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<br />NEWGLETTER 90 - 7
<br />
<br />JUN 2 0 '90
<br />
<br />FOR THE WEEK JUnE 9 - JUNE 15, 1990 COUORADOWATER
<br />CON8!PNAT'O~1
<br />BOAD~
<br />GENERAL INTEREST: With tha partioul~r kind of weatherW8Gtern Kansas
<br />has experienced most of the season, there have been o~ly 12 days where
<br />seeding was performed to :increase rainfall or reduce he.il---6 days in
<br />May and 4 more through J~ne 15th, The 15-year average number of
<br />operational days up tCJ thIs same moment in time is near 18---almost
<br />50% more than seen this season, so far,
<br />
<br />OPERATIONS: Western Kansas weather this past week returned to what is
<br />more normally experienced here in June as severe storms battered the
<br />region three days during this weekly period, One observation flight
<br />was made on June 12th, ho~aver, that cl~ud was weak and remained
<br />outside the target area north of Scott County.
<br />
<br />JUNE 9th---OPERArrONAL DAY #10: Mid-afternoon storms built rapidly in
<br />southern Gray and southwest Ford counties along a nearly stationary
<br />B.B-WSW frontal boundary that extended into SW Kansas from E,Central
<br />Kansas. All aircraft wer~ scrambled prior to seeing radar echoes,
<br />
<br />**NOTE: Shortly after getting into operations and observing radar
<br />echoes, the radar became largely inoperative; clouds were not
<br />displaying properly, thereby making accurate traCking, identification
<br />and intensity measurements impossible, When radar maintenance was able
<br />to be performed the next morning, June 10th, it was determined the
<br />Transinitter/Receiver tube had gone bad causing the problem, However,
<br />we had a spare and the system was fixed and calibrated before noon,
<br />
<br />Seeding began at 3:34p,m" KDT. with all aircraft initially
<br />working tbe storm complex' in southern Gray Co. Subsequent new cloud
<br />growth built rapidly to the west across Haskell, Grant, Kearny,
<br />Hamilton and Stanton counties, These developing storms then moved
<br />alowly to the northeast. The seeding planes followed these quickly
<br />building storms working on them back into the counties ot Stanton and
<br />Hamilton, All aircraft eventually ran out of seeding agent and had to
<br />land tu resupply, However, three additional flights were able to be
<br />launched for additional seeding during this episode, Extremely intense
<br />etet"me were reported in NE Stanton county, Hail was reported aloft by
<br />the seeding aircraft in that area. Just prior to neW storms building
<br />further west from Stanton County into Colorado, a N-S line of storms
<br />moving eastward through eastern Colorado merged with them, It is most
<br />likely that the extreme storm intensification ovel- Stanton County was
<br />due to the impending merger of these cloud systsrus---a fairly commom
<br />meteorological occurrence. As the cloud systems merged in western
<br />Stanton County, all new westward cloud growth ended; the N-S oriented
<br />line of storms from Colorado became invigol"ated and moved eastward
<br />across the target area, Two planes continued seedin8 in tront of the
<br />line of storms, eventually ending seedi,ng over Finney and Gray
<br />counties at 10:13 p,m, and 10:16 p,m,. respeotively.
<br />
<br />JUNE 14th---OPBRATrONAL DAY # 11: Strong visual cloud growth appeared
<br />to be developing near Haskell and Gray counties with all cloud base
<br />planes scrambled at 1:24 p,m.. MDT, the cloud top aircraft was
<br />finishing up maintenance in Scott City a.nd initially unava.i1ab1e,
<br />Seeding first began in extreme southern Gray Count.y at 1:46 p,ro,
<br />Storm movements were to the northeast into Ford Countv with seedin~ bv
<br />
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