Friday 12/05 Thunderstorm activity

daelight

kippy wrote:

Where do you get those almost real time radar shots?

Try http://www.meteorologica.info/freedata_lightning.htm

pretty cool, refreshes every minute

highdef

I managed to sunbathe from midday to 4pm in Baldoyle. At one stage, there was a thunderstorm to my north and one to my south with just a slither of blue sky in the middle which I was in the whole time. It was funny lying there sweating and listening to loud crashes and rumbles of thunder from lightning just a few miles away - It's now just dull and crap looking outside and just starting to spit rain. Looks like the rain is gonna actually start soon - been so (un)lucky so far

Supercell

highdef wrote:

I managed to sunbathe from midday to 4pm in Baldoyle. At one stage, there was a thunderstorm to my north and one to my south with just a slither of blue sky in the middle which I was in the whole time. It was funny lying there sweating and listening to loud crashes and rumbles of thunder from lightning just a few miles away - It's now just dull and crap looking outside and just starting to spit rain. Looks like the rain is gonna actually start soon - been so (un)lucky so far

You do realise that if you close enough to hear it, then you are close enough to be hit by it, clear sky overhead or not!

Supercell

Headphones definately off now, can hear thunder through them, very dark sky in Tallaght/Lucan direction

m_stan

daelight wrote:

Try http://www.meteorologica.info/freedata_lightning.htm

pretty cool, refreshes every minute

that's sweet.

I'm in Swords too and it's getting gloomy but no rain aside from a few spits around 30mins ago. A good few rumbles in the last hour but nothing major. Looks like it could really get going soon though.

The radar suggests it's all north of here. Wish I could photograph it when it happens !

Manaris

In Portarlington.. just had some fork lightning right outside my window, lightning and thunder almost simultaneous and thunder VERY loud!

Supercell

The meteorologica sferic map seems to always put the activity too far north , must be something to do with the way it calibrated, the Isle of Wight one Earthman posted is far better imho.

highdef

Looks like all the storms to the west south west o Dublin have joined up and are about to hit Dublin - Will they die out or will they keep up?!?!
Oh Longfield, I love the sun so took the chance, however silly it may be. I wasn't wearing any headphones though

Snowbie

Yeah High def nothing but sun for ages up here in Clare hall too,now its tryin to do something but what i dont know.lol

Riamfada

A bit crazy over terenure atm. Skys very dark to the west and north. Looks like we are only getting the tail end . As usual

daelight

It has arrived to the city - clouds getting chatty and few flashes - the isle of white radar thing didn't pick up the strikes though?!!

Love this kind of weather - the colours are amazing - clear view of the Spire from the office window - should get a hammering!

Supercell

highdef wrote:

Looks like all the storms to the west south west o Dublin have joined up and are about to hit Dublin - Will they die out or will they keep up?!?!
Oh Longfield, I love the sun so took the chance, however silly it may be. I wasn't wearing any headphones though

Lol, well a direct strike will do wonders for the tan, I suppose the headphones would have left a pale spot around your ears ;)

On a more serious note, the showers seem to be following in a train line, areas getting activity could be in for a long evening, with possible flash flooding in some places.
All very exciting!

whippet

In ballymount, just saw a great strike and the the bright ball of light where it hit .. somewhere in Parkwest I think !

Supercell

Grimes wrote:

A bit crazy over terenure atm. Skys very dark to the west and north. Looks like we are only getting the tail end . As usual

I'm in Rathgar, wouldnt rule anything out yet, fact that we can hear it here means that its very close and more than possible that we may get some overhead before the evening is out

Mimikyu

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Narcissus

Absolutely bucketing down where I am, DCU at the moment.

Thunder and lightning very very frightening me!

daelight

Went up to 5th floor of the office, got a clear view over the city out to Blanch direction - forking fork lightning getting more frequent soooo cool!

The cranes are still being used, they must be lovin it :eek:

Mimikyu

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Supercell

Hmm my ups is making clicking noises, am guessing that the power is fluctuating at the moment.

red_bairn

Was bucketing earlier here (4.00pm) in Greystones. Twas getting off the train from Wicklow and there was a loud band and i thought there was a building in the main street getting demolished...but it wasnt. And school girls were screaming across the road-didnt blame them sounded like it was a fierce explosion or something.

SpitfireIV

Thunder shower here in Carlow town, a couple of rumbles of thunder and the lights dimming every now and then...:rolleyes:

Mimikyu

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Astro1996

Thunderstorm passed NW of here, constant fork lightning and very loud thunder but no rain, looks like there is another cell off to the SW, keep them comming

FranknFurter

Liffey Valley / North Clondalkin here.
Amazingly loud thunder followed by big time lightening!
More rain than I've seen in months!


b

red_bairn

Cherbourg in France seems to be getting the storms madly. I remember as a kid my dad would pretend to predict the next strike when we were getting to car on to the ship. Was scary coz most times he was right! he would point into the sky.:)

Snowbie

Longfield wrote:

Lol, well a direct strike will do wonders for the tan, I suppose the headphones would have left a pale spot around your ears ;)

On a more serious note, the showers seem to be following in a train line, areas getting activity could be in for a long evening, with possible flash flooding in some places.
All very exciting!

That train line your refering to is called a line squal,which is a line of storms.This is a rare event and espeicially over dublin its unusal,what happened is the cold front has pushed down from the north and has bumped into the covective storms that built over the wicklow mountains and se Ireland which are pushing northwars but met over head.The cold air undercut the warm air forcing it to rise more quickly and exploded the storms more intensily right throughout midlands to the east,creating a line squal.

I have a lightning detector (ld-250) which has been plotting the storms on a map of ireland and Uk and is beeping continuosly,each beep represents a strike.Unfortunately cant upload charts but have an accurate view of were the strikes are.
That isle of white is inaccurate as over 300miles it is impossible to tell a strike cause of the curvature of the earth,and also mountains sponge up the radio waves,and there is a few mountains between us and them,like i cant pick up the storms were Earthman is cause of the mountains blocking the signal only a ocasssional signal will i detect but as for the rest of the country spot on.

darkman2

In north Dublin the lightning is starting to beome more obvious. Very loud thunder. We are on the fringe though.

Supercell

Fading away here, so near yet so far, havent lost hope though!! (headphones back on!)

Supercell

Snowbie wrote:

That train line your refering to is called a line squal,which is a line of storms.This is a rare event and espeicially over dublin its unusal,what happened is the cold front has pushed down from the north and has bumped into the covective storms that built over the wicklow mountains and se Ireland which are pushing northwars but met over head.The cold air undercut the warm air forcing it to rise more quickly and exploded the storms more intensily right throughout midlands to the east,creating a line squal.

I have a lightning detector (ld-250) which has been plotting the storms on a map of ireland and Uk and is beeping continuosly,each beep represents a strike.Unfortunately cant upload charts but have an accurate view of were the strikes are.
That isle of white is inaccurate as over 300miles it is impossible to tell a strike cause of the curvature of the earth,and also mountains sponge up the radio waves,and there is a few mountains between us and them,like i cant pick up the storms were Earthman is cause of the mountains blocking the signal only a ocasssional signal will i detect but as for the rest of the country spot on.

Thanks for the explanation there Snowbie.
Would love to see a screencap of the output from your lightning detector ! (surely altgr + printscreen and then paste in paint will work ?)
There used to be an online Irish sferic detector in Waterford or Wexford iirc, does anyone know if this is still active and what the linky is?

quieter here now but still the odd rumble in the distance.

Stayed dry here as the nearest those storms got was about 5 miles west.

Thats going to change soon though as theres a breeze directly off the storm to my west now.

Wind is wsw at 2 to 5 mph which is drifting it this way.