July 11 Severe Weather Arrives in Southeast Iowa

Conditions for severe weather on Friday, July 11, 2025 were favorable in parts of Missouri, Iowa and Illinois, with an emphasis in southeastern Iowa where the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) posted a 5% hatched probability of tornadoes. The Categorical, Tornado, Hail and Wind outlooks issued at 11:30 am CDT are shown above.

SPC Mesoscale Discussion 1641, posted at 12:18 pm CDT for about half of the state of Iowa. 

12:55 pm CDT. Tornado Watch 505 is issued for much of southeast Iowa and some of northwest Illinois.

 

2:15 pm. Time for me to fly. Storm cell near Ottumwa, Iowa is tornado warned and I am on the road southbound on Interstate 380/US Highway 218 on an intercept course. Radarscope image above is from 2:45 pm, showing tornado-warned polygon, and my mobile location (blue target icon).

3:05 pm. Visible storm cell with billowing cumulonimbus to my southeast. Though not severe warned, its echo tops (above) were reaching 40,000 feet.

3:09 pm. Photo capture of this storm cell to my southeast while southbound on US Highway 218 just south of Hills, Iowa in Johnson County. 

Radarscope reflectivity image corresponding to the photo above it, with the storm cell being shown at right (near Wapello, Iowa).

3:13 pm. Same storm cell to my southeast while southbound on US Highway 218, about one mile south of the Kalona, Iowa exit (Exit 80) in Johnson County. The storm was now located at the border of Henry and Des Moines counties in southeast Iowa. Surprisingly enough, this potent cell was not severe warned. 

3:32 pm. Now at a stationary spotting location on Yucca Avenue just south of Highway 92, about 1.1-mile east of the US Highway 218 exit for Ainsworth, Iowa in Washington County. The image above looks south at an updraft feature.

3:32 pm. Looking east from this location. The updraft at center exhibits an inflow cloud and small funnel.

 

3:33 pm. Similar capture of the updraft feature to the east, now without its funnel.

3:35 pm. Updraft, inflow and small ragged wall cloud appendage. 

3:37 pm. Radarscope reflectivity image showing severe-warned storm approaching my location.

3:39 pm. Looking southwest at the incoming severe-warned storm cell.

3:39 pm. Similar image looking south as the storm approaches. Two storm chasers confer in the background to continue east on Highway 92.

3:43 pm. Now relocated east at the Cotter Presbyterian Church on County Road W66, about .3-mile south of Highway 92 in Louisa County, and about 3.6 miles east of US Highway 218. This image looks southwest. Though visually impressive, the storm has just lost its severe warning.

3:44 pm. Similar capture with the church in the picture. Nikon Z6ii camera.

3:46 pm. Radarscope image, showing my location inside a notch of the storm. I now decided to head for home, and drove through drenching rain for about 15 minutes before conditions finally improved.

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Independence Day Sparkling Skies

 

In the past few years we have avoided the downtown Cedar Rapids, Iowa fireworks crowd in favor of an amazing private display near Shueyville, Iowa in Johnson County--plus the opportunity to fish in a large pond before the show! The three images above are iPhone 11 video frame captures from 9:54 pm CDT on July 4, 2025 during the "grand finale" phase. Note the reflections in the pond toward the bottom.

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Summer Updraft

 

An isolated strong, but not particularly powerful storm produced this updraft view on Monday, July 7, 2025 as seen from Boyson Road, just east of Brentwood Drive NE near the border of Cedar Rapids and Marion, Iowa. The Nikon Z6ii camera image was captured at 3:00 pm CDT and looks northeast. The storm was located about 22 miles distant, between the towns of Anamosa and Monticello in Jones County.

 

Radarscope reflectivity image for 3:04 pm, showing the storm (in polygon) and its relation to Cedar Rapids.

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Photogenic Severe Weather Finally Breaks Out

 

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!

Severe weather, especially photogenic severe weather, had been almost non-existent in the vicinity of the Cedar Rapids, Iowa metro area during the 2025 season. On Thursday, July 3 that finally ended. Non-severe storms approached Cedar Rapids from the north and west during the 6 o'clock hour, but quickly fizzled out as they approached the city as had been the case all year since storm season began. But a cell moving east in the system went severe at 7:55 pm CDT. Reacting quickly, I took with me some of my bare spotting essentials (camera) and headed north for a possible intercept. The image above looks north at 8:05 pm as I was eastbound on County Home Road, just north of Marion, Iowa. The storm stretched from the towns of Quasqueton to Manchester in the north.

8:18 pm. An inflow cloud (a very good sign) is seen here to my northwest while I was northbound on Highway 13 about a mile north of Central City in Linn County, Iowa. Sun rays emanate from behind the cloud. The inflow cloud was feeding into the storm out of the picture at right.

8:21 pm. Another good sign: The inflow cloud is feeding directly into a lowering feature (right). This image looks north from Highway 13 about 1.5 miles east of Coggon, Iowa in Linn County. At this moment the storm was directly over Manchester, Iowa in Delaware County. 

Radarscope image corresponding to the photograph above it, showing a small hail core over Manchester. My relative position to the storm is shown as a blue target icon.

8:26 pm. Northbound on Highway 13, about 2.5 miles south of Ryan, Iowa. Storm is displaying a funnel-like feature. Was it? Unknown.

8:27 pm. Similar capture of the storm a short time later. Funnel-like feature is compelling.

8:27 pm. Close-up capture.

8:32 pm. Now at a stationary spotting location: The Golden Church, 3 miles ENE of Ryan, Iowa in Delaware County, Iowa. This image looks north. The setting sun mixes beautifully with the angry clouds, moving right-to-left. 

8:32 pm. Severe-warned storm to my northeast. The lowering appears to have several inflow clouds feeding into it.

8:32 pm. Panorama version, five images stitched together.

8:33 pm. A nice mix of light and dark in the turbulent clouds. The storm's lowering can be seen at right.

8:34 pm. Similar capture. The Golden Cemetery, adjacent to the church, can be seen at left.

8:34 pm. Front view of the church looking northwest as the storm clouds roll in.

8:34 pm. Side view looking north.

Radarscope image for 8:35 pm. About this time, with the rain and wind about to unload on me, I quickly decided to head back for home.

8:45 pm.  Looking east at the departing storm system while southbound on Highway 13, south of Ryan, Iowa. I barely evaded to wind and rain and drove into the clear. Most definitely the best visual storm encounter of the year. Finally! Nikon Z6ii camera.

Mesoscale Discussion 1459, released on Thursday afternoon.

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Distant Updraft

 

In keeping with the norms during the 2025 severe-weather season, storms avoided the Cedar Rapids metro  area on Sunday evening, June 29, but about 40 miles to its northeast this lone mushroom cloud updraft formed, sporting a pileus feature on top. This image was captured at 7:47 pm CDT. Pileus are typically formed by drier air with a higher lifting condensation level which often prevents vertical growth and leads to its distinctive smooth cap shape. Nikon Z6ii camera.

Radarscope image corresponding to the photo above it, showing my location (target icon), and an arrow pointing to the mushroom cloud located in Delaware County, Iowa.

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Optical Phenomena, Stormy Skies

During the two-day span of June 25-26, 2025, the Cedar Rapids, Iowa area had a little bit of everything overhead, with optical phenomena and some stormy skies. The image above looks southeast at a partial sun halo at 9:16 am CDT, Wednesday, June 25. Sun halos are caused by ice crystal refraction high in the atmosphere and often precede precipitation. In this case, a rain shower arrived at this location on Brentwood Drive NE in Cedar Rapids about 15 minutes later.

8:25 pm. Another optical phenomenon: Crepuscular rays beam forth from behind a line of thunderstorms located 50-60 miles distant in Black Hawk and Buchanan counties in Iowa. This image was captured from Noelridge Christian Church in Cedar Rapids.

8:27 pm. Looking north. Backlit storm cell located in Buchanan County, southeast of the town of Oelwein. This image was also captured from Noelridge Christian Church.

These images were also captured from Noelridge Church. Panoramic view of an incoming shelf cloud looking northwest at 6:51 pm CDT, Thursday, June 26, 2025. 

6:53 pm. Looking southeast at leading edge of approaching shelf cloud (left), with the trailing "whale's mouth" feature at right.

6:55 pm. Looking northwest at strong downdraft area containing heavy rain. Nikon Z6ii camera.

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Looking Back at Storm System

 

Like most storm systems that have approached the Cedar Rapids, Iowa metro area thus far in 2025, severe warning tags were lifted as it approached the city during the morning hours of Friday, June 20. Much needed rain did arrive, however, as seen in the Radarscope image above for 8:12 am CDT.

By 12:40 pm (above) the system and the rain had cleared out. This image looks south at the area of departing rain from Boyson Road just west of Alburnett Road in Marion, Iowa in the Bowman Meadows housing development.

Similar panoramic image captured at nearly the same time and near the same location. iPhone 11 camera.

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