NOAA visualization
Apr 12, 2012
Severe Weather Potential Building Through the Plains
A trough of low pressure between two high pressure systems is driving two different air masses together, causing them to meet over the Central Plains. Dry air from over the Mojave Desert meets with moist air from the Gulf of Mexico. Where they meet creates ideal conditions for convective thunderstorm activity. This image, using NOAA’s North America Model data output averaged from April 12-16, 2012, shows in shades of pink the areas with the highest convective available potential energy, an indicator of instability in the atmosphere or, in other words, areas in the atmosphere where the conditions are most favorable for the formation of severe storms.
Overlaid are the average wind directions for the same time period. The streamlines coming out of the central high pressure off of North Carolina can be seen sweeping into the Gulf of Mexico, picking up the highly energetic, moist air, and moving northward into the Plains. As the air moves north, is met on the west side of the front by the dry air from the Rockies. This area of confluence is under watch by the Storm Prediction Center and NOAA Satellite Analysis Branch as areas where severe storms, hail, and tornadoes may possibly form over the next few days, with the highest potential occurring on April 14th.
