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Our first tour of the season departed May 22 with a target
area of Northwestern Minnesota and Eastern North Dakota. The
Storm Prediction Center indicated a slight risk of severe
weather in a large area that included most of Minnesota and
the Eastern Dakotas and extended well into Kansas. However,
we decided the best area for severe storms later in the
afternoon would be near the surface low pressure in the
Northern region of the risk area, where lift and directional
wind shear would be best. |
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As we waited in NE South Dakota a Severe Thunderstorm Watch
was finally issued along the North Dakota/ Minnesota border.
Just as we entered North Dakota, just west of Fairmount we
stopped to photograph a developing cell, and were soon
rewarded with the sight of a rotating "land spout" funnel
cloud! This unusual phenomenon typically appears on high-
based storms and is not associated with a wall cloud. The
funnel persisted approximately two minutes and we were able
to get some excellent video--please see our short video clip. |
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We continued north and east to the town of Perham, MN
where multiple updrafts were exploding around us. Most of
these cells were sheared off rapidly by strong winds aloft,
but one fired directly overhead and rapidly reached severe
levels. We followed this storm northeast through difficult
chase country (lakes and hills!) until dark and then broke
our chase for a late supper. This cell maintained severe
status for over three hours! |
All in all, a very satisfying day, especially given the
limited moisture available. We are pleased to say we were on
target for the only severe storms that occurred in our five-
state chase territory!
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