A series of gravity waves pushed through West Texas during the morning hours of September 28, 2009. The leading edge of waves had a roll or rope cloud feature as it passed through the Concho Valley. The San Angelo 7NW mesonet station sampled eleven distinct waves with the frontal passage. Surface moisture was limited on the caprock so wave cloud formation was restricted to the northern Permian Basin. Several large temperature spikes were noted at mesonet stations to the southwest of Lubbock.

NWS SJT radar base reflectivity loop for 7:30 am to 9:00 am on September 28, 2009.

Visible satellite image for 9:31 am on September 28, 2009. Click here for Visible Satellite Loop for 7:45 am to 11:15 am on September 28, 2009

Pictures of the gravity waves approaching the National Weather Service Office in San Angelo on the morning of September 28, 2009. Click on picture for larger image. Photos courtesy: Amy McCullough, NWS San Angelo.

WTM Reese Center Boundary Layer Profiler for September 28, 2009 showing cold front.

Many West Texas Mesonet stations sampled the gravity waves and associated temperature spikes. Meteograms are in standard time (add one hour for daylight savings). Click on the thumbnails for a full-sized image.