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Upslope Flow 25 images Created 23 Jul 2018

This is a collection of images that are featured in my time lapse film, "Upslope Flow"

http://kevin-palmer.photoshelter.com/p/videos
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  • Outside of Ekalaka, Montana, the structure on this mothership supercell was incredible. At times it looked like a giant tsunami in the sky. This storm would go on to produce at least 8 tornadoes.
    Montana Mothership
  • While on the summit of the 9,500 feet high Black Mountain, I watched this thunderstorm recede into the distance.
    Black Mountain View
  • I stopped at the MT/WY stateline and watched this thunderstorm roll off of the Bighorn Mountains. Since there was no wind, I was able to keep shooting a time lapse without getting raindrops on the lens.
    Downpour
  • I chased a few thunderstorms that rolled off of the mountains in the afternoon. It was good rainbow weather, but they can't form in the middle of the day. Since the radius of a rainbow is always 42° and the center is directly opposite the sun (antisolar point), the sun must be at an altitude less than 42°. Around 5PM, the sun sank to 32° and this low rainbow appeared about 10° above the horizon. I stopped at this wetland and was able to cover my camera from the rain and capture a time lapse clip that I've tried many times to get. The extra colors (green, purple, green) at the bottom of the bow are called supernumeraries. It's a rare effect that happens when the raindrops are a specific diameter and mostly uniform in size. This complex light interference can't be explained by geometric optics. In fact, supernumerary rainbows played a part in the early 1800's in confirming that light is a wave, and not just made up of particles as previously thought.
    Supernumerary Rainbow
  • This severe thunderstorm rolled out of the Bighorn Mountains near Aberdeen, Montana. After it passed by I found 1.5" hailstones on the ground.
    Aberdeen Supercell
  • This severe thunderstorm rolled through Sheridan at the end of July, bringing heavy rain, strong winds, and hail. This was the view from the rest stop.
    Rain's Edge
  • Mid-June brought a tornado outbreak on the high plains with dozens of twisters reported in 4 states. I intercepted this strongly rotating mesocyclone while tornado sirens went off in Fort Laramie (the very first settlement in Wyoming according to the sign). Storm chasing in Wyoming is different than in other places. Because roads are so few and far between, it's unlikely that you'll be able to follow a storm for very long. Instead you have to anticipate the storm's movement so you can get ahead of it while staying aware of all the paved road options and escape routes. Then you just have to hope to get some good shots before losing the storm in a roadless area. On the lower right a funnel can be seen under the tightening wall cloud. Even though I didn't see it touch the ground, the time corresponds with a tornado reported to the southwest. After this I packed up my tripod and left in a hurry as small hail began to fall. This supercell had already dropped massive grapefruit-sized (4.5") hailstones and I prefer to keep my windshield intact.
    Funnel and Mesocyclone
  • After chasing storms for most of the afternoon, I ended the day by watching this storm recede into the distance over the sand hills near Torrington. The hanging pouches in the sky are known as mammatus clouds. They are somewhat rare and this was the best display I've ever seen. Mammatus clouds typically form underneath the anvil of a severe thunderstorm and are caused by sinking cold air. This storm was a cyclic supercell which produced multiple tornadoes in western Nebraska. Lightning was very frequent and I caught this bolt in one of the time lapse frames.
    Torrington Mammatus
  • This severe thunderstorm developed rapidly east of Sheridan. Usually lightning is very difficult to capture during the day. But it was frequent enough that my camera captured 3 bolts in the time lapse.
    Dusty Strike
  • Tumbleweeds rolled across the road as I drove through the Nebraska panhandle with this stunning supercell behind me. I was looking for something, a barn, winding road, etc, to shoot in front of the storm. But mostly I wanted to capture a time lapse without power lines getting in the way. Finally I found what I was looking for: a lone tree on the edge of a barren field. I ran out to the tree and had 6 minutes to take pictures before the winds would blow over my tripod.
    Tree Vs Supercell
  • On my way back from South Dakota I had a chance to intercept this severe storm at Devils Tower. I got there in time to watch the shelf cloud roll by over the tower. This storm was a prolific hail producer. I misjudged the movement of the storm and ended up getting caught on the edge of the hail core as I fled east towards Sundance. Golf ball-sized chunks of ice left additional dents in my car. But I got off easy, there were a lot of cars with smashed windshields. Hailstones up to 4.5" in size damaged crops further east where the storm also produced a tornado.
    Tower and Storm
  • After driving for over 5 hours I finally reached the edge of this powerful supercell just west of Faith, South Dakota. The shelf cloud looked amazing, backlit by the sunset and spitting out lots of lightning bolts. Once the storm hit it brought 1.5" hail which left some dents in my car.
    Faith Supercell
  • A bolt of lightning jumps out of the gust front of a severe thunderstorm in South Dakota. This was one of my final shots before taking shelter in my car to escape the close lightning and 1.5" hail.
    Out of the Gust Front
  • This thunderstorm rolled through the wheat fields of western Nebraska shortly before sunset. It was formerly tornado warned, but had weakened by the time I approached it. There was quite a bit of lightning as the storm got closer.
    Strike Two
  • This supercell rolled out of the Bighorn Mountains during the evening. I drove 20 minutes away to watch it rumble across the Montana grassland.
    Decker Supercell
  • This severe, slow-moving thunderstorm in northeast Wyoming was fascinating to watch. It was showing broad rotation, and was a prolific hail producer. I had to wait for the hail to move away from Highway 112 before I drove any further. Once I went north I found hail stones 2 inches wide which would have damaged my vehicle.
    Hulett Hailer
  • On this day a severe MCS (mesoscale convective system) roared across eastern Montana. Since I was out ahead of the storm near Miles City I had plenty of time to find an interesting place to watch it roll in. The Kinsey Bridge is a 4-span truss bridge that crosses the Yellowstone River. The single-lane bridge was built in 1907 and the poor condition made it unnerving to drive across. According to the National Bridge Inventory database, the Kinsey Bridge has a sufficiency rating of 56 out of 100 when it was last inspected. Just after 7PM the gust front passed overhead bringing with it strong winds, blowing dust, and heavy rain.
    Yellowstone River Shelf
  • A warm and humid wind gusted across the prairie causing the grasses and goldenrods to sway back and forth. In the distance a supercell thunderstorm spun away furiously. I knew a tornado was on the ground in Montana, but I couldn't see it until it crossed into South Dakota and emerged from behind a distant hill. The first tornado roped out after a couple minutes, but then this funnel quickly formed. It danced around, touching the ground briefly but not doing much. This was a cyclic supercell, which means it produced multiple tornadoes. As one ropes out, the wall cloud regenerates and another forms. Tornado #3 would be a much more substantial wedge that stayed on the ground for about 20 minutes. After I saw the storm's movement, I knew I could move a bit closer to get a clearer view. Sunset was minutes away and there was not much time left before it got too dark to see.
    Tornadic Buffalo Supercell
  • This was the 2nd twister that I saw outside of Buffalo, South Dakota. It danced around, touching the ground briefly and lifting again a few times. But the wall cloud on the right was beginning to show very rapid motion. It was about to drop a wedge tornado, and I knew I had to get closer to get a better view.
    Cute Little Twister
  • This was a day I won't soon forget. The forecast called for very humid air, extreme instability, and strong wind shear in the MT/ND/SD area. Having all these conditions come together at the same time is quite rare and I knew something incredible would happen. I just had to be there. The day involved lots of waiting around in eastern Montana until I set my sights on this supercell in the late evening. The storm structure was otherworldly, looking like a tsunami in the sky. When the first tornado dropped there were hills in the way and road options to get closer were limited. But outside of Buffalo, South Dakota, finally the twister became visible. The tornado lifted and planted again about 4 times. It was looking the best as the sun was setting at 9pm. I was never closer than about 9 miles, but this gave me the advantage of seeing more of the storm's structure. Now I finally have a tornado clip to finish up my time lapse film.
    Buffalo Tornado
  • A telephoto lens was very important to have on this storm chase, since I never got closer than about 9 miles to the tornado. This is the 4th and final tornado that I saw this evening. It was after 9:00 so that made it very challenging to photograph. The 1-second exposure gave the twister a blurred look. I would lose sight of it about 7 minutes later.
    The Last Twister
  • After riding out this severe thunderstorm outside of Faith, South Dakota, the conditions came together for a spectacular sunset. I stopped on this two-track road in the middle of a prairie, trying not to get stuck in the mud. Gorgeous colors filled the sky in every direction, with occasional flashes of lightning.
    Unreal Sunset Colors
  • Storms can either bring epic sunsets or none at all. It's all about the timing, and where you are in relation to the storm when the sun goes down. This severe MCS rolled through Miles City, Montana around 7pm. The rain slowly came to an end and a glow began to emerge in the west. I wasn't expecting much, but I found a place to wait (Spotted Eagle Lake) just in case something special happened. The sun only popped out for a couple minutes. But that was enough to light up the entire sky with intense orange and pink. A double rainbow appeared for 15 minutes, which was long enough to allow me to shoot a time lapse of it fading away. The wind died down for just a moment and the reflection in the lake made an almost perfect circle. Even though the long drive wouldn't get me home until after midnight, I'm glad I didn't leave early and miss out on this.
    Reflected Rainbow
  • Storms can either bring epic sunsets or none at all. It's all about the timing, and where you are in relation to the storm when the sun goes down. This severe MCS rolled through Miles City, Montana around 7pm. The rain slowly came to an end and a glow began to emerge in the west. I wasn't expecting much, but I found a place to wait (Spotted Eagle Lake) just in case something special happened. The sun only popped out for a couple minutes. But that was enough to light up the entire sky with intense orange and pink. A double rainbow appeared for 15 minutes, which was long enough to allow me to shoot a time lapse of it fading away. The wind died down for just a moment and the reflection in the lake made an almost perfect circle. Even though the long drive wouldn't get me home until after midnight, I'm glad I didn't leave early and miss out on this.
    Spotted Eagle Rainbow
  • I'm still in shock that my camera captured this. Most of the small storm had moved off to the east behind me and I thought the show was over. This was literally going to be my last shot before packing it up, and if it happened 2 seconds later, I would have missed it. The bright light behind the cloud is the first quarter moon. All the other white specks are raindrops, frozen in mid-air by the brilliant flash. The raw power dwarfed everything around and it took awhile for my eyes (and ears) to recover. I'm still not sure what was struck, but one of the forks looks like it connects with the short tower on the hill. I've tried before and failed to capture lightning from this vantage point overlooking Sheridan. But when I heard a thunderstorm rolling out of the mountains shortly before midnight, this is where I went. The covered deck at the rest area offered a little protection and helped keep the rain off of my lens.
    A Flash of Brilliance