Wall Clouds to Wonderful Weather for One More Day!

Bob Baumgartner of Romney shows us a nice sunset for a change in our new and improved weather pattern. A red sky at night will certainly be a Lafayette delight. It was so nice to see the stars again last night and yes that bright object in the sky was Venus. This was nicely captured by Allison Loy as it was getting ready to set in the western sky. Usually stars and planets are very tough to pick up but it was so clear out and Venus was so bright it does in fact stand out nicely.


Three out of every four days this December have brought every possible kind of weather. The only thing we haven't seen is a blizzard! No, I am not forecasting one but it would be a fitting end to this month that will go down as Lafayette's stormiest or wettest month since 1990. No, I am not forecasting a blizzard. I do not want to start any rumors.....LOL... Our monthly precipitation at WLFI at is now up to 4.66 inches with 4.2 inches of snow this month. In 1990 we had 5.05 inches of total precipitation. December is normally our third driest month but not this year. We have almost doubled our average precipitation of 2.43 inches. Saturday was certainly a microcosm of how stormy it has been and a reminder that you can have severe weather in every single month of the year. This was never more evident than on Saturday when the tornado sirens blared in Clinton County. Dena Flanagan sends in pictures of our ominous month or what I have been calling our delirious December! WOW! Thanks Dena!

Hey Mike, well before I turned on the TV tonight, I of course was outside taking pictures of the sky,...I thought there were a few interesting clouds as well as many colors in the sky before this storm hit us....while I was on the deck, the winds shifted from blowing towards northeast to blowing real hard to the southwest, it was an amazing change, then the wind completely stopped.....I took a few pictures of the rain that was coming across the field from the northwest of us, and wow was that sound incredible....I guess it was a little worse just a few miles south of us, but it proves, Weather of ALL seasons can happen at anytime in Indiana...LOLOL

This is looking towards the northeast from our house, towards Lafayette

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This was about 5 seconds later looking towards the Southeast

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This is looking towards the West......Huge Wall cloud heading our way

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One of the many odd clouds that kept dropping out of the wall cloud.

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This massive cloud is what was heading towards the Interstate 65 & 28 area..this was just crossing over US 52 South....it was Beautiful, yet I had no idea we were under a Tornado warning until I was done taking pictures...lol

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This was taken facing South, I took this and had to go in due to the wall of rain that hit us!

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Happy Holidays Mike,

Dena Flanagan

(Wyandotte & New Castle Rd)

Yes we can have happy holidays because that circulation stayed in the sky. Live Doppler 18 did show a hook on the radar when it crossed over Interstate 65 and 28 and you can see why with the above picture. This is why tornado warnings were issued and yes we should all feel very lucky that that rotating storm stayed up in the sky. The cool outflow that hit the area right before these storms moved through may have been just enough to stabilize things and keep us from having a tornado. Speaking of tornadoes, one of the top weather stories of of 2008 was our busy tornado season. We had the second most active season since 1953! We have even more reason to be thankful about that we had no fatalities in all those tornadoes. It was a deadly year for tornadoes nationwide with 120 deaths which is about twice the normal. Here at home we had 11 tornadoes in our viewing area. Keep in mind Tippecanoe County ranks number one on the list for most tornadoes in the state of Indiana since the early 1950s. This is tornado alley not only in the U.S. but in Indiana.

Normally we average four tornadoes here in the Lafayette area. We almost tripled this number due to a La Nina year which is notorious for bad tornado seasons in the Midwest. The jet stream not only takes a dip in the Midwest helping to form storms but they track right up from Oklahoma and this is the area where our biggest storms come from. These storms have added fuel from the strong jet stream that adds rotation to our thunderstorms which makes them more likely to bring destructive winds, hail, and tornadoes. Tons of moisture is also lifted north from the Gulf of Mexico and as a result we have plenty of lift, moisture, and instability causing a dangerous and robust tornado season.


Here is a graphic showing why it was such a busy season. Notice we were in the red zone or the zone of concern for destructive storms. The La Nina did begin to fade out but not until the autumn and that is why we had a much quieter and beautiful autumn pattern to start. But believe it or not some signs point to La Nina making a comeback which means we could have another interesting winter and severe weather season in 2009! I will keep you posted here on the blog. There are no clear-cut answers on any of the long-range forecasts. Now compare this jet stream to the current jet stream below. You can really see the difference.

This means there will be no worries about any tornado sirens going off today. In fact this week it should be mainly dry! This is great news for the rivers and streams that will continue to recede. This zonal pattern or more of a west to east flow is known for much quieter weather and it will live up to its reputation. Also, the main storm track shifts farther north. How long will this last?

Well it is Indiana and with a Greenland Block expected to develop things could be a whole lot different by later next week and the following week. This time I do not think we will be talking ice that is for sure. We could certainly get the first of two big snows that I have forecasted this winter. We are due! That is for sure. Check back tonight for your New Year's travel weather. It could be a little rougher if you are traveling North, but nothing like we saw Christmas week! Make it a wonderful day and do something nice for someone.