Heavy Rainfall and Severe Thunderstorm Threats for the Plains and Southeast

A frontal boundary extending from the western High Plains to the Southeast will focus additional showers and thunderstorms this weekend. Some of these storms may become severe, alongside frequent lightning, and isolated instances of flash flooding. Meanwhile dry conditions will continue for the Great Basin where fire weather concerns linger. For the mid-Atlantic and Northeast, seasonable weather. Read More >

Tellico RAWS site information

This U.S. Forest Service site is located in the southeastern portion of Monroe County, Tennessee. This RAWS is a solar powered, voice actuated HANDAR platform. The RAWS site is located off of the Cherohala Skyway at an elevation of 1928 feet MSL, and is in a meadow surrounded by trees which are around 50 yards away from the RAWS. This meadow is in a southwest-to-northeast oriented valley that is also in the foothills of the Unicoi Mountains (elevations up to 4000 feet MSL) near the Tennessee and North Carolina state line. Around a mile to the northeast lies the Indian Boundary Lake.

Being in a somewhat protected valley, winds at this site will likely be a little less than reported by the Chattanooga ASOS for a given synoptic pattern. However, the location of this RAWS in the foothills of the Unicoi Mountains makes it a good site to observe mountain-wave-induced winds during a southeasterly wind flow in a stable environment. Also, the elevation is around 1300 feet higher than the Chattanooga ASOS, so in most instances, temperatures and humidity will be different.

Topographical map of the Tellico RAWS site.