New Videos! Chaser Convergence Right Now In Manitoba - Lightning Last Night

Storm Chasing In Manitoba Today - Sweet Lightning Shot Over Moosimin

Gunjan and I headed out early yesterday straight east into the middle
of boiling soup of weather in south east Saskatchewan and waited all
day for the cap to break. After waiting in Grenfell for most of the
afternoon we moved on to Broadview and sat there for the evening.
Finally at 11:30pm the show got us going. Lightning intensified slowly
at first but soon the power began to flicker off at the Hotel lounge
where we waited. Shelf clouds were visible as we got on the highway as
sudden wind gusts made it clear that we had to move east. We found a
clearing and pulled over and took some video and photos of the storm
that was actually chasing us down. We did this a few times until
finding a rest stop on the Manitoba side of the border. The storm on
radar was most intense when it crossed the highway over Moosimin and
since it was moving at 70 km/hr north east, it was time to abandon the
chase and rest up for the next day.

Today, the forecast says large hail is the main threat if the cap
breaks, hopefully earlier today maybe around 6pm(CST) 5pm(SST). There
is a small probability of one or two tornadoes. Hope I've got the
times right but so far its been a very fun adventure. Met a lady that
showed me photos of turtles in the area which she promised to send me.
Much more stories to tell and videos will be posted later. We are
targeting south of Winnipeg somewhere close to the Manitoba/MN/ND
borders.

Storm Chasers Convergence - Something Brewing...

It was an almost ominously giddy get together for some of us, the first time meeting up with fellow weather enthusiasts this evening at Regina's Brewster's restaurant. Under clear skies and hot humid air moving in, about 15 or so members of Canadian Prairie Storm Chasers exchanged stories and forecast predictions while severe thunderstorms began to creep across the international border. Warnings are still up for south western Saskatchewan and since night fall a massive cell has continued to grow towards us. With a forecast high of 32C in Regina tomorrow, plans are for many of us to meet up early tomorrow and exchange thoughts before going out to chase down some tornadoes in southern Saskatchewan. The set up seems all too perfect for an outbreak of significant storms in the area, possibly further east and into Manitoba. Truly high time in the season for tornadic thunderstorms to occur which mainly runs on the Canadian Prairies from June to August. The peak of the season being the first two weeks in July. It is exciting and a bit scary to think what the next couple of days may hold. Safety and relaying relevant information will be our top priority as storm spotters and emergency relay operators.

Forecast - 6am June 28, 2011

I really doubt there will be any significant thunderstorms or tornado-fests over the next 3 days but some storm chasers sure are trying to make a big deal out of this. There is no deep low, no steep gradient, very little wind shear, only hot temperatures and extreme humidity. Of course, considering that I am always wrong, watch the forecast magically change. Current conditions never lie though. Its all clear on the prairies for as far as the eye can see. -Jared @ 6am June 28, 2011

UPDATE: Okay, I lied. According to this wind shear map, we are on the extreme side of shear. I should study a bit more about how they calculate shear, back to school for me.

UPDATE #2
"Vertical wind shear is the second critical factor in the determination of thunderstorm type and potential storm severity. Vertical shear, or the change of winds with height, interacts dynamically with thunderstorms to either enhance or diminish vertical draft strengths."

Source: University of Illinios

Sun Setting Behind The MacKenzie Art Gallery (strange clouds)