Severe Storm Photography from Spring 2003
All photos copyrighted by Dave Chapman
June 9: Supercell and Tornado near Lenora, Kansas
| Early evening in northwest Kansas. Strong convection on the dryline in the wake of a weakening thundershower. This is the view looking west. With low CAPE and weak upper winds, I don't expect much. |
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| Another view. |
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| View looking south as rotation increases. Dime-size hail is falling around me. |
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| An hour later, I have a perfect view of the slow-moving storm. A funnel cloud, barely visible in this picture, begins to drop about 4 miles west-southwest of Lenora (I am positioned just south of town). |
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| A clear slot begins to develop from a downdraft in the northern part of the supercell. At this point, weak circulation can be seen on the ground. |
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| As the clear slot expands, the condensation funnel reaches the ground. A tornado siren begins wailing in nearby Lenora. |
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| The tornado is moving very slowly counterclockwise within the storm's overall circulation. The lack of dust or debris is due to rain-soaked grass underneath the funnel. |
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| Almost exactly 20 years from the time I decided to find and photograph tornadoes on the Great Plains, I am treated to my first close-up view of a tornado. |
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| A contrast-enhanced close-up shows a vortex within the condensation funnel. |
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| It is highly unusual to have a decent-looking tornado within such a small LP supercell. I have yet to see anything comparable to this in books or on the Web (but would appreciate hearing of any other storms like this). |
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| A little later. |
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| Late stage in tornado's life. |
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| The tornado begins to weaken. |
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| Rope stage, just before the tornado dissipates. This ends the best storm I've experienced, shortly after some very big misses. |
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2003 Storm Pages:
Dave Chapman's Storm Chasing and Outdoor Photo Galleries