In the summer it is not unusual to see organized systems of thunderstorms move into the Southeast from the southern Plains.  They often form at night and continue moving to the east or southeast during the next day.  One came into the Southeast yesterday, and another is approaching our area today.  But what are they?

Wikipedia has a good general article on MCS’s and similar Mesoscale Convective Complexes at  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesoscale_convective_system.  They are not rare and can be a source of severe weather, particular strong winds and frequent lightning, as they move through the area.

You can follow their progress on radar and on lightning maps like the one from https://www.lightningmaps.org below.

Source: National Weather Service radar 7-1-2015
Source: National Weather Service radar 7-1-2015
Source: Lightningmaps.org 7-1-2015
Source: Lightningmaps.org 7-1-2015
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