***I STRONGLY RECOMMEND USING EARPHONES/HEADPHONES (BASS AMPLIFIED) TO HEAR THE MORE NATURAL SOUND OF THE THUNDER/RAIN***
A video compilation of a group of severe thunderstorms that affected the West Island of Montreal during the late-afternoon and evening. Thunderstorms were forming ahead of a cold front and series of shortwave troughs. Early-day cloud cover and rainfall associated with the warm front limited destabilization, but by mid-afternoon, the cloud deck broke and the sun was able to make an appearance early enough and sufficiently steepened low-level lapse rates. Moderate instability eventually managed to materialize due to this heating, as well as due to very high humidity, despite modest mid-level cooling rates. Shearing fields were also unusually strong for early-August, and this substantially allowed for fast-moving, organized and longer-sustained thunderstorms to occur. Forcing for ascent was quite robust ahead of the cold front, along with some additional lift from the shortwaves. Lightning rates were frequent, including many high-intensity strikes. Frustratingly, I missed a very close strike (near my home) and corresponding near-deafening thunder due to my battery giving out on me just before it happened, and as I raced for my spare battery. Such a loud thunder would have really been monumental to capture, but I suppose that it will live on in my memory. You can hear someone's response to it at 51:35 into the video, however, the end-sound of that awesome thunder). The video, nevertheless, captures well the lightning frequency and massive torrential and sweeping rainfall. A Severe Thunderstorm Warning was eventually released for the island (Severe Thunderstorm Watches released by mid-afternoon). The beginning of the video (before the first radar imagery) shows some of the rainfall that occurred ahead of the warm front during the late-morning hours. 48.7 mm of rainfall (nearly 2 inches) occurred at the Sainte-Anne-Bellevue station, and 39.4 mm at Trudeau airport. 56.5 mm fell at St-Hubert airport for the day. This was the island of Montreal’s 15th thunderstorm day this year.
Footage was taken in SW Pierrefonds, located in Montreal’s West Island. Radar imagery is courtesy of NOAA.
~Trav.~