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September 2010
The 2011 CoCoRaHS Rain Gauge Calendar . . . coming later this fall!
Many of you have asked "How's the calendar coming along? . . . Have you chosen the photos yet?"
The photos have been chosen and the calendar on it's way to Browntrout Publishing this week (www.browntrout.com) to be printed. That being the case, the calendars should be back and ready for distribution in late October or early November. We will have more information on that later next month. What we can say in the meantime is "Wow!, this has turned out to be one terrific calendar, great photos, very professional looking". If you're a fan of CoCoRaHS or just a weather fan in general, you'll surely want to get hold of one for your home or office.
This is a great time to start taking "autumn gauge photos" for the 2012 calendar. Since we came up with the idea for this year's calendar last winter we missed out on the autumn season. High resolution photos are the key. The gauge with autumn leaves, autumn themes, etc. Send them to: hreges@atmos.colostate.edu.
We had over 500 photo submissions for consideration this year. Narrowing down the photos was quite challenging. We thank everyone for their submissions. Here are the names of this year's calendar photo contributors:
Scott Aldridge Bandera, TX
Kathleen Anderson Hot Springs, SD
Bill Anderson Platte City, MO
Jacques Beaupre Orick, CA
Robert Benedict Loveland, CO
Ken Bunzey Tucson, AZ
Alan Clapp Glendive, MT
Mark Clark Bend, OR
Daniel Comley Woodlawn, TN
Harry Cunningham III Gibsonton, FL
Shawn Dougherty Orential, NC
William Faro Inlet, NY
Jerry Gornowicz Longboat Key, FL
Ryan Hartigan Vernon, NJ
Bonnie Holmes Friendsville, TN
Jim Janke Waynesville, NC
Kristy Johnson Freeport, ME
Allen Junas & Allison Jacobs Chicago, IL
Steve Kamp Beecher, IL
Keith Kanak Villa Park, IL
Pat Kennedy Greeley, CO
Lynn Kral Loveland, CO
Nanette Laster Duck Hill, MS
Richard Lovison Becket, MA
Ruth Mayer Theodosia, MO
Casey Mayfield Springfield, IL
Jerry McElroy Ignacio, CO
John McGowan Corova Beach, NC
Jeff Merrell Danville, VT
Doug Muhleman Healdsburg, CA
Gary Owens Columbia, MO
Marion Peres Scottsdale, AZ
Kenny Podrazik Grimes, IA
Robert Proctor Lopez Island, WA
Kelvin Stirn Jackson Hole, WY
John Stokes Bremmerton, WA
Anne Uzzell Jackson, OR
Michael Verdeyen Morris, IL
Johnny Vissage Mountain Rest, SC
Virginia Waters Trinidad, CA
Merle Weber Madison, NH
Sarah Werner Onaway, ID
Charles Wicklund Espanola, NM
Jack Wright Franklin, NC
Ron Yates Coburn, VA
Stay tuned for more calendar details in late September!
August 2010
We're in the "Dog Days of Summer" and it's HOT!
The
past few weeks have been unbelievably hot across many parts of the
country. Many of you have experienced this heat first hand. We hope
that you are able to stay cool if at all possible.
To quote NOAA's NWS Office of Climate, Water and Weather Services: "Heat
is the number one weather-related killer in the United States.The
National Weather Service statistical data shows that heat causes more
fatalities per year than floods, lightning, tornadoes and hurricanes
combined. Based on the 10-year average from 2000 to 2009, excessive heat
claims an average of 162 lives a year. By contrast, hurricanes killed
117; floods 65; tornadoes, 62; and lightning, 48."
NOAA has a great web page on heat. It features NOAA's advisory products
such as the excessive heat outlook, info on the heat index, heat
hazards, heat safety, heat disorder symptoms and much more. It will
greatly benefit you to take a look: NOAA's Heat Page
(http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/heat/index.shtml) .
So as these hot weeks of summer continue, please try to stay cool and drink plenty of water.
July 2009
CoCoRaHS and PRISM
We would like to make you aware of our recent collaboration with PRISM (Parameter-elevation Regressions on Independent Slopes Model). PRISM is a climate information mapping research group at Oregon State University. For nearly 20 years this group has been learning how to more accurately map elements of our climate -- such as precipitation and temperature -- in challenging environments such as mountains, coastal areas and everything in between. If you have a moment to check out some of their scientific handiwork, including maps of monthly precipitation for recent months or maps of climate averages, check out their website at by clicking here: http://www.prism.oregonstate.edu/.
Christopher Daly, the director of the PRISM Climate Group, has extended an unusual "special offer" to our CoCoRaHS observers. The more data that are available, the better they can make maps. They have created a new "Tool" where you type in your location (latitude and longitude). The PRISM model then provides a best estimate of the average monthly temperatures and precipitation for your area. It even provides an estimate of the history of precipitation for your area (based on surrounding official weather stations operated for the past century). Please keep in mind that the results are not actual data for your community but estimates made by a computer model.
When you have some time give it a try. Here are the instructions:
Go to http://prism.oregonstate.edu/ and click the "Data Explorer" link in the "What's New" section or the "Internet Map Server" link under quicklinks. You will be presented with a map which you can use to zoom-in/navigate to the area of interest. Note that clicking on the map will update the Lat/Lon coordinates in the table. Alternately you can manually enter the coordinates. Clicking on the "TimeSeries" button will return a table of values for the given cell and years. Clicking on the "Normals" button will return a table of TMAX, TMIN, and Precip values for the selected grid cell.
Enjoy!
June 2009
"Dew Point" . . . When it feels sticky outside, think about the Dew Point
"Dew point" is a term most of us have probably heard but the meaning may not be clear unless you’ve had some meteorology background. Dew point is a good way of quantifying the amount of water vapor in the atmosphere. It is a more meaningful term, in some respects, than "Relative Humidity" which we have heard talked about all our lives. Unlike relative humidity, dew point is a temperature. Specifically, is the temperature that you would need to cool the air to for the air to reach saturation (100% humidity). At that temperature, cloud droplets may begin to form, or dew will be deposited on surfaces in contact with the air. The higher the dew point, the more moisture is in the air. Here in Colorado, when the dew point gets higher than about 52 degrees F, we think it's really humid. But in the south, Midwest and East, you would think that air is really dry. You don't get excited until the dew point is over 65 or 70 degrees.
A good way to get an idea about how humid the air is to check for condensation on a glass of ice water. In the winter, you hardly ever get water on the outside of a glass (unless you're down by the Gulf of Mexico), but, when the dew point is high condensation on our glasses forms easily.
Spring 2009
"Blog, Blog, Blog" . . . The CoCoRaHS Blog
A Blog, what's that you may ask? Here's what the dictionary says: blog (a contraction of the term "Web log") is a Web site, usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse-chronological order. "Blog" can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog.
OK, now that I know what a blog is, does CoCoRaHS have one? Glad you asked. It sure does. The CoCoRaHS blog, maintained by Chris Spears, is full of information ranging from current events to weather history, and forecast information to weather lessons.
Chris is a very passionate meteorologist who loves to talk about climate and weather with others and has been involved with CoCoRaHS since 2002.
The blog is interactive, meaning you can leave comments or messages for Chris and all our CoCoRaHS blog readers by clicking on comments below each post. This is located after the time stamp for each posting.
Because of spam, comments are moderated -- meaning they will not show up until the next time Chris logs on and approves them. This is just to ensure the blog stays clean and only contains information about weather, climate and CoCoRaHS.
So check out the blog and don't be shy if you wanna talk weather shop! To visit the blog please click here: "CoCoRaHS Blog"
November 2008
El Nino -- What is it and why do we care?
Most years around Christmas, a warm current of tropical water temporarily replaces the cold water that normally exists off the west coast of Peru. Local residents refer to this warming as El Nino (Spanish for boy child), referring to the Christ child. Usually, the warming lasts approximately a month or two. However, every few years, the ocean warming can last many months and is linked to a warming of sea surface temperatures across a large part of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Because changes in sea surface temperatures over such a large region can affect the overlying atmosphere and the position of the jet stream, the weather is affected by El Nino in regions around the world.
In the US, the greatest impacts occur in the winter time: the Pacific northwest is often warm and dry while the southern tier of states are cool and moist. The in-between states often do not see much of a influence from El Nino. During La Nina, when there is a persistent cooling of east Pacific sea surface temperatures, the Pacific northwest tends to be cool and moist while the southern states are warm and dry.
Starting in mid-December, NOAA will begin issuing an alert system to highlight when an El Nino or La Nina event is expected to develop, continue, or end. These advisories will be posted at:
http://www.cpc.noaa.gov/products/analysis_monitoring/enso_advisory/
To learn more about El Nino, visit http://www.cpc.noaa.gov/products/ analysis_monitoring/ensostuff/ensofaq.shtml#general
October 2008
Autumn Leaves
"The falling leaves drift by the window. The autumn leaves of red and gold...." Some of you will remember the old classic song by Johnny Mercer "Autumn Leaves". It’s that time of year again when the leaves in many parts of the country begin to take on color, the nights are cooler and the pumpkins adorn the porches of many homes.
Have you ever thought to yourself: "Why do the leaves change color?"
The US Forest Service has put together a nice web site explaining just that at: http://www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/pubs/misc/autumn/autumn_colors.htm.
Or ever wondered: "Does precipitation play a role in leaf color?"
"The amount and brilliance of the colors that develop in any particular autumn season are related to weather conditions that occur before and during the time the chlorophyll in the leaves is dwindling," says University of Kentucky agricultural meteorologist Tom Priddy. "Temperature and moisture are the main influences. …The countless combinations of these two highly variable factors assure that no two autumns can be exactly alike."
And if you are just trying to find out where the leaves are turning during a certain week or in a certain place in the country, the Foliage Report Network: "The falling leaves drift by the window. The autumn leaves of red and gold...." Some of you will remember the old classic song by Johnny Mercer "Autumn Leaves". It’s that time of year again when the leaves in many parts of the country begin to take on color, the nights are cooler and the pumpkins adorn the porches of many homes.
Have you ever thought to yourself: "Why do the leaves change color?"
The US Forest Service has put together a nice web site explaining just that at: http://www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/pubs/misc/autumn/autumn_colors.htm.
Or ever wondered: "Does precipitation play a role in leaf color?"
"The amount and brilliance of the colors that develop in any particular autumn season are related to weather conditions that occur before and during the time the chlorophyll in the leaves is dwindling," says University of Kentucky agricultural meteorologist Tom Priddy. "Temperature and moisture are the main influences. …The countless combinations of these two highly variable factors assure that no two autumns can be exactly alike."
And if you are just trying to find out where the leaves are turning during a certain week or in a certain place in the country, the Foliage Report Network: http://www.foliagenetwork.com/index.php option=com_content&view=section&id=6&Itemid=53 keeps track of leaf colors in the eastern half of the country and the US Forest Service keeps you advised on fall colors throughout the US at: http://www.fs.fed.us/news/fallcolors/.
More info the study of periodic plant and animal life cycle events that are influenced by environmental changes, especially seasonal variations in temperature and precipitation driven by weather and climate visit the National Phenology Network Web site at: http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/Geography/npn/.
keeps track of leaf colors in the eastern half of the country and the US Forest Service keeps you advised on fall colors throughout the US at: http://www.fs.fed.us/news/fallcolors/.
More info the study of periodic plant and animal life cycle events that are influenced by environmental changes, especially seasonal variations in temperature and precipitation driven by weather and climate visit the National Phenology Network Web site at: http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/Geography/npn/.
Summer 2008
"The Catch"
What's "The Catch"? you may ask? "The Catch" is the name of the bi-weekly e-mail that many of you receive from our national director Nolan Doesken. These folksy messages are chocked full of very helpful information and provide for an interesting read. In case you haven't received the most recent one you can always view it and archived additions on the web at: http://www.cocorahs.org/Content.aspx?page=catch.
If you are not receiving "The Catch" via your e-mail let us know (you may also need to exempt the address nolan@atmos.colostate.edu from your SPAM blockers).
PS - The term "catch" is another way of saying what has fallen in your rain gauge.
October 2006
WHAT IS "EL NINO"?
Here is a link that will
provide some insight on the current and forecast status of El Nino, and
what it may mean for weather this winter in the U.S. in general but in
the Southwest in particular.
http://www.cdc.noaa.gov/people/klaus.wolter/SWcasts/
The National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) continually monitors global
atmospheric and oceanic conditions. A wealth of information is
available at our internet fingertips. Here is a link to some
exceptional information.
http://www.elnino.noaa.gov/
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