Day 11 In Review

"Lucky Day!"

In the evening hours of 21 May, the SWIFT team witnessed its first tornado east of the Sacramento Mountains. After a long transit from Altus, Oklahoma, the SWIFT team set up shop near Roswell New Mexico. Significant moisture directly east of the Sacramento Mountains as well as surface heating contributed to the storm. "Orographic lift" was the new term learned by the team which is essentially cloud formation due to an air mass being lifted as it ascends up a mountain. Orographic lift played a large role in the formation of the storms because, without it, the environment would have been much more dry, negatively impacting storm formation. 

The unusually high terrain made it a bit difficult to chase in this area of New Mexico. Nonetheless, the SWIFT team was able to witness a gorgeous supercell and small tornado that occurred just before dusk. This was a magnificent end to a somewhat uneventful journey. The SWIFT team is looking forward to a 3-day transit back to the United States Naval Academy.