Gust Fronts | 30 May 2023 | Elkhart, Kansas to Hough, Oklahoma

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Another shelf cloud chase day seemed to be on tap. We set up in far southwest Kansas, north of Elkhart, to watch convection moving eastward out of Colorado. There was a lot of dust getting kicked up with brief gustnadoes here and there. We were eventually treated to a beautiful sunset shelf cloud display. I just couldn’t manage any good CG lightning strikes.

Storms building northwest of Elkhart, Kansas. 0055Z
Part of the line strengthening to our north. 0059Z
Shelf cloud bulking up as outflows merge. 0117Z
Panorama of incoming gust front. 0123Z
Sunset lighting up the whale’s mouth. 0203Z

As the gust front chased us, we drifted southeast into the Oklahoma Panhandle as night fell and all the tantalizing silhouettes started to appear along the edge of the gust front lines to our north and west. Various gustnadoes paraded eastward and northward as the line of storms crept along, while daggers of scud kept the cameras running just in case.

Night falling as outflow winds kick up dust to our north. 0234Z
Shelves, whale’s mouths, dust ups and grain silos as we surfed the gust front. 0321Z
0325Z

Eventually, we found a spot to park next to a cemetery and let the line pass by. I tried some lightning shots through the window, repositioning the car to aim at likely spots as rain and mist worked to blast in. The day met expectations and was a pretty chilled out chase overall.

One of the few CGs that landed on frame where rain wasn’t shooting in the window. 0425Z
Stack of 15 exposures as the line moves off to the southeast. 0434Z-0446Z


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