Astronomy, Photography and Weather

Yes in my desperation for some exciting weather i am now officially a shower chaser.    In the worst year i can remember for storms i saw this one pop up on the radar just NE of Omagh and i thought the Sperrin mountains would provide some lift and encourage it to develop further. This wasnt to be although i did enjoy the view especially when the sun peeped out.

(http://i613.photobucket.com/albums/tt215/paulster78/Weather%202010/SC1-1.jpg)

(http://i613.photobucket.com/albums/tt215/paulster78/Weather%202010/SC4-1.jpg)

Thanks for posting these Paul, great shots with nice 'heavy' cloud sctructure contrasting with the lovely country below. I know just how you feel, we have been chasing showers all year with little to show for it but I'm confident all our dedication will pay off some day. Conor and I where out yesterday as well, spent the day near Ardboe on the Lough shore then on the way home we seem dramatic dark storm clouds forming on the convergence zone with a good looking cell over the Sperrins, it really looked the part, thought we were going to get a rumble or a funnel but no joy, later we went to Glenshane to watch more but it turned cool and outflowy. Got some images but I was that annoyed that I binned them lol. Very glad to see your captures, and it feels quite comforting to know that you have been out watching too. At least a funnel was captured over Cork.

One question - are you chasing on Wed or Thurs? - we plan to be.  :)

Beautiful scenery Paul, I know that you're mainly looking for storms though. Great shots

Thanks Richard its a great spot, i waited ages for the sun to come out and light up the foreground for the first shot.     Cheers Martin, i have no plans to chase either day yet. From now on im taking any convective forecast with a pinch of salt, i will moinitor all developments from a few days out but i feel with this being a small island and so many parameters have to be just right to even get a weak thunderstorm that i'll wait til a minimum of 6 hours out to get excited.  Saturday was a big letdown but at the same time the buildup was exciting and your right it will pay off someday, if i didnt have a real passion for it i probably would have gave up by now.  :)

Your last sentence sums up how I feel lol - if I wasn't so passionate I would give up. I think we all can't give up though and just can't pack in the bags, what keeps us going is the thought of the unknown, what will we see?, even poor forecasts can turn exciting very quickly on the day and you never know when that incredible funnel or tornado will drop into view, so that keeps me going. If we got one truly spectacular catch then it would make up for the entire year's disappointment. I would say with great confidence that we will get some cool sooner or later, considering the amount of time spent looking at the sky and driving all over the country. - it will pay off sometime  :)

I will be gutted if Wed doesn't come off, I await the next GFS updates and convective outlooks with a nervous breath lol. Time will tell. The more often we go out then the greather our chances of success. This truly has been the worst year ever for storms in this country, the tables are bound to turn at some point. What keeps me going is the video in my mind's eye of that big funnel in 2007 bending over the ground like a US tornado - I have always wanted to get something like that again up close in a wide angle shot. That was only 700-800 CAPE with LIs' -2 so it doesnt take much. Fingers crossed Paul  :)

Nice images Paul.

Got a few shots of this very dramatic sky afternoon of the 12th from the back garden, it lasted for hours!
(http://i25.tinypic.com/2j5b8d1.jpg)

A very ominous looking sky John, very turbulent up there. That would have looked great over the countryside as Paul's.

Cheers Martin i wont give up even if it means driving to the other end of the country to catch a decent storm! ;)


Nice shot John i had very similar skies here as well that day.

(http://i613.photobucket.com/albums/tt215/paulster78/Weather%202010/StormySky1-1.jpg)

Main thing is,Paul-you got out there and into lovely countryside too and you should get a chance these next few days as that Low moves NE. Here's hoping anyway. Are John's Alto Cumulus ?