Hail and Funnel Cloud seen on Sunday! Nice Monday and Tuesday

Update:

Here is the expert analysis from Environment Canada forecaster Armel Castellan:

Sunday was pretty crazy!

Here’s a video from Nanaimo near Home Depot of what looks very much like the beginnings of a tornado or waterspout though I think Tornado is too strong a word. It’d be good to get an analysis from Environment Canada or another professional.

Waterspouts are not unusual on the Strait of Georgia, but I don’t know that I have ever seen a formation like this over the Island.

Looking at the different types of funnel clouds… this was probably a “cold air funnel cloud” per wiki:

“Unlike the related phenomenon associated with severe thunderstorms, cold-air funnels are generally associated with partly cloudy skies in the wake of cold fronts, where atmospheric instability and moisture is sufficient to support towering cumulus clouds but not precipitation. The mixing of cooler air in the lower troposphere with air flowing in a different direction in the middle troposphere causes the rotation on a horizontal axis, which, when deflected vertically by atmospheric conditions, can become a funnel cloud.[1]

They are a common sight along the Pacific Coast of the United States, particularly in the spring or fall.[1]”

There was also a whole bunch of rain and hail:


Certainly an exciting weather day!

As for this week: Once the cloud burns off, we should have a very pleasant Monday.

It should be mostly sunny with just a few clouds sticking to the mountains.  Temperatures might hit 20ºC in the Valley. Cooler if you are near the water.  It should stay mostly clear overnight.

On Tuesday expect the same to the start of the day but by afternoon there will be more cloud around and we might see some light showers (nothing like Sunday!) especially along the mountains.

Showers will come and go Tuesday evening and then get a little more widespread and persistent by Wednesday morning and persist into the afternoon.

Things clear up on Thursday and Friday and we should see some more persistent temperatures above 20ºC.

Happy Monday!

 

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2 thoughts on “Hail and Funnel Cloud seen on Sunday! Nice Monday and Tuesday

  1. My daughter saw a large waterspout on Cameron Lake when they were driving by about a month or so ago.

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