Tracking Colorado Deep Hail, The CHAT Project

news image
Special Stories
23 May 2018 3:34 AM
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, hail damage costs can range in the billions of dollars annually. For instance, several of the United States' 2017 billion-dollar weather and climate disasters involved severe storms and hail, including the devastating severe storms and hail events that impacted Colorado and the central United States during May 2017.     This makes it very important to track deep hail events and why the National Weather Service and the University of Colorado have partnered on the Colorado Hail Accumulations from Thunderstorms (CHAT) Project, a project that is sponsored by the National Science Foundation. The CHAT Project is an effort to better understand and eventually forecast the thunderstorms that produce these events, and the CHAT Project needs the help of the public. The NWS and University of Colorado have developed a radar-based algorithm that can determine hail depth, and once deep hail is indicated with the algorithm, volunteers would be asked to go out and verify hail depths, along with taking pictures of the hail. Verification of the NWS/CU hail algorithm could potentially lead to better forecasting of the types of thunderstorms that produce deep hail events and potentially lead to better protections for society from financial losses due to hail. The project runs from May to September, 2018. If anyone is interested in volunteering for the project, contact Dr. Katja Friedrich at Katja.Friedrich@Colorado.edu. You can also learn more about the CHAT project at http://clouds.colorado.edu/deephail/. For WeatherNation, I am Meteorologist Marcus Walter.
All Weather News
More
Severe Weather Potential Increases This Weekend

Severe Weather Potential Increases This Weekend

A highly amplified jet stream is set to move

15 Feb 2025 4:00 AM
Northeast Braces for Second Storm This Week

Northeast Braces for Second Storm This Week

The Northeast continues to remain active thro

15 Feb 2025 3:55 AM
Dangerous Cold Returning to Much of the Country Next Week

Dangerous Cold Returning to Much of the Country Next Week

While we've been watching some serious cold t

15 Feb 2025 3:30 AM
Colorado Rockies Snow Continues Through Monday

Colorado Rockies Snow Continues Through Monday

A strong upper low coming out of California i

15 Feb 2025 3:20 AM
Storm Unloads Rain and Snow in California, Clearing for the Weekend

Storm Unloads Rain and Snow in California, Clearing for the Weekend

Heavy rain caused several issues in Californi

14 Feb 2025 9:35 PM
Tornadoes Hit the South, Risk Lessens Thursday

Tornadoes Hit the South, Risk Lessens Thursday

At least two tornadoes were confirmed from We

13 Feb 2025 7:50 PM
Heavy Snow Tapering for the Plains, Staying for the Great Lakes

Heavy Snow Tapering for the Plains, Staying for the Great Lakes

A Colorado Low is working across the Plains b

13 Feb 2025 3:20 AM