Ticker for March 13, 2006

                
MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ...
March 13, 2006     March 13, 2006     March 13, 2006     March 13, 2006



A Tale of Two States

While the eastern half of Oklahoma dealt with high-end severe weather,
the western half of the state was concerned with rapid-moving wildfire.
Some of the winds that drove the fires exceeded the criteria that
defines severe thunderstorms (50 knots, or about 58 mph):

Station       Wind Gust  3/12 Time
Hooker        67 mph     4:30 pm
Goodwell      63 mph     4:00 pm
Hooker        62 mph     4:55 pm
Boise City    60 mph     4:30 pm
Boise City    60 mph     3:25 pm
Hooker        58 mph     4:35 pm
Hooker        58 mph     4:25 pm
Goodwell      58 mph     4:10 pm
Boise City    58 mph     3:40 pm
Hooker        58 mph     3:35 pm
Goodwell      57 mph     4:05 pm
Boise City    57 mph     3:20 pm
Beaver        56 mph     5:40 pm
Beaver        56 mph     5:05 pm
Boise City    56 mph     4:35 pm
Goodwell      56 mph     4:30 pm
Goodwell      56 mph     4:20 pm
Goodwell      56 mph     3:50 pm
Goodwell      56 mph     3:25 pm
Hooker        55 mph     5:55 pm
Hooker        55 mph     5:00 pm
Goodwell      55 mph     4:50 pm
Beaver        55 mph     4:15 pm
Goodwell      55 mph     4:15 pm
Boise City    55 mph     4:00 pm
Kenton        55 mph     3:50 pm
Goodwell      55 mph     3:40 pm
Hooker        55 mph     3:10 pm

At least two of the weekend's fires left scars in the Texas panhandle
that were visible by satellite:


(original image borrowed from the Cooperative Institute for Research
of the Atmosphere - notation added by Ticker).

The top scar is more easily seen, and was the result of a massive,
multi-hundred acre fire north of I-40.  The second scar, to its south,
shows a more complex "T shape". Part of the scar is aligned parallel
to the northern scar, a testament to the west-southwest wind that
drove these and other fires yesterday afternoon. However, an appendage
which juts to the southeast tells the story of northwesterly winds
that came behind the cold front. When the winds shifted, parts of the
fires eastern flank became the head fire.