Storm Spotters Australia

Video: Bureau of Meteorology

A very brief video of the early stage of the Merriwa Supercell development.

This went on to produce 6+cm hail, we done our best to keep up with this storm which was moving at nearly 80km/h+ once it got going.

Just to think it started as a simple shower above our heads just 15-20mins before hand....

Full video soon!!!!!!. STAY TUNED...

Yesterday we experienced our first storms of the season, well they just only just squeeze in to the storm class as I would rate them a 1/10 for the Illawarra.

None the less with SDS (Storm Deprivation Syndrome) in full swing my self and Mr Keene went on the hunt to see what we could find.

We headed to Gerringong to enjoy the thundery rainy mess. Here is a little 40 second video I put together.

Chris.

Yesterday, Monday 17/10/16 we saw a line of thunderstorms develop over South East Queensland in the afternoon, These thunderstorms brought damaging winds of 89km/h were recorded at Dalby at 3:04pm on the Darling Downs as they raced east towards the coast before disbursing out to sea and official warnings cancelled around 6pm.

The winds left many homes without power and sent trampolines flying. A man Near Toowoomba was injured when a tree branch hit him.

**Rain brings renewed flood warnings**

The Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology has again issued flood watches for Tasmania, Victoria, and flood warnings for parts of Queensland and New South Wales.

A combination of fronts this week will see rain fall on already saturated ground, one moving over Monday in to Tuesday and again later in the week Thursday to Friday.

**Rain brings renewed flood warnings**

The Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology has again issued flood watches for Tasmania, Victoria, and flood warnings for parts of Queensland and New South Wales.

A combination of fronts this week will see rain fall on already saturated ground, one moving over Monday in to Tuesday and again later in the week Thursday to Friday.

Flash back - 2015/16 Season

18 Minutes of highlights of the top 5 of our storm chases so far with Michael Keene, Chris Adams & David Metcalf representing the best of Storm Spotters Australia / Illawarra Storm Chasers.

Queenslanders are urged to prepare now with the release of the Bureau of Meteorology's tropical cyclone outlook today pointing toward a more active cyclone season this year.

Bureau of Meteorology Acting Regional Director Bruce Gunn said the warmer weather brings with it increased risks with the onset of the northern Australia fire season in spring, storms - as we have already seen in Brisbane last weekend - and of course cyclones and flooding.

What is a microburst?

A microburst is a small downdraft that is the opposite of a tornado and are found inside rather strong thunderstorms. The difference between a microburst and a tornado are that tornados pull air in, and microbursts push air out, and tornadoes usually have the appearance of swirling wind.

There are two types:
* Dry Microburst
* Wet Microburst

There are also three stages of a microburst
* Downburst
* Outburst
* Cushion