| Episode Narrative |
The cold front that passed through the state on the 24th stalled to the south of Iowa during the overnight hours. It then lifted north as a warm front during the afternoon and evening of the 25th, though it remained to the south of Iowa. Thunderstorms developed during the afternoon. They were elevated in nature. Precipitable water values were around 1.25 inches. The freezing level remained quite high, in the 14,500 to 15,000 foot range. CAPE was limited with only 500 to 1000 J/kg of elevated CAPE available, however significant shear was present with 60 to 70 kts of effective shear. Downdraft CAPE was around 500 J/kg. There was around 300 J/kg of available CAPE in the -10 to -30 C layer of the atmosphere. Thunderstorms formed over southern Iowa, well north of the warm front. They produced hail and some gusty winds. One inch diameter hail fell in Ringgold County southeast of Delphos. Quarter size hail also fell in Wayne County in Clio. Additional thunderstorms developed in central Iowa, dropping pea to nickel sized hail in the metro Des Moines area. Several hours after the first round of storms moved off, additional thunderstorms formed in western Iowa. Quarter size hail fell in Sac County west of Schaller. |
