Tornado on 4/3/2014 East of Chouteau, Oklahoma

[Tyler Graham]

Hello Stormtrack users! On April 3rd my dad and I went out to eastern Oklahoma (just east of Tulsa Oklahoma) to chase storms as they fired off the dryline. Watching the radar, it was pretty obvious that the supercells that were developing would not remain discrete, but would remain discrete for a very short period of time before conglomerating into a linear mode. As we continued to watch the radar, a supercell impacting an area between Bixby and Tulsa Oklahoma was moving to the northeast, towards Chouteau. So we continued west on highway 412 to try to get near the hook. The first glimpse of the wall cloud was observed at 3:21pm. We sat and watched as the RFD rain shaft and wall cloud had some interactions side-by-side and noticed a very small condensation funnel drop from the base. This occurred at 3:23pm. As we continued watching, something amazing happened. I witnessed my first tornado. On the ground, below the condensation funnel, dirt was getting quickly suspended in the air and was starting to circulate around the funnel cloud. At first, I thought it may have been strong RFD kicking up dust or even the updraft ingesting dirt, but since there was a condensation funnel present, then there had to be rotation. Also, the dirt did rotate around the condensation funnel. Now, the tornado was extremely brief, and only lasted about 30 seconds, likely due to occlusion of the updraft by the rear flank downdraft that quickly overtook the storm and then went linear. So I just wanted to post this incident to the members to see if anyone else was out on these storms, get some comments and feedback, and also get a question answered. I have looked everywhere on the internet with no luck in finding any pictures or videos from the event. My question would be do you guys agree as fellow storm chasers that this would indeed be a brief tornado? As soon as we arrive d you could see the entire wall cloud vigorously rotating and within 2 minutes time a small condensation funnel could be seen, and it was rotating as well. and then there was dirt on the ground that was swirling around the base. Now, there were also rain curtains from the RFD getting caught up in the updraft, and the possibility that it could be dust getting kicked up from the RFD or even dirt ingested into the updraft, but I have to negate all of these theories because the dirt was rotating around the base of the wall cloud and around the condensation funnel. It was also darker than the rain bands, which means it had to be dirt. I believe that it was a tornado, and I'm just getting doubts since it was my first one and I have never seen one before. This being my first one in person, I have no previous experience with one to base facts off of. So I would greatly appreciate any comments regarding the tornado. But if there are any questions or comments or feedback from you guys, please tell me! I would love to hear input from others. I will post the pictures and give captions to each of the file names. Thank you all for reading and commenting. I just previewed the post and I am sorry the pictures are so small. It is hard to really analyze them. Is there any way I can get the images larger and within the post? If so, please tell me and I can re-upload them for a better viewing.

IMG_9564 5: IPhone Panoramic (Grainy if not viewed on an Apple product) Showing the circular wall cloud just a few minutes before dropping the brief tornado.

DSCN4538 1: The rest of the photos were taken with a NIKON CoolPix. This photo shows the rotation within the wall cloud just seconds before dropping a small condensation funnel and then the tornado. Notice the RFD coming in from the left

DSCN4539 2: Photograph of the wall cloud and the condensation funnel as well as dirt getting swirled around at the ground to the left of the yield sign.

DSCN4542 3: Close up of the small and weak tornado in progress. Notice the condensation funnel clearly visible as well as the dirt now getting more lofted into the air as well as it getting swirled around the base.

DSCN4546 4: Another Close up showing the tornado likely at its greatest intensity. The dirt was getting a lot more darker (indicating more of it) and the base of the debris field was a lot wider and more wrapped up as well. It dissipated soon afterwards.

 

[Shane Adams]

The pics aren't terribly conclusive. Post the video so we can see the motion.

 

[Tyler Graham]

Shane, I unfortunately did not get to film video of the tornado. That is the only downside to analyzing this...from the time we got there, I was taking stills of the amazing structure and did not have a lot of time to fool with my gopro to get it to film. Also, a threat for large hail and the storm moving away forced us to leave almost as soon as we got there. I was therefore unable to video. I realize it was a terrible error to do this, but I just didn't have time given the environment around me. However, I did take enough pictures of what I believe is a tornado to make a GIF, showing the scattering of debris at the ground. Would this work?

 

[Tyler Graham]

Also, I just viewed the photos on my IPhone, and I didn't realize how the resolution on the photos went down. These photos were taken with 14 megapixel resolution and the panorama with an iPhone 4s. I guess when the pictures were uploaded they lost some of their quality. I don't know what happened, but thy are much clearer than what is shown.

 

[Jeff Smith]

I was there at Chouteau (at the Love's on Hwy 69 at the south side of Chouteau) and let this feature overtake me. I have to disagree as while this was a severe storm, it was not rotating. This actually was the northern flank of the most intense part of the storm and while I was concerned for a minute that it could possibly produce a small "gustnado" but I could not see any rotation. It was more of a shelf cloud feature than anything as the storm was totally outflow dominant. The dust you saw kicking up was due to 40-50 MPH outflow winds. Not at any time did I witness inflow to this feature nor see anything that resembled a RFD.

1. the heavy precip core was on the south side of the feature.
2. No rotation observed at all (will try to post a video clip).
3. Storm was outflow dominant
4. There was no "hook"
I do not want to discourage you, but this was not a tornado, I'm sorry.



Here is a shout video clip:
Watch video >

 

[Joshua Nall]

Could what you and Jeff witnessed have been different, even though it was the same general area.... since you say that it was a wall cloud with strong rotation and that you could also see the funnel rotating? Are maybe it is possible excitement got the best of yall? If what you say is correct though and there was a pretty tight area of ground rotation then that has to be a tornado. I have seen two that looked almost exactly as your photos, little smooth nub funnels with rapid rotation, and both had small evident areas of rotation at ground level very briefly. Baby tornado.

 

[Tyler Graham]

Jeff, I greatly appreciate the comments and input. I have to say though, I can still replay it in my head the motion, the spin on the ground, and the rotation of what you are calling a shelf cloud. I remember that after what I am saying is a wall cloud moved onward, it did become increasingly more shelf-like. I do not have a close up radar image, though I wish I did. I can rememeber an inflow notch on radar and I can just remeber it all like it was from earlier today. Do you have a time stamp on your picture or video. I know you are right about the shelf cloud, and I agree with you completely. However, by the time it had started outflowing and gusting out it had also become very linear, while earlier when it was still evolutionizing off of the dryline it was semi-discrete and had rotation. I mean, you can't mistake rotation. It was very evident. And the dirt that was coming up off of the ground was being pulled around, not shoved forward like outflow would do. I am not disagreeing with you, as I noticed the same things you were talking about, but I wonder if Joshua is right. If you have a time stamp on the picture and video, please let me know.

Joshua, I think this may be the case. I would have to know the time that Jeff's picture and video was taken. These storms fired off of the dryline/cold front intersection and quickly became congealed, offering only a small time frame for tornado production. We got there right when the storm was switching modes, or so I thought. I think that it was a baby tornado, nothing big, but it was just a weak tornado that couldn't quite get its act together. I could very well be wrong, and I have a feeling I am. I do know that excitement did not get the best of me. I was trying to concentrate and I can remeber everythign with vivid detail, and excitement would likely bias this. I can promise that my remembrance of the chase is not biased, though I kn ow what you mean. I'm not accusing you of accusing me by no means, but I'm just letting you know. However, this funnel was extremely concentrated, and did have tight rotation both on the condensation funnel and the ground. What other photos have you witnessed, or were you reffering to the picture and video by Jeff?

To both of you, thank you so much for the comments and explanations. It helps more than you know.

 

[Joshua Nall]

I meant that I have seen two tornadoes very much like the one in your photos, in previous years. Thanks for sharing your experience. I did notice that some of those cells seemed to have a slight hook appearance as soon are soon after they formed, but certainly nothing that got me excited. I was even surprised at some of the hail reports because they just didn't seem that intense. I patiently waited in Arkansas for something to pop out ahead of the line. Never happened.

 

[Tyler Graham]

I meant that I have seen two tornadoes very much like the one in your photos, in previous years. Thanks for sharing your experience. I did notice that some of those cells seemed to have a slight hook appearance as soon are soon after they formed, but certainly nothing that got me excited. I was even surprised at some of the hail reports because they just didn't seem that intense. I patiently waited in Arkansas for something to pop out ahead of the line. Never happened.

Oh, okay. Sorry for the confusion. Well, my deal was is that the tornado was very weak and by no means very definable. Nothing big, but definitely a between the condensation funnel and the ground. And yeah, I noticed that as we were arriving to the dryline. The storms were developing a hook while they remained somewhat discrete, but soon lost it as they congealed into a line. Very strange setup, I guess...Supercells that weren't all that supercell, maybe? Lol. But Arkansas was indeed a bust as far as tornadoes go. I've been theorizing as to why this could be so...my thoughts being too much convective inhibition from earlier storms and I guess a lack of instability. When we got into Conway later Thursday night, you could tell the atmosphere felt less conducive, or at least to me it did. However, later that night storms did have some rotation, but it just wasn't anything major. The damage in Camden was pretty bad. The mayor, I read, said he hadn't seen damage like that since a tornado in 1970... Interesting stuff, to say the least.

 

[Skip Talbot]

My question would be do you guys agree as fellow storm chasers that this would indeed be a brief tornado? ... a small condensation funnel could be seen, and it was rotating as well. and then there was dirt on the ground that was swirling around the base.... the dirt was rotating around the base of the wall cloud and around the condensation funnel.

This is the definition of a tornado. Are your photos going to convey that to us? Probably not. It's often hard to see rotation especially on small or backlit features, so even if you had a gopro shot of it, it probably wouldn't help much either. The radar isn't going to help at all. The storm could look like crap on the radar and also visually, and still produce a supercellular tornado. Other chasers shots might help if we can verify that we're looking at the same feature and at the same time. If their shots don't show this feature though, it's not really evidence it's not a tornado though.

I'm just getting doubts since it was my first one and I have never seen one before.

You by no means have to listen to me, and ultimately it's up to you how you count this one. I've always thought that your first time should be special though. You should see that condensation funnel come down and kiss the ground and have that moment of pure ecstatic joy. I feel bad for chasers that struggle with counting their first one, harboring doubts that it was a tornado since it was a brief bird fart spin up. You should be proud of it, be able to show the picture to anyone and they'll say, "oh yeah, nice tornado", not have to circle it for them. That's just me though, and you certainly don't have to listen to me.

I don't know what happened, but thy are much clearer than what is shown.

Don't post your photos as attachments on Stormtrack. Upload them to Facebook, Google Drive, or Photobucket and then paste the URL into your post so that we can see the full size, regular image. Stormtrack is resizing and compressing your images.


Your photos could very well show a supercellular tornado. Just based off the photos, however, it's possible you're also looking at what I like to call "whale's teeth", pointy lowerings on the leading edge of a gust front (whale's mouth), and the dust whirl is a gustnado. I'm not at all doubting your account that both were strongly rotating, but we'll have to take your word for it since the photos won't show this, but that would indeed make it a tornado.

I've seen nub funnels with debris clouds that I counted as regular supercell tornadoes:

 

[Tyler Graham]

Skip, let me first say thank you so much for commenting! Your first comment kind of opened my eyes as to what I have been conveying the whole time. To me, and from my perspective, and the environment I was in, and the picture that is the only manifestation of that environment, may show one thing that it can unfortunately not show someone else who wasn't exactly where I was at that time and place. So thank you for that. I guess I'll combine the two of what you said and call it a tornado, but just have no clear cut evidence. And of course I'm going to listen to you! I agree with you completely, and I know exactly what you mean. I've had that mental image roll through my mind countless times...This is just one of those times where I have to call it a maybe, and get on with it. I hate to just completely deny it was a tornado or wall cloud or whatever...I can just remember the environment and feel and see and relive it over again, and doing all of that, I have a feeling it was one. And I know exactly what you mean by the ''whale's teeth." I will take it into consideration when I further analyze these pictures and go back over them again. But all in all, you're right. I think it's going to be a deal where when the event and environment were in the present, I was seeing a tornado and I personally think it was one, but there is just no absolute material to back it up with complete honesty. But I know you aren't doubting, you're just giving the facts, and the facts are the truth, and I greatly appreciate it. Well, I guess I'll count this one as a maybe, more towards no now, move on, and try again next time. I can't tell you how much I appreciate the help and insight. And next time I will use the URL method...I didn't know what to do and why that was happening.

 

[Paul Knightley]

I agree that there's nothing conclusive about the pics. My first time of seeing a 'tornado', in my mind, was May 29th, 2001, in the southern TX Panhandle. There was a dust column and something which looked like a funnel above but it was very inconclusive. Fast-forward to just after dark on May 12th, 2004 in southern Kansas - I then saw a tornado which was beyond any doubt whatsoever - the feeling of this was incredible! As Skip says, when you know, you know!

 

[Stan Rose]

I agree with Skip. If i was forced to guess, id say it was a tornado.

 

[Matt Hunt]

What direction are we facing in the pictures? What was the wind like at your location? Cold and in your face, or warm & at your back? If we're looking south, and the core of the storm is out of the frame to the right and behind you, and you had warm wind on your back (inflow) then that would be more evidence that it was a tornado. However, still can't confirm without video, or better yet, having actually been there.

I was on a storm that produced a bird fart tornado, but I never saw the ground debris, just the wall cloud, so I didn't count it as my first. I've also seen a tornado that had nothing more than a bowl funnel with ground circulation for a good 5 minutes before it fully condensed. Still a tornado, but not as exciting as that fully condensed cone.

 

[Jeff Smith]

Matt in my pic of the first page I was facing west, cool outflow, precip core to the south of the shelf cloud. Observed zero rotation, nada. I just fail to believe there was any tornado nearby.