MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... May 28, 2024 May 28, 2024 May 28, 2024 May 28, 2024
Make it rain!
https://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20240528/7day-rain-forecast.png
Sometime in early-to-mid June, our atmosphere undergoes a transformation from spring storms that generally form out west and march to the east-northeast, bringing classic supercell shenanigans, to summer storms. These form out in the High Plains and march to the south-southeast and can bring bigtime rains and lots of wind. Sort of like how you turn 40 and all the magic in your life dies (experiences may vary...those with hair don't know!). But don't worry, 50 is the new 40, supposedly, and this year it appears late-May is the new mid-June, because that's what we're gonna see (generally) over the next week or so.
We already had our severe storms this morning that brought (ahem!) lots of rain and severe winds across the southern third or so of the state.
https://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20240528/today.rainrfc.png
https://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20240528/today.gust.gif
You can see this action coming up later tonight and again on Thursday in the SPC outlooks, with the northwest/Panhandle through SW OK swaths of enhanced severe weather risks.
https://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20240528/OK_swody1.png
https://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20240528/OK_swody3.png
Of course it would be best to have NO severe weather, but that's not how things work if you want rain in Oklahoma. But it's a large size better than what we've seen over the last 6 weeks or so. Our tornado count, preliminary as it may be, is up to around 98 with the addition of storms from Saturday, including another EF3 monster up near Claremore. That makes 2024 9th on the all-time annual tornado count (since accurate records began in 1950). Oops...tied for 8th, that is. I AIN'T BACKSPACING!
Year Annual Tornado Count 2019 149 1999 145 2011 119 2015 111 1957 107 2010 103 1982 101 1960 98 2024 98
2024's numbers will go up with further investigation, probably, so 1960 shouldn't rest on its laurels just yet. AND we still have 7 months to add to those numbers. As of today's preliminary count of 98 January-May tornadoes, that puts 2024 in THIRD place in that category behind 2019's 127 and 1999's 116.
The worst count is the 7 fatalities that have been confirmed with these twisters in 2024, and the hundreds injured. Saturday definitely could have been much worse. Looks to me and those smarter than me (I heard that!) like the early storm formation to the SW and a left-mover from a split storm saved much of the southern half of the state that we saw across northern OK. Splitting storms shoot out a left-mover that can be severe (with very low tornado risk) and right-mover that brings the bad stuff.
https://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20240528/240525_rpts.png
Still...bad enough. Aren't we all just ready for summer and watching those triple-digit temperature counts instead? WHO'S WITH ME!! Okay, who's SORTA with me?? High 90s, maybe (hey, "High 90s" was my band's name in the French Foreign Legion! And I was high on life, if you are thinking the other thing.)? Our hundred map for the year thus far looks pretty sparse.
https://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20240528/tmax.ge100.png
Nothing like that showing up for the rest of the week, at least, after yesterday's scorcher with Hugo hitting 100.
https://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20240528/yesterdays-highs.png
We still need lots of rain across the NW quarter of the state, so this transition to a High Plains summer rain pattern might be just the fix.
https://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20240528/pctseason_rain.current.png
All that rain with summer heat added in later on? Ugh.
Gary McManus State Climatologist Oklahoma Mesonet Oklahoma Climatological Survey gmcmanus@mesonet.org
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