Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Cool Finish to April

As April comes to a close, temperatures have been below average the past couple days with highs only in the upper 50s to low 60s. On average, you can expect highs in the upper 60s to around 70 for late April. Overall for Salisbury, through April 29th, temperatures were 0.8 degrees above average and rainfall is 1.52 inches above average.


Now for the month of May, climate experts forecast equal chances of above, below, or near average temperatures and precipitation. Not very far off to the Midwest, below average temperatures along with above average precipitation is expected. Moderate La Nina conditions still exists, which means below average sea surface temperatures in the Equatorial Pacific. This has played a major role over the past several months in our overall climate, especially during the Winter months. Here are the U.S. forecasts below:




Temperature






Precipitation







Source: NOAA (Climate Prediction Center)

Quieter Weather

Thankfully the weather has quieted down as high pressure builds into the Mid Atlantic states...great news for the folks in the Suffolk area and all throughout SE Virginia. Though temperatures are a little cool today, only reaching the low 60s, a warm up is on tap for Thursday and Friday. High pressure will move off the coast tonight into Thursday allowing the return flow, on the backside of the high, to usher in warmer temperatures. Also, a warm front will advance closer to the region towards the end of the work week and that will also help to warm us up. Highs on Thursday will be near 70° and near 80° on Friday with partly cloudy skies. Even Saturday will stay mild until a cold front pushes through the area bringing a chance for showers and storms Saturday night into Sunday morning. It should be nice weather for everyone heading out to Ocean City for Springfest which begins tomorrow. Enjoy the nice stuff before it changes again!

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

More confirmed tornadoes from Monday.

The number is up! According to the National Weather Service there have been six confirmed tornadoes in Virginia from yesterday's event. Below is an image from the NWS showing the life span of the six tornadoes.

Here is a recap of the event, issued in a public information statement by the National Weather Service in Wakefield, Va.

"A SMALL BUT INTENSE CLUSTER OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPED IN A WARM...MOIST AIR MASS AHEAD OF AN APPROACHING COLD FRONT ON MONDAYAPRIL 28...2008.

THE STRONGEST STORMS OCCURRED OVER SOUTHEASTVIRGINIA AND PRODUCED SIX TORNADOES. THE STRONGEST TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN NEAR SUFFOLK, VA AT APPROXIMATELY 405 PM. MONDAY AFTERNOON.

THE TORNADO HAD A PATH LENGTH OF ABOUT 10 MILES LONG AND A QUARTER MILE WIDE. THE PRELIMINARY RATING OF THIS TORNADO IS AN EF-3...PENDING FURTHER ASSESSMENT. THE TORNADO WAS ON THE GROUND FOR ABOUT 15 MINUTES AND CAUSED WIDESPREAD DAMAGE TO HOMES AND A FEW BUSINESSES THROUGHOUT SUFFOLK, VA."

So far, no tornadoes or waterspouts have been reported from the Doppler indicated rotation over Delmarva.

Tornado Outbreak




Picture courtesy CNN

Who says history doesn't repeat itself?! On this day in history in 1923, a tornado struck the Virgina Beach area. Only a day off...

The count now stands at 4. According to NWS in Wakefield, VA there were 4 confirmed tornadoes yesterday in SE VA. An EF 3 tornado struck Suffolk, an EF 1 moved through Colonial Heights, another EF 1 passed through Lawrenceville, and finally an EF 0 went through Carrsville (Isle of Wight County). All of the EF ratings are preliminary and may change after further assessment. Below is the EF (Enhanced Fujita) scale:

EF Scale 3 second gust (mph)
0 65-85
1 86-110
2 111-135
3 136-165
4 166-200
5 Over 200

In addition, there were 6 other potential tornadoes including one in the Glouchester area and another potential water spout near Hoopers Island in Dorchester County. NWS survey crews are investigating and will issue a final report as to the strength of the storms once they get all of their information. Even though at least 200 people were injured, amazingly, there are no fatalities to report. About 140 homes were destroyed or damaged according to reports.

Though several tornado warnings were issued across Delmarva, there were no tornado reports (other than the potential water spout). However, we did see some very heavy rain push through the area. Check out yesterday's rain totals:

Dover 0.48"
Georgetown 0.77"
Salisbury 0.98"
Ocean City 1.03"
Wallops Island 0.76"

Thankfully, much quieter weather is currently setting up. High pressure will provide a quiet afternoon and day on Wednesday with highs in the upper 50s to low 60s.

Monday, April 28, 2008

Stormy Monday

Tornado and severe thunderstorm warnings were issued late this afternoon for sections of Delmarva. Rotation was indicated by Doopler Radar for Dorchester, Caroline and Kent counties, however so far there have been no official tornado reports. The only offical severe weather report at this point was a severe wind in Sudlersville, Md. where a tree was knocked down.

Outside Delmarva, there were two tornadoes reported in Florida, two reported in North Carolina and six reported in Virginia. According to CNN, at least 200 people were injuried from the tornadoes in Virginia. Here are a few pictures of the damage in Virginia from CNN.




What's with Mondays?

So far April is 0.67" above normal in rainfall. Granted, that's not much, but there's been an underlying theme throughout the month of April. You may have missed it. Here's a clue. Has it been extra hard to go to work on Mondays? If so, maybe that's because it's been cloudy and cool with at least a trace of rain every Monday!

High Temp Precip
April 7th: 45° 0.01"
April 14th: 56° 0.01"
April 21st: 62° 1.76"
April 28th: ?? ??

The average Monday high temp in Salisbury is almost 11° below normal. And the pattern continues today...A low pressure system is making its way through the Appalachians, providing us with a soggy Monday (great soaking rain for the farmers!!) Despite the clouds and the showers, temperatures will be warmer today than on Sunday because a southerly breeze will develop once a warm front pushes northward. The cold front will move through tonight sparking a chance for a thunderstorm along with more showers. Delmarva is still under a slight risk from SPC to see some heavy rain and gusty winds with the passage of the front. Upper level energy will pass through on Tuesday sparking a slight chance for a spotty shower, but sunshine will return for Wednesday. Keep the umbrella handy!

Sunday, April 27, 2008

A wet start to the week

Clouds, drizzle, rain and isolated storms were present on Delmarva today, but a more widespread rain is expected for tomorrow. We are even still in the slight risk zone for severe thunderstorms, as shown on the graphic below.


As mentioned in the previous blog, severe weather has been associated with the approaching system. Luckily there was very little severe weather associated with this storm today. As shown below only 5 hail and wind reports and no tornado reports.

As far as Delmarva is concerned, here are your rain totals as of 10 p.m. on Sunday:

Fenwick Island: 0.50"
Ocean City: 0.47"
Salisbury: 0.31"
Millsboro: 0.30"
Dover: 0.24"
Georgetown: 0.04"
Milton: 0.04"
Easton: 0.03"
Wallops Island: 0.01"

Saturday, April 26, 2008

Severe weather in the Midwest, what does that mean for Delmarva?

We had beautiful weather in Salisbury today! Hopefully you were able to head out to the Salisbury Festival and enjoy the warm temperatures. I know some people thought it was even a little too warm! If you agree that it was too warm, you'll be happy to see the low to mid 60s returning Sunday. We did have one storm pop up in the afternoon that sent a few people running for cover, but since that storm, rain hasn't been a threat.

Showers and storms will be possible overnight Saturday into Sunday. There will be spotty showers across Delmarva on Sunday, but I don't think they will be enough to ruin your day out at the Salisbury Festival if you plan on attending. As mentioned above, temperatures will be a little cooler.

A strong cold front will push through Monday and that system will bring the better chance for widespread rain and some storms (and more cool weather.) In fact, right now we are in the slight risk for severe thunderstorms Monday into Tuesday.


Let's go back in time and talk about this system we will see Monday, because it's amazing to compare the weather this system has brought to other parts of the country.

On Thursday, this system was bringing severe weather to the Midwest. Between Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa, a total of 10 tornadoes were reported, as shown in the image below. The day before, the Midwest also experienced 16 tornadoes between Texas, Oklahoma and Nebraska.

As this storm progressed, more severe weather arrived in other locations. On Friday, 9 tornadoes were associated with this system between Iowa, Wisconsin and Texas.

The severe weather today was not as impressive, probably a good thing for Delmarva! You can see on the graphic below, mainly hail and wind reports.

Check back here or tune into our weathercast for more weather updates!

Friday, April 25, 2008

Water spout, roll cloud, or wet microburst?

We are still wondering if last Sunday’s waterspout was a true "waterspout", we have been contacting experts in the field of severe weather and researching more on this event online. After talking to a few severe weather experts, it was pointed out that the "waterspout" appeared to form cloud down.

From Wikipedia.org:

“Waterspouts normally develop as their parent clouds are in the process of development, and it is theorized that they spin up as they move up the surface boundary from the horizontal shear near the surface, and then stretch upwards to the cloud once the low level shear vortex aligns with a developing cumulus or thunderstorm.”

So if this "waterspout" formed cloud down, is it actually a waterspout? The National Weather Service in Mt. Holly, NJ mentioned that there was no circulation on Doppler Radar, but there should have been if it was a tornado or waterspout

Some meteorologists/viewers think this was a waterspout, others don't, below you will see pictures can be deceiving.


One of the pictures from Traci Z. sent into www.wgmd.com appears to look more like a roll cloud.

But in another picture Traci Z. sent in, could it be a wet microburst?

Finally, it could still be a waterspout. Without video it is hard to tell!

More CO2 and Methane



Red line: trend with seasonal variations
Black line: only trend

NOAA recently released a report stating that global levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide and methane rose sharply last year.

Last year alone carbon dioxide, which is the primary driver of global climate change, increased by 0.6 percent, or 19 billion tons. Global concentrations now sit at nearly 385 parts per million (ppm), up from 380 ppm in 2006, and way up from the 280 ppm during the pre-industrial era.

Scientists are worried about the rate of increase in carbon dioxide. It has been accelerating over recent decades along with fossil fuel emissions. According to the article, since 2000, annual increases of two ppm or more have been common, compared with 1.5 ppm per year in the 1980s and less than one ppm per year during the 1960s.

Burning coal, oil, and gas is the primary source of carbon dioxide emissions. The problem?? Earth's oceans, vegetation, and soils soak up half of these emissions. The rest stays in the air for centuries or longer.

Methane also rose last year (the first time since 19998) by 27 million tons. Methane is 25 times more potent as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide, but there’s far less of it in the atmosphere—about 1,800 parts per billion. Even though methane is more powerful, it's over climate impact is about half of carbon dioxide's.

Source of story and picture: NOAA

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Nice Start to Salisbury Festival

Salisbury Festival kicks off this Friday evening and continues through Sunday afternoon. The forecast looks to be pretty decent again for this years event. There are some rain chances but it looks like they will occur at night. Temperatures will be mild most of the weekend and may feel hot in the sun.

On Friday sunshine will boost highs again in the upper 70s to possibly 80 degrees. Clouds move in for Friday night but should be rain free through most of the evening. There will be a slight chance of a spotty shower later Friday evening after 9PM.

Saturday will be another warm day with some sunshine and highs topping off near 80. A cold front will approach Delmarva on Saturday possibly triggering off a shower in the afternoon but most likely any rain showers will hold off till late Saturday night.

Sunday will be cooler but any rain showers should end by early Sunday morning. Expect highs during the day on Sunday in the 60s. It looks to be a nice weekend outdoors and to enjoy the downtown festival. I also plan on being outside at the festival broadcasting my weather forecast for the 6:00 news Friday evening.

Clorox Green Works

We started a new series in Weather Matters this morning. For the next few weeks, we're going to talk about some eco-friendly products I've found. The best part, I found them right here on Delmarva! So you too, can take steps to go green. Eco-friendly product #1: Clorox Green Works

In January, Clorox unveiled their new line of green cleaners. They have a whole line of products to clean glass, toilet bowls, bathrooms, and kitchens. According to their website, they're just as effective as conventional cleaners and they're also safe for plumbing and septic systems.

What's cool about them is that they're made from plant-based ingredients such as corn-based ethanol, and coconut and lemon oil. At least 99% of all the ingredients are natural. The packaging is also environmentally friendly because it can be recycled. You can get them anywhere Clorox products are sold. They range in price from $2 up to about $5.

But Clorox isn't the only company going green. In 2001, SC Johnson also developed what they call the Greenlist process to make their products safer for the environment. For more information about these products, just head to our website and click on 47 weblinks.

Next week we continue our series. Wait till you see some of the great finds I found!

Thanks to http://www.cloroxgreenworks.com/ for the information.

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Something for Everyone

As you know this time of year the weather varies greatly from day to day on Delmarva. Over the next seven days their will be something for everyone as a wide variety of weather is expected. For those who love sunshine and warm weather, you are up first. High pressure will dominate the mid-Atlantic through Saturday providing sunshine and temperatures in the 70s, possibly 80s on Saturday. These temperatures are well above average as we should be in the upper 60s this time of year.

For you rain lovers, especially the farmers, you have a shot at seeing rain Saturday night and then again on Monday into Tuesday. Timing is still a little uncertain at this point but the chances will be coming. Some rain would be welcomed as many areas are still in drought status.

Finally for the cooler weather lovers, temperatures look to fall back below average early next week into the 60s as a deeper trough comes through early next week. It's April and a forecast like this is very common.

March Review

Even though April is almost over, let's take a look back at the month of March. NCDC (National Climatic Data Center) recently released their March climate summary. Take a look...

While the average temperature for the US ranked near average for the past 113 years, the average global land temperature was the warmest on record. Global ocean surface temperatures were also the 13th warmest. Global temperatures have been recorded since 1880. The US average temperature was 42°, which was 0.4° below the 2oth century mean. Only Rhode Island, New Mexico, and Arizona were warmer than average. Near-average temperatures occurred in 39 other states.

Precipitation highlights are a bit more exciting. The snowpack in the West is among the healthiest in more than a decade thanks to the heavy snow during December through February.
But in other parts of the West, such as Utah, Arizona, Nevada, and California, dry conditions prevailed. March tied as the driest in 68 years at the Sacramento airport with only 0.05" all month.

Contrast that with...Missouri had its second wettest March on record thanks in part to the 13.84" of rain that fell in Cape Girardeau in just two days. Major flooding of rivers and streams took place from Missouri Ozarks into southern Indiana. Nine other states recorded wetter than average conditions. Here are some other stats:
  • From March 7-9th, 8-12" of snow fell from Louisville, Ky., to central Ohio. In Columbus, an all-time greatest 24-hour snowfall of 15.5" broke the old record of 12.3 inches set on April 4, 1987.
  • In the Southeast, a powerful tornado moved through downtown Atlanta on March 14, causing significant damage to many buildings. This was one of 90 tornado reports from the Southeast in March.
  • Rainfall in the middle of March improved drought conditions in much of the Southeast, but moderate-to-extreme drought still remained in more than 59 percent of the region.
Thanks to NOAA and NCDC for the stats and information.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Waterspout or Not?

Lets go back to Sunday and talk about the potential waterspout in Bethany Beach, DE. Looking at this picture that we posted on Sunday, it looks like a waterspout.


After coming across these other pictures on http://www.wgmd.com/ posted by Traci Z. and researching clouds. It looks like a roll or arcus cloud (shown in the pictures below), which is a horizontal tube shaped looking cloud, that eventually went more vertical, looking like a tornado as it passed over the ocean. There has also been no official report of a waterspout from the National Weather Service.



Happy Earth Day!!


It's April 22, 2008; EARTH DAY!!! 3 words should come to mind; Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle! We're blessed with so much on this planet, but we need to do our part and preserve what we have. Here's a few Earth Day tidbits for you to ponder...

- The first Earth Day was April 22, 1970. 20 million people attended. Now over 500 million celebrate. It's a day to promote awareness about cleaning the air, promoting land conservation, and improving water quality.

Along with seven major cities across the country, Washington, DC will be rocking out today to celebrate Earth Day with acts, such as Jordin Sparks, The Roots, and O.A.R. Other speakers include Edward Norton, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and many more.

- Americans generated 251 million tons of trash in 2006! That's 4.6 pounds per person per day! Here's a crazy stat for you...An average American eats his or her weight in bread about every 3 years. That's 87,520 slices of bread for a 1 US person's average lifetime. Thanks to the Human Footprint project by the National Geographic Channel for that stat. Check out the show Human Footprint online; it's awesome! http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/human-footprint/

- Where does our trash go? 55% gets buried in landfills, only 33% gets recycled, and 12.5% goes to incinerators. Stop and think what happens to your stuff *before* you throw it in the garbage. For instance, ink cartridges take 450 years to decompose. Recycle old ones & buy refilled ones. They cost 75% less and work just as well! Thanks to http://www.idealbite.com for that tip.

- Do you like soda, pop, soda-pop, or whatever you call it? One US person' drinks about 43,471 cans in his/her lifetime. That stretches 3.42 miles or 50 football field back to back to back and so on...Before you throw it in the trash instead of recycling it, think about this...It takes 95% less energy to make a can from recycled aluminum than from scratch. Yearly, Americans recycle enough cans to power 1,118,000 homes. Thanks again to the Human Footprint.

- Americans love taking showers! A US person takes an average of 28,433 showers in his/her lifetime. Ready for the shocking part? That equals running the water nonstop for 98 days!! - Human Footprint

Good Websites to check out:
1. Head here to find out where you can recycle your cell phone.
Http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/osw/conserve/plugin/cellphone/cell-recycling-locations.htm

2. http://www.epa.gov/earthday/

3. Http://ww2.earthday.net/

Monday, April 21, 2008

Heavy Rains for Some

As Kira mentioned, heavy rain has already been occurring today especially in Salisbury and it's helping out the drought conditions. Moderate Drought conditions still extend from Southern Talbot and Caroline and Sussex County, DE and all points South on Delmarva. A moderate drought is the first drought level out of 4. Any rain will please the farmers for sure.

Not everywhere saw heavy rains today though. The Axis of heavy rain extended from Dorchester, Wicomico, and Worcester counties, South through Northern Accomack County, VA where rainfall ranged form .5-1.75". Other areas saw as little as a few hundredths of an inch. Farms across the upper MD shore and Delaware could have used some more rain from today. Here are some official rainfall totals as of 9PM:
Dover .01"
Georgetown .06"
Salisbury 1.74"
Ocean City .40"
Wallops Island .52"
Melfa .18"

Welcome Rain

Normally it's rain rain go away, but not this time. We really needed a nice soaking rain and thanks to a low pressure system sitting to our south, that's exactly what we're getting. While yesterday's weather was more severe with strong thunderstorms, a few reported tornadoes, and the water spout, today's is not as severe. However, there were a few thunderstorms that pushed through Salisbury early this morning that produced some vivid lightning and heavy rain. Speaking of heavy rain, Salisbury has picked up 1.19" of rain since early this morning! Great news, especially for our farmers, since our drought was alm0st 5.5".

The low will slowly drift further to the southeast tonight and tomorrow, slowly brining an end to the rain. Tomorrow will be the transition day, with rain showers ending but an onshore flow continuing to keep clouds across the region. Finally on Wednesday, high pressure will resume control and bring a return to sunny and warmer weather!

Sunday, April 20, 2008

Water spout visits Bethany Beach

Lots of exciting weather today, so far there have been 6 tornado reports, two in North Carolina, two in King William County, Va., one in Charles County, Md. and one in Prince Georges County, Md. Here in Delmarva, Chris Givens actually spotted a water spout between 1-1:30 p.m. He said he was working at the Chalkboard Tavern and Grille in Bethany Beach. He sent the two photographs in below. I am jealous I wasn't there to see this!




Our weather watcher Hunter Outten of Frankford, Del. captured some pretty amazing pictures of the storms. Those photographs are below:

Saturday, April 19, 2008

More 80s!

If you thought one day with 80 degree weather was great, how about a second day?? What a beautiful day across Delmarva! It has certainly been a sneak peak at summer. Here are your highs from today:

Georgetown: 86
Salisbury: 83
Melfa: 82
Wallops Island: 80
Ocean City: 79
Dover: 74

As we continue on our April "Weather Roller Coaster" it is time to say goodbye to those sunny skies and sadly welcome the clouds and rain back. The chance for rain showers and even a thunderstorm enters the picture for Sunday into Monday. There is even a chance to see showers sticking around into Tuesday morning.

As if it isn't hard enough to roll out of bed and go back to work on Monday morning, we have to add those cooler, not so great days! Luckily, while it will be a "cooler" start to the week, it won't be too bad with highs in the lower 60s. If you aren't happy with the 60s, not to worry, 70s will return towards the end of the week.

Friday, April 18, 2008

80s Return to Delmarva

It has been awhile since widespread 80s hit Delmarva. The last time Salisbury had an 80 degree day was back on October 23, 2007 when the high reached 83. Here are today's official highs:
Dover 80
Georgetown 84
Salisbury 85
Ocean City 80
Wallops Island 83
Melfa 82

Another big diurnal temperature range occurred in Salisbury today of 52 degrees. The beaches even topped off at 80 for a short while late this morning before the sea breeze kicked in and knocked the temperatures back into the 60s during the afternoon. The ocean water temperature is in the low 50s, so any wind coming off the water will cool off the beach drastically.

Largest Plastic Landfill on Earth!!


A few days ago, I asked: True or False?? The largest collection of plastic waste on earth is in the North Pacific, spanning an area twice the size of the U.S.

The answer, true!

Here's today's Weather Matters Segment.

What happens to your plastic bottles or any plastic that you throw away? You may be surprised to learn that you may be eating it.

There's a remote area in the middle of the Pacific Ocean called the North Pacific Garbage Patch. Also sometimes referred to as the North Pacific Gyre. It's northwest of Hawaii and takes about one week to get there by boat. It stretches from 575 miles off the coast of California all the way across to almost Japan. Why are we concerned about it? It is the largest landfill on Earth and has the most plastic trash anywhere. And it's growing!

Thomas Morton is a journalist for a web-based network called vbs.tv. He's making a documentary on the North Pacific Garbage Patch to raise awareness. The following is from the documentary:

"The area is literally infested with bits of plastic along with bottles, hockey sticks, tires, and lots of other garbage. The problem with plastic is that it doesn't biodegrade, it photodegrades. That is a process in which plastic is broken down by sunlight into smaller pieces. But the smaller pieces remain pieces of plastic. There is a shocking 6 to 1 ratio of plastic to plankton. And plankton is a main source of food for the marine animals."

About 80% of trash in our oceans comes from land and river runoff. And that's how the trash food chain begins. It breaks down and gets eaten by small fish. The small fish get eaten by bigger ones. And eventually we eat the fish. Scientists have linked this to numerous public health problems.

What can be done? Well plastic is everywhere! Some estimates say there could be as much as 100 million tons of waste floating in our oceans. So there is no quick fix. But simply put, we need to use less plastic and learn ways to dispose of it better. For more information and shocking videos (including a piece from the vbs.tv documentary), just head to our website and click on 47 weblinks.

Thursday, April 17, 2008

Another Record Low

If you weren't outside very early this morning, you would never think about record lows after a afternoon like we had. The temperature at the Salisbury Airport reached 26 degrees, breaking the old record of 28 set back in just 2005. Then we went from 26 to 73 this afternoon, an incredible 47 degree diurnal rage today. This is fairly common this time of year with high pressure systems, like the one we are in now. Temperatures will not be record breaking tonight but still cool in the 30s in some of the colder spots. Another day of 40 degree plus diurnal range will occur on Friday as highs will reach the lower 80s inland.

Welcome Warm Weather

The cold weather continued last night and this morning. Salisbury once again dropped into the 20s. Unofficially the temperature dropped to 26 degrees which would break the old record of 28 degrees from 2005. We'll keep you posted...

After cold starts, the strong sun angle makes for warm afternoons. Yesterday we warmed 40 degrees from our morning low to a high of 65...that's impressive!! That's why the key for this time of year is to dress in layers. You head out in the morning with a coat but then wear shorts in the afternoon. As the high moves offshore tomorrow, winds will turn more out of the south/southwest and that will usher in even warmer temperatures! Highs will approach 80 degrees tomorrow inland, and possibly even a few degrees warmer. Warm weather sticks around for Saturday before the next system brings clouds and a chance for showers Sunday into early next week. Enjoy the sunshine and warm weather while it lasts!

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Cold Nights and Warm Days

High pressure, large and in-charge is situated over the mid-Atlantic and continues to control the weather. High pressure typically has fair weather as it brings sinking air motion. The makes it difficult for clouds to develop. So we are left with clear skies both at night and during the day. Cold temperatures at night are common with high pressure systems. This is because of the clear skies and calm winds that occur during the night. The calm winds allow the atmosphere from being mixed and the clear skies allow the daytime heating to escape right back up into the atmosphere. This process is called evaporational cooling and last night and tonight are prime examples.

The low this morning in Salisbury bottomed out at 25 degrees, tying the record low for the date. Many areas saw sub-freezing temperatures last night so a freeze warning was needed. Tonight's lows should not be as cold, but there could be some upper 20's, especially around the Salisbury Airport. Areas of frost are also possible in the inland locations since frost is possible with temperatures in the mid 30s.

Tell Us What You Think...

Continuing with the trivia theme...

The largest collection of plastic waste on earth is in the North Pacific, spanning an area twice the size of the U.S.

True or False??

The answer coming up on Friday morning during the Weather Matters segment on Good Morning Delmarva.

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

What do you think?

We want to know what you think.

Will a hurricane make landfall on the Delmarva coast this season?
A. Yes
B. No

Please comment below.

Satellites tell more than weather...

We all know satellites allow us to view pictures of clouds among other meteorological phenomenon. But did you know satellites can also help save your life? In fact, one set of satellites saved 23 lives just a few days ago.

A ship was en route from Rhode Island to Belgium when suddenly about 1,200 miles east of Cape Cod a fire broke out in the engine room. The ship's radio beacon sent out a distress signal which was detected by a set of NOAA's satellites (part of the international Search and Rescue Satellite-Aided Tracking System called COSPAS-SARSAT). The satellites act by quickly detecting and locating distress signals from emergency beacons onboard ships and aircraft and from handheld personal locator beacons. The location was then relayed to search and rescue personnel at the Coast Guard's Rescue Coordination Center in Norfolk, Va. The fire was able to be contained and finally extinguished. Fourteen of the 23 crew members were then safely transferred to another ship. Nine crew members are still onboard, but will be transfered to another ship on Sunday.

This set of satellites (COSPAS-SARSAT) is now in its 26th year of operation. It has been credited with more than 22,000 rescues worldwide, including more than 5,800 in the United States and its surrounding waters.

Story courtesy of NOAA

Monday, April 14, 2008

Below Average Temperatures

As Kira mentioned below, we are definitely on that April weather roller coaster! If you thought it felt chilly today, you were right! Temperatures across Delmarva were about 10 degrees below average. The average temperature in Salisbury for today is 65 degrees and we only saw 55.

Here are the rest of your highs from today across Delmarva:

Dover: 54
Georgetown: 55
Ocean City: 51
Wallops Island: 50
Melfa: 54

I would like to say at least we are on the best part of the “roller coaster.” Temperatures are only going to continue to rise this week. There is a very small chance to see rain on Sunday, but other than that, the extended forecast is dry for the next seven days, so we have finally pushed the rain and clouds out of the picture for a little while.

See-Saw Weather

Spring is always a weather see-saw ride. One day it's 70 degrees outside, the next it's in the 40s. Last Friday and Saturday our official highs in Salisbury were 77 and 71 degrees, respectively...a nice taste of warmth! But then cooler weather filtered in. Our high of 61 degrees was reached very early on Sunday morning with most of the day spent in the 50s with cloudy skies and light rain. Today is another cool day with highs only in the low to mid 50s, but at least we're seeing sunshine. But as the ride continues, warmer weather, with highs in the 70s, will return for mid to late week!

We're not the only ones experiencing the see-saw effect...the West is too. They are experiencing near-record warmth with highs approaching the low 100s in the desert.(more common for summer, not early spring) Even Montana is getting in on the warmth. Highs will approach 80 degrees today in Great Falls, Montana. But then a cold front will push through putting an end to the stretch of unseasonably warm weather. Highs tomorrow are only supposed to be in the low 40s with snow showers likely! Talk about the difference one day makes!! (or even just a few minutes)

Check this out...it's true! On January 22, 1943 the temperature at Spearfish, South Dakota went from -4 degrees to 45 degrees in just 2 minutes!!

Welcome to Spring where the weather can change instantly!!

Sunday, April 13, 2008

2008 Atlantic Hurricane Names


Every time I look at the list of Hurricane names, I get upset that a hurricane has never been named after me. I think Hurricane Ashley would be a great one! So, if you think it would be cool to have a storm named after you... here is the official list of storm names for the 2008 Atlantic Hurricane Season:

Arthur
Bertha

Cristobal

Dolly

Edouard

Fay

Gustav

Hanna

Ike
Josephine

Kyle
Laura

Marco

Nana

Omar

Paloma

Rene

Sally

Teddy

Vicky

Wilfred

Saturday, April 12, 2008

A Few Rumbles of Thunder

Another warm day today across Delmarva, but we did see a few thunderstorms. We had the chance to see some severe thunderstorms, luckily the severe weather stayed to our south.


The image above shows the storm reports for today. North Carolina saw 2 tornadoes out of this same system.

Here are the rain totals for Delmarva:
Dover: 0.21"
Georgetown: 0.03"
Salisbury: 0.14"
Ocean City: 0.25"
Wallops Island: 0.23"

Showers are possible for Sunday, with back to average temperatures. Then another CHILLY start to the week, that's right, lower 50s return! But not to worry, the sun will be back and so will the warmer temperatures later in the week!

Friday, April 11, 2008

Classic Storm


The current storm system over that has been getting lots of attention on the news and on our watercooler weather blog, has been for good reason. This storm is just a classic mid-latitude cyclone. I'm sure many current synoptic and mesoscale meteorology classes being taught in Universities are studying this storm. This storm just has it all, warmth, cold, rain, snow, and severe weather. The above surface map is a classic as well. It shows the primary Low over Michigan with a trailing cold front down to the Gulf of Mex. and a warm front extended Eastward. The Low pressure over Iowa is weakening but will be associated with the upper-level portion of the system.

The area ahead of the cold front and South of the warm front is known as the warm sector. This is where the Southerly winds are and warm air mass. This area becomes unstable and is where you find severe weather outbreaks. On the backside of the low pressure, the air can become cold enough to snow this time of year, and that is what happened with this storm. Now once the cold front passes, the main threat for heavy precipitation ends. But then you still have to deal with the upper-level portion of the system.

So here is how it breaks down for us. Cold front comes through by Saturday evening ending the rain chances on Saturday night. Initially we will clear out for early Sunday but then the strong upper-level portion approaches. As it does, expect clouds to increase again and colder air moves in as the upper-level portion has a core of cold air with it. This system will move through very slow and keep skies partly to mostly cloudy Monday and Tuesday. it is possible that there could be a spotty shower both days as well as the atmosphere remains unstable as the system moves through. Cold air over warm air is unstable, so expect cloudy skies at times before the systems moves offshore on Wednesday.

Major Spring Storm



Continuing to discuss the major storm in the nation's midsection...

There were 16 additional tornado reports on Thursday. They ripped through houses and tore down power lines. There were also 70 wind reports. Trees were knocked down and power poles were snapped in half, knocking power out to thousands. A 62 mph wind gust was reported in Missouri along with a 65 mph wind gust in Kansas. 56 hail reports, quarter to dime inch size, were also reported. In Texas, several tractor trailers were blown off the road and according to one trucker, tree limbs actually came through his front windshield!

This has been quite an active year for tornadoes. So far this year, the US has had 559 tornadoes; the most reports coming from Missouri with 86 and Mississippi with 73 tornadoes. At the same time last year, the US only had only seen 517 tornadoes.

I mentioned it before, but the backside of the system some impressive late season snow is falling. Even as I'm writing this, much of Minnesota, upper Wisconsin, and upper Michigan are under winter storm warnings. Heavy snow is expected in these regions with an additional 4-7 inches expected. Keep in mind, many of these locations have already picked up approximately 6" of snow. Blizzard warnings are also in effect for parts of the Dakotas where northerly winds are howling between 20-35 mph along with blowing snow. A man in Duluth, Minnesota called the storm a frozen tropical storm and compared it to his experience during Hurricane Rita, according to one report I watched.

Good news though (at least for the middle part of the country), the severe weather should be coming to an end soon as the storm moves east.

Picture courtesy of The Weather Channel

Thursday, April 10, 2008

Sun and Warmth Return

The rigorous storm system that Kira blogged about in the post below will help surge warm air into Delmarva for the next 24-48 hours. Winds have switched direction today out of the South and West helping to dry out the lower level of the atmosphere a bit. This wind flow broke up the clouds and allowed for the sun to return increasing temperatures a good 20 degrees. Highs made it into the 70s away from the water but the Atlantic coastal areas still had fog through the day holding highs only in the 50s.

More dense fog is expected overnight with visibilities under a 1/4 mile possible. A dense fog advisory is in effect for the Southern half of Delmarva from 1 AM until 9 AM Friday. Just like today, after the morning fog dissipates, expect some sunshine to break out with highs climbing into the low 70s. Strong Southerly winds will kick in the afternoon and air temperatures around 5,000 ft above the surface support highs in the mid 70's. If enough sunshine breaks out, some areas could approach the upper 70's. The warmth will continue into the start of the weekend but a cold front will slide through on Saturday cooling temperatures off for Sunday. A large slow moving trough in the jet stream will be situated over the mid-Atlantic Monday through Wednesday brining cooler temperatures and clouds. An instability shower is possible especially on Monday as the trough rotates through.

Storminess for the Nation's Heartland


The nation's midsection is getting hit hard by severe weather, including strong winds, hail, heavy rain, and tornadoes. Yesterday there were 6 tornado reports throughout Texas and Oklahoma causing tremendous damage...from overturned tractor trailers to power outages to roofs blown off buildings. Winds of up to 70 mph were reported in San Angelo, TX.

There were also 80 hail reports, baseball and golf ball size, and over 50 wind reports. In addition, there is very heavy rain associated with this system. Unfortunately it's falling on already saturated ground and that's running into rivers that are already close to their banks. Rainfall of 1 to 3 inches is expected with local amounts over 4 inches. There's more...heavy snow and gusty winds, creating blizzard-like conditions, will develop on the backside of this system from Colorado through the Northern Plains and into the upper Midwest. Snow accumulations are expected to be 6 to 12 inches.

The severe weather is expected to expand east and northeast through the Mississippi valley today and then into the Chicago, Indianapolis, Nashville, and Birmingham areas tonight.

Picture courtesy of The Weather Channel

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

More Named Storms for 2008

The new numbers are out for the 2008 Hurricane Season and compared to the Dec. 7, 2007 forecast, the Apr. 9, 2008 forecast brings more named storms to the United States.

As previously posted, Dr. William Gray and Philip Klotzbach were forecasting:

13 Named Storms
7 Hurricanes
3 Intense Hurricanes

The new numbers are as follows:

15 Named Storms
8 Hurricanes
4 Intense Hurricanes

Gray and Klotzbach are not only calling for 2 more named storms, but also one more hurricane and one more intense hurricane. It will be interesting to see if the next forecast on June 3, 2008 brings even more storms, or knocks those numbers back down.

Also in their forecast, Gray and Klotzbach posted some probablilites for at least one major hurricane landfall.

For one major hurricane landfall on the entire U.S. Coastline: 69%
On the East Coast to include the Florida Penisula: 45%
The Gulf Coast from the Florida Panhandle to Brownsville, Texas: 44%

Check back in June for more updates on the 2008 Hurricane Season!!

Hurricane Center Tour

If you love hurricanes and become glued to your TV during hurricane season, this site's for you. NOAA's National Hurricane Center has set up a virtual tour of their actual facility. You can see panoramic views of the different rooms along with an audio description of each. Rooms included in the tour are the main NHC operations, the Tropical Analysis and Forecast Branch operations, the Chief Aerial Reconnaissance Coordination All Hurricanes, FEMA liason, Media & Seminar Room, NOAA Miami Regional Library, and the NOAA National Weather Service Miami Forecast Office.

Check it out: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/nhctour.shtml

Courtesy: NOAA

Also, here's a crazy little tidbit I found from The Weather Notebook...
On this date back in 1987, International Falls, Minnesota recorded its 6th straight record high. However, that was about to change. A strong cold front was moving through bringing much colder weather. Sioux City, Iowa received 2" of snow after recording a record high of 88 degrees the day before.

Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Problem Winds

High pressure off the New England coast is causing persistent and cool Northeast winds to Delmarva. Many people have been impacted by cooler air temperatures but coastal flooding and high surf has also been a problem. The prolonged duration of the Northeast winds flowing over the Atlantic has kicked up the seas. A strong Northeast swell has impacted Delmarva, which can cause coastal flooding and beach erosion. Wave heights at the buoy off the Delaware Coast peaked at 12ft yesterday, and have come down to 10 ft now. Areas along tidal coastal waters are prone to flooding with this recent weather setup. Fortunately the likelihood of coastal flooding has ended. Beach erosion is still likely with the continued high surf with near shore waves around 6-8ft.

Surf wise, strong Northeast winds are typically bad for most surf breaks around Delmarva because it disorganizes the waves and chops them up, unless you know of spots that are protected from them. Right now, Thursday looks to be a much better day for bodyboarding and surfing as the winds become much lighter and shift more offshore. However, the wave heights will have dropped by about half. I'm sure many surfers are still happy with this weather setup since they are able to get some ridable waves out of this swell.

Why's the Ice Melting?


We've all heard about the warming of the Arctic. Did you know that it's warming faster than the rest of the globe? According to NOAA, summer sea-ice extent has decreased by nearly 40 percent compared to the 1979–2000 average, and the ice is thinning. Now NOAA will begin to research this change. From now until April 23, NOAA scientists along with other government and university professionals will fly over the Arctic and study why summertime sea ice is melting faster than predictions. Scientists believe this will help them understand climate changes that are occurring elsewhere.

Scientists believe that trace gases from industry, transportation, and burning are polluting the region and speeding up the ice melt. They will fly aboard the NOAA WP-3D aircraft and use nearly 30 airborne sensors. Stay tuned for the results...

Picture & Story Credit: NOAA

Monday, April 7, 2008

What Month is it?

With high temperatures in the mid 40s today, you would think it is January or early February. High pressure off the New England Coast and Low pressure off the mid-Atlantic coast is providing persistent East/Northeasterly winds. This wind flow is picking up moisture off the Atlantic causing low clouds and mist across the shore. Ocean water temperatures are in the mid to upper 40s resulting in some cool air temps over land. Welcome to Spring on Delmarva, this is a classic spring-time maritime air mass setup around here. Also, coastal areas could see some flooding around times of high tide tonight into tomorrow.

A little sunshine does go along way this time of year. While we were chilling in the 40s today, areas West of the Appalachians were well into the 70s with sunshine. The low cloud deck only extended a few hundred miles inland today. The sunshine will slowly increase by mid-week warming up the temperatures to above average by the end of the week.

Still a little misty.

As you can tell from the past few blogs, a lot of rain for Delmarva over the past few days. The rain is finally out of the picture, but that lingering mist/drizzle is hanging out, not wanting to leave. Here are the rain totals for Delmarva from this entire event, going from Thursday through Sunday.

Ocean City: 1.62"
Wallops Island: 1.46"
Salisbury:1.36"
Georgetown: 1.1"
Dover: 0.92"
Melfa: 0.52"
Easton: 0.42"

Sunday, April 6, 2008

When will the rain end?

Here is a quick look at the rain amounts from Sunday:

Ocean City: 0.55"
Salisbury: 0.44"
Wallops Island: 0.37"
Dover: 0.37"
Georgetown: 0.35"
Melfa: 0.27"
Easton: 0.21"

Most of the rain is over, however there is a chance for some light rain/mist overnight, into Monday and possible Tuesday. It looks like we will see a similar set up towards the end of the week, however that may mean another wet weekend.

Saturday, April 5, 2008

More Rain

The weather today was completely different depending on where you were on Delmarva. Dover and Easton saw the sun shinning with no rain, while Salisbury saw a few showers and a lot of clouds, but then to the south in Wallops Island, there was a lot more rain, in fact almost half an inch for today. Below are the rain totals for Saturday as of 9 p.m. These will obviously be going up since it is still raining outside! They aren't quite as impressive as the rain totals from Thursday and Friday, but more rain is expected overnight into Sunday.

Friday, April 4, 2008

Cooler and Wet Weekend

In the post below, Kira mentioned the possibility of rain linger into Sunday. Well that now seems to be more likely. Yesterday when I was working most of the computer models moved the front far enough offshore for Sunday to keep us under sunny skies. Now it looks like an upper-level ridge over the Western Atlantic will be strong enough to hold the front along the coast Saturday into Sunday. Areas of low pressure will ride along the front bringing us rain chances Saturday into Sunday.

Now I don't think it will be all day steady rains but more like periods of rain with breaks every now and then. I think the best chance for the steady rains will be early Saturday morning and then again overnight Saturday and Sunday morning. Some far Northern areas may see very little rain as the front is further away form these locations. The axis of the highest rain amounts look to be across Central and Southern Delmarva this weekend. There could be additional rainfall amounts of 1.5 inches before we clear out. I'm sure the local farmers would love the rain.

Temperatures do cool off to 60 on Saturday behind the front and even cooler for Sunday. Expect highs on Sunday in the upper 40s to near 50 with breezy North winds.

Let It Rain...

Round #1 of rain showers pushed through the area during the overnight hours last night. While most of it was a nice steady rain (great for farmers!!), there were some embedded heavier showers. Here are the rain totals from the onset of precip, Thursday evening until it tapered off Friday morning:

Dover .56"
Georgetown .6"
Salisbury .74"
Ocean City .79"
Wallops Island .9"

Even though the rain has ended, it's only temporary. More rain is headed our way this evening through Saturday evening. Before the rain arrives, though, the other big headline will be the warmth. Temperatures will be almost 20 degrees warmer today than yesterday with a southerly breeze. As a cold front advances the rain showers will return to the area tonight. Waves of energy, or areas of low pressure, will ride along the front enhancing the rainfall. Even a thunderstorm is possible tonight or tomorrow. We could see over an additional 1" (locally 2-3" may not be out of the question) of rain from this evening until Saturday evening before the rain finally winds down Saturday night.

The models are now hinting that the front may slow down and linger right off the coast on Sunday. That would keep clouds in the forecast at least for Sunday morning before a high pressure system to the north forces the system out to sea and brings a return to sunny skies. Keep the umbrella handy!

Thursday, April 3, 2008

Let it snow!!

Today we experienced below average temperatures ranging between the upper 40s to lower 50s, but while it may have felt chilly, on this day 93 years ago, Delmarva was experiencing quite the snowstorm.

Fifteen inches of snow and ice feel on the Delmarva Peninsula on Apr. 3, 1915. This storm brought 10 inches of snow to Salisbury, Md. Outside Delmarva, this storm produced 17 inches of snow only three hours away in Trenton, N.J. and 19.4 inches of snow in Philadelphia, Pa. New York, N.Y. had a total of 10.2 inches of snow, but even Richmond, Va. Received 10 inches of snow.

If you thought today was cold, at least we are seeing rain instead of 10 inches of snow. Personally, I think we could use a good snowstorm!!

Sources:
http://theweathercompany.com/cgi-bin/wxnotebook.pl
http://www.erh.noaa.gov/er/akq/

Titanic Lives On 96 Years Later




Here's, this weeks Weather Matters.

Who didn't love the Titanic as a kid?? I was infatuated by the mystery and the awe of what some termed 'The Unsinkable Ship'. Even to this day, I think it would be simply amazing to dive down and explore the wreckage of the Titanic. Here are a few statistics about the ship.

The Titanic was built in Ireland. She was 882 feet 9 inches long and 92 feet 6 inches wide. Her gross weight was 46,328 tons. The top speed was 23 knots, or a little over 26 mph. The ship could hold a total of 3,547 passengers and crew.

Titanic began her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City on Wednesday, April 10, 1912. Four days later, on April 14, 1912, the ship struck an iceberg. She sank just two hours and forty minutes later on April 15, 1912. Tragically, more than 1500 people died. That makes it one of the worst peacetime maritime disasters in history. In 1985, scientists discovered the Titanic on the bottom of the ocean floor. But recently new evidence has just surfaced...

Two years away, one of the last sole survivors who actually remembered that tragic night passed away. According to an ABC report, she was only 5 when she and her family boarded the Titanic. Unimaginably, her dad and three brothers all died in the accident. Even though she rarely talked about that horrific night, she kept a few keepsakes hidden in a shoebox. After her death, her family found them and now are putting them up for auction. They are expected to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars. Included is her father's pocket watch, stopped the instant he hit the water, her parents' wedding bands, along with other keepsakes. A key was also found and some believe that it could unlock a box containing the family's more prized possessions. The problem? The box is suspected to still be on the bottom of the ocean floor. Let the mystery continue...
Story courtesy:  ABC News
Picture courtesy: www.legalmoviesdownloads.com

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Weather Photos

Below are two rainbow pictures taken on Apr. 1, 2008. They were sent in by our Weather Watcher Hunter Outten of Frankford, Del.

How can you see a rainbow?

The simple answer:
If water droplets are in the air in front of you and the sun is to your back at a low angle, you can see a rainbow. Rainbows do not only form from rain, but mist, dew, fog and ice also work!

The scientific answer:
When light shines into a rain droplet, the light is refracted (a change in direction due to a speed change), then reflected off the back of the drop, and finally refracted once more as it leaves the drop. If there is a double reflection of the light inside the water droplet, a secondary or inverted rainbow is formed.

Rainbows always have the same colors, in the same order from top to bottom: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. If there is a secondary rainbow, these colors will be reversed.


We always love to receive weather pictures from our viewers, so please send pictures in to us at: weather@wmdt.com.

More Rain Heading Our Way

Just like Justin explained below, the chill has returned to the area. As of noon, Salisbury was 50°; 16° cooler than yesterday at this time. In addition to the cooler temps, breezy NW winds make it feel even cooler. Enjoy the sunshine today, though. Clouds will increase on Thursday as an area of low pressure tracks out of the Southern Plains. That will bring a chance of rain Thursday night into Friday, unfortunately, bad timing for the Shorebirds season opener. An additional area of low pressure will track along a similar path on Friday brining another chance for rain Friday afternoon through Saturday. Finally sunshine returns for Sunday with temps near 60°. Keep the umbrella handy.

Tuesday, April 1, 2008

Tuesday Warmth

Warm temperatures returned today across Delmarva as highs soared into the 70s away from the water. A warm front came through last night allowing deep Southerly wind flow to develop across the mid-Atlantic. A little sunshine today helped out temperatures rise well above computer model predictions. A line of showers did develop from the Delaware Coast through Worcester, Wicomico, and Somerset counties producing some brief heavier downpours. Some locations may even have heard a rumble of thunder. Here are today's high temps:
Dover 71
Georgetown 75
Salisbury 74
Ocean City 66
Wallops Island 66
Melfa 73

But of course this time of year consists of highly variable weather so don't expect the 70s to continue. The weather pattern is high progressive right now so we will have frequent storm systems coming through every few days. So it is normal to have 70s one day and then 50s the next day. The 70s this time is really short lived as 50's return for Wednesday. A cold front will come through around midnight switching the winds to the Northwest and cooling us off. As I write this now, the front is still well to the West but it is moving Eastward. It is currently 71 in Washington D.C but 45 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Enjoy the mild night.

Happy April Fool's Day

Here's some random facts about the 1st day of April.

- In 1997, the Baltimore Orioles postponed their opening day-game against the Kansas City Royals because of cold weather and high winds. This was the second time in a row that the Orioles home opener was postponed. Orioles opening day was canceled only one other time, in 1972 at Memorial Stadium. - Courtesy The Weather Notebook

- The world's first weather satellite, Tiros 1, was launched on this date in 1960. It sent back nearly 20,000 images during its short life span of only 79 days.

- This one isn't weather related, but it's a great April Fool's joke...
In 1998, Burger King ran a newspaper ad, saying that the left-handed population could now get a burger made just for them...The Left-handed Whopper. It was advertised as a burger designed so that condiments would drip out of the right side -- although it looked exactly the same as the "old" Whopper. Not only did customers order the new burgers, but some specifically requested the "old", right-handed burger. Kudos to Burger King...