Washington, D.C

Here’s why there was a downpour of large hail in the D.C. area on Monday

Published

2 weeks ago

April 16, 2024

Here’s why there was a downpour of large hail in the D.C. area on Monday

In a relatively uncommon occurrence for the region, a widespread downpour of large hail impacted parts of the District and Loudoun, Fairfax and Prince George’s counties Monday afternoon, as a severe thunderstorm storm raced east and southeast across the area. Readers captured numerous photos and videos of the hail, while three-dimensional radar imagery detailed a stunning view of the storm’s inner workings.

Dozens of severe-hail reports were logged by the National Weather Service. Hail that is about one inch in diameter, or roughly the size of a quarter or larger, is considered severe with the potential for damage. Hail as big as golf balls — which are 1.68 inches in diameter and more likely to leave dents in vehicles — was reported near Brambleton in southeast Loudoun County. Another storm also tossed large hailstones to the north, in Montgomery County.

Significant hail days are not terribly common around Washington, but when they happen, it is often during the spring before peak thunderstorm season arrives. This is because of the combination of strengthening spring sunshine, which creates strong currents of rising air in the lower atmosphere, and a lingering winter chill at the mid-levels, plus stronger jet stream winds. These factors allow spheres of ice to rapidly grow within bubbling clouds.

One striking aspect about yesterday’s “hailers” is that they developed over the D.C. region less than 24 hours after a similar widespread outbreak of severe hail-producing thunderstorms across north-central Pennsylvania on Sunday afternoon. It was the same weather front, but a different atmospheric disturbance along it, that triggered Monday’s hail.

The conditions that produced severe hail

The strong contrast between warm, relatively humid air in the lower atmosphere and cold, dry air higher up was a key factor in promoting the explosive thunderstorm growth that produced the large hail, but it wasn’t the only aspect.

A strong belt of winds from the west associated with the jet stream — a river of racing winds aloft — created a change in both the direction and speed of winds with height, or wind shear, which is typically required for powerful thunderstorms to develop.

The storm cells became powerful enough to keep growing hailstones suspended in the air, allowing them to swell to large sizes before falling to the ground. The longest-lived of the Monday storms qualified as supercells, at least at times. Supercells are characterized by strong and stable upward currents of air that persist for up to hours at a time. They are the types of storms most likely to produce severe hail and other hazards such as large tornadoes.

The swath of hail from southern Loudoun County to southern Prince George’s County seen on the image above was created by a single long-lived storm cell that is shown in the radar image below.

It had a very long track. The cell initiated northwest of Capon Bridge, W.Va., and pulsed up and down in severity. It appeared to have briefly generated hail over Winchester, Va., but then really got going over east-central Loudoun County, continuing in pulses through Fairfax County and southern D.C. and into Prince George’s County.

WTOP’s Dave Dildine reported cars suddenly parking under highway overpasses along the storm track, seeking refuge from the volley of large, potentially damaging hailstones. (As a brief aside, this is not advised for many reasons, including increased risk of accidents).

The radar image below, created with computer software that depicts the three-dimensional structure of the storm, shows intense precipitation lofted into freezing air above as the hail-generating supercell moved across Arlington. It is essentially a CT scan revealing the vertical structure of the storm, which towered to 45,000 feet, using microwave energy. This is shown in the figure below, as the hail-generating supercell was working across Arlington.

In this case, the mushroom-shaped inner core punches high up into the atmosphere like a fist. The air in that core was probably rising at speeds of 40 to 50 mph or faster.

The whole cloud is leaning, or tilting, because of the influence of the shearing winds. The white region below 10,000 feet represents the dense curtain of hail falling out of the storm. Few images so strikingly depict the impact of shearing winds on the development of a severe storm cell.

Photos and videos shared by readers

Impressive imagery and harrowing videos of the hail poured in via social media, especially on Facebook. One person said they had “never seen one this intense!”

Below are a few of the photos and videos we received. In the first photo, streaks of hail can be seen falling from the boiling mass of clouds amid the shining afternoon sun.

Source link

Washington, D.C

Wiseguy Pizza opens in Washington D.C. neighborhood

Published

6 hours ago

April 29, 2024

Press Room

Wiseguy Pizza opens in Washington D.C. neighborhood

Thompson Restaurants has opened its seventh Wiseguy Pizza. It is located in a residential neighborhood of Dupont Circle in Washington, D.C., according to a press release.

The pizza brand is known for its New York-style pizza. Wiseguy also has a rotating menu of specials which includes vegan and vegetarian offerings.

“We are ecstatic to introduce our award-winning pizza slices and pies to the vibrant Dupont Circle neighborhood,” Alex Berentzen, COO of Thompson Hospitality, said in the release. “We are very much looking forward to the Dupont community experiencing Wiseguy’s renowned New York-style pizza and exceptional quality, a hallmark of our presence across the DMV region.”

The Dupont Circle Wiseguy Pizza features dine-in and carryout services. It has a small dining room and an extensive patio.

Thompson Restaurants owns and operates15 brands with more than 70 locations.

Source link

Washington, D.C

The Never Ending Need For Oversight In Washington, D.C.

Published

13 hours ago

April 29, 2024

Press Room

The Never Ending Need For Oversight In Washington, D.C.

This week, Jason sits down with Michael Howell, the Executive Director of the Heritage Oversight Project. Launched in January 2022, the Oversight Project is Heritage’s investigative and oversight arm. Jason and Michael discuss their shared work on oversight and reminisce on Jason’s time as Chairman of the House Oversight Committee.

Plus, Jason shares how the summer cicada story could affect millions of people and why President Biden doesn’t care about the border crisis.

Bring On The Stupid: A Drag Queen Story Hour, for children.

Follow Jason on Twitter: @JasonInTheHouse

Source link

Washington, D.C

25th High Plains Honor Flight takes veterans to Washington, D.C.

Published

21 hours ago

April 28, 2024

Press Room

25th High Plains Honor Flight takes veterans to Washington, D.C.

As High Plains Honor Flight went wheels up for its 25th expedition back to Washington, D.C., on Sunday morning, plenty of people on board knew exactly what to expect.

Honor Flight President Matt Voris said there are volunteers going on their 15th-plus trip. Voris himself said he has lost track of how many he’s been on.

But for the 120 veterans on board, the next 36 hours will be like almost nothing they’ve ever experienced.

“We find the magic of Honor Flight is when 120 of them are together, they start chatting. They’re in like company with people who have experienced the same kind of things they did,” Voris said. “And by the time we get back here, it’s like the weight of the world is lifted off of them.”

Voris said many veterans — specifically combat veterans — return home from serving and bury most of what they experienced deep down, not even wanting to talk about it with their closest family. He’s noticed with those who have taken an honor flight, something loosens up inside them.

“We’ve had many, many families tell us after their veteran gets home from a trip, ‘Uncle Jimmy never talked about anything while he was overseas. And now since he took the trip, we can’t get him to shut up.’ ” Voris said. “It’s an awesome thing.”

The veterans started their 36-hour trip Sunday morning with the Escort of Heroes, which took them from the McKee 4-H Building at The Ranch Events Complex to the Northern Colorado Regional Airport. Thirteen veterans who served in Korea, 106 who served in Vietnam and one who served in both flew to Baltimore, where they were scheduled to attend a banquet in their honor. They will wake up Monday morning and head to D.C. to visit the World War II Memorial, Iwo Jima Marine Memorial, Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Air Force Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam War Memorial and Korean War Memorial and fly back. All before bedtime.

Buses carrying veterans to the Northern Colorado Regional Airport drive down Fairgrounds Avenue during High Plains Honor Flight’s Escort of Heroes on Sunday in Loveland. (Chris Bolin – Public safety reporter)

“We keep busy,” Voris said.

This year’s trip — named in honor of the late Col. William R. Suhre, an Army veteran and Greeley resident who was awarded a Purple Heart, Bronze Star and Silver Star for his heroics in Vietnam — will be the first without any World War II veterans.

Along with the natural fight against time, that is in big part because the group has grown that much closer to fulfilling the original goal of founder Stan Cass.

Cass, a 29-year-old Army veteran, founded the organization in 2008 as Northern Colorado Honor Flight with the goal of giving every Northern Colorado World War II veteran an opportunity to see the then newly established World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C. Voris took over in 2008, reviving the program and renaming it to High Plains Honor Flight.

“There are not very many World War II guys left from this area that have not previously been on one of our flights,” Voris said.

Before the trip officially kicked off, High Plains Honor Flight paid tribute to those who have passed since last year’s flight as well putting on a pair of musical performances at the McKee 4-H Building.

Veterans along with their friends and family crowd the McKee 4-H Building at the Ranch Events Complex Sunday morning ahead of High Plains Honor Flight's 25th expedition to Washington D.C. (Chris Bolin - Public safety reporter) — President Matt Voris speaks as veterans — along with their friends and family — crowd the McKee 4-H Building at The Ranch Events Complex on Sunday morning ahead of High Plains Honor Flight’s 25th expedition to Washington, D.C. (Chris Bolin / Greeley Tribune)

Local artist Fleeka performed her song, “Lovin A Hero,” about saying goodbye to a soldier about to deploy; and Richard Kerns, a veteran who went on an honor flight last year, performed his song, “Take to the Sky.”

The lyrics of the chorus — which he wrote on the flight back last year after being inspired by the journey — read:

“Take to the sky, with honor they fly, serve those who served, take them higher than high.”

Veterans, with honor, took to the sky Sunday morning. And after a busy day-and-a-half, they will take to the sky again Monday evening and return home, hopefully, feeling higher than high.

Source link