A cold front is poised to begin pushing east today across the Upper Midwest, bringing some unsettled weather to the region.
Behind the front will be an almost autumnlike air mass, both cool and dry, however the change will not come quietly for many. Strong thunderstorms are set to ignite along the front, bringing severe weather to area residents.
The reason for the severe weather? The northern Plains will be a battleground between two well defined air masses. The cool shot of air in the wake of the cold front will be driving through warm, moist air moving north across the central Plains. The collision may turn violent for some.
Strong storms will rumble across area cities, including Minneapolis, Minn., Sioux Falls, S.D., Madison, Wis., Rapid City, Iowa and Omaha, Neb., among others.
Damaging winds will be the primary threat from storms across the region, as storms will likely transfer stronger winds aloft down to the surface. Hail, along with heavy downpours, could also threaten area residents as storms pass through the area.
Along with the above threats, thunderstorms will bring dangerous cloud-to-ground lightning with them. This means any thunderstorm across the region could be potentially dangerous, and area residents will want to seek shelter when storms approach.
As the cold front shifts east on Thursday, big population centers will come under fire from similarly strong storms. Among the places in the storms crosshairs include Kansas City, Mo., Saint Louis, Mo., Chicago, Ill., Indianapolis, Ind. and Detroit, Mich., among others.
The focus for severe storms will move into the Ohio Valley and resume over New York state on Wednesday.
So far this year California has seen 1,569 wildfires, 85 percent more than in an average year.
The Memorial Day weekend will begin cool, windy and rainy in New England and part of the mid-Atlantic.
GOES-East failed again late Tuesday. It is one of the main satellites meteorologists use for the eastern part of the United States and the tropical Atlantic.
The tornado tore through a path 17 miles long on Monday and had wind speeds as high as 200 mph.
On the two-year anniversary of the EF-5 tornado that leveled Joplin, Mo., the town has deployed assistance to Moore, Okla.
| Extreme | Location | |
|---|---|---|
| High | N/A | |
| Low | N/A | |
| Precip | N/A |
Southwestern & Central OK (1996)
Sinking air from dying thunderstorms cause
unusual late night rise in temperature. Many
places rose from upper 80s at 11:00PM to near
100 degrees by 3:00AM.
Liberal, KS (1933)
A powerful F4 tornado (winds 207-260 mph)
hidden in a dust storm devastates the business
district. 4 people were killed and 150 were
injured. Tornado estimated to be 600 yards
wide at times.
Lewistown, ME (1911)
101 degrees -- hottest ever in New England
during May.
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