A neat phenomenon occurred earlier this morning in Wisconsin ahead of showers/thunderstorms that were moving through southwest Wisconsin. This is Milwaukee's radar from roughly 8:30 this morning and what's interesting with this image is the radar is detecting what's known as an undular bore, which is like a gravity wave. It appeared as narrow parallel bands of light reflectivity on the radar. These typically form within an area of the lower level of the atmosphere that is stable ahead of an approaching outflow boundary from nearby storms or a cold front. These types of waves are propelled by the transfer of energy from an approaching storm. It's similar to the waves created when you throw a pebble in the water or the waves created when a boat moves through a river or lake. The object displaces the water, or the air, in the atmosphere causing it to move upward, but because of gravity the wave is pulled back down. Pretty cool!
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