05.08.11
Posted in Severe Weather Post-analysis at 10:24 am by Rebekah
A look at the preliminary number of tornado reports so far this year shows a general lack of tornadoes west of I-35 in the Plains.
It is nearly mid-May already, and this year is proving especially difficult for Plains storm chasers, despite the large number of tornadoes so far.
The following graph shows the running count of tornado reports this year as compared to the average annual number based on tornado reports from 2005 through 2010. As you can see, a few tornado outbreaks in April have brought this year’s tornado report count to nearly twice the average.
The following graph shows the “inflation-adjusted” number of tornadoes for 2011 (adjusted to account for some tornadoes being counted more than once) compared with percentiles based on averages from 1954 through 2007. Again, note that we are currently well above the maximum recorded number of tornadoes for this time of year!
Are the Plains going to heat up any time soon? That remains to be seen. It does look like at some point this week we may get a dryline day in western Oklahoma, perhaps on Wednesday, that may yield some tornadic supercells. There also may be a chance for some supercells and chasing weather later in the month.
The map and charts are from the Storm Prediction Center, and can be found at the following links: http://www.spc.noaa.gov/climo/online/monthly/2011_annual_summary.html and http://www.spc.noaa.gov/wcm/.
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05.07.11
Posted in Weather News at 4:18 pm by Rebekah
The 137th Kentucky Derby is set to take place this evening, with post time at 6:25 pm Eastern.
Louisville has been receiving quite a bit of rain lately (related to the flooding in the Mississippi River valley), and there is a chance for thunderstorms this afternoon and evening, so the track may be a bit sloppy.
Following are some maps from the National Weather Service, showing just how much rain Kentucky has received in the last week and last two weeks, as well as the departure from normal. Louisville is in northern Kentucky, on the Indiana border. Note how much above normal the state is!
7-day observed precipitation (click to enlarge)
14-day observed precipitation
7-day departure from normal precipitation
14-day departure from normal precipitation
The National Weather Service office in Louisville put together a very nice list of historical Kentucky Derby weather, from record temperature and precipitation stats to temperature / precipitation / track conditions / winner for each year since 1875: http://www.crh.noaa.gov/lmk/?n=historical_kentucky_derby_weather
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05.06.11
Posted in Uncategorized at 8:56 pm by Rebekah
BIG NEWS
I am very pleased to announce that I have accepted a job offer to work as a meteorologist on Kwajalein Island!
Kwajalein Island is an island in the Kwajalein Atoll, which is part of the Republic of the Marshall Islands. The Marshall Islands are a large group of islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, just west of the International Date Line and just north of the equator.
Kwajalein is a pretty small island, at only about 3 miles long and half a mile wide. There are about 1,200 people who live on the island, all working under the U.S. government.
My job will be a forecast position with a private weather company that has a contract there with the U.S. Army. I think the job sounds very interesting and exciting, and I could gain some great experience while on the tropical island.
I’m sure you must have a lot of questions, including how am I ever going to do without storm chasing. While I will miss storm chasing, I believe that I can give it up for now as the ocean is my first love and this is a wonderful and unique opportunity. I will be able to learn all about tropical weather firsthand, as well as tropical plant and animal life both on the islands and in the sea.
I will certainly attempt to keep up with this blog, continuing to post primarily on weather and storm events, but as I will not be storm chasing or living in the U.S. for the next couple of years, I expect my number of posts will decrease. I do thank you for coming to read this blog, and I hope that I can continue to deliver interesting weather posts.
I will be starting a new blog, though, and that is where I will likely put most of my blogging energy while I go through this island adventure. Sometimes there will be crossover posts, too.
Here is the link to my new blog: http://www.greenskychaser.com/kwajalein
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05.05.11
Posted in Astronomy, Space Shuttle, Traveling at 7:49 pm by Rebekah
Today I drove about 500 miles, from Alexandria, Louisiana, through northeast Texas, to central Oklahoma. It is good to be home!
My trip totaled 3,565 miles and 11 days, and it was an absolutely fantastic vacation. I am very tired, but need to get some rest tonight as I have numerous errands to take care of tomorrow and my sister flies in tomorrow night to visit for a few days! I will also be wrapping up some research work this month and hopefully be busy with some new developments on the job front.
Today I finally found some plantations; I took a slight detour northwest of Alexandria this morning, and found several beautiful plantations.
Here is the old Oakland Plantation home, built in 1821:
And here is the Paris, Texas Eiffel Tower that I have heard much about, but never saw until today:
It is 65 feet tall.
And here is one more photo from Paris, featuring the mascot of Paris Junior College: Pyro the Dragon!
And in case you think I’ve forgotten completely about the weather (though I have sadly been having a bit of a break from pouring over weather maps lately), there is a chance for supercells and tornadoes in my favorite chase territory (the Texas Panhandle into western Oklahoma) early this next week. I might even get the chance to take my sister out on her first storm chase!
Oh, and one final note: I’ve been hearing rumors that the space shuttle launch might just be delayed to some time next weekend. Again, this is better for me, as it means it’s more likely I can go. Hopefully it would launch then, though! NASA is going to have a meeting tomorrow and decide the next official launch date. I may then start looking at plane tickets. I loved the road trip, but I can’t afford the time or money to turn right around and do it all again!
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05.04.11
Posted in Astronomy, Space Shuttle, Traveling at 9:27 pm by Rebekah
I started off the day in Pensacola, and first drove through Mobile, Alabama. There I stopped to check out the USS Alabama, a great battleship:
I stopped at the beach one more time in Biloxi, Mississippi. This photo is looking towards Gulfport.
A Great Blue Heron that I tried to make a friend of:
Later I stopped for a bit in the French Quarter of New Orleans. This photo is looking towards St. Louis Cathedral and a statue of Andrew Jackson.
I had a mid-afternoon meal of Jambalaya with shrimp at Cajun Cabin on Bourbon Street. It was extremely tasty!
Tonight I’m in Alexandria, Louisiana, and tomorrow I’ll drive back up to Oklahoma!
Looks like the problem with the space shuttle may take longer to fix than NASA initially hoped…which is good news for me, anyway, as a longer delay means a higher likelihood that I can go back. 🙂
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