Funnel Cloud this Morning

On my way out to check on the campus this morning I spotted and called in (under the Skywarn program) a funnel cloud off the coast of Boca Raton around 9:25am. It did not touch the surface and lasted about 3 minutes. I was not the first to call it in but it did help the NWS issue the following Marine Weather Statement:

MARINE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIAMI FL
931 AM EST THU FEB 21 2008

AMZ650-211500-
931 AM EST THU FEB 21 2008
 
..MARINE WEATHER STATEMENT IN EFFECT UNTIL 1000 AM EST

FOR THE FOLLOWING AREA...
COASTAL WATERS FROM JUPITER INLET TO DEERFIELD BEACH FL OUT 20 NM

AT 928 AM EST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
SHOWER...PRODUCING WINDS OF UP TO 30 KNOTS ABOUT 2 NM EAST OF BOCA
RATON....MOVING NORTHWEST AT 5 KNOTS.

THE PUBLIC REPORTED SEEING A FUNNEL CLOUD WITH THIS ACTIVITY.

WATERSPOUTS ARE POSSIBLE WITH THIS ACTIVITY. REMAIN ON THE ALERT IN
CASE WARNINGS ARE ISSUED FOR WATERSPOUT DEVELOPMENT.

We do have a nice weekend in store with a few showers and a chance of a
thunderstorm.  Highs will continue to be above normal in the low 80s.

As we go into next week there is a good chance that a strong cold front
will come through the area.  The front could bring some strong weather and a
very noticeable cool down.  Check back through the weekend as this possible weather
event begins to unfold.

Warmer tha Usual

Beautiful weekend going on in south Florida with higher than normal temperatures and rain free. As we go into Sunday and Monday we will see an increase in shower activity, especially Monday as a cold front approaches the area followed by a cool down. Tuesday we will see highs in the mid 70s and lows in the lower 60s which is about 10 degrees warmer than we have had.

Also an note about the observations you see here on the blog and on www.wunderground.com the wind instruments have been moved and secured a bit better in hopes of having better wind information. The only draw back to the relocation was that the instruments were lowered about a foot. I will monitor over th next week to see if the data quality improves or not.

Have a great night.

Two Confirmed Tornadoes in Broward

There were two tornadoes that touched down in Ft. Lauderdale last night which spawned a Tornado Warning for our area. No injuries and both were EF-0 in intensity.

It was very different to have such a warm wind blowing with the rain and lightning around. Overall we had 1.98 inches of rain yesterday and over an inch today with the frontal passage.

The weather will be tranquil tomorrow and we should some showers as we go into the weekend. Another front will sweep through on Monday.

Severe Weather Potential

SPC has now stated that the potential for severe weather over southeast Florida will increase today and into tonight. In their words:

POTENTIAL FOR SEVERE STORMS SHOULD CONTINUE TO INCREASE
OVERNIGHT AS LOW LEVEL WINDS STRENGTHEN AND HODOGRAPHS ENLARGE.
HAVE OPTED TO INCREASE TORNADO PROBABILITIES OVER THE SOUTHEAST
PENINSULA FOR LATE TONIGHT...WHEN/WHERE MODEL GUIDANCE APPEARS TO
SHOW GREATEST THREAT OF TORNADIC SUPERCELLS.

Possible Rough Weather Ahead

Looks as if we will have some strong to severe weather coming in tomorrow and Wednesday. This is associated with a warm front moving north over the area tomorrow while an impulse from the Gulf of Mexico moves towards the east. Upper level winds, at this time, look to be conducive for thunderstorms, possible super cells and isolated tornadoes.

Then on Wednesday as a cold front sweeps through models are indicating that a squall line may develop and with the timing with the heating of the day we may again see severe weather. The Storm Prediction Center is forecasting that southeast Florida, specifically south of Palm Beach could see the strongest activity with the interaction of the squall line with the sea breeze front.

Here is part of the Hazardous Weather Outlook from this evening:

TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY 

THUNDERSTORM OUTLOOK: A WARM FRONT IS FORECAST TO MOVE ACROSS SOUTH  
FLORIDA TUESDAY INTO TUESDAY NIGHT. STRONG OR EVEN SEVERE  
THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE AS THIS FRONT MOVES NORTHWARD ACROSS THE  
AREA. THE POTENTIAL EXISTS FOR ISOLATED TORNADOES, ALONG WITH GUSTY  
WINDS. 

ANOTHER ROUND OF POTENTIAL STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS COULD  
IMPACT THE AREA ON WEDNESDAY, AHEAD OF AND ALONG A COLD FRONT  
EXPECTED TO MOVE ACROSS SOUTH FLORIDA WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON. AT THIS  
TIME, IT APPEARS THAT THE PRIMARY IMPACTS ON WEDNESDAY WILL BE  
DAMAGING WINDS. 

THERE IS STILL UNCERTAINTY IN THE FORECAST, BUT RESIDENTS AND  
VISITORS ARE ADVISED TO STAY TUNED TO THE LATEST FORECAST UPDATES ON  
THIS DEVELOPING WEATHER SITUATION AS SEVERE WEATHER COULD AFFECT THE  
AREA TUESDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY. 

Please keep updated on the conditions tomorrow and Wednesday.

Possible Strong/Severe Storms Tuesday Night

After a long delay I am back to updating the blog so thanks for coming back and looking. This will be a quick update to mention some interesting weather associated with a cold front that could occur Tuesday night into Wednesday.

Models have been indicating this possibility for the past 36 hours and the SPC has put us in the "Slight" category for the Day 3 Outlook.

Check back tomorrow for further information.