Eleven Miles High

This cumulonimbus storm cell, which appeared to the motorist like it was just over the hill eastbound along Interstate 80 just east of Newton, Iowa was in fact about 80 miles distant around 3:51 PM, Monday, May 28, 2012. The cell had achieved severe status by this time. The edge of the anvil was about 55,000 feet and an overshooting top soared even higher, around 60,000 feet (about 11 miles). The overshooting top can be seen as the higher and lighter protrusion toward the right side of the cloud structure in the top image. The bottom radar image shows our vehicle's position relative to the cell as a superimposed star in Jasper County, east of Des Moines. The most intense part of the storm cell is located in southern Johnson County south of Iowa City.