Archive for the ‘Weather’ Category

RadarScope, revisited

Monday, March 7th, 2011

Last August I posted a product review of the RadarScope app for Apple iOS devices, giving it a rating of 5 out of 5 stars. A great app just got better. The latest update includes many useful features, notably “sorted warnings by proximity to your current location (if enabled) and your selected radar” (shown below).

RadarScope is available for purchase from the Apple App Store ($9.99) and is compatible with all Apple iOS devices.

Posted from Arlington, Virginia, United States.

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Groundhog Day

Wednesday, February 2nd, 2011

According to legend, if the groundhog sees his shadow on February 2nd then there will be six more weeks of winter; if he doesn’t see his shadow then there will be an early spring. Reality check: The fact of the matter is there will be six more weeks of winter regardless of what the groundhog sees!

For places located in the Northern Hemisphere, the first day of astronomical spring occurs on the March Equinox, when the subsolar point crosses the Earth’s equator. The March Equinox occurs on 20 March 2011 at 23:21 UTC. Do the math: There are six- to seven more weeks of winter between Groundhog Day and the March Equinox. Truth be told, numbers don’t lie.

Here’s a cold fact to warm your heart: On January 24th, the daily average high temperature in Washington, D.C. begins increasing from its lowest point annually. Yippee — winter’s icy grip may be slipping!

Teacher Tips: Visit Groundhog Day, the official website of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club. Follow the hyperlink to “Teachers” for pointers to related activities and lesson plans.

Editor’s Note: Punxsutawney Phil did not see his shadow, and that means there will be an early spring. Let’s hope Phil’s prediction is right! This year, Groundhog Day is also Chinese New Year’s Eve. 2011 is the year of the rabbit. Happy New Year!


Posted from Arlington, Virginia, United States.

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Freezing rain event

Tuesday, January 18th, 2011

I went for a short photowalk to photograph a freezing rain event that occurred overnight January 17-18, 2011, in Alexandria, VA. Here is a slideshow of 18JAN2011_freezing-rain, one of my Google Picasa Web Albums (Flash required):

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Picasa Web Album: 18JAN2011_freezing-rain

Teacher Tips: What is freezing rain? For a graphic explanation, see “How winter storms bring rain, ice and snow,” an interactive online article from the USA TODAY Weather Book by meteorologist Jack Williams. See also, “Snowflakes – A Thematic Approach (A Flurry of Interdisciplinary Ideas for Teachers)” perfect for enriching/extending everyday instruction during the winter season.


Posted from Arlington, Virginia, United States.

Posted in Digital Photography, Education, Photowalking, Weather | Comments Off

RadarScope

Saturday, August 14th, 2010

RadarScope screen shot.

The Washington, D.C. metropolitan region was pounded by severe thunderstorms several times during the past week-or-so. When hazardous weather threatens, “RadarScope” is your friend! RadarScope — an app by Base Velocity, LLC — “is a specialized display utility for weather enthusiasts” capable of displaying all 16 NOAA National Weather Service (NWS) NEXRAD products in near real-time from any radar site in the contiguous United States and Puerto Rico. RadarScope is compatible with all Apple mobile devices, including the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. For more information about RadarScope, see the Help page, featuring a link to a video tutorial that provides a good overview of the app. RadarScope’s $9.99 price point is higher than many, if not most, apps in the Apple App Store. That being said, it was money well-spent for a hardcore weather enthusiast like me. (This from a guy who likes FREE apps!) I rate RadarScope 5 out of 5 stars, a rating I give very rarely.

Related Resources:



Posted from Arlington, Virginia, United States.

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Astounding Hailstorm!

Saturday, May 22nd, 2010

Hailstorm Hits Oklahoma on 16 May 2010: Amazing home video shows huge hail stones splashing in swimming pool.




Credit: Video courtesy Fox News.

Related Resources:

  • National Weather Service Severe Weather Awareness: Thunderstorms (high wind, hail, and lightning); tornadoes; and floods.
  • The Weather Channel WeatherREADY: Weather Safety and Awareness

Posted in Education, Weather | Comments Off

Up!

Thursday, May 6th, 2010

On Saturday, 01 May 2010, my good friend Phil Wherry participated in the eighth balloon launch sponsored by the Vienna Wireless Society Balloon Program. The goal was simple: Fly a helium-filled weather balloon carrying a small payload (including amateur radio equipment, a GPS receiver, and a point-and-shoot digital camera) as high as possible — to the top of the Earth’s atmosphere and beyond — until the balloon burst. The flight of the balloon was tracked continuously in order to determine its position and retrieve the payload.

As the balloon rose in the atmosphere, air pressure decreased and the balloon expanded. Eventually, the balloon reached its elastic limit and burst; a parachute returned the payload to the ground safely. On Saturday, the balloon reached a maximum altitude of no less than 117,683 feet (approximately 22.3 miles) — a new club record!

Balloon's eye view as the payload descends toward the Maryland side of the Potomac River, south of Washington, D.C.

In the inset photo (shown above), several geographic features are clearly visible including the Potomac River, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (top center), and the Woodrow Wilson Bridge (bottom). The white material (left) is the burst balloon. See more photos taken automatically by the payload camera from beginning-to-end of the balloon flight.

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Circumzenithal Arc and Thundersnow

Saturday, February 6th, 2010

Thursday afternoon, 04 February 2010, cirroform clouds filled the sky ahead of an approaching winter storm. At first I noticed a couple of parhelia, also known as “sundogs.” A while later, I saw a circumzenithal arc high in the southwestern sky. By the time I walked home to get a digital camera, the phenomenon had disappeared. See what you missed by looking at a gallery of photos of circumzenithal arcs taken by other photographers.

Friday morning, snow started falling around 10:00 a.m.; 24 hours later, snow is still falling and the National Weather Service has posted a winter storm warning effective until 10:00 p.m. Saturday, 36 hours after the storm began. So far, some parts of the Washington, D.C. metropolitan region have recorded up to 30″ of snow! Overnight, my neighborhood lost power twice: the first time, the power was off for about 30 minutes; the second time, the power was off for several hours. During the second outage, it was pitch black outside. I saw numerous lightning flashes, but never heard thunder. Meteorologists call this phenomenon “thundersnow.” Essentially, thundersnow is a thunderstorm during a strong winter storm.

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Groundhog Day

Monday, February 1st, 2010

According to legend, if the groundhog sees his shadow on February 2nd then there will be six more weeks of winter; if he doesn’t see his shadow then there will be an early spring. Reality check: The fact of the matter is there will be six more weeks of winter regardless of what the groundhog sees!

For places located in the Northern Hemisphere, the first day of astronomical spring occurs on the March Equinox, when the subsolar point crosses the Earth’s equator. The March Equinox occurs on 20 March 2010 at 17:32 UTC. Do the math: There are six- to seven more weeks of winter between Groundhog Day and the March Equinox. Truth be told, numbers don’t lie.

Here’s a cold fact to warm your heart: On January 24th, the daily average high temperature in Washington, D.C. begins increasing from its lowest point annually. Yippee — winter’s icy grip may be slipping!

Teacher Tips: Visit Groundhog Day, the official website of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club. Follow the hyperlink to “Teachers” for pointers to related activities and lesson plans.

Editor’s Note: Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow, and we know what that means … sigh!

Posted from Arlington, Virginia, United States.

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Wintery Mix

Saturday, December 5th, 2009

Snow, sleet, freezing rain — a “wintery mix.” Did you know that most precipitation (including rain) starts as snow? See how the three-dimensional structure of the atmosphere determines the type of precipitation that reaches the Earth’s surface: How winter storms bring rain, ice and snow, courtesy USA Today Weather.

Teacher Tips: Snowflakes – A Thematic Approach provides K-12 teachers with a flurry of ideas for using snow to deliver interesting and exciting interdisciplinary instruction perfect for the winter season. For example, make paper snowflakes. Use computer-aided design (CAD) to make virtual snowflakes before cutting folded paper: Make-a-Flake (requires Adobe Flash Player).

Remember, all snowflakes are six-sided — if your snowflakes aren’t hexagonal, then you folded the paper incorrectly. Good luck, and have fun!

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