With ample moisture and heating, storms developed over the mountains and rapidly moved towards the Sydney region by 3pm. Storms produced brief heavy rain and wind gusts although the shelf cloud structure once again was the main for these storms in Sydney with nice striations! There were also some pulsating lightning bolts! After taking pictures, I then headed north, and passed through a line near Lake Macquarie. Letting this go, I raced up the Hunter Expressway for another line that had developed. This produced a detached shelf cloud and some powerful lightning bolts - one in particular left me shaken given the instant nature of the bolt and cracking gun shot explosive thunder!
Radar from the storms in Sydney
See : 128km Radar Loop for Sydney (Terrey Hills), 00:00 24/11/2014 to 00:00 25/11/2014 UTC
See : 64km Radar Loop for Sydney (Terrey Hills), 00:00 24/11/2014 to 00:00 25/11/2014 UTC
Does anyone have the soundings for this event to see why the striations ie a northerly relative inflow?
I am unable to post any photos as I was unable to take any from this event.
I drove to Katoomba on the day and the storm that crossed into Sydney did not have any shelf cloud as it crossed over the crest of the Blue Mountains around the Blackheath – Katoomba region.
The storm was producing towers but had little structure. I intercepted heavy rain and passed to the west of that as I drove through Leura. There was a rain free base which had some shape but as I began to look for a place to stop, the storm was unable to hold onto its moisture. It simply dumped its rain load and as a result, I was unable to take any photos. I found myself in the midst of a heavy downpour but no hail.
The shelf cloud seen in the photos must have formed as the storm passed over the lower Blue Mountains into Sydney well to the east of me.
There was some wind from that storm as it passed over the crest of the Blue Mountains but it was not damaging.
Following the storm, conditions cleared rapidly across the Blue Mountains.
Good you could get out Harley Pearman – the Blue Mountains have few areas to really see storms as they pass over except a few lookouts over the valleys.
Good you could get out Harley Pearman – the Blue Mountains have few areas to really see storms as they pass over except a few lookouts over the valleys.