hill
3.70 at Yates Dam (Tallapoosa-Elmore)
1.84 at Crudup (Alabama Power facility north of Gadsden)
1.09 in Fort Payne
1.81 at Gaylesville
1.52 at Horseshoe Bend
1.59 at Hollins (Clay County)
1.10 at Haleyville
1.45 at Jasper
1.69 in Jasper
1.15 on Mt. Cheaha
1.14 at Oneonta
1.43 at Pell City
1.15 at Henry Dam near Ohatchee
0.91 atRoanoke
1.69 at Sayre
1.02 at Sylacauga
2.00 at Steele (north edge of St. Clair County)
1.68 at Holt (east edge of Tuscaloosa)
2.48 at Martin Dam
1.56 at Trafford
2.38 at Mitchell Dam
1.01 at Wasley
1.21 at Blount Springs
3.06 in Auburn
2.74 at Brookley Field near downtown Mobile
1.63 at Shelby County Airport
2.70 in Evergreen
1.30 in Cullman
1.00 at Muscle Shoals
All of the above totals are just for the last 24 hours. If we were to add in the weekend amounts (especially last Sunday) places like Birmingham would have more than four inches!
SOUTH ALABAMA TORNADO REPORT
It happened around 6 o'clock and soon after last evening...based mainly on storm spotter reports. It touched down in the Heath Community in Covington County unroofing a mobile home around 6:15 pm. A posible tornado also damaged a mobile home north of Andalusia around 6:06 pm. A few minutes later there were several reports of a possible tornado on the ground near Cold Creek, on Highway 29 north of Andalusia.
FINAL NOTES: Not trying to be the New York Times ("all the news that is fit to print"
on this blog, but thought you would like to see an extensive list of rainfall)The surface low pressure area is centered along the Mississippi-Alabama border at mid-morning...on track where we thought it would be at this time.
Conditions not really favorable for those South Alabama tornadoes late yesterday. But I suppose that is another reason that weather is so interesting. It does not always worry about fitting a mold.
Let me get out-of-here...life goes on...
by J.B. Elliott
in General Thoughts
Still Wet
June 1, 2005, 6:06 am
The Wednesday morning map discussion video is on the server:
http://beta.abc3340.com/weather/video.hrb
We are adding new general webcast videos to our web site, so I will begin calling the old video I have been doing a "map discussion" to eliminate confusion. We will add links to the new webcasts here later today... for now you can see the links from our main page:
http://www.abc3340.com
J.B. Elliott just sent a note; his rain total since 6:00 yesterday morning is up to 1.71" (J.B. is at the northeast edge of Trussville). My total for the same time frame (I am in northern Shelby County) is 1.85". This is good, beneficial rain.
Radar trends this morning show the rain tapering off to the southwest as the broad surface low moves into southwest Alabama. We will maintain a good chance of rain today, but I don't think it will rain all day like yesterday.
Interesting to note that SPC has parts of Alabama in a slight risk of severe storms tomorrow. The upper trough will be lined up along I-65 tomorrow, and if the sun pokes out a bit, we could see some stronger storms over east Alabama during the afternoon. But, wind fields are weak and I really don't expect an organized severe weather threat. Much of west Alabama could wind up being dry tomorrow.
Friday might be the driest day out of the next five as we are going to be in some sinking air following the departing upper trough. Even then a few scattered afternoon showers could pop up.
THE WEEKEND: We will be in a very moist airmass on Saturday and Sunday, and scattered showers and storms are pretty much a given. Otherwise, warm and humid with some sun at times, and temperatures back in the 80s.
THE LONG RANGE: The GFS tries to develop some kind of heat bubble out west toward mid-month, but we pretty much stay in very moist air, and scattered showers and storms will be a fixture in the forecast for a while. The 00Z run tries to move some kind of tropical system from the western tip of Cuba up to near Tampa in the June 9-10 time frame. Probably bogus, but I would not be surprised to have some kind of early season tropical storm in the Gulf with the water down there so warm...
http://beta.abc3340.com/weather/video.hrb
We are adding new general webcast videos to our web site, so I will begin calling the old video I have been doing a "map discussion" to eliminate confusion. We will add links to the new webcasts here later today... for now you can see the links from our main page:
http://www.abc3340.com
J.B. Elliott just sent a note; his rain total since 6:00 yesterday morning is up to 1.71" (J.B. is at the northeast edge of Trussville). My total for the same time frame (I am in northern Shelby County) is 1.85". This is good, beneficial rain.
Radar trends this morning show the rain tapering off to the southwest as the broad surface low moves into southwest Alabama. We will maintain a good chance of rain today, but I don't think it will rain all day like yesterday.
Interesting to note that SPC has parts of Alabama in a slight risk of severe storms tomorrow. The upper trough will be lined up along I-65 tomorrow, and if the sun pokes out a bit, we could see some stronger storms over east Alabama during the afternoon. But, wind fields are weak and I really don't expect an organized severe weather threat. Much of west Alabama could wind up being dry tomorrow.
Friday might be the driest day out of the next five as we are going to be in some sinking air following the departing upper trough. Even then a few scattered afternoon showers could pop up.
THE WEEKEND: We will be in a very moist airmass on Saturday and Sunday, and scattered showers and storms are pretty much a given. Otherwise, warm and humid with some sun at times, and temperatures back in the 80s.
THE LONG RANGE: The GFS tries to develop some kind of heat bubble out west toward mid-month, but we pretty much stay in very moist air, and scattered showers and storms will be a fixture in the forecast for a while. The 00Z run tries to move some kind of tropical system from the western tip of Cuba up to near Tampa in the June 9-10 time frame. Probably bogus, but I would not be surprised to have some kind of early season tropical storm in the Gulf with the water down there so warm...
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