A line of Severe Storms known as a Derecho.....

Friday morning the Quad Cities had a few strong thunderstorms move through, but those storms eventually turned into the huge line of severe thunderstorms.  The storms caused severe wind damage and left millions without power. Above is a snapshot or a timeline of the severe storms as they tracked from Northern Indiana southward into the Mid-Atlantic states. This line of severe storms is called a Derecho, which is a long line of thunderstorms that create very strong straight line winds.  Winds can be as high as 80 mph.  And the storms all started near the Quad Cities!

Storm Reports Rolling In...

The t-storms that developed around the Quad Cities this morning have blossomed into a full blown DERECHO today.  Very strong winds rolled through Indiana, Ohio and now this evening the storms are holding together into West Virginia! 
     Closer to home we're dealing with a few sctd t-storms this evening, with the metro area escaping the worst of the weather, and unfortunately most of the rain so far too...

Update: TS Debby

Tropical Storm Debby hasn't moved much in the last few days, giving Florida, Georgia, and even Alabama plenty of rain. The forecast for Debby shows that the Tropical Storm will slowly move Northeast and the center of the storm will make landfall Wednesday afternoon.  The system looks to decrease in strength as it passes over land but will regain some enegry after returning to the warm waters of the Atlantic. 

Impacts on Land: Tropical Storm force winds are expected for the Gulf Coast of Florida through this evening.  Storm surge can have an impact with some surges rising up to 5 ft above ground level, the areas most impacted will be low lying coastal areas, especially around high tide.  Rain is also making an impact, northern Florida can see an additional 4-8 inches of rain the the following days and in 1-3 additional inches in southeastern Georgia. Some isolates storm total amounts and potentially reach 25 inches in northern Florida. Tornadoes are also possible across the Florida Peninsula. 

Tropical Storm Debby....

The tropics are getting active and it's going to be a week of heavy rains for folks along the Gulf Coast.  Tropical Storm Debby formed over the weekend and she is just going to sit and spin over Florida, southern Alabama & Georgia.  So heavy rain and flooding will be the main threats with this tropical system and not so much the winds.  Stormcast shows Tropical Storm Debby pretty much sitting over the same spot through Tuesday morning.  We'll keep you posted....

Rain Chances Wednesday Night

We'll have a decent chance for some sctd. showers/t-storms Wednesday night as a cold front drops through the Midwest.  Before the front arrives look for another hot and humid day!  As for the rain chances - it looks like the best chance for svr t-storms will be North of the Quad Cities, here's the Wednesday Svr weather outlook from the SPC. 

Rain totals could approach half an inch in some spots, unfortunately the heavier rain looks to stay away from us this time around.

Hot, Humid, and Breezy

This workweek will start off feeling much like summer.  Highs will be in the mid to upper 90s for the first three days of the week. Not to mention the winds will be quite breezy.  A Wind Advisory is in effect from noon today through 7pm tonight.  The winds will be out of the south at 15-25 mph with gusts up to 35-40 mph.  Also don't forget it'll be humid until some rain arrives late Wednesday.

HOT Weather Coming Monday

After a warm weekend things will be downright HOT on Monday!  All of the area will reach the 90s, with a few spots possibly reaching the upper 90s!  In the QC the record high is 98°, and we should be fairly close to that number!  As of Sunday evening we're calling for a high near 95° 

Tropical Storm Carlotta

A new tropical system has formed in the Pacific Ocean with winds of 45 mph.  Forecasts do take the tropical system to the shores of Mexico.  The National Hurricane Center has issued a hurricane watch for areas along Mexico's western coast. Right now, there aren't any disturbances in the Atlantic Ocean.  So if you have travel plans to the beaches along the East Coast, you don't have any tropical systems to worry about just yet.

Where's The Rain?

We picked up 0.15" of rain from Monday's morning showers, but we could still use some more rain.  For the month of June were are almost an inch and a half below normal.  While we are a little more than two inches below normal for the year,

Finally Some Rain (A Little Bit)

It wasn't a ton of rain but we finally got some wet weather in the Quad Cities late Sunday night and early Monday morning...here are some of the totals and so far this month in the QC we've picked up a total of less than half an inch of rain!

Rain Chances A Long Way Away

We've had a few dry days lately and there's more dry weather on the way!  In the QC we should expect sunshine through the weekend, with temps warming up quite a bit by Saturday/Sunday.  By the end of the weekend our next chance for rain finally arrives, there's a slight chance Sunday night and a 50% chance for showers/storms Monday...in other words, the next 4 to 5 days will be dry...

Here's the 5 day rain graphic from the HPC.

Venus Transit Photos

Here are a few pics from the recent partial lunar eclipse and Venus Transit!  Thanks to the local office of the NWS (Davenport) for the link!
 
Click Here

56 Years of Tornado Tracks

The United States of America has such a unique geography, that we have the majority of tornadoes in the world.  Three key items in for the US are the Rocky Mountains location and size, plus the warm moist air from the Gulf of Mexico, and the cold dry air from Canada.  As low pressure systems pas over the mountains and mix the moist warm and cold dry air, instability increases.  If the situation is perfect, severe storms form and tornadoes can follow.  Above is a picture or tornado track from the last 56 years.  The bright tracks are the strongest tornadoes, and usually some of the longest.  Find where you live and see how many tornadoes were in your area.

Scattered Early Morning Rain Showers.....

Some off & on rain showers early this morning dropped almost a quarter inch of rain in the Quad Cities.  While most areas only picked up a tenth of an inch or less!

The sunshine should stick around for the rest of the week.  Next chance for some showers and thunderstorms doesn't arrive for awhile, but unfortunately the chances return during the weekend.  Have a great week!