March 30th Storms in Central Oklahoma:
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Before I have a chance to recover from the long drive from California, I'm already chasing storms. This is my first intercept of the season, just south of Chickasha.
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After encountering some marble-size hail near Marlow, I intercept the southernmost cell of the squall line three miles north of Tussy (25 miles east of Duncan). Here a wall cloud has formed underneath a mostly rain-free base.
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Weak RFD spins up a funnel cloud, but it doesn't last. Soon downdrafts take over and the storm remains outflow-dominated the rest of the afternoon.
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Looking to the right, a shelf cloud begins developing above an advancing gust front.
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Ahead of the advancing storm in rural Oklahoma.
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Another view.
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End of the chase near Paul's Valley.
April 1st Storms in Panhandles/Northwest Oklahoma:
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Today, Mother Nature plays an April Fool's joke on me. First, I drive a couple of hours north to the northern Texas panhandle and then into Oklahoma to intercept a strong storm. But when I arrive, very strong winds have filled the air with dust, making my photos worthless, and the storm is rapidly weakening. So I drive an hour south to intercept the next storm moving towards me. But I notice the winds have shifted to the SSW, so I turn east towards the new convergence zone. This is the first clear view.
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I get close to the developing storm once I reach Oklahoma, but it races NNE at 50 mph, making it impossible for me to get in position.
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New cell just north of me as dusk approaches. Today was a lesson that early season storms are unforgiving of tactical errors.
April 6th Storms in Northeast Oklahoma:
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My target today is the axis of an approaching jet streak in eastern Oklahoma. A dryline forms along I-35 but I discover I'm too far south as the dryline bulges northeast near Stillwater. I fail to catch the strongest storms, which race north at about 50 mph, but intercept this storm just north of Tulsa.
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The storm develops as I wait for it to clear the Tulsa metro area, but by the time I intercept, it is outflow dominated.
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I drive southeast until I intercept a newly developed storm about twenty miles east of Tulsa.
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Gust front racing towards me.