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Tornadic thunderstorm Dodge
City, Kansas May 7, 2002
 Large cumulonimbus anvil
stretches from Missouri
into eastern Kansas
 Cumulonimbus anvil seen
in central & southeast
Kansas
 Cumulonimbus anvil seen
in west central Texas
Updrafts indicate cloud formation
 Clouds move in from
the northwest
 Cumuluscongestus
clouds form in parts of
Kansas and Oklahoma
Trough moves in from the west
 Pool of cold air
associated with closed
low in Washington
 40-50 knot wind seen
over Kansas and
Oklahoma
 Deep layer shear over
Kansas and Oklahoma
favorable for tornados
Trough propagates south eastward
 Trough axis extends
from Idaho through
parts of Nevada and
California
 45-50 knots over
Oklahoma and Kansas
indicate supercellular
shear
Explosive cape in Norman, Oklahoma
 Veering of the winds
indicate warm advection
from surface to 500 mb
 Shear vector on
hodograph veers with
height
 Hodograph indicates
splitting supercells
Hodograph at Topeka, Kansas
 Strong veering of the
winds from surface to 500
mb indicates warm
advection
 Shear vector on the
hodograph veers with
height
 Right mover of splitting
supercells explode
Radar for Oklahoma & Kansas
 Thunderstorm splits in
southeastern Kansas
 Right mover intensifies
 Left mover slightly
weakens
 Developing thunderstorm
in central Kansas
More radar for Oklahoma & Kansas
 Thunderstorm
explodes in
southeastern
Oklahoma
 Another exploding
thunderstorm in
central Oklahoma
 Deep red indicates
heavy downpour of
rain
Subjective analysis of the surface
 East of dryline, dark
green indicates
dewpoints > 70 deg C
 Low pressure in Texas
panhandle where a
dryline, warm front,
and stationary front
extend from