Good morning everyone, I hope everyone is well who is visiting zoomradar.com. Yesterday in Palm Beach County we had several significant weather advisories for strong and severe thunderstorms. I personally had tree limbs and branches down due to the ferocious winds. The key ingredient for strong to severe thunderstorms to develop is instability. For people living in Florida the SUN is the key component for daily weather. Yesterday the temperature in Wellington Fl hit 97 degrees Fahrenheit and the humidity was over 60% so the atmosphere was primed for storms. But not only did we have the heating of the day which was significant in itself but we had good lapse rates as well. This means the parcel(s) of air that was rising from the ground due to the extreme heat was significantly warmer than the air that surrounded it. This is called ELR or the Environmental Lapse Rate, which is important for storm development like yesterday where there were reports of nickel szed hail and wind gusts to 55-56mph. So, as the parcel(s) of air continue to rise and it gets further from the ground, latent heat of condensation takes over and this buoyant energy allows the parcel(s) of air to continue to rise and towers of cumulonimbus grow high into the atmosphere. I will attempt to pull some pictures of yesterday storms up.
This photo was taken yesterday from a storm spotter in Royal Palm Beach sent to www.news12.com in West Palm Beach
I believe we have one more day of potential strong to severe thunderstorms here. The National Weather Service in Miami is calling for a 40% chance of Thunderstorms today as a transition day begins to set up. Winds and steering flow today come in from a southerly direction instead of a westerly or south westerly direction, as a trough of low pressure heads north and northeast, high pressure situated in the Florida straits will migrate north and be located in north Florida by the end of the week. This will usher in an easterly wind component leaving the east coast high and dry for the 4th of July weekend and into next week. By July 10-20th we may have to monitor the tropics due to a strong MJO passing over us. Some computer models hint as something, but it is too far off to show any concern. The weather and climate are so fascinating there is nothing on this planet quite like it. I might seem odd because I enjoy all facets of weather, not just the sunny dry and calm weather that usually dominates south Florida. I do enjoy the severe weather we get as well. Don’t get me wrong I absolutely don’t want anyone t be in harms way, get injured or even worse. But if you have an affinity for the weather and study of climate like I do, you can appreciate what I am writing about. Well that’s it for now, it should be a great 4th of July weekend for everyone, weather should be spectacular for fireworks display so stay safe, be well, and many blessings. Oh By the Way, tonight is the culmination of a planetary alignment not seen in 2000 years for all you astronomy buffs. Jupiter and Venus combine to make a spectacular light display. If you happen to see it please let me know.