WW2010
University of Illinois

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Springfield, Illinois Tornado
photos from the chase, narration by Dr. Bruce Lee

The second tornado sighting of the day occurred around 6:35 p.m. some 17 miles west of Springfield, Illinois. The group was traveling along I-72 when the funnel was spotted along the backside of a rapidly moving supercell A unique feature of this tornado was that its path was nearly parallel to the interstate.

[Image: growing towers (51K)]

Rapidly growing "towers" along the supercell's flanking line from a position approximately 20 miles west of Springfield, Illinois looking east.

[Image: defined condensation funnel (47K)]

A well defined condensation funnel forms at the western edge of this supercell thunderstorm. The rear flank downdraft has carved out a marked clear slot on the southern periphery of this tornado. Viewing perspective is east along I-72, approximately 17 miles west of Springfield, Illinois. Note, the time clock in this picture is in Central Standard Time (CST).

[Image: poor contrast (45K)]

Poor contrast prevents the viewer of this picture from determining if the circulation is on the ground at this time. Actual naked eye observations revealed that a debris shield had indeed been created by the tornado.


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Credits and Acknowledgments for WW2010.
Department of Atmospheric Sciences (DAS) at
the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.