Storminess subsides, but may re-fire todayPosted Jun29, 2007 at 12:03 AM
Cooler, drier weather is still on tap for the weekend and early next week. Storms blow into Roanoke, other areasPosted Jun28, 2007 at 05:39 PM
Ominous storm clouds blow over downtown Roanoke I got a pretty neat photo (click here for a bigger version of inset photo) of a shelf cloud pushing out on outflow winds from a storm over Roanoke shortly after 5 p.m. that was carrying a severe thunderstorm warning at the time. We had heavy rain and wind gusts around 40 mph in the downtown area, but obviously some folks had a little bit higher winds. The severe thunderstorm watch continues until 11 p.m. Severe thunderstorm watch until 11 p.m.Posted Jun28, 2007 at 02:24 PMA severe thunderstorm watch covers all of western Virginia through 11 p.m. Unlike the last several days of sparse thunderstorms that were locally strong and moved very slowly, today's storms will be much more organized and will be moved along by a bit stronger wind dynamics aloft as a cold front approaches from the west. High winds and some hail are the main threats. Click here for additional information on the watch from the Storm Prediction Center Click here for the latest from the National Weather Service in Blacksburg More organized storminess may be on the wayPosted Jun27, 2007 at 09:57 PM
PersistencePosted Jun26, 2007 at 10:25 AMToday, and probably Wednesday and Thursday, look to be carbon copies of Sunday and Monday ... warm to hot, sticky, with afternoon thunderstorms. A few of the storms will become severe and produce damaging winds and large hail over localized areas while most people just hear thunder and get a little rain. Rockbridge County seems to have bore the brunt of strong thunderstorm winds on Monday evening, with scattered reports elsewhere. The daily humidity and storms are keeping this from being an extremely hot period as it had the potential to be, as the daily cumulus clouds, wind gusts and rain keep tempreatures from building well into the 90s. We get to the mid or upper 80s, maybe low 90s, and then the storms start rumbling. But the trade-off is more humidity, with dew points near 70, which off set the not-quite-as-hot temperatures. By Thursday evening, a cold front is slated to move through the area, and this could trigger a more organized round of storms. Behind it, cooler, drier weather is expected just in time for the weekend. By the way ... while every drop of rain from these spotty storms helps, it's not making much of a dent in the overall near-drought situation. While a few locations get an inch, 2 inches or even more rain, most folks are getting well under a quarter-inch. We need to take the heavy rain and spread it out into a moderate rain for many hours to ease the dryness. A few strong to severe thunderstormsPosted Jun24, 2007 at 07:00 PMHail up to 1 inch in diameter was reported at Fairlawn in Pulaski County and some wind damage has occurred in storms from Grayson County southward. Blacksburg had 0.88-inch hail, according to one report from the public, and that same storm moved over the Roanoke Valley, prompting a severe thunderstorm warning, though the storm weakened as it moved over. Still, some lightning, heavy rain and a few stiff breezes in parts of the Roanoke metro area. When we're dealing with the kind of heat and humidity we're going to have this week, it is not surprising to have some severe storms from time to time. Again, each day this week, some people will get strong storms, others will just hear thunder in the distance. The pattern still looks to turn cooler and drier by late in the week. Change by the end of the week?Posted Jun23, 2007 at 11:44 PM
Hot and dry aheadPosted Jun21, 2007 at 05:48 PM
Returning home to stormsPosted Jun19, 2007 at 11:51 PMMy wife and I rolled into town late Tuesday after a 10-day trip to the central and western U.S. (vacation this time, not storm chasing, though we did see a few storms) to find a lightning show over the mountains of Southwest Virginia. Several reports of severe weather were turned into the National Weather Service in Blacksburg today, including a tree blown across the intersection of Franklin Road and Avenham Avenue in Roanoke during the afternoon, several more trees blown down in and around Rocky Mount this evening, and numerous reports of hail and high winds from the Tazewell County area this evening. We'll get a couple days break from storms as a weak cold front moves through overnight. The next pretty good chance of thunderstorms arrives over the weekend. Overall, we're still pretty dry, so we could use the rain. Typical June weather aheadPosted Jun17, 2007 at 10:41 AMMost of Saturday's severe storm reports were well to Roanoke's south, as this map shows. The rest of this week will feature warmer temperatures and daily chances of afternoon thunderstorms, the greatest chance on Tuesday as a weak cold front approaches the area. Slight risk of severe weather todayPosted Jun16, 2007 at 10:43 AMWith a moderate amount of spin moving through the mid to high layers of the atmosphere, the Storm Prediction Center has placed much of Virginia south of Roanoke, extending into adjacent parts of North Carolina, under a slight risk of severe weather today for the threat of storm clusters that could produce local wind damage and some hail. Click here for the latest from the National Weather Service in Blacksburg. Stuck in the wedgePosted Jun15, 2007 at 12:07 AMCool, damp air is being pushed southwestward against the mountains by high pressure in Canada, resulting in fog, drizzle and temperatures that, for June, could be described as "chilly," 50s and 60s. It's not unusual for Virginia to get a couple of setups like this during the course of a summer, and just like most other times, this one won't last long. The "wedge" of cool, damp air will be in evidence on Friday before temperatures gradually warm over the weekend and a more typical summertime regime sets in. Looking back at some big stormsPosted Jun09, 2007 at 11:26 PMI'm taking a break for a few days, so the blog won't get many new entries ... I won't entirely rule it out though if something of meteorological substance is happening. But if you're looking for links to the big storm last week that went through Pulaski, Floyd, Franklin and Henry counties, dumping lots of hail and blowing trees down, here and here and here are some places to click. And if you want to look back on Storm Chase 2007 ... which I'll be writing about in a Weather Journal column later this week ... then click here for the blog entries and photos and here for some additional photos. After that my column on storm chasers runs this week, Weather Journal will be on hiatus in the newspaper until June 23. In the meantime ... enjoy summer sunshine and a few thunderstorms now and then. Some severe reports on FridayPosted Jun09, 2007 at 12:43 AMOnce again, Franklin County seems to have bore the brunt of severe storm reports, but this time on the northern side of the county. Hail up to .88 inch in diameter was reported and some trees were blown down from northeast of Boones Mill toward Burnt Chimney, according to reports turned into the National Weather Service in Blacksburg. Somewhat cooler weather will move in for the weekend, and showers and thunderstorms will become even more widely scattered. Severe weather possible this eveningPosted Jun08, 2007 at 04:30 PM
ORIGINAL ENTRY, 4:30 p.m.: A few pop-up storms have become severe this afternoon to our south in Henry and Franklin counites, but a more widespread threat of severe weather may arrive this evening as a cold front slams into the near-record heat we're experiencing. A line of thunderstorms is already moving across states to our west, as the inset radar shot shows, and a row of severe thunderstorm watches to the west as well. I would not be surprised to see a watch placed for us as this line moves eastward. High winds will be main threat from storms that move in tonight, but heavy rain, hail and frequent lightning will also be threats as well. A little sizzle, then a few rumblesPosted Jun07, 2007 at 05:37 PMLooks like a hot day on tap for Friday, with temperatures topping 90 in many locations from Roanoke south and east. Wouldn't be surprised to see some 95 readings down in Southside. The warm air aloft will be hard to for the rising hot air at the surface to punch through, but if that cap is broken, a few big thunderstorms could erupt in the late afternoon and early evening. (Read my column from Wednesday on the importance of capping in thunderstorm development) Adding to the threat is a weak cold front expected to make its way into the area Friday evening or early Saturday. So you'll probably break a sweat if you're outdoor much on Friday, and that heat and humidity might help break the cap for a few thunderstorms later in the day. Hail photos from Tuesday's stormPosted Jun06, 2007 at 11:44 PM
Hail piles up on a Leslie Hollandsworth's deck in western Floyd County Tuesday's ferocious stormPosted Jun06, 2007 at 09:35 AM
Scott Frye shot this photo of the storm moving into the Pulaski area late Tuesday. The ominous lowering is known as a "shelf cloud" and marks the leading edge of rain, wind and hail with the storm. Click here for a larger version of inset photo, and here for a second photo from Scott Frye in Pulaski County If you have any storm photos that you don't mind me using, please email them to me at kevin.myatt@roanoke.com. Severe thunderstorms move throughPosted Jun05, 2007 at 09:36 PMThis map from the Storm Prediction Center shows today's reports of severe weather (3/4 inch or larger hail, 58 mph or greater winds, any tornadoes). Notice the reports lined up from Kentucky into Southwest Virginia south of Roanoke. Severe thunderstorm warnings are ongoing in Southside Virginia, spreading from Martinsville eastward. There were a number of reports of hail as large as an inch in diameter covering the ground, as well as reports of trees blown down by high winds in Franklin, Henry, Floyd and nearby counties. Considering the isolated, long-lived nature of the storm and some indication of rotation on radar at times, the storm may well have been a supercell. More on the latest warnings from the National Weather Service in Blacksburg. Click here and scroll down for severe weather reports in Southwest Virginia Watching to our westPosted Jun05, 2007 at 03:50 PM
Storms are breaking out in Kentucky this afternoon, where a severe thunderstorm watch has been placed into effect. We'll see if these storms can work into our area overnight, or whether they will kick out another outflow boundary toward us. The disturbance responsible for firing these storms may kick up some new ones as it moves through on Wednesday. Good rain for our area ... but we still need morePosted Jun04, 2007 at 11:19 AMMost areas of Southwest Virginia got 1-2 inches of rain on Sunday ... with even greater amounts at some higher elevations (click on the "Continued" line below for a National Weather Service list of weekend precipitation totals in the area). But our region could still be susceptible to drought (see Cody Lowe's article from today's newspaper) if we trend toward hot/dry weather in the long term, and there are signs that's exactly the direction we will head toward the end of this week. Whether it's long term for the summer or just another short-term weather shift remains to be seen. Click here for the latest drought map from the National Drought Mitigation Center in Lincoln, Neb. Continue reading "Good rain for our area ... but we still need more" » Close call on big rains for Southwest VirginiaPosted Jun02, 2007 at 07:14 PM
Roanoke (shown by dot) is projected to get .50 to .75 inch of rain (the dark blue shade) Latest national and regional Doppler radar Lots of storm imagesPosted Jun01, 2007 at 10:39 PM
Updraft base of "mothership" supercell storm in northern Kansas 
Suspicious lowering beneath updraft base of Kansas supercell But I also have lots of interesting shots from local storms, taken by me and others. For instance, a fierce thunderstorm late last September that dumped copious hail just to the north of Roanoke.  High-precipitation, or HP, supercell in Texas Panhandle I just wanted to put a large variety of storm shots online in connection with today's column. There are always amazing things to see in the sky, whether it's pulse storms in our mountains or supercells in the Plains. Tropical Storm Barry, a soaking where it's neededPosted Jun01, 2007 at 05:15 PM
Thunderstorms again developing, some severePosted Jun01, 2007 at 02:17 PMOnce again, thunderstorms are developing here and there through the area as daytime heating bubbles the moisture upward into somewhat cooler air aloft. Franklin and Floyd counties have been placed under severe thunderstorm warnings in the past half an hour (as of 2:20 p.m.). Expect scattered storms similar to Thursday with some area under the heaviest storms getting gusty winds, hail and very heavy rain. Click here for the latest from the National Weather Service in Blacksburg. |
About this blog
Kevin Myatt works on the copy desk for The Roanoke Times and is its principal weather geek, writing a weekly weather column and advising the newsroom on weather topics. He helps guide students on a storm chasing trip to the central U.S. each May and was an editor for "Hurricanes and the Middle Atlantic States." .....Advertisement.....
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