Category: thunderstorms

“Pre-summer” leads to storm chances, then a beautiful weekend

April 28, 2025

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Erik Proseus

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forecast discussion, thunderstorms, Uncategorized

A warm start to the week leads to thunderstorm chances, then a fabulous weekend!
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Weather 102: Why is nighttime thunder so loud?

February 20, 2019

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Erik Proseus

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thunderstorms, weather 102

MWN friend Kristen Boyden asked a great question: “Why were Tuesday night’s storms so loud?” The overnight storms (and this is pretty common for nighttime storms and some during the day as well) were what we call “elevated thunderstorms.” Basically, we had a very strong temperature inversion in place, in which the temperature rises with…
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Heat & drought, storms, then more heat

July 8, 2016

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Erik Proseus

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drought, forecast discussion, thunderstorms

June was hot – the seventh hottest on record in Memphis. July is continuing that trend. In fact, as of 8am this morning, the official reporting station at Memphis International Airport had not dropped below 80° in 72 hours and that streak will continue today and likely until early Saturday morning when the forecast low…
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Casting a shadow – from Bartlett, TN to Alabama!

June 11, 2015

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Erik Proseus

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event recap, sunset, thunderstorms

In the middle of mowing on a sweltering evening in north Bartlett last night, I was keeping a close eye just to the south as clouds began to gather. Having put a 10% chance of evening rain in the forecast a couple of hours earlier, I knew a shower was possible but really didn’t expect…
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From snow to storms – spring returns to the Mid-South

March 29, 2015

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Erik Proseus

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forecast discussion, spring, thunderstorms

Snow and 40+ degrees?? Wasn’t yesterday’s snow weird?? I drove through a pretty steady graupel shower around 2:45 yesterday afternoon in Bartlett with temps in the low 40s. Some of you reported sleet or snow shaped like “round balls” yesterday – that was graupel, or “dippin dots” as we are known to call it. The…
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Temperature roller coaster in town for a few days with thunder at its apex!

January 2, 2015

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Erik Proseus

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arctic cold, forecast discussion, thunderstorms

Miss the Zippin’ Pippin? Well a roller coaster of another sort will be visiting Memphis over the next day or two, one featuring some wild swings in temperatures as a strong storm system approaches the area. Unfortunately, it also will be bringing us high chances of rain and even some thunder that will dampen any…
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Rain Chances, Cool Temps, and a Peek at the BBQ Fest Forecast

May 12, 2014

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Erik Proseus

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forecast discussion, thunderstorms

We’ve gotten a taste of early summer this past weekend with increased humidity, daytime temps in the 80s, and warm overnight lows. That all changes though as a cold front moves towards the region. A look at surface temperatures this morning shows a clear boundary through the central US separating the warm and muggy conditions…
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More rain and storms in time for the weekend

May 7, 2014

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Erik Proseus

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forecast discussion, thunderstorms

We’ve had a fairly extended period of dry weather following deluges and severe storms early last week. A few cool days were quickly pushed aside by warm high pressure with highs in the mid 80s for several days now, despite pleasant humidity levels that made mornings and evenings comfortable. As we head towards the weekend,…
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Warmer weather means spring storms and a chance of severe weather

March 26, 2014

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Erik Proseus

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forecast discussion, severe weather, spring, thunderstorms

Following freezing temps metro-wide this morning, nothing near that cold is in the extended forecast that goes into early April. Thus we will assume that winter is finally retreating! Even “well below normal” temperatures at this point will have a hard time reaching 32 degrees assuming we don’t approach it in the next week. So, we…
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Stormy night ahead, but severe weather not expected

May 9, 2013

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Erik Proseus

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forecast discussion, thunderstorms

Quick post on the likelihood of storms tonight. A cold front will approach the region and generate an area of thunderstorms that will move out of central TX across southern AR/northern LA and into MS overnight. Meanwhile, additional showers and t’storms are likely further north ahead of the front as well. Amongst all of this…
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Another Slight Risk of severe weather for Saturday football

September 1, 2012

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Erik Proseus

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event weather, forecast discussion, thunderstorms

As college fans celebrate the arrival of one of the most coveted days of the year – the first Saturday of the college football season – another round of severe weather may be brewing on the horizon. There are at least three games of keen Mid-South interest that could be affected by local weather, so…
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Recap of today’s thunderstorms and a pleasant pattern ahead!

April 5, 2012

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Erik Proseus

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forecast discussion, hail, holiday, thunderstorms

We began the day in a Slight Risk area for the possibility of some severe weather thanks to a potent upper-level low pressure system that was traverse the metro this afternoon. During this time of year, with some heating ahead of one of these lows, it is possible to get large hail in any thunderstorms…
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Lone thunderstorm visible for miles

June 8, 2011

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Erik Proseus

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thunderstorms, weather pics

A lone thunderstorm captured just before sunset from miles away (8:05pm CDT) A couple of lone thunderstorms developed in the early evening hours south of Tunica and were visible from miles away as skies around them were mainly clear. The photo above, taken from the north side of Bartlett just after 8pm CDT, shows the…
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Low threat of severe weather with tomorrow’s storm

January 31, 2011

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Erik Proseus

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severe weather, thunderstorms

While the Plains, Midwest, and Northeast will be dealing with potentially historic snow and ice from the storm system crossing the country over the next 36 hours, here in the Mid-South, we will have a chance, albeit low, of severe weather. An overview of the lower Mississippi River Valley and southern Plains during the late…
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Rain, rain, don’t go away!

October 12, 2010

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Erik Proseus

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thunderstorms

We are finally getting our best rain chances in nearly a month today as an upper-level low pressure system moves directly across the region. The cold temperatures aloft (typically associated with these types of systems) and heating at the surface this morning are fueling the formation of thunderstorms, some of which contain hail. The first…
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“Pulse” storms to affect Mid-South again today

May 25, 2010

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Erik Proseus

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damaging wind, education, flash flood, thunderstorms

A summertime pattern has developed over the Mid-South this week as high pressure is overridding unseasonably warm and moist air near the surface. Upper-level disturbances rotating through the region are helping to set off scattered thunderstorms during the peak heating hours of the day. On Monday, these storms fired over the greater Memphis area and…
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What caused rapid storm intensification over Memphis on the evening of May 16, 2010?

May 17, 2010

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Erik Proseus

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radar, StormView, thunderstorms

On the evening of May 16, 2010, a mesoscale convective system (MCS) moved into the Mid-South from the west. The quasi-linear complex of thunderstorms, followed by an area of rain, reached the metro area around 7pm. As it approached, the strongest storms were a bowing segment of thunderstorms south of the city over northwest Mississippi…
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Weather forecast for the Memphis in May Beale Street Music Festival

April 27, 2010

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Erik Proseus

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event weather, memphis in may, musicfest, thunderstorms

Since it’s almost May, that must mean it’s time for Memphis in May! And you don’t have to be a rocket scientist (or a seasoned meteorologist) to know that if it’s Beale Street Music Fest weekend, it’s probably going to rain. For all those that have come to expect a “Puddle of Mudd” (and we…
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UPDATED: Hospital Wing chopper crashes in inclement weather

April 12, 2010

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Erik Proseus

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accident, aircraft, helicopter, thunderstorms

UPDATED INFORMATION (4/12/2010) INCLUDED BELOW A medical helicopter operated by Hospital Wing, based in Memphis, TN, crashed into a wheat field outside Brownsville, TN at approximately 6:00am Thursday morning in the midst of a thunderstorm. WMC-TV reports that the chopper was returning to its Brownsville base a couple of miles from the crash scene after…
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Winter storm brewing in the Central U.S.; storms likely for the Mid-South

December 7, 2009

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Erik Proseus

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forecast discussion, national outlook, thunderstorms

It’s going to be a wild weather week across much of the nation this week as winter really kicks into full gear with a massive storm system that is moving across the southwestern U.S. today and will bomb out (deepen, or strengthen, very rapidly) as it heads into the Plains and Midwest by tomorrow. Blizzard…
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