Hunting the 'lonesome shelf' - Storm chaser's Blog

Storm chasing is not only about catching the biggest and scariest storms. For this seasoned storm chaser, even smaller ones can bring unexpected beauty.

Weather & Radar's Miloslav Rohacek has spent almost 16 years observing the sky in the heart of Europe and his home country of the Czech Republic.

"To me, weather observation isn’t just about adrenaline; every novice storm chaser wants to see only the biggest hail and the largest tornadoes.

But as I’ve got older, I’ve realised that there is always something new to observe, whether it’s summer or winter.

Every convective shower or weak storm can teach us something valuable, which we can apply when observing the stronger ones."

Recently, Milos ventured out to observe some severe thunderstorms that developed over Germany on July 12, 2024, which produced a so-called outflow boundary.

This boundary advanced into central Bohemia. Combined with local showers and high dew points, it created conditions for the development of a massive shelf cloud.

There was no rain or thunder this time, just a huge "lonesome shelf."