Thunderstorms Redeveloping this Afternoon

A cluster of showers and storms are moving through central South Dakota this morning. They are rocketing off to the northeast at about 50 mph. This means that they will likely be out of the area by the early afternoon hours, making way for some sunshine. That sunshine will add instability to the atmosphere and aid in the development of more thunderstorms this afternoon. But trying to figure out exactly where these scattered storms will develop can be difficult. However, with the storms moving through the state this morning, we might be able to determine where storms will form later because of the outflow boundaries that these thunderstorms have produced. An outflow boundary is a boundary separating thunderstorm cooled air from the surrounding air. It is basically a mini cold front that sweeps across the areas around the thunderstorm. Well once the thunderstorm dissipates, these boundaries or "mini cold fronts" become mini stationary fronts and can be the focal point for thunderstorms to develop later in the day. So, keeping track of them and identifying where they are can greatly increase the accuracy of a forecast. Here is a radar image as an example of an outflow boundary, it is circled in black.~KDLT Meteorologist Cody Matz