I am starting today just outside of Joplin, MO, and have a long trek home.
Yesterday, I drove through sunny weather until near St. Louis, MO, where the skies became overcast. By the time I stopped to fuel up in St. Roberts, MO, it was raining off and on. I spent the night in Joplin, but no strong storms rolled though.
This morning, the weather in Joplin, MO, is mostly cloudy, mild and still.
The NWS in Springfield, MO, forecasts (for Joplin, MO) a mostly cloudy day, with a 40% chance of showers and thunderstorms in the morning and a high temperature of 91 F. The winds will be from the southwest at 5-9 mph.
The NWS in Norman, OK, forecasts (for Oklahoma City, OK) a partly sunny day, with a high temperature of 96 F. The winds will be from the south-southeast at 7-11 mph.
The NWS in Albuquerque, NM, forecasts (for Rio Rancho, NM) a mostly cloudy evening, with a 30% chance of showers and thunderstorms and a low temperature of 67 F. The winds will be from the northwest at 5-10 mph, becoming northerly after midnight.
The SPC Mesoscale Analysis Surface Map shows mild temperatures and high humidity, with cloudy skies (according to the sensors) and still winds. I will be headed towards more cloud cover as I drive through Oklahoma.
The SPC Mesoscale Analysis Pressure Map shows that I will drive down the light pressure gradient towards Oklahoma City. There is a high over north central New Mexico, but it will dissipate this afternoon with diurnal heating.
Visible satellite imagery shows that I will drive through heavy cloud cover for the first half of the day or so. There are a few pockets of embedded convection that I will pass through on the Oklahoma Turnpike.
The Nested NAM simulated reflectivity shows showers and thunderstorms are likely this morning as I drive through northeastern Oklahoma. Then, there will be a second batch of afternoon thunderstorms over western Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle.
The Nested NAM predicts temperatures will rise into the lower 100s F in western Oklahoma. Then, the temperatures will drop into the upper 60s F in Rio Rancho, NM, overnight.
The Nested NAM shows that I will drive from dewpoints in the 70s F to dewpoints in the 50s F.
The Nested NAM shows winds will be light, except near the strongest thunderstorms. This chart has been excluded from today’s post.
The Nested NAM predicts cloud cover along my route, with perhaps a little early afternoon break. Then, there will be more clouds this afternoon and evening.
Today will be a semi-miserable drive. The humidity is really high, and I will be fighting rain off and on this morning. This afternoon, I may get a break from it, but I might run into some afternoon thunderstorms in the Texas Panhandle.
I’ve got a long drive ahead of me, and I had better get crackin’.
Thank you for reading my post.
Sources:
The forecasts from the National Weather Service are from The NWS Homepage
The upper air soundings and mesoscale analysis plots are from the Storm Prediction Center website.
The satellite data, model data, and forecasted soundings are from College of DuPage – SATRAD
High Plains Chasing 