Standing Waves Along Cumberland Plateau

Bobby Boyd
Meteorologist
National Weather Service
Nashville, Tennessee

Standing waves (banding in cloud pattern) can be seen along the Cumberland Plateau and into northeast Alabama and northwest Georgia  in the above visible satellite image taken at 14:15Z (8:15 A.M. C.S.T.) Wednesday. Standing waves result when strong winds that are normal (perpendicular) to the plateau combine with strong instability aloft. They are seen more often in mountainous terrain.