A weirdly shaped and colored shelf cloud surged out across the volcano-studded High Plains of northeastern New Mexico, heralding a rush of cooler air and rain across this shortgrass rangeland. The combination of laminar, spaceship-like cloud-base formations and an odd beige tint with hints of pale mauve is uncommon in my storm-observing experience, but for similar sightings the very day before, … [Read more...]
Young Cumulonimbus
Forget mountain-grown coffee. I'll take a big cup of mountain-grown convection, please. In the warm season, after the dryline has disappeared in favor of moisture from the North American Monsoon, "recycled" moisture advected upslope behind the passage of weak cold fronts, and/or or where a more direct fetch of Gulf air can back right up to the mountains, we see activity such as this often on the … [Read more...]
Propelled off Pikes Peak
This small but sporadically sparking supercell fronted a series of storms that originated over or just behind Pikes Peak, just left of distant middle, and rolled east-southeastward across the southern parts of the Colorado Springs area. Each of the two separate storm bases in the background also exhibited visual supercellular characteristics at times, though located atop the outflow from this … [Read more...]
Sparking Ordway Supercell
Diving south-southeast across the High Plains of eastern Colorado, a magnificent summertime supercell flung large sparks all around, lighting up the night naturally with pulsating brilliance. Though fundamentally similar to other supercells, every one has its own expressive personality in both cloud form and lightning production, unique as a fingerprint. That’s why I appreciate them so, and seek … [Read more...]
Turquoise from Trinidad
This storm formed over the Sangre de Cristos west of Trinidad, and was a well-developed supercell by the time it passed over town. By the time of this photo, east of Trinidad, the supercell had enlarged and clearly strengthened, sporting a very large updraft base, multiple tail clouds, and intermittent wall clouds. Entering richer moisture, the storm would intensify further, lower its based to … [Read more...]
Felt Mammatus
The title has a simple meaning that is not obvious to those unfamiliar with southern High Plains geography. No, this wonderful sunset scene wasn't "felt" as a feeling, at least not physically nor emotionally, nor did I judge its apparent texture as resembling the fabric known as felt. I suppose one can get deliriously artistic, especially with aid of mind-altering substances, and dive into those … [Read more...]
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