Mare's Tail

SKY WATCH FRIDAY time! Welcome all sky fans!!! I truly appreciate your visit and comments. I might not have time to respond to you, but I will try my best to visit!!!

Our hosts: Klaus Sandy Sylvia Wren Louise Fishing Guy

Thanks, also,to Dot and Tom, who were instrumental in the success of this blogging event. You should definitely come fly with us!

Well, with my wonderful groom and Mini-Dew (and even the doggone dog) both sick yesterday, I was pretty tied up caring for the two of them, didn't even get on the computer. They have the virus that I happened to have on Monday, which basically involved an upset stomach, chills and extreme tiredness. My sources indicate that this strange "bug" is making its rounds. Fortunately, rest was just what the doctor ordered, and they are back where they are supposed to be. If you gotta have a "bug", a short-lived one is the best kind to have.I took the above shot on Sunday. We had just gotten back from grocery shopping on Sunday, when I looked up to see this amazingly sheared stream of cirrus clouds, sweeping across the entire sky. Mixed in were some random "Mare's Tail" cirrus clouds, which are the whipped looking clouds, sort of resembling a mare's tail, hence the name. They look like little hooks in the clouds.

As for weather... well, yet another snow storm pummels the country, further busting snow removal budgets all over the place, which have been under the strain of a worse than normal snow and ice coverage year. We are back under a flood watch. Looking on the bright side, at least we aren't dealing with drought again...

Have a beautiful day!
~Dewdrop

Well, it's Groundhog Day... again...

Okay, campers, rise and shine, and don't forget your booties cause it's coooold out there, today.

That's right, woodchuck-chuckers - it's GROUNDHOG DAY!

Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow this morning, and texted his forecast to Facebook... what?! Seriously, folks, the groundhog sent a text message to Facebook announcing, in accordance with folklore, we can expect 6 more weeks of winter... I predict 6 weeks and 4 days, since Spring starts on March 20, but what do I know. The same thing happened last year. Somehow the rodent saw his shadow once again on a cloudy day. Maybe, I am confused about what would cause a shadow... perhaps, they mean because of all the media lights. According to the groundhog...

On Gobbler's Knob on this glorious Groundhog Day, February 2nd, 2010, Punxsutawney Phil, Seer of Seers, Prognosticator of all Prognosticators awoke to the call of President Bill Deeley and greeted his handlers, John Griffiths and Ben Hughes.

After casting a joyful eye towards thousands of his faithful followers, Phil proclaimed, "If you want to know next, you must read my text. As the sky shines bright above me, my shadow I see beside me. So six more weeks of winter it will be."

Of course, Phil's not the only fortune telling groundhog out there. Many cities have a version of their own, which they celebrate in the like. Here are those forecasts.So, there you have it folks, meteorology takes second stage to the predictions of a groundhog.

Have a nice winter.
~Dewdrop

POW, POW, POW

SKY WATCH FRIDAY time! Welcome all sky fans!!! I truly appreciate your visit and comments. I might not have time to respond to you, but I will try my best to visit!!!

Our hosts: Klaus Sandy Sylvia Wren Louise Fishing Guy

Thanks, also,to Dot and Tom, who were instrumental in the success of this blogging event. You should definitely come fly with us!Fortunately, the temperatures didn't dip this morning as low as the forecast was hinting that it might. When I saw the 30°, I shivered... even before the temperature plunged, just in anticipation of more cold weather. It did get down to 34°, which offered some light frost, and with the drastic drop caused some intense fog, especially in the form of evaporation or steam fog over the small bodies of water and the river passing through town (which continues to recede--hallelujah!!!) It was so thick at one point that I could hardly see the car in front of me. Unfortunately, as is common with winter days in south Georgia, unlike what we experienced earlier in the month (the solid cold), our mornings tend to approach freezing with daytime temperatures quickly rebounding. It's a common occurrence for there to be a span of 30° between the high and the low. The complication arises when we try to dress for that, especially children standing out at school bus stops. No winter coats, so we layer them, but by the time recess rolls around, they have shed most of their layers (God only knows where they ended up), and by the time they leave school, they forgot they even wore a sweatshirt and jacket over their short sleeved shirt which they will be wearing home.

I shouldn't complain too much. At least we aren't in line for what TWC has dubbed, the "Triple Threat". With Winter Storm Advisories spanning from New Mexico to North Carolina, including an ice, sleet and freezing rain threat, in addition to the snow, they've got a rough road ahead, with likely power outages and road closures.Collection of maps for this weather event.
Better them than me...
~Thawing Dewdrop-cicle

WeatherFest!!

This morning, as Mini-Dew and I left the house to head to the bus stop (since the cold spell, I've been parking there with her), I noted the frost on the grass and rooftops. When Mini-Dew heard this, she growled, "UGH! What's with all this cold!? I thought we were done with that!!! Wasn't all that cold enough?! ERG! Now, I am not going to want to go outside." Spoken like a daughter of mine, eh?

Waters appear to be receding down at this section of the Withlacoochee River, which is good news. I assume that enough time has been allowed for the trickle down from the weekend's rain to impact us, if it were meant to. Fortunately, we didn't get the gusher that was forecasted. Our grounds are super-saturated, and it would have certainly put us under. Thank you, Lord.

Right now, I am looking at blue cirrus strewn skies. Although, temps started in the 30's for me. We are looking to hit 61°, then quickly rebound to some 70's weather. A monstrous system is traipsing its way across the country with a blast of cold air and moisture. Not a great mixture, but it'll miss us, so I am not too concerned.

I will be missing the WeatherFest event in Tallahassee on Saturday. I attended this event last year and had a truly T-rific time! I blasted everyone out of the water with my tropical intellect in Bob's weather challenge. I will actually be in Tally on Friday for a show, but not Saturday... argh! The show will be great, but oh what a tease. If you plan to be in the area and you are at all a weather geek (not even necessarily to my degree -- I know you're thinking... is that even possible???), I highly recommend it! I sure would love to check it out. I guess we'll see. They even do special weather balloon launches for the event!For more info about WeatherFest 2010, check out this link.

Have a great day!
~Dewdrop

Our flood adventures

Given the rise in water and the persistent flood watches being issued by the National Weather Service, we decided to check out water levels and see what was going on with everything around the rivers, creeks and so forth. So, Saturday afternoon, we headed out toward the river. My wonderful groom's kids are great adventurers, so it's fun to go out exploring when they are with us and see what we stumble upon.

We went by several areas that are known to flood, including the YMCA, which took 4' of water inside the building during the April flooding. Fortunately, it's only up as high as the parking lot for now, which is a common occurrence, and it doesn't appear that the Meadowbrook area is taking on much water (thank God, since some of those folks are still remodeling from the April flood... others just got moved back in...)We also checked out Skipper Bridge, which was completely under water during April's major flood, and has since been closed, as it is deemed unsafe for vehicular travel. We walked out there to the Hydrologic Monitoring Station there on the river. It was interesting. The water levels were high, but not anything close to what we saw in April.The area behind us in this shot is what it's like on the other side of the river from the Y. We got permission from Dr. Devine to travel onto his property to check things out. Unfortunately, with areas north of us experiencing 3 inches of rain in just one day, as the water trickles down, we might see a different story play out, but for now, we are ok down here in south Georgia.

~Dewdrop

Crazy January Weather!

I have gotten away from posting on Friday's, but with all the relatively near tornado activity yesterday, and the severe weather we had locally, I feel like an update is in order. Today, we have beautiful blue clear skies.

The big story was the well-covered (EF2 rated) tornado in Huntsville, AL yesterday, fellow Southern Weather Brigade members were chasing the cell as it moved across northern Alabama, until Mike had to leave to take care of his fatherly duties. JB and Mike parted ways, neither watching the cell anymore. Unfortunately, that's when that stubborn cell decided to produce a tornado. Poor Mike, his neighbor was actually taking pictures of the tornado from her front porch, since it passed his house within a mile. Holy cow, that sounds like my kind of luck! Poor Mike and JB. So close. I won't even bother posting coverage, as it would pale in comparison to what Mike has posted on his blog, with extensive continuing coverage of "the one that got away." Seriously, check out Mike's blog.

It was a very active storm day. The rotating cell that had once been tornado warned and then approached us, just missing to the south, caused downed power lines in my county. The same system moved across Florida and wreaked havoc all over the northern part of the state. This morning, I noticed that tornado warnings were being issued near Cocoa Beach (which has generated a tornado report for today). All in all, I would like to commend the Storm Prediction Center and the National Weather Service for being on the ball. Job well done, guys!You see the damage report dots on the graphic above. You can click on the map for a detailed list of the storm reports, including several tornado reports in Arizona and California. Crazy January weather.

Be safe.
~Dewdrop

Oh, the weather outside is frightful... well, not to me.

SKY WATCH FRIDAY time! Welcome all sky fans!!! I truly appreciate your visit and comments. I might not have time to respond to you, but I will try my best to visit!!!

Our hosts: Klaus Sandy Sylvia Wren Louise Fishing Guy

Thanks, also,to Dot and Tom, who were instrumental in the success of this blogging event. You should definitely come fly with us! I don't really have time for Sky Watch Friday, but it's a hard habit to break. Today I will post my favorite lightning shot, in honor of our thunderstorms today. Incidentally, as I typed that thunder rumbled. I have a lot of weather to dicuss, so let me just get to it. Currently, much of south Georgia, a portion of southeast Alabama and north Florida are under a tornado watch, meaning conditions are favorable for tornadogenesis.The watch was issued at 8:25AM, and it is expected to last until 4PM today. I am sure the watch window will change shape during the course of the day.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 1 INCH IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 70 MPH... AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

SCTD SUSTAINED STORMS AND A FEW SUPERCELLS EXPECTED TO PERSIST ALONG WSW-ENE ORIENTED CONFLUENCE ZONE EXTENDING FROM THE NERN GULF OF MEXICO INTO S GA LATER TODAY. AS BOUNDARY LAYER CONTINUES TO SLOWLY DESTABILIZE ON SRN SIDE OF SYSTEM... AND AS REGION COMES INCREASINGLY UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF EXIT REGION OF 100+ KT WLY HI LVL JET...POTENTIAL MAY INCREASE FOR EMBEDDED LEWPS/SMALL BOWS WITH DMGG WIND AND ISOLD TORNADOES.

Already, areas of the MCS are being highlighted for rotation and doppler indicated tornadoes are causing the National Weather Service to vigilantly offer tornado warnings. Currently, there are two warnings, and one of those cells is on track for us. I will keep one eye on radar while I work hard on spending Obama-bucks. Of course, I also have my SAME loaded weather radio on alert, to warn me of anything nearby. This same system, yesterday and last night has spawned 14 tornado reports across Texas and Louisiana. Be mindful of rapidly changing conditions. Try not to go out in it, and keep your weather radios handy!!! Also, remember, Turn Around, Don't Drown.™

Oh, did I mention that I broke my garage door today?? Grr... me and mechanical things lately...


10:00 Severe thunderstorm warning Lowndes county with rotation getting stronger from the looks of it.










Be safe!
~Dewdrop

Weather gone wild

More unfortunate news from Haiti this morning, their strongest aftershock yet, struck at 6:03AM, with a 6.1 magnitude, just 35 miles from Port-au-Prince, not far from the original major earthquake 8 days ago. I haven't heard reports about how the already dangerous state of Port-au-Prince's structures were impacted or if any rescue workers were impacted, which is my first thought, but it is clear that they continue to need all of our prayers.

Back here, we have a relentless weather pattern, which is inundating much of the country with one type of weather or another. A series of low pressure systems is parading its way across the country moving in off the Pacific. Strong low pressure systems are dumping record rainfall on California, causing incredibly dangerous landslides and threats of more, as more rain moves in. As if that's not bad enough, southern California actually reported 3 tornadoes, including one in Los Angeles. Apparently, the turmoil in the water (20' waves) caused some water spouts which moved inland.

GOLETA SANTA BARBARA COUNTY CA
RADIO STATION KCOY IN SANTA BARBARA REPORTED A SHERIFFS DEPUTY SPOTTED A POSSIBLE TORNADO NEAR THE OCEAN MEADOW GOLF COURSE NEAR ISLE VISTA AROUND 1030 AM...ROOF DAMAGE (LOX)

HUNTINGTON BEACH ORANGE COUNTY, CA
TORNADO SPOTTED ON PACIFIC COAST HIGHWAY JUST SOUTH OF ANDERSON STREET. THE FUNNEL CROSSED THE HIGHWAY AND HEADED NE. A BLACK LIMO WAS LIFTED UP AND AN SUV WAS FLIPPED (SGX)

HUNTINGTON BEACH ORANGE COUNTY CA
PROBABLE (Interesting wording) TORNADO IN HUNTINGTON BEACH. BOATS UPLIFTED AND DAMAGED IN THE HB HARBOR. DAMAGE TO BUILDING IN AREAS. CAR FLIPPED 16400 PCH. (SGX)

Neither San Diego, not Los Angeles's Weather Service Office reference the tornado at this time.

Local Storm Reports
Los Angeles
San Diego
Unfortunately, that same system is now causing treacherous blizzard conditions in the mid-west, with ice storms and just a huge mess. For us, down in the south, this all spells out severe weather potential.

For today, much of the central Gulf states are under a slight risk for severe weather with a mentionable tornadic threat. The area of risk stops short of my area with a new threat bumping into tomorrow's forecast.




Anyone within the green outlined area, should be mindful of rapidly changing conditions. The second graphic depicts the probabilities for tornadoes.

I am keeping a closer watch on tomorrow. Before you ask, NO! I WILL NOT BE CHASING! It's payroll day for me, so I will be stuck at my desk, missing out on all the fun, but the wording has me intrigued.You see, though it looks like instability will be lacking, south Georgia and north Florida look like the ripest areas for action. As in, if anything is going to happen, it is most likely to occur in my neck of the woods. I'll break down the discussion.

...SERN AL...SRN GA AND NRN FL...

AN MCS (mesoscale convective system-large rotating storm system) SHOULD BE IN PROGRESS OVER THE SERN STATES EARLY THURSDAY WITHIN ZONE OF ISENTROPIC LIFT (warm air overriding cold air. Lift is a key element of thunderstorms.) WIDESPREAD CLOUDS AND PRECIPITATION SHOULD LIMIT MLCAPE (low instability- due to limited heating potential, cloud cover) TO WELL BELOW 1000 J/KG EAST OF ONGOING STORMS...BUT PARTIAL CLEARING WILL BE POSSIBLE FARTHER DOWNSTREAM ACROSS FL AND SRN GA (we might HERE have just enough break in the clouds to allow for the heating to destabilize things, instability is another key element for thunderstorms). STORMS DEVELOPING NEAR THE SRN END OF THIS MCS WILL EXPERIENCE AN INFLUX OF RICHER LOW-LEVEL MOISTURE (the third and final ingredient of thunderstorms.) AND THEREFORE SHOULD HAVE A BETTER CHANCE OF BECOMING ROOTED NEAR THE SURFACE. STRONG VERTICAL SHEAR (a fourth ingredient making conditions ripe for tornadoes) ACCOMPANYING THE SHORTWAVE TROUGH WILL CONTRIBUTE TO A THREAT OF SUPERCELLS AND BOWING STRUCTURES WITH DAMAGING WIND AND ISOLATED TORNADOES POSSIBLE AS ACTIVITY DEVELOPS EWD. HIGHER PROBABILITIES MAY BE NEEDED IN LATER OUTLOOKS IF IT BECOMES MORE APPARENT THAT THE BOUNDARY LAYER WILL UNDERGO SUFFICIENT DESTABILIZATION.

So, basically, all the ingredients for potential tornadoes in south Georgia (north Florida) are lining up for tomorrow. If we get a clearing in the sky, watch out! That's the only ingredient that is needed to trigger a significant event.

Be safe,
~Dewdrop

Continued prayers for Haiti

Unfortunately, the news out of Haiti is grim. The optimistic side was guestimating a death toll near 50,000. Initial speculation had numbers in the 100's of thousands. Unfortunately, with them having recovered 70,000 bodies already from the wreckage, it looks like the earlier, more devastating totals are a closer match with reality. The estimate is now at about 200,000. In a poorly constructed tightly populated city of 2,000,000, I fear that they are being overly optimistic once again. Sadly, the situation is also bad for rescue workers and survivors. Supplies of water, food... the basics are falling short of the need. How do you have enough for 3,000,000 people...?

Haiti's already poor health and infrastructure situation, such as a lack of water, and sanitation systems, has brought additional challenges to the rescue operations in the Western Hemisphere’s poorest nation.

The damage done to the main port of the country as a result of the earthquake, as well as the main roads and airport, have limited the distribution of aid.

~source

I received this prayer today through email. It does a great job of summarizing my thought and prayer for the people of Haiti and all those involved in rescue and relief efforts.

Lord, I just want to say THANK YOU, because this morning I woke up and knew where my children were. Because this morning my home was still standing, because this morning I am not crying because my husband, my child, my brother or sister needs to be pulled from underneath a pile of concrete, because this morning I was able to drink a glass of water, because this morning I was able to turn on the light, because this morning I was able to take a shower, because this morning I was not planning a funeral, but most of all I thank you this morning because I still have life and a voice to cry out for the people of Haiti. Lord I cry out to you, the one that makes the impossible, possible, the one that turns darkness into light, I cry out that you give those mothers strength, that you give them peace that surpasses all understanding, that you may open the streets so that help can come, that you may provide doctors, nurses, food, water, and all that they need in a blink of an eye. For all those that have lost family members, give them peace, give them hope, give them courage to continue to go on! Protect the children and shield them with your power. I pray all this in the name of Jesus!

We here are truly blessed!!!!!

I had a beautiful thing happen last night. I was outside and looked up to the magnificent star-filled sky. We live far enough from city lights to really have an opportunity to see and appreciate the magnitude of the universe, millions of twinkling diamonds plaster the sky. It's breathtaking on a clear night. Well, last night, as I was star-gazing, a brilliant ball of fire raced across the sky with it's tail streaming, as a luminous contrail reaching across the expanse of the sky. It stopped my words. It stopped my movement. I couldn't even signal my wonderful groom to look. I was paralyzed with awe of our great God. I immediately poured out thanks to Him and it was gone, another special love note from a loving Father.

Today was an interesting day so far... It started with a simple adjustment that lasted way too atypically long. They were having a Monday, too, apparently. This made me late for the dentist, who was running behind, so I got caught up and only had a short wait. I decided then to make my deposit at the bank, which is on my way and generally only takes a few seconds. I prepared my checks and money and deposit slip, placed them all in the tube thing.... placed the tube in the chamber and pressed send... that's when it started... this HORRIBLE RACKET that they could hear on the other side of their no-doubt very thick glass. A loud roaring noise rumbled and whirred and the tellers looked at me, like I had done something. They immediately came on and asked what I had sent... meaning, they didn't get it. Well, with it no longer in the chamber and not with them... UGH! So, this racket continues for some time as the machine tries with all its might to try to send the canister through the tube to the teller. Still nothing. Well, then, smoke starts to pour out of what I can only imagine to be the motor on this crazy contraption. The couple in the car two lanes over are starting to get nervous and give an eye witness report of what was going on... as if all the tellers' noses weren't pressed to the window gawking at this nutso scene... Well, then, the smoke gets thicker and starts boiling out of every crack and crevice the machine has to offer, apparently even filling the tube that travels into the bank. Well, that was my signal to pull up and away from this thing before it burst into flames in my face. A teller and the manager came running out and try to communicate the same way I was with the tellers inside... hand signal showing billowing smoke coming from the machine. They asked me to come inside so they could figure out how to take care of me. The crazy drive-thru teller machine repair man was called in to seek out my deposit which I was assured will be recovered... good grief. Crazy start to a day, but if that's the least of my problems, I still consider myself exceptionally blessed.

Have a great day!
~Dewdrop

The Happy Dew Dance - I saw a funnel cloud...

SKY WATCH FRIDAY time! Welcome all sky fans!!! I truly appreciate your visit and comments. I might not have time to respond to you, but I will try my best to visit!!!

Our hosts: Klaus Sandy Sylvia Wren Louise Fishing Guy

Thanks, also,to Dot and Tom, who were instrumental in the success of this blogging event. You should definitely come fly with us!

I spent a lot of time yesterday processing and coping with the tragic disaster in Haiti. I am taking a step away from the details and the terror of it all today. Instead, I want to tell you a story that Mini-Dew shared with me the day before yesterday.

First, exciting NEWS! Second, Mini-Dew was at school Monday, when a friend approached her and said... I saw your parents on TV last night. Mini-Dew's response was, "Oh great, that means you saw my mom's Dew dance." Then, she proceeded to mock my dance complete with fist rolling in front of her, all the while singing "I saw a funnel cloud. I saw a funnel cloud. I saw a funnel." Then, she told me that I am the only person who gets so excited about funnel clouds that I made up a dance. LOL. What she is referring to is my appearance on "Twister Sisters", a reality show about storm chasing Twister Sisters Peggy and Melanie. Apparently, reruns are being aired on WEtv. My experience shooting that show was unparalleled, and though I busted a high risk/PDS day with my persistent Dewvoid, I had some weather experiences on June 6, 2007, which will last with me forever, and yes, that is the day that Diane, the dear director, captured me dancing over a few funnel clouds, but it's also the day that I witnessed this. An awesome shelf cloud. The same system produced some funnel clouds.The above shot is Zac and Peggy checking out the awesome and VERY LOW shelf cloud approaching us. Overall, it was an amazing experience, even if we didn't end up seeing the real deal. I learned so much about productions and all the effort that goes into a reality TV show. I joined in at the tail end of shooting, so everyone was pretty much on their last nerve by then, which is a shame. I love the artistic personalities of the crew though, and each night was one big party!I even got the chance to use the $6,000 HD video camera. Were they NUTS?!

The media is covering the disaster in Haiti around the clock, and I find myself growing more and more sad, as I hear more and more details. I continue to pray for hope for the people of Haiti and their families and friends... and now the rescue and relief workers. In a time like this, I imagine hope would be a difficult thing to hold onto, but the bible encourages hope in the Lord. Put your hope in the Lord is a repeated statement in Psalms. In the book of Job, we hear the story of a truly tested man, who, nonetheless, rested his hope in the Lord, never wavering from his praise for God, and in the end, God blessed him abundantly.

Psalm 46
God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging. Selah There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day. The LORD Almighty is with us

God bless those suffering.
~Dewdrop