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Tag: Weather

  • Weather Forecasts May Suffer From 5G

    Weather Forecasts May Suffer From 5G

    Carriers may be racing to deploy 5G, but it seems accurate weather forecasts may be an unintended casualty.

    5G promises to revolutionize a slew of industries, offering speeds that rival or surpasses traditional broadband. Thanks to being wireless, the technology promises to have a profound impact on edge computing, artificial intelligence, autonomous vehicles and more.

    Unfortunately, one of the trade-offs may be more accurate weather forecasts, according to Scientific American. The issue revolves around spectrum in the 24 Ghz band, spectrum weather satellites rely on to monitor the natural microwave signals that atmospheric water vapor produces.

    “It is one of those things that are a gift of nature,” said William Mahoney III, associate director of the National Center for Atmospheric Research. “A third of the current forecasting skill comes from this data,” adding the data can “make the difference between a blue sky day and a tornado day.”

    Unfortunately, 5G signals in that spectrum range can drown out the water vapor signals.

    “If you have a large network of cellphone towers transmitting many orders of magnitude more power near the ground, some of that reflects upward and parts of the atmosphere will become very noisy,” Mahoney said.

    The results could be disastrous, severely inhibiting meteorologists ability to accurately forecast the weather, including warning people of severe weather events.

    Similarly, the 16 MHz spectrum is used to connect satellites to automated gauges that measure a variety of factors, including wind speeds and water levels in rivers and streams. Here again, there is concern that noise from wireless technology could interfere with those signals.

    No one is really sure what happens next. The US, and the entire world, is already heavily invested in deploying 5G. It’s unlikely any kind of moratorium will be put in place, leaving scientists and researchers with the tall task of finding a solution.

  • Dark Sky Weather App Shutting Down at End of 2022

    Dark Sky Weather App Shutting Down at End of 2022

    Popular weather app Dark Sky is shutting down at the end of 2022, following Apple’s purchase of the app in 2020.

    When Apple purchased Dark Sky in March 2020, the company announced it would shut down its Android app immediately, followed by the API at the end of 2021. It appears that date is being pushed back, with the API, iOS and web apps all shutting down at the end of 2022.

    Dark Sky’s Adam Grossman made the announcement on the company’s blog.

    Update: Support for the Dark Sky API service for existing customers will continue until the end of 2022. The iOS app and Dark Sky website will also be available until the end of 2022.

    Some of Dark Sky’s features have already been making their way into the iOS weather app since the purchase. iOS 15 promises to bring even more features to the native weather app so, hopefully, Dark Sky’s eventual demise will be a little easier to swallow.

  • An Unlikely Casualty of the 5G Revolution: Weather Forecasting

    An Unlikely Casualty of the 5G Revolution: Weather Forecasting

    Science journal Nature is reporting that accurate weather forecasting may be an unintentional casualty of 5G deployment.

    At the heart of the issue is the frequencies that have been approved for use in 5G networks, specifically frequencies around 23.8 GHz. Evidently, “water vapour in the atmosphere naturally produces a weak signal at this frequency, which satellites use to measure humidity. Those data feed into weather forecasts. But if a 5G station is transmitting a signal near the 23.8-gigahertz frequency, a weather satellite might pick it up and interpret it as water vapour. And that bad data could degrade forecasts.

    “Meteorologists say that the problem is manageable, but only if there is enough of a noise buffer between the 5G transmissions and water-vapour signal. The buffer is measured in units of decibel watts, and is akin to a measure of how much you might turn down your stereo volume so as not to bother your neighbours.”

    Currently, there is debate about how much buffer is required. Understandably, the World Meteorological Organization is calling for the largest buffer at -55 decibel watts. On the other end of the spectrum, the United States is calling for just -20 decibel watts. The European Union is in the middle, having settled on a buffer of -42 decibel watts, 150 times less noise than the U.S. is allowing.

    The agreement reached by the various entities stipulates a -33 decibel watt buffer till September 1, 2027. After that, it increases to -39 decibel watts. The goal with the two-stage regulation is to give companies time and opportunity to roll out 5G without burdening them unnecessarily. Once 5G is established and more widespread, then regulation will become stricter to make sure the denser 5G transmissions don’t cause more interference.

    Some experts are not convinced that will be enough, however.

    “The race for 5G is going to go fast,” says Renee Leduc, Founder and Principal of Narayan Strategy in Washington DC. “In the early to mid-2020s we’re going to see a very quick uptick.” Despite the stricter regulations in 2027, Leduc says: “I’m still really concerned about the time period between now and then.”

    Nature says increased cooperation between meteorologists and the wireless industry may be necessary. Turning off or redirecting 5G transmissions while a satellite is taking measurements may be a compromise solution.

    Whatever the case, whatever solutions and regulations are put in place, only time will tell how much 5G interferes with accurate weather forecasting.

  • Tornadoes In Texas Leave A 40-Mile Trail Of Devastation [Photos]

    The violent tornadoes which pounded the Texas area on Sunday left many people homeless and killed at least 11 people.

    According to reports, the National Weather Service confirmed on Sunday night that nine tornadoes had ripped through the Lone Star State and moved through Rowlett, Garland and Sunnyvale. Eleven people were reportedly killed in Dallas and Collin counties.

    A tornado that pummeled Garland, Sunnyvale, and Rowlett on Saturday evening and claimed eight lives, was classified as an EF4, the second strongest grading on the scale used to gauge the strength of a tornado, with winds ranging from 166 and 200 mph. The tornado that attacked Copeville and took the lives of two people, was classified as an EF2, with winds up to 125 mph.

    The deadly tornadoes in Texas started from Hillsboro in the south and moved northward to Blue Ridge, and eventually covered the northeastern region of Sulphur Springs over the holidays.

    The trail of devastation in the Texas areas was reported to be 40 miles long, causing hundreds of people to lose their homes and evacuate to emergency shelters. By Sunday evening, weather forecasters warned the public to expect more rain and snow. Power was also cut off in Rowlett and other devastated counties.

    Watch Raw Footage of the Damage Caused by the Tornadoes in Texas

    “This is catastrophic,” Brian Funderburk, Rowlett city manager, stated. “We are going to have many people displaced for months.”

    According to The Washington Post, the tornadoes that rocked Texas is the deadliest since the 1950s.

    Initial reports claimed an estimated 1,000 homes and buildings were reduced to debris throughout Dallas, Ellis, and Collin.

    Gov. Greg Abbott addressed the aftermath of the calamity on Sunday afternoon by urging Texas residents to be safe and to pay attention to instructions given by authorities.

    Texas Governor Greg Abbott Talks About Recent Tornadoes in Texas

    “I want to emphasize the compassion, support, and prayers that I and the first lady off to those … who have lost a family member,” said Abbott of the deadly tornadoes in Texas.

  • El Nino Report Released By Climate Prediction Center

    The peak of the 2015-2016 El Nino is closing in according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and this is one of the strongest on record (dating back to 1950).

    According to a report from the administration’s Climate Prediction Center, there is about a 95% chance that El Nino will continue through the Northern Hemisphere winter, gradually weakening through spring 2016.

    The report begins:

    During September, sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies were well above average across the central and eastern Pacific Ocean (Fig. 1). The Niño indices generally increased, although the far western Niño-4 index was nearly unchanged (Fig. 2). Also, relative to last month, the strength of the positive subsurface temperature anomalies decreased slightly in the central and eastern Pacific (Fig. 3), but the largest departures remained above 6°C (Fig. 4). The atmosphere was well coupled with the ocean, with significant low-level westerly wind anomalies and upper-level easterly wind anomalies persisting from the western to the east-central tropical Pacific. Also, the traditional and equatorial Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) values became more negative (stronger), consistent with enhanced convection over the central and eastern equatorial Pacific and suppressed convection over Indonesia (Fig. 5). Collectively, these atmospheric and oceanic anomalies reflect a strong El Niño.
     
    All models surveyed predict El Niño to continue into the Northern Hemisphere spring 2016, and all multi-model averages predict a peak in late fall/early winter (Fig. 6). The forecaster consensus unanimously favors a strong El Niño, with peak 3-month SST departures in the Niño 3.4 region near or exceeding +2.0°C. Overall, there is an approximately 95% chance that El Niño will continue through Northern Hemisphere winter 2015-16, gradually weakening through spring 2016 (click CPC/IRI consensus forecast for the chance of each outcome for each 3-month period).

    You can read the whole document here.

    The report says across the U.S., temperatures and precipitation impacts from El Nino are likely to be seen during the coming months with below average temperatures and above average median precipitation across the southern tier of the country and vice versa for the northern tier.

  • New MSN Apps Released For iOS, Android

    New MSN Apps Released For iOS, Android

    Microsoft has launched some new MSN Apps for iOS, Android, and Amazon devices. These are platform expansions of apps currently available for Windows.

    There are six in all: Sports, Finance, News, Health & Fitness, Food & Drink, and Weather. They provide users with content from publishers and Microsoft’s partners as well as personalized experiences to let users follow topics of interest, sports updates for their favorite teams, and use diet/exercise tracking.

    “The MSN apps already sync across MSN.com, Windows and Windows phone devices, and now with availability on iOS, Android and Amazon devices, there is a new degree of scale across screens and platforms,” Microsoft said in a blog post. “The apps are customizable and intelligent, so you can choose your preferences in one place and enjoy content everywhere with your preferences syncing seamlessly across platforms and devices. For example – just in time for those New Year’s resolutions – you can use the Health & Fitness app to search from over 200,000 foods and log your calories in the Diet Tracker on your phone or tablet, while traveling or on the go. Then, access the same tracker on your computer at home.”

    “The apps are another example of Microsoft’s commitment to creating engaging and useful experiences for consumers, and continuing our investment in mobile and cross-screen platforms to provide scale and reach for our brand partners,” the company added.

    The new apps are available in 56 markets. They’ll make advertising available within the apps next month.

    Image via Microsoft

  • Tropical Storm Bertha Might Miss US Eastern Coast

    Everyone on the Eastern coast of the United States should keep their fingers crossed: Early projections of the path of Tropical Storm Bertha has it quite possibly missing the United States.

    It’s true that projections are merely educated guesses, but as hurricane season continues it’s not wrong to hope for as little damage as possible.

    Bertha is the second named storm of the 2014 hurricane season. It is currently moving at a speed of 22 mph with wind speeds of 45 mph.

    According to the National Hurricane Center, Bertha is expected to pass over the Bahamas Sunday through Monday.

    A tropical storm warning is in effect for the eastern part of the Dominican Republic. Meanwhile a tropical storm watch is in effect for much of the central Bahamas.

    Once Bertha passes through the region on Monday, it is expected that by Tuesday the storm will turn right and spin out into the Atlantic Ocean.

    By the time the storm becomes a hurricane (which is projected to occur sometime on Wednesday), the National Hurricane Center has the storm well off the coast of New Jersey.

    This early projection will have Bertha missing the United States all together, but making landfall in Canada.

    It will get fairly close to Nova Scotia, but isn’t expected to make landfall again until it briefly passes over the outermost tip of Newfoundland and Labrador.

    By that point, Bertha is expected to have downgraded significantly in power.

    Remember, this is merely what the National Hurricane Center believes will happen at this point; it is still too early to know for sure the exact path or power of Bertha.

    It’s possible that within the coming days, the projected path can change again and Bertha could very well be making landfall in the United States.

    This is why Americans who live in areas which are known to experience hurricane weather are encouraged to take all the necessary precautions.

    It never hurts to be extra careful while at the same time hoping for the best.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Super Typhoon Neoguri Heads for Japan

    Super Typhoon Neoguri is expected to reach Okinawa early Tuesday, in what has been described as a “once in decades” storm.

    The Japan Meteorological Agency has measured sustained winds of 123 miles per hour, with gusts so far hitting 168 miles per hour. The storm has generated waves 46 feet high.

    Meteorological Agency official Satoshi Ebihara warned, “there is a risk of unprecedentedly strong winds and torrential rains. Please refrain from nonessential outdoor activities.” The agency added special warnings for flood tides.

    Neoguri passed by the Philippines, a country still reeling from Typhoon Haiyan which killed thousands last year. Neoguri passed 298 miles east of the northernmost province of Batanes.

    Japan was also hit in 2013 by Typhoon Wipha, which killed 17 when it made its way to Tokyo.

    Forecasts project the typhoon moving toward Kyushu island and then across Japan’s main island of Honshu. It is expected to lose some power over land, but heavy winds and rains could cause landslides and other damage to infrastructure.

    A storm surge in excess of 20 feet is expected over the southern Ryukyu Islands, and the United States’ Kadena Air Force Base, which is situated on the westernmost part of Okinawa, will likely see the strongest and most destructive winds.

    Super Typhoon Neoguri as it passes by the Philippines:

    Neoguri as seen from the International Space Station:

    The devastating impact of Neoguri will gradually taper off across Okinawa Tuesday night. Though, the storm is expected to continue a trajectory across the northern Ryukyu Islands and southern Kyushu on Wednesday.

    Image via Youtube

  • Kim Jung Un Rebukes Meteorologists for Bad Forecasts

    In 2010, North Korea was forced out of the World Cup in South Africa after giving up a staggering 12 goals in only three games. Upon returning home, the Korean soccer players were publicly shamed and scolded for their performance on the world stage. This public criticism was something of a rarity in North Korea, as most punishments are doled out in private.

    Fortunately for North Korean soccer stars, there will be no concerns of disappointing the nation in the World Cup this year, seeing as the team did not qualify. However, Kim Jong Un has found another outlet for his temper – the country’s weather service.

    On Tuesday, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that Kim Jong Un voiced his disappointment with the national weather service during a field guide visit to the Hydro-meteorological Service. The source of Kim’s ire was “incorrect” forecasts, making it impossible “to protect the lives and properties of the people from disasters caused by the abnormal climatic phenomenon and prevent various fields of national economy including agriculture and fishery from natural disasters in good time”

    Rather than place the blame upon the people operating the weather service, though, Kim blamed the lack of up-to-date technology available to accurately predict the weather: “It is necessary to fundamentally improve the work of the Hydro-meteorological Service in order to scientifically clarify meteorological and climatic conditions and provide accurate data for weather forecast and meteorological and climatic information required by various fields of national economy in good time,” Kim stated.

    Accurate weather forecasts are imperative for North Korea at the moment due to the severe drought the country is facing – the worst the country has seen in more than three decades.

    Due to droughts, floods, and other weather phenomena, North Korea constantly faces a food shortage. The UN has reported that nearly two-thirds of North Korea’s 24 million people suffer from chronic food shortages and that one in four children suffer from malnourishment.

    Image via YouTube

  • Twitter Forecast: Cloudy with a Certainty of Hyperlocal Weather Targeted Ads

    In the near future, you can expect to see a new type of promoted tweet that’s appearing in your feed because it’s raining outside.

    Or because the forecast calls for a b-e-a-utiful weekend.

    Twitter has partnered with The Weather Company (Channel), who will be “the first media partner to tap into Twitter’s ad API,” to allow marketers to target, in real-time, Twitter users based on the current or upcoming weather in their hyperlocality.

    Let’s make sense of a particularly thorny paragraph of ad-speak, shall we?

    WeatherFX enables brands to capitalize on weather’s effect on consumers by automatically triggering advertising in real time against hyper-local conditions…

    If it’s sunny and nice in your area, you might see a promoted tweet for a brewery’s light, crisp pilsner.

    Advertisers can dynamically activate different Promoted Tweets within each geolocation…

    And if it’s cold and rainy somewhere else, those people will see promoted tweets for the brewery’s dark, rich coffee stout.

    WeatherFX triggering factors in a variety of different weather conditions and condition mixes, including temperature, humidity, wind, rain, dew point and more, and/or can be a combination of weather-triggering targeting and Twitter’s targeting abilities such as location, user’s interests, keywords, device, and more…

    The ad overlords have brought their A-game. Dew point?

    “Marketers have a search strategy and a social strategy. But with one-third of the economy impacted by weather, most marketers also need a weather strategy,” said Curt Hecht, chief global revenue officer for The Weather Company. “Providing marketers with the means to weather-trigger tweets helps them create more locally relevant content for each and every Twitter user.”

    Here’s an obviously fake tweet, for context:

    All kidding aside, this is a solid partnership that it likely to entice plenty of marketers to let Twitter target based on the weather. The fact that it’s so easy for me to think up scenarios where this could be useful is a testament to that.

    Image via YouTube

  • Gustnado: What is It? Should You Be Worried?

    “Gustnado”, or “gust-front tornado,” is a low-level rotating cloud that is short-lived. It can sometimes form within a severe thunderstorm. Reports say that the average gustnado lasts just seconds to a few minutes.

    According to the National Weather Service, gustnadoes are wispy, and their wind speeds could reach up to 80 mph. Gustnadoes have less in common with tornadoes, and have more in common with whirlwinds.

    Deaths and injuries are not typically associated with gustnadoes. However, strong gustnadoes can bring extensive damage to an area.

    Just yesterday, 12 tornadoes were reported in western Wyoming, Iowa, Kansas, and Nebraska. This was accompanied by severe flooding and baseball-size hail. The intense weather activity has sparked interest in lesser known weather terminology like, “derecho“, and “gustnado”.

    A number of people in the Midwest reported seeing gustnadoes within the past few days.

    Dramatic footage of gustnadoes in action

    Yesterday, NBC News erroneously tweeted a warning at 7:30 a.m., stating that “Severe storms, destructive winds and a ‘gustnado’ threaten millions today.” Gustnadoes cannot threaten millions. As the video footage reveals, gustnadoes are comparable to whirlwinds. However, there have been instances where winds destroyed property, and caused deaths.

    Nonetheless, much of the areas highlighted in red did not even get rain.

    Other reports stated that over 35 million Americans were affected by destructive winds of yesterday’s storm in the Midwest. Late Tuesday, the National Weather Service recorded 1.08 inches of rain at the Omaha Airport over the span of 8 minutes—about 8 inches per hour. As a result, the airport closed.

    Although “gustnado” has not yet been accepted as official weather terminology, the term is widely used in the Midwest of the United States, where sightings of the phenomenon are most common.

    What Is A Gustnado?

    Image via YouTube

  • Derecho Threat: Severe Storm Pummels Midwest

    A derecho is often classified as a type of extreme weather phenomenon, which refers to an inland-type of hurricane accompanied by heavy thunderstorms. Derechos are capable of inflicting extensive damage to wide areas. According to the Storm Prediction Center, derechos are at least 240 miles wide and produce long-lived straight-line wind damage.

    On Tuesday, extreme weather, heavy flooding and severe storms brought on by a possible derecho, affected more than 35 million people in Iowa, Kansas and Nebraska. Weather agencies placed a rigid watch on the storm as it continued to wreak havoc throughout the Midwest region until late Wednesday, according to a weather report on FOX19-WXIX.

    The National Weather Service Omaha put out a warning on Twitter, advising residents of eastern Nebraska and western Iowa not to walk or drive through the area due to rising floodwaters and “potentially life threatening flash flooding”.

    According to the National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center, wind gusts measuring over 80 mph battered the Midwest region. The strong winds uprooted trees and utility poles and forced Eppley Airfield, three miles northeast of Omaha, to close. Joe Rotterdam,  assistant manager of airline affairs, said the closing caused the cancellation of 33 flights.

    Flash floods, hail measuring the size of baseballs, and strong winds were all part of the intense storm that hit the Midwest. In Omaha, Nebraska, more than 12,000 urban residents experienced power outages due to flooding and heavy rainfall from the possible derecho.

    The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration stated that a derecho can occur when a storm spans a distance of more than 240 miles with gusts reaching more than 58 mph. This kind of storm brought massive destruction back in June 2012 when it ripped through the states of Illinois and Virginia, causing an estimated $1 billion in damages and 13 fatalities.

    Image via YouTube

  • Baseball-Size Hail Batters Northeast Nebraska

    Severe thunderstorms swept through Nebraska and produced baseball-size hail that surprised many residents. According to the National Weather Service, northern and eastern Nebraska, northeast Missouri, and western and southern Iowa are at risk for severe weather conditions.

    Additionally, there will be severe thunderstorm outbreaks that are expected to hit South Dakota, Kansas, and Illinois. The baseball-size hail was reported in northeast Nebraska on Tuesday afternoon.

    As the storms landed, the National Weather Service received reports of flooding and hail damage, accompanied by winds as strong as 85 mph. On Tuesday evening, the storms were just about to begin. Residents were advised to stay indoors.

    Bill Bunting, head of forecast operations at the Storm Prediction Center in Oklahoma said, “This is one of these days we can’t let our guard down. It’s unfortunately panning out as we thought it would. This is shaping up as a very dangerous evening.”

    Nebraska residents shared their photos on Twitter and Facebook to show the extent of damage brought by the large hailstones. In Omaha, a police sergeant shared an image of a car that was dented by the hailstones.

    Other residents showed pictures of shattered windows of their vehicles and homes, due to the strong hail. Residents from low areas were evacuated in order to keep them safe from flooding and the threat of the storm.

    Observation program leader for the National Weather Service in Nebraska Terry Landsvork said, “The storms, we call it training. It’s like a train going down the track. One car goes by, another one follows. That’s what’s happening.” He explained that the thunderstorms were moving over the same areas, referring to western Iowa and Nebraska.

    In Iowa, Gov. Terry Branstad declared a storm disaster proclamation for Pottawattamie County on Tuesday night, as the storms landed while voters were on their way to the polls for the primary elections.

    Image via NDN video

  • Hurricane Amanda Grows Strong, Then Quickly Weakens

    Hurricane Amanda broke records over the weekend and briefly caused concern. Now it appears that the storm will pose little threat to anybody.

    The Weather Channel reports that Hurricane Amanda quickly became the strongest eastern Pacific hurricane for the month of May when it became a category 4 storm on Sunday morning. Those measuring the storm found that its winds reached 155 mph. The last storm of this magnitude was previous record holder Hurricane Adolph in 2001. Its wind speed, however, only reached 145 mph.

    While Amanda may have broken a record, meteorologists find no reason to be concerned. The storm formed Thursday afternoon and has been slowly making its way north-northwest towards Mexico and the Southwestern U.S. It hit a record high on Sunday, but is now quickly weakening as it makes its way to land. Meteorologists expect it to weaken to a tropical depression later this week. As such, it will pose no threat to the mainland.

    That being said, some parts of America may feel the remnants of Amanda later in the week. The Desert Southwest and the Rockies may get a bit of moisture if Amanda doesn’t completely vanish before it reaches land.

    It may not pose a threat, but it’s still an impressive storm. Check out some satellite imagery from NOAA below:

    Hurricane Amanda Grows Strong And Then Quickly Weakens

    Hurricane Amanda Grows Strong and Then Quickly Weakens

    You can see the storm in action below:

    Image via NOAA

  • Tropical Storm Amanda Should Weaken Quickly

    The first tropical storm for the eastern Pacific 2014 hurricane season has been named.

    Tropical storm Amanda formed about 620 miles southwest of Manzanillo, Mexico and the National Hurricane Center predicts the system will reach hurricane status in strength within the next few days (possibly by this afternoon). However, it is also estimated the storm will start moving north soon after at a lower speed – about 5 miles per hour – away from land and weakening.

    On Friday morning, the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami observed the storm having maximum sustained winds of 40 mph while slowly moving west-northwest. Hurricane specialist Robbie Berg indicates that current conditions favor a rapid intensification phase through the weekend. By early morning on Monday, Amanda should have reached a Category 1 hurricane status with winds of up to 75 mph. In an online discussion message, he explains:

    “After 48 hours, a combination of increasing shear caused by the approaching trough and decreasing sea surface temperatures along the forecast track should cause steady to rapid weakening. The new intensity forecast is a little stronger than the previous forecast through 48 hours, and after that it shows a faster weakening than the previous forecast.”

    In other words, the winds will likely reduce this storm. Wind shear (created by winds moving in different directions or speeds that blow above the ocean) can potentially rip storms apart and diminish their strength – and that’s exactly what’s expected to transpire with Amanda after Monday.

    By the early part of next week, Amanda should weaken as it accelerates northward. By Wednesday, predictions are that it should have fallen back to tropical storm status. The spaghetti plot generated by the National Hurricane Center demonstrates the most plausible direction storms like Amanda might take, based off a series of possible tracks for different conditions.

    While predictions based on a system’s strength are more difficult to estimate than its direction, specialists have no reason to expect that tropical storm Amanda should pose a threat to North American land.

    To keep following this storm, you can check in with www.nhc.noaa.gov.

    Image via Youtube

  • Denver Tornadoes: At Least 4 Tornadoes Touched Down

    Wednesday, May 21, was a night full of severe weather for the Denver, Colorado area.

    Not only did at least four tornadoes touch down, the storms brought heavy rain, intense lightning, and icy hail.

    The National Weather Service reported that four tornadoes were documented in Watkins, East Denver, Aurora, Byers and Leader.

    Jeff Piotrowski, a witness to the severe outbreak, told CNN that he had seen five tornadoes touch down not too far from the Denver International Airport.

    “This thing is spinning up multiple tornadoes,” Piotrowski recalled. “There were tornadoes on the outer ring of the circulation, … and then there’s the main tornado vortex closer to the storm.”

    Although the airport was not directly impacted, the storm definitely affected the flight schedules. The airport’s spokeswoman Kate O’Malley explained that six planes had to be taken out of service, due to hail damage, and 38 flights had to be diverted with 90-minute delays. They also had their hotel and transit workers take shelter in their garage while the storms ravaged through the area.

    The aftermath of the storm left flooded streets, and roads covered in ice; looking like a winter storm had just swept through.

    No injuries have been reported.

    Image via Twitter

  • Denver Tornadoes Cause Hail Storm And Disrupts Airport

    On Wednesday, a total of eight tornadoes touched down in the Denver metro area. In addition, Colorado was also facing a fierce thunderstorm that produced piles of hail, which caused residents to take shelter.

    Three tornadoes touched down in Araphoe County, one in Denver County, and four in Adams County. The first tornado was reported at 2:05 p.m. in Aurora, and the last was at 5:06 p.m. in Adams.

    The Weather Service issued a tornado watch, which will be in effect until 8 p.m. local time. Jim Kalina, a meteorologist, said, “Denver’s kind of in the clear right now unless something else develops.”

    With the threat of the tornadoes, authorities at the Denver International Airport were forced to suspend flights. Passengers were asked to seek shelter and remain outside the facility. Airport officials said that the terminal building sustained some water damage.

    The scene at Denver Airport

    Although the airport was not directly hit by the tornado, it was still affected. Frontier Airlines reported that six of their planes had to be removed from service because of hail damage.

    Kalina also said that this is the peak time for tornadoes to hit the Denver area. According to Frank Cooper, a meteorologist with the NWS in Boulder, the stormy weather was triggered by the southeastern winds, which resulted in a pattern he called the “Denver cyclone.”

    Denver’s geography also played a part in the development of the storm. Denver is surrounded by high terrains and mountains. As the winds picked up speed, Denver’s terrain set up a “swirl,” and the Denver cyclone took effect.

    According to reports, the affected cities and neighboring areas escaped the violent tornadoes without getting significant damages.

    The Colorado Department of Transportation sent out crews to clear roadways after large hailstones rained down. According to the Denver police, up to 5 inches of hail built up on 67th Avenue.

    Watch supercell tornado develop over Denver

    Image via YouTube

  • El Niño 2014 Might Become a Repeat of 1997

    El Niño 2014 Might Become a Repeat of 1997

    NASA satellite imaging of the Pacific Ocean has revealed data that resembles the conditions which fostered the record-breaking El Niño year of 1997.

    El Niño, which is Spanish for “the boy,” with the capitalized version meaning “Christ Child,” is a system of abnormally high seawater temperatures that develops off the Pacific coast of South America, leading to extreme weather across the Pacific Ocean.

    The NASA/French Space Agency Jason-2 satellite scans the world’s oceans every ten days, measuring changes in sea surface height, along with heat levels in the upper layers of the water. Lately, Jason-2 has presented data from the Pacific that looks a lot like it did in 1997.

    Here is a documentary which describes how researchers attempt to predict El Niño patterns:

    Jason-2 has been detecting a series of Kelvin waves, which are large ripples at sea level that travel across the Pacific from Australia to South America. Kelvin waves are good indicators of El Niño, and both phenomena are linked by wind. Trade winds in the Pacific blow from east to west, which push sun-warmed surface waters toward Indonesia. As a result, the sea level around Indonesia is typically 45 centimeters higher than it is near Ecuador. This area is called the warm pool, and is the largest reservoir of warm water on earth.

    Bill Patzert, a climatologist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, commented that “a pattern of sea surface heights and temperatures has formed that reminds me of the way the Pacific looked in the spring of 1997. That turned out to precursor to a big El Niño.”

    Mike McPhaden of NOAA’s Pacific Environmental Research Laboratories in Seattle added, “We can’t yet say for sure that an El Niño will develop in 2014, or how big it might be, but the Jason-2 data support the El Niño Watch issued last month by NOAA.”

    The NOAA and NASA are meticulously monitoring the Pacific trade winds. It will become much more clear in the coming few months whether these recent developments are the forerunner of a major El Niño, or any El Niño at all.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • El Nino 2014: Get Ready For More Crazy Weather

    We have endured one of the craziest winters anyone has seen in awhile. While global warming is what many are blaming for the bizarre weather patterns, it seems like there is another phenomenon that may be in play.

    Every several years, we experience something known as “El Nino”. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration or NOAA defines this weather event as a “large-scale ocean-atmosphere climate interaction linked to a periodic warming in sea surface temperatures across the central and east-central Equatorial Pacific”.

    What does that mean exactly?

    Well to put it simply, unusually warm Pacific Ocean water temperatures will make weather across North America get kooky.

    Sometimes these weather phenomenons can be particularly bad. Weather experts point to the El Nino that occurred in 1997 as the worst in recent history.

    These ultra intense weather phenomenons are dubbed “Super El Ninos”. Scientists think that 2014 is going to be another one of those years.

    NASA climatologist Bill Patzert said that the “pattern of sea surface heights and temperatures” that has formed reminds him “of the way the Pacific looked in the spring of 1997.”

    There are a couple reasons why this is bad news.

    First, it means we are likely going to see extremely heavy rainfalls, which raises the possibility of serious flood damage. There is also the heat that comes with it. After a winter where we Americans froze our behinds off, it looks like we’re headed to the polar opposite: a summer where you can fry eggs on the sidewalk.

    It can also mean heavy droughts, which for portions of the United States already coping with a lack of rainfall is anything but welcome news.

    Is excess rain and blistering heat the only things we can expect this year? It’s hard to tell as El Ninos and the weather they cause are notoriously unpredictable. If you’re in the Midwest, it may mean you’ll see colder weather than usual or it could bring record-breaking heat waves.

    Whatever the case may be, it’s a good idea to simply expect the unexpected of our 2014 summer weather.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Mississippi Tornado Weather Possible Early Next Week

    This year’s long, long winter is finally over and warmer weather is bringing people out of their houses in the Midwest and Eastern U.S. The coming of spring, however, doesn’t mean the nation’s weather troubles are quite over yet.

    After winter weather pushed back this year’s tornado season, it appears that some severe weather may make up for it this weekend and early next week. The National Weather Service is predicting a strong storm to cover much of the South and Midwest starting on Sunday. The large storm should begin forming over Texas and Oklahoma on Saturday night and begin pushing East.

    From there the storm is predicted to strengthen on Sunday, bringing high winds and thunderstorms to parts of Texas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. By Monday the storm is expected to move over parts of Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama, and Kentucky.

    During this period the storm could become very severe, bringing intense rain and high winds. The National Weather Service states that the “potential exists for a severe weather outbreak including strong tornadoes.”

    Post by NOAA NWS Storm Prediction Center.

    By Tuesday the storm could cover much of the eastern U.S., from Southern Michigan all the way down to Florida.

    As this prediction is days in advance, there is still much uncertainty about the specifics of the storm. Though hail and tornadoes are possible, the area affected by such strong weather is likely to be smaller than the area currently threatened by the storm.

    Image via the National Weather Service

  • Tornadoes Reported in Mid and Southwestern States: 8

    It’s time for one of nature’s biggest blockbuster hits: Tornado Season. On Thursday, the bulk of the Midwestern and Southwestern states experienced high winds and giant balls of hail in one day, and eight tornadoes touched down in Texas, Missouri and Illinois within an three-hour period.

    According to NBC News, four tornadoes hit Texas on Thursday evening between 6 p.m. and 10 p.m., Missouri began to experience their three touchdowns before the sun came up on Thursday morning while one tornado also hit the southern tip of Illinois that same day.

    Although this sounds horrendous, the damage could have been much worse. Four people were reported injured, while hundreds of buildings did sustain various degrees of damage. A Texas farmhouse was ripped off of its foundation Wizard of Oz-style and many cars felt their first taste of tree bark. The hail storm made of quarter-sized to baseball-sized balls of ice shattered windows in Kansas, Tennessee, Kentucky, Texas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Arkansas.

    High winds are expected throughout Friday into Saturday, but the chance of more tornadoes forming this weekend are low. There has been heavy rainfall and storms before and during the tornadoes, and it is likely that many states will experience that over the weekend. Missouri has already experienced some flash flooding and washed out water mains and culverts as well as some forced home evacuations. Meteorologists suspect that there may have been more tornadoes than the eight reported. While the winds and hail were no doubt nerve-racking and are surely causing a hassle with the citizen’s insurance policies, we are all grateful that no casualties have been reported and the injuries have been kept to a minimum. This will hopefully be the bulk of tornado season damage this year.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons