Crepuscular rays and severe weather... no, they aren't related.

Sky Watch Friday post time!!! (Please visit Tom's blog to participate.) Today, I want to share with you my shot of Crepuscular Rays... Sun rays... God's rays... I think that's an important point... God's rays. Let me share with you a story. One day, while I was taking Mini-Dew to school, we happened upon some of these crepuscular rays falling from the risen sun down to the ground below, and she shared with me that they were the souls of the deceased being lifted up into heaven, so when she sees them, she is sad for the people on earth left behind but happy for those who are being lifted into heaven... how profound for an, at the time, 7 or 8 year old. Anyhow, here is the scientific explanation, but I am perfectly content with Mini-dew's explanation.

Crepuscular rays, in atmospheric optics, also known as sun rays, God's rays or the Fingers of God, are rays of sunlight that appear to radiate from a single point in the sky. These rays, which stream through gaps in clouds or between other objects, are diverging columns of sunlit air separated by darker cloud-shadowed regions. The name comes from their frequent occurrences during crepuscular hours (those being dawn and dusk), when the contrasts between light and dark are the most obvious. Various airborne compounds ("dirty air") scatter the sunlight and make these rays visible, due to diffraction, reflection, and scattering. ~source

Well, onto more current and local things. Looks like yesterday's weather fell apart... completely... no comment. Today, the Storm Prediction Center has only offered a "see text" section on the map to describe my area... could see some thunderstorms. The sporadic potential exists for severe weather as a mesolow (same type of storm that passed through Georgia during the Mothers Day outbreak that resulted in one death in Georgia when a tornado destroyed a mobile home) passes through... Already, a mesoscale discussion has been issued for my area suggesting that a watch may be possible as

STORMS WILL LIKELY INCREASE ALONG THE NERN GULF COAST AND INLAND ACROSS THE FL PNHDL TO PARTS OF SRN AL AND SWRN GA THROUGH THE MORNING AS LIFT AND DESTABILIZATION GRADUALLY STRENGTHEN OVER THESE AREAS. CURRENTLY...SEVERE POTENTIAL APPEARS LIMITED. HOWEVER... WITH TIME...THE SEVERE WIND THREAT FROM SOME OF THIS ACTIVITY MAY INCREASE. CONVECTIVELY INDUCED MESOLOW HAS RECENTLY FORMED ALONG PREFRONTAL CONVERGENCE ZONE LOCATED ACROSS SRN AL/MOBILE AREA. ENHANCED INFLOW OF VERY MOIST AIR FROM THE NERN GULF...AND INCREASING LARGE SCALE ASCENT AHEAD OF GULF MCS...WERE CONTRIBUTING TO ADDITIONAL TSTM DEVELOPMENT ALONG THE PREFRONTAL CONVERGENCE ZONE ACROSS THE FL PNHDL. THIS ACTIVITY SHOULD CONTINUE TO INCREASE THROUGHOUT THE MORNING GIVEN LACK OF INHIBITION AND PERSISTENT FORCING FOR ASCENT.

A GRADUAL INCREASE IN WET MICRO-BURST/DAMAGING WIND POTENTIAL MAY EVOLVE AS THE MORNING CONTINUES AND A WATCH MAY BE NEEDED.

If it comes to fruition, I am all over it. I am currently eye-balling a cell that is moving VERY SLOWLY from the area southwest of Tallahassee. If it holds on, I will set myself up for a possible intercept in south Georgia. If nothing else, it'll be good practice. Is it obvious that I am hungry for a chase?! lol I will update as the day progresses.

1100EDT Update: Well, the on again/off again slight risk was just placed back on us, as the mesolow apparently has raised a few eyebrows since we're getting a little rotation out of those cells in the Pensacola area. I guess I will just keep a CLOSE watch on the activity and decide whether or not it's worth my gas. I beat their supporting text, so I don't have their thoughts yet, but thanks to Rick for catching that updated graphic.

1116EDT Update: Tallahassee is looking interesting... Severe thunderstorm warning issued in Pensacola and FWB areas. Finally, they have updated the text to match the graphic for the slight risk for severe weather in my neck of the woods...

RICH LOW LEVEL MOISTURE ALREADY IN PLACE WITH LOWER 70F DEWPOINTS WILL RESULT IN AT LEAST MARGINAL INSTABILITY WITH ANY AMOUNT OF HEATING. A THREAT FOR ORGANIZED STORMS AND MAINLY ISOLATED DAMAGING WIND AS POSSIBLE MCS TRACKS NEWD ACROSS SRN GA INTO FAR SRN SC THROUGH THE DAY.

1530EDT Update: Well... it looked like we were about to have a ferocious wind event.Then, it approached my neck of the woods.... and fell to pieces. Alas, though...... it redeveloped on the other side!!! UGH!

Happy Friday!!!
~Dewdrop