WEATHER SNAP SHOTS: April 2008 Archives

Stormy weather continues to sweep Scotland. Mark Vogan has sent us new
photographs of thunderstorms scattered across the beautiful Scottish countryside. He
tells us, “I took these shots this afternoon from our local hills overlooking our valley,
note the low-hanging dark clouds with black scud clouds which raced underneath the
slower moving main cloud base with a distinct rain shaft in the distance. Also note
the large collection of water on roadways.”

Thanks Mark for the excellent update and for the chance to see more of your
beautiful country! Stay dry!

-Tom Skilling

Photos courtesy of Mark Vogan, Glasgow, Scotland

Our friend Mark Vogan, who is our weather eye in the sky in Scotland and keeps us
posted on weather developments there and across the UK, e-mails us these pictures
which offer a clear indication that spring is finally dawning across our hemisphere.
Mark sends us these shots of cumulonimbus clouds developing as he drove home
from work yesterday. He follows up with some pictures of full blown thunderstorms
which cut power at some locations. These aren’t typical, Mark tells us.

“This is a typically dissapointing atmospheric set-up here throughout much of
summer as our Scottish climate does not receive the adequate daytime heating to
really build cumulus clouds into mature cumulonimbus towers. Thunderstorms do
occur during warmer spells but as temps generally average between 60 to 75 degrees
in summer and very rarely rise to greater than 80 degrees (thanks to our small island
geography and cool surrounding waters) all results in a fairly settled summer
atmosphere with few thunderstorms.”

Thanks for updating us and for a set of interesting photos, Mark!

-Tom Skilling

Photos courtesy of Mark Vogan, Glasgow, Scotland

Our thanks to Connie Koehler for sharing these beautiful photos of Monday’s
snowfall on the Koehler farm located between Wisconsin Rapid and Neenah in central
Wisconsin. Parts of Wisconsin received as much as 5” of snow Monday from the same
system which produced wet snow in many parts of the Chicago area. Many thanks
again, Connie!

-Tom Skilling

Photos courtesy of Connie Koehler of Waupaca, Wisconsin

Tracey Surface captures the gray, damp spirit of Monday’s weather in Chicago
through shot of Montrose Harbor from her high-rise window. Thanks Tracy!

-Tom Skilling

Photo courtesy of Tracy Surface, Chicago

Friday evening’s (April 25) powerful thunderstorms produced these Sear Tower
lightning strikes photographed by Gaurav Garg of Wilmette. Gaurav asks how the
antenna withstands this and all lightning. The fact is, Gaurav, the antenna is not
being hit directly—the appearance notwithstanding. Instead, a corona of charged ions
which pools up around the antenna is interacting with a charge descending from
above to give off the light we see in these lightning strikes. Thanks for such terrific
shots!

-Tom Skilling

Photos courtesy of Gaurav Garg, Wilmette, Illinois

SEE THE VIDEO!

Melting snow and recent precipitation in Wisconsin has produced these ominously
high waters on the Chippewa Flowage. Daniel Hanson shares these photos with us
and reports he took them just two miles from his home in far upstate Winter,
Wisconsin. Thanks Daniel!

-Tom Skilling

Photos courtesy of Daniel Hanson of Winter, Wisconsin

Huge snowflakes—some the size of half a fist—have fallen over sections of the
Chicago area Monday. Pam Long in De Kalb County these terrific shots of today’s
snow with us. Thanks Pam! It’s the second latest snow to affect the Chicago area in
the past ten years! Not since 2005 have we seen snowflakes here this late in the
season.

-Tom Skilling

Photos courtesy of Pam Long, De Kalb County

Chuck Hagen shares this remarkable shot of Friday night's lightning with us. He photographed the storm over one of the refineries in Lemont. Thanks Chuck for a terrific shot!
--Tom Skilling, Chief Meteorologist, WGN-TV/Chicago Tribune

Photo courtesy of Chuck Hagen, Oak Lawn, Illinois

Daniel Dombrowski shares this view of a towering cumulonimbus he photographed at an altitude of 35,000 feet while flying from Las Vegas to Midway on Wednesday. It's a terrific shot. Thanks Daniel!
--Tom Skilling, Chief Meteorologist, WGN-TV/Chicago Tribune

Photo courtesy of Daniel E. Dombrowski, Valparaiso, Indiana

Airborne dust borne on Wednesday’s 50 m.p.h. winds helped produce these
spectacular sunsets phoitographed so beautifully by Mike Frankowski of South Elgin.
Thanks for the great shot, Mike!

Tom Skilling

Photos courtesy Mike Frankowski, South Elgin

In sharp contrast to this year's long-awaited warmth, Janet Sorensen sent us this picture taken on her family farm in Manteno on April 17, 1961 after one of the biggest late-season snowfalls to ever hit this area. Nearby Kankakee received 5.6 inches of snow from this storm, while the Chicago area officially recorded 6.8 inches.

Photo courtesy of Janet Sorensen

Our colleague Richard Koeneman, picturde here at his home located at the 3,500 ft.
above sea level in western North Carolina’s picturesque mountains outside Asheville,
share these photos of falling Monday evening around 5:50 p.m. Chicago time.
Richard points out the snow is beginning to cover the just-blooming Forsythia bush
next to which he’s standing. It was in the 70s there only last week! Thanks for the
great shot, Richard!

Tom Skilling

Richard shares this shot with us under the deck of the house. There, a mountain
laurel is blooming in the Monday evening’s snow!

_________________________________________
LOOKING TOWARD THE SMOKIES AT 6 P.M.
By Richard Koeneman

Temperature: 34º ... The apple orchards are in full bloom in and around Asheville
and the fruit growers are worried that tonight's temperatures might wipe them out
again (a freeze last April ruined 60-90 percent of the local orchards).

About 1/2 inch of snow came down in that burst a couple hours ago. Ah, spring!
View is to the southwest.

Photo courtesy of Richard Koeneman

Jan Baumgartner shares these shots of the towering cumulus clouds which swept west suburban Sugar Grove in the "mild" air which entered the area with the storm's windy "dry wedge" around 9:30 am this morning. As Jan put it in her e-mail to us:

"It was quite a dramatic scene to behold! It went from sunny skies to very dark and then sunny again in just a matter of minutes."

Thanks for the great photos, Jan and for taking the time to share them with us!

--Tom Skilling, Chief Meteorologist, WGN-TV/Chicago Tribune

Photos courtesy of Jan Baumgartner, Waubonsee Community College, Sugar Grove, Illinois

Regular photo contributor Amanda Pickett shares this shot of her cat drinking in Thursday morning’s crisp sun in northwest Indiana. Great shot---thanks Amanda!!!

Tom Skilling

Photo courtesy of Amanda Pickett, northwest Indiana

Imagine her surprise when Ericka Carlson saw this cloud overhead Wednesday morning as she was out walking her dogs in northwest suburban Sleep Hollow? In sending this to us, Ericka asks “What do you make of this?? Is it a sign??? I don’t know—but it certainly makes an interesting photo! Thanks Ericka!

-Tom Skilling

Photo courtesy of Ericka Carlson, Sleepy Hollow, Illinois