SkyPix

A digital photographic storybook of clouds, weather and water by Roger Edwards.

Daylight Darkens the High Plains

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When beholding an imposing scene such as this, and pondering the relative paucity of meteorological understanding of the era, it's easy to understand how early Great Plains settlers may have considered the world's end as a fate not much more alarming than the biggest, loudest, most ominously stygian storms rampaging uncontrollably toward their homesteads. Even then, this churning maelstrom—a … [Read more...]

Panhandle Storm Coming

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When an older supercell, moving hard rightward, merges with a newer supercell forming in its inflow region, all simultaneously meeting an unrelated, large outflow boundary moving westward from an old area of thunderstorms, something interesting shall happen. And so it was, here in the western Texas Panhandle: an evolution of the combined, semi-elevated convective mass into a deep, dark complex … [Read more...]

Kansas Sunset Tornado

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After one photogenic daylight tornado, this dryline-fired supercell puttered along in messier form, with multiple, seemingly disorganized updraft areas, for over an hour. Then near sunset, a series of tornadoes began, starting with a brief dirt whirl under the flanking line near Fowler. That soon was followed by this vortex near Minneola, which developed as the new flanking-line's updrafts … [Read more...]

Complete Supercell Package

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The pinnacle of High Plains storm observing is the sculpted, brilliantly lit supercell beyond green, rolling prairie, with warm, moist inflow at the back, meadowlarks singing...and a tornado beneath. We were in Oklahoma, and the tornado that began near the state line was in Kansas. As this vortex stretched along its journey to demise, a new wall cloud developed to its southeast (right) in … [Read more...]

Mountain Sunset from Sea Level

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In the conterminous U.S., a scene of this nature only can be shot from one place: Puget Sound, looking across the sound and the Olympic Mountains of Washington. [Mountain sunsets from below sea level are possible at Death Valley, but not with permanent water in the foreground; all other bodies of water adjoining mountains to their east are well above sea level.] Breaks in an altostratus deck … [Read more...]

Night Storm Reflections on Cropland Flooding

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Receding off to the southeast, the supercell responsible for this fantastic electrical show (and more) had unloaded a fusillade of hail and localized flash flooding, including the water seen here. The largest channel in lower foreground was running water, frozen in time in this view by the spontaneity of the electrical illumination. The old Doors hit, "Riders on the Storm", came to mind as I … [Read more...]