May 24, 2006
Big, mean squall line
Our chase took us through northeast Nebraska and southeast South Dakota on Tuesday. Things didn't develop quite as we were hoping, with storms fusing quickly into a squall line rather than staying discrete. North of Vermillion, South Dakota, we allowed the mighty squall line to blow over us. The photo shows the storm approaching, with its shelf cloud smoothed nicely by the strong upper level winds. I literally tasted South Dakota as the 50-plus mph winds blew dust into my mouth.
We also witnessed a few more "gustnadoes," including one large one that was reported to the National Weather Service by several spotters as a tornado. We did see some rotation in the clouds above the swirl on the ground, but weren't convinced enough to call it a tornado ourselves.
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