This chase day began in Portales, NM. Our fate was sealed the previous day with regard to chasing the northern Plains. Given the short tour and the nearby risk in eastern NM, I opted to spend June 15th in chase mode near Hobbs and Tatum. This would still allow us to catch something the next day in the Nebraska Panhandle and vicinity, as forecasts suggested. But, it put us far too far south for the big event which transpired at Dupree, east of Faith, SD.
We were on the road relatively early this morning, with the notion of blasting north on U.S. 385 via Vega and through Colorado and towards the Nebraska Panhandle. At Hereford, another look at data and at current conditions suggested that the potential for severe weather was similar in our vicinity compared to western Nebraska. I posted my thinking to CFDG:
We played with a stationary LP-ish cell yesterday near Tatum, NM, and are at Hereford currently (9:30 a.m. CDT). The plan was to blast N towards the WY/NE/CO area and to see what we could catch, but there is a new wrinkle now. Morning convection in the OK PH and vicinity has left an outflow boundary in the central TX PH. The satellite pic shows the low clouds along the boundary, and east winds are blowing from AMA to TCC. Given the lack of a boundary and strong convergence at the surface in our northern target area, I am inclined to hang out in the western TX PH or perhaps to the west near TCC. The 500 flow is marginal, about the same as on the Campo day. Shear from the surface to 700 looks quite good, though, if easterlies can persist north of the boundary.
It doesn’t look like the 450 mile drive north will put me in a better scenario than I have down here.
After lunching at Vega, we moseyed northwestward into NM and hung out for a while at Nara Visa. Convective initiation commenced towards the southwest and west, and we waited in the empty grasslands near Hayden, in eastern Harding County. The cells were a little high-based and not too well organized, unfortunately. They became outflowing junk for the most part, and chased us east through Amistad, north to Stead and Sedan, and into the Texas Panhandle. The primary concern with the cells was strong wind, but when we reached Dalhart, the cell which we were attempting to get in front of started to spin hard. Radar showed a TVS, and visually we observed a wrapped-up area moving over and east-northeast of town. But, the action area was filled with precipitation, and no tornadoes were reported. We managed to get in front of the north-south line towards Etter and Sunray on 281, but the activity generally weakened. Knowing that we were missing a great tornado event in South Dakota added to our dismay! Such is life as a chaser.
Apparently I was so unimpressed with what I was looking at on this day that I shot only a couple of images. Here is one. Note—I think this was east of Dalhart, and not at Amistad.
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