Despite being a somewhat high-based storm on the High Plains, this strongly tilted but large-updraft beauty of a supercell went tornadic within less than an hour after the first convective towers—definitely sooner than expected, and while we still were zigzagging and fighting awkward road positioning with respect to a river crossing in desperate attempt to get closer to the storm’s projected path. Still, we had to make a couple brief stops just to document the majesty of what we were seeing, with whole-storm structure and a tornado beneath. I refused to spend the entire lifespan of this tornado driving! At about this time, the vortex was crossing the Oklahoma/Kansas line, or just had done so, while we were on U.S.-64 in the Oklahoma Panhandle. Here was the sublime scene at the second stop.
6 WNW Knowles OK (17 May 19) Looking NW
36.8924, -100.2899
RADARBorder Crosser
Despite being a somewhat high-based storm on the High Plains, this strongly tilted but large-updraft beauty of a supercell went tornadic within less than an hour after the first convective towers—definitely sooner than expected, and while we still were zigzagging and fighting awkward road positioning with respect to a river crossing in desperate attempt to get closer to the storm’s projected path. Still, we had to make a couple brief stops just to document the majesty of what we were seeing, with whole-storm structure and a tornado beneath. I refused to spend the entire lifespan of this tornado driving! At about this time, the vortex was crossing the Oklahoma/Kansas line, or just had done so, while we were on U.S.-64 in the Oklahoma Panhandle. Here was the sublime scene at the second stop.
6 WNW Knowles OK (17 May 19) Looking NW
36.8924, -100.2899
RADAR