It’s official, this hail stone that fell in Vivian, South Dakota on July 23, 2010 is a record breaker. It set the record in two categories, diameter and weight.

It had a diameter of 8 inches and weighed in at just under 2 pounds! The one category it didn’t set a record in was circumference. That was set in Aurora, NE back in 2003 by hail measuring 18.75 inches in circumference.

More details about this record breaking hail will be given in the forthcoming NOAA press release.

If you’d like to see the storm that produced this monster check out this link: http://www.chasethestorms.com/Other/Spring-2010/12006343_P5snn#951969823_xmqsk-A-LB

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(Updated at 3pm CST)
Here’s the press release from the NWS. Check out the link at the bottom for more detailed info on the storm and photos.

South Dakota Storm Produces Record Hailstone
NOAA’s National Climate Extremes Committee, responsible for validating national weather records, has declared a hailstone found last week in Vivian, S.D., to be the largest in diameter and heaviest ever recovered in the United States.
Found after a July 23, 2010, severe thunderstorm by Vivian resident Les Scott, the hailstone is 8.0 inches in diameter and weighs 1.9375 pounds (1 pound, 15 ounces) with a circumference of 18.62 inches.

These measurements displace the previous hailstone record for weight, previously 1.67 pounds for a stone in Coffeyville, Kan., in 1970. They also surpass the record for diameter, which was 7 inches for a hailstone found in Aurora, Neb., in 2003. The Aurora hailstone still holds the record for circumference of 18.75 inches.

“I’m just glad nobody got hurt and hope the town will recover soon,” Scott said.

David Hintz, warning coordination meteorologist at NOAA’s Aberdeen weather forecast office said a local power outage likely led to the hailstone melting some before it could be measured. “Mr. Scott told me the area was littered with large hailstones and the largest had a greater diameter when he first found it. He immediately stored it and several others in his freezer, but a power outage caused some melting.”

After getting Hintz’ notice of a possible record hailstone, personnel at National Weather Service Central Region headquarters in Kansas City, Mo., requested activation of the National Climatic Extremes Committee to examine and judge Scott’s hailstone. Personnel from the Aberdeen office traveled to Vivian to measure and weigh the hailstone, and then turned their findings over to the three-person committee. After a thorough review of the facts, committee members certified its record-breaking status.

Information about the National Climatic Extremes Committee and existing weather records may be found at http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/extremes/ncec.
If you would like to learn more about this record event, please go to: http://www.crh.noaa.gov/abr/?n=stormdamagetemplate

Here’s the latest from InciWeb on the Bull and Mono Fires:

Bull Fire: Over 2,000 firefighters, along with a helicopters and air tankers, have been making outstanding progress containing the Bull Fire. As of this morning, July 29th, 16,074 acres have burned. The fire is twelve percent contained. No evacuations are in place, as residents of Riverkern were allowed back into their homes Wednesday morning. Mountain Highway 99 remains closed along the Kern River at Headquarters Campground, north of Kernville, and an area closure has been implemented for the fire area.

More info on the Bull Fire

Mono Fire: The Mono Fire is burning in the Mono Basin National Forest Scenic Area of the Inyo National Forest. It is burning in between US 395 and the north end of the Mono Craters, south of Highway 120 East. The fire is currently 1200 acres. The cause of the fire has been determined to be lightning.

Highway 120 East, Test Station Road and the day use areas at South Tufa and Navy Beach have been re-opened to the public. Please use caution when traveling through the area as many emergency vehicles are still parked along the edge of the road.

More info on the Mono Fire

My newest black and white image is of the Slim Princess steam engine at Laws Railroad Museum just north of Bishop CA. Back in the 1880′s the Slim Princess use to chug along it’s narrow gauge rails on it’s run from Mound House NV to Keeler CA, (Originally the Carson and Colorado Railroad was meant to stretch all the way to the Colorado River, it never made it.) The Slim Princess ran this route until 1960 when the railroad ceased operation. She can now be seen at Laws, standing as a tribute to the past and looking like she could make the run for another 100 years.

This is truly an amazing video. The guy walks across America in under 2 minutes! I have no idea how they did this, but from a photographer and video editors point of view, this is one of the most awesome time lapses I’ve ever seen.