A review of the 10 biggest weather events in 2017

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The year 2017 was noteworthy for the catastrophic tornadoes and flooding that occurred in the spring. The strongest tornado in the United States in 2017 (through at least Dec. 21) was the EF-4 that passed through Perryville, Missouri on Feb. 28 with peak winds near 185 mph. Historic flooding occurred in southeast Missouri later in the spring, when the Current River rose 8 feet above its previous record. The cities of Van Buren and Doniphan sustained widespread severe flood damage. The winter of 2016-17 was notable for the lack of snow and cold. The biggest event of the summer for some of us was the total eclipse of the sun on August 21. The remnants of four tropical systems affected our region in the summer and early fall. Each system brought heavy rain to parts of our region.

Top 10 Event Summaries for the Year 2017 (in chronological order)

1. Record mild winter, esp. February Winter 2016-17 climate summaries

Image: Temp and precip departures from normal

2. Feb. 28 Tornado Outbreak (and Mar. 1 storms) Photo of tornado near Rockwood, IL

Photos: Near Rockwood, IL (from Reed Timmer)

3. March 9 Tornadoes (mainly MO/KY) Damage in downtown Hickman, KY

Damage in downtown Hickman, KY (NWS photo)

4. April 26 Severe Weather (mainly IL/KY) Radar image of April 26 storms

Radar image at 7:20 P.M. Apr. 26

5. Historic southeast MO flooding (late Apr/early May) Photo of record flooding in Doniphan, MO on April 30

Photo: Doniphan, MO on April 30 (from Pamela Johnson Holt)

6. May 27 Severe Weather (widespread) Photo of baseball hail near Piedmont, MO

Photo of baseball hail near Piedmont, MO (from Bobby Dorris)

7. August 21 Eclipse Satellite loop of eclipse shadow

Experimental satellite loop of eclipse shadow (from CIMSS / UW - Madison)

8. Remnants of Cindy, Harvey, Irma, and Nate Rainfall map for remnants of Harvey

Image: Rainfall map for remnants of Harvey

9. Fall Rainfall Extremes (MO drought) Rainfall map for Fall, 2017

Image: Seasonal rainfall totals for Fall, 2017

10. Nov. 18 Severe Weather Barn destroyed in Bremen, KY (NWS photo)

Photo of destroyed barn near Bremen, KY (NWS photo)

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