Monday, June 28, 2010

06/18/10 Shelf Cloud Madness

Shelf cloud from a MCS and whale's mouth
nearly overhead at this point outside Kewanee, IL

Friday, (June 18th) featured a MDT risk of severe weather in the local-area for an enhanced damaging wind threat. I had to work on this day so I didn't end up with the stellar shelf clouds most chasers ended up with in northern Illinois. Nevertheless I ended up taking a couple photos as I headed off to work around 2:30pm. This MCS that formed in eastern Nebraska raced east across Iowa and crossed the Mississippi River around 1:30pm hitting my hometown (Kewanee, IL) around 2:00pm. My Davis outdoor weather station recorded the surging outflow as the shelf cloud made its appearance in the western horizon with a peak wind gust between 45-55mph. No major damage here in the local-area from this derecho (widespread damaging wind event). I was later treated with yet another derecho that I drove into after 9:00pm as I headed home after work. I've included a few photos of the shelf cloud and whale's mouth below from the daylight derecho:

First view of the shelf, but not as
picturesque as I was hoping for...
Looking north as it's a tad disorganized at this point at least
Chaotic motion with a picturesque
whale's mouth looking north
Whale's mouth along Rt. 91 in rural-Stark County, IL
One more shot of the whale's mouth as I head off to work

That's all for this chase log. Also, if you'll interested in more info about this event click here. That link will take you to a write up from the NWS-Romeoville office. I'll be posting some photos from a few more chases here in the coming days as well. Stay tuned.