Large, high-based, slowly rotating, this wall cloud menacingly loomed at the bottom of an LP (low-precipitation) supercell near the Oklahoma Panhandle burg of Forgan. Note the pointed mass of scud, connected to the right underside of the wall cloud. This “scud cone” was wrongly identified as a tornado by chasers who were viewing it in silhouette, from a greater distance, in the opposite direction. When storm spotting, the keys for tornado identification include rapid cloud-base rotation and/or a spinning debris cloud on the ground. This had neither at the time, although it did produce a brief, small funnel later while I was driving to a new vantage.
2 E Forgan OK (4 Jun 96) Looking ENEForgan LP
Large, high-based, slowly rotating, this wall cloud menacingly loomed at the bottom of an LP (low-precipitation) supercell near the Oklahoma Panhandle burg of Forgan. Note the pointed mass of scud, connected to the right underside of the wall cloud. This “scud cone” was wrongly identified as a tornado by chasers who were viewing it in silhouette, from a greater distance, in the opposite direction. When storm spotting, the keys for tornado identification include rapid cloud-base rotation and/or a spinning debris cloud on the ground. This had neither at the time, although it did produce a brief, small funnel later while I was driving to a new vantage.
2 E Forgan OK (4 Jun 96) Looking ENE