As we watch the growing potential for severe weather across the CONUS late February into early March, spring vibes got an extra boost on Thursday as a few sub-severe, but hail-filled thunderstorms rumbled through Central Illinois.
An early severe warned storm rolled down the Interstate 74 corridor bringing pea sized hail to the Gibson City and Paxton areas in the pre-dawn hours.
Another round of storms began developing ahead of the approaching cold front shortly after sunrise, obvious as a new area of agitated, bubbling cumulus on visible satellite:
As this new cluster of thunderstorms began to mature I ventured north out of Urbana to intercept what I imagined would be a rather ugly, structureless area of rain and thunder but was delighted to instead find a beautiful thunderstorm with an extensive inflow cloud and a photogenic shelf cloud.
Lots of cloud to ground lightning bolts were noted as the storm approached, and eventually I was dumped on by peas and dimes as the storm passed over.
I'm fully in spring mode, let's go.