Meteorological severity technical report · Satellite evidence
Hail + Lightning · 780 S Osborn Ave
10 March 2026 · 314 ha
- Analysed area
- Point + radius · Radius 1 km · 314 ha
- Address
- 780 S Osborn Ave, Kankakee, IL 60901
- Country
- United States
- Centre
- 41.1097, -87.8474
- Event
- 10 March 2026
- Analysed window
- 10/03/2026, 00:00 – 11/03/2026, 00:00 (CDT)
- Event peak
- 03:20 UTC · 22:20 CDT
Verdict
Indicators strongly consistent
The satellite data shows indicators strongly consistent with hail and lightning over the area analysed.
The analysis covers 314 ha between 10/03/2026, 00:00 – 11/03/2026, 00:00 (CDT).
Within that window: 2 flashes · nearest at 824 m, High hail indicators (78%) and No hotspots detected.
The GLM recorded 764 flashes within 30 km of the area; 105 within 10 km and the nearest 0 m from its edge, at 22:40 UTC · 17:40 CDT. Activity within 10 km ran from 22:33 UTC · 17:33 CDT to 03:15 UTC · 22:15 CDT, peaking at 11.9 flashes per minute at 23:20 UTC · 18:20 CDT. A lightning jump was detected at 22:20 UTC · 17:20 CDT (from 0.6 to 1.3 flashes per minute), 70 min before the Band 13 minimum.
The multispectral composition developed by Skybridge shows at the peak (02:20 UTC · 21:20 CDT) a intense convective core, with an overshooting top and signs of large hail. The strongest indicator was recorded at 03:20 UTC · 22:20 CDT.
The result describes satellite-observed indicators. It does not by itself prove damage on the ground.
Signals
Map
Satellite evidence
Cloud-top temperature
The 10.35 µm infrared channel measures cloud-top temperature: the colder the top, the higher the updraft reached and the more severe the storm over the area. It is the primary observation the other indicators are derived from.
Satellite evidence
Lightning — electrical activity over the area
The Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM) detects every flash from orbit. The updraft that produces hail is the same one that separates charge: a jump in flash rate usually precedes the coldest cloud top by 5 to 20 minutes. Every flash is placed relative to the edge of the analysed area.
Flashes by distance to the edge of the area
| Ring | Flashes | Cumulative |
|---|---|---|
| 0 m – 1 km | 2 | 2 |
| 1 km – 2 km | 6 | 8 |
| 2 km – 5 km | 16 | 24 |
| 5 km – 10 km | 81 | 105 |
| 10 km – 30 km | 659 | 764 |
Satellite evidence
Lightning — time sequence
Satellite evidence
Multispectral composition at the peak
The multispectral composition developed by Skybridge shows at the peak (02:20 UTC · 21:20 CDT) a intense convective core, with an overshooting top and signs of large hail.
Satellite evidence
Window summary
Satellite evidence
Surface wind — direction and intensity
The satellite does not measure surface wind, so the wind is read from NCEP’s global GFS model (NOAA) at 0.25°: mean 10 m wind and surface gust, hour by hour, at the grid node nearest the site. It is a model field, not a measurement: it describes the synoptic wind over the area, and a local convective gust can exceed it.
Independent sources
Radar-estimated hail — NOAA MRMS
NOAA’s MRMS (Multi-Radar Multi-Sensor) system combines the US weather-radar network and estimates, hour by hour, the maximum expected hail size (MESH, Maximum Estimated Size of Hail) on a ~1 km grid. It is a source independent of the satellite: a radar-derived estimate, not a measurement of the hail that fell on the property.
Radar estimates hail up to 55 mm (2.15 in) over the analysed area (giant hail); the maximum within 5 km of the site is 59 mm (2.32 in) and within 10 km, 63 mm (2.47 in). The highest MESH over the area falls in the hour ending at 00:00 UTC · 19:00 CDT.
MESH is a radar-derived estimate over ~1 km cells, not a measurement at the property: the hail that fell at a given spot may be smaller or larger.
Source: NOAA/NSSL MRMS, product MESH_Max_60min_00.50, ~1 km grid; 24 hours read, 0 missing. Classes: small ≥ 6 mm, large ≥ 19 mm, severe ≥ 25 mm (1 in), giant ≥ 51 mm (2 in).
Independent sources
Ground storm reports — NOAA SPC
The US National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center (SPC) publishes, every day, the hail, wind and tornado reports it receives from trained spotters, emergency services and the public. They are preliminary: they may contain duplicates or errors in time and location, and the absence of reports does not show that no hail fell.
Reports nearest the site
| Type | Time | Distance | Magnitude | Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 23:28 UTC · 18:28 CDT | 200 m | 6.1 in (155 mm) | 1 SSE Kankakee, Kankakee, IL |
| Hail | 23:30 UTC · 18:30 CDT | 600 m | 6 in (152 mm) | 1 SE Kankakee, Kankakee, IL |
| Hail | 23:31 UTC · 18:31 CDT | 1.1 km | 4 in (102 mm) | 1 SE Kankakee, Kankakee, IL |
| Hail | 23:32 UTC · 18:32 CDT | 1.6 km | 3 in (76 mm) | Kankakee, Kankakee, IL |
| Hail | 23:11 UTC · 18:11 CDT | 2.5 km | 4.5 in (114 mm) | 1 NNE Kankakee, Kankakee, IL |
| Hail | 23:35 UTC · 18:35 CDT | 2.5 km | 4.1 in (104 mm) | 1 NW Aroma Park, Kankakee, IL |
| Hail | 23:27 UTC · 18:27 CDT | 2.9 km | 2.75 in (70 mm) | 2 S Kankakee, Kankakee, IL |
Statistics
Sources
Hail / Severe storms. NOAA GOES-19 ABI (Advanced Baseline Imager), infrared imagery every 5 minutes over the window and the multispectral composition at the peak.
Lightning. NOAA GOES-19 GLM (Geostationary Lightning Mapper), flashes with position and time; distances are measured to the edge of the area.
Fire. NASA FIRMS VIIRS (S-NPP / NOAA-20 / NOAA-21), active-fire detections.
Vegetation (NDVI). Copernicus Sentinel-2, imagery before and after the event.
Surface wind. NOAA NCEP GFS 0.25° (global model), hourly surface wind and gust at the grid node nearest the site. A model field, not a station observation: the satellite does not measure surface wind.
Radar hail. NOAA/NSSL MRMS (Multi-Radar Multi-Sensor), hail size estimated from the US weather-radar network, hour by hour over the area. A radar estimate, not a measurement at the property.
Ground reports. NOAA/NWS Storm Prediction Center, preliminary hail, wind and tornado reports within 50 km of the site over the window; they come from observers and may carry time or location errors.
All sources are public and are used without altering their values. The evaluation method that turns them into a verdict is Skybridge’s own; what the report does and does not establish is set out in the next section.
Figures are rendered from the same rasters used for the verdict, on the analysis extent, with the AOI outlined; times are shown in UTC and CDT (UTC−5).
Scope of this report
Automatically generated from public satellite data (NOAA GOES-19 ABI/GLM, NASA VIIRS, Copernicus Sentinel-2). It characterises the severity of satellite indicators over the stated area and window; it does not replace an on-site inspection nor constitutes an expert opinion on its own.
