Hail — Sandoval, New Mexico

2020-06-23 · near Frijoles, Sandoval, New Mexico

Event narrative

Penny to nickel size hail fell with a strong thunderstorm that moved near Frijoles. Hail accumulated along New Mexico State Road 4 from Los Alamos to Valles Caldera.

Wider weather episode

A strong backdoor cold front that moved through the state the previous day replenished moisture throughout the area on June 23, 2020. With northwest flow aloft, deep shear and instability was in place throughout central and eastern NM. This resulted in widespread thunderstorms with several severe storms throughout the afternoon and evening. Storms initially formed early in the afternoon over the northern high terrain of New Mexico before moving east-southeast into the Rio Grande Valley and eastern plains. The most intense thunderstorms were across the eastern plains where storms that produced large hail and damaging winds continued into the evening hours. A strong thunderstorm also affected the Albuquerque metro area, and penny sized hail fell at the Albuquerque WFO.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (35.8500, -106.4200)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 888952. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.