Washington state weather & meteorology thread - Page 7

jessejb · April 7th, 2009, 07:45 PM

Considering its been snowing every Sunday night/Monday morning for the past 4 months I wouldnt be surprised.

***Bond James Bond*** · April 7th, 2009, 09:33 PM

And to think I had just put away my car-scraper thing over the weekend.

jessejb · May 11th, 2009, 02:42 AM

I don't know about you guys, but Im enjoying this 70 degrees and sun that they said we would have today!

Oh wait. Its 63 and raining.

WESTSEATTLEGUY · May 11th, 2009, 05:24 AM

It doesn't get any better for a whole week more or less.

jessejb · May 12th, 2009, 12:03 AM

It was funny though reading the Cliff Mass blog and King5 weather and reading about how beautiful and sunny it was yesterday. Ive lived here all my life and even my threshold for what I consider good weather isnt that low!

***Bond James Bond*** · May 29th, 2009, 03:12 AM

OMG I DON'T BELIEVE THIS!! THIS IS THE BEST NEWS I'VE HEARD IN A WHILE!!!

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm..._radar28m.html

Originally published Thursday, May 28, 2009 at 12:00 AM
Coastal radar station sought to improve storm forecasts

The National Weather Service, previously cool to the idea, is requesting $7 million in President Obama's 2010 budget for a new Doppler radar station on the Washington coast, to improve storm forecasting. Weather service director John L. "Jack" Hayes will be in Seattle today for a forum on the need for the radar.

By Sandi Doughton
Seattle Times science reporter

Cliff Mass is used to giving odds on whether it's going to rain or blow.

Now, the University of Washington meteorologist is handicapping the chances Washington will get a new Doppler radar station on the coast to better forecast the damaging storms that roll in from the Pacific Ocean.

"I would say it's gone to a level of 80 to 90 percent," he said Wednesday. "It's probably going to happen."

Once the lonely obsession of Mass and a few others, the radar has rocketed to the top of the National Weather Service's priority list.

The agency, which previously was cool to the idea, is now requesting $7 million for the radar in President Obama's proposed 2010 budget. And weather service director John L. "Jack" Hayes will be in Seattle today to participate in a community forum on the need for the radar.

"There has been a very substantial turnaround, and the National Weather Service is now enthusiastically supporting it," Mass said.

Today's forum is sponsored by U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, who previously gained a $2 million "down payment" for the project via a budget earmark. That money is being used to identify possible sites for the instrument on the central coast.

The $7 million is by no means guaranteed, but if the line item makes it into the final budget, it's possible the new radar could be operational by the winter of 2011-12, Mass said.

Much of the weather service's change of heart can be traced to several major storms that battered the region over the past several years, Mass believes. The worst hit in early December 2007, with hurricane-force winds on the coast and drenching rains and floods in Southwest Washington that killed several people and shut down Interstate 5 for days.

A coastal radar could have provided some advance warning for areas hit hardest by heavy rainfall, Mass said.

Like a medical MRI is able to see inside the body, radar is able to peer below the surface of a storm and measure the precipitation and winds swirling inside — something satellite instruments can't do.

Western Washington's single Weather Service radar, on Camano Island, has trouble "seeing" storms heading in from the ocean and over coastal communities, because its beams are blocked by the Olympic Mountains. Most of the state's severe weather develops over the Pacific and blows in from the southwest.

An independent analysis that will be presented at today's forum found that even in some parts of the Puget Sound region, radar coverage of the lower atmosphere where most weather unfolds is poor. Only about a third of King County is covered, says the report.

A coastal radar would fill many of the existing gaps in coverage, the report concludes.

"In Washington, the major problem is looking out over the ocean, and to do that you need a large system with a lot of power," said the report's lead author, Jerry Brotzge, of the Center for Analysis and Prediction of Storms at the University of Oklahoma.

A coastal radar would be able to track storms 100 miles offshore, Cantwell said in a statement. That would help vulnerable coastal communities and also provide better forecasts for the entire state, she said.

Cantwell, who has advocated for the radar for years, is one of several Northwesterners who wield power over the agencies involved: Cantwell chairs the Senate subcommittee that oversees the National Weather Service and its parent agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NOAA is now headed by former Oregon State University marine biologist Jane Lubchenco, while former Washington Gov. Gary Locke is Lubchenco's boss as secretary of commerce.

Locally, strong public support — especially from coastal communities — helped sway the weather service, said Brad Colman, meteorologist-in-charge of the Seattle office. Also, additional data and experience have reinforced the value of radar to help in forecasts.

A site for the radar could be selected by early next year, Colman said.

The ideal spot would be someplace in Grays Harbor County between Pacific Beach and Westport, Mass said. And it's even possible the site wouldn't cost a cent, he added.

"I've had about five people ... saying they will provide the land for free."

Seattlelife · May 29th, 2009, 03:42 AM

Doesn't KCPQ (Q13) already have one west of the Olympics?

***Bond James Bond*** · May 29th, 2009, 03:57 AM

^
That's what I've heard. But I guess it's a smaller one, or something?

emopoops · May 29th, 2009, 03:31 PM

its been too hot lately..... fan doesnt do much.

Joosanova · May 29th, 2009, 11:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Seattlelife

Doesn't KCPQ (Q13) already have one west of the Olympics?

They DO, however it is a radar that uses a lower hertz output and has a weaker beam so therefore 9 times out of 10 when you look at the Doppler radar what is seen north and west of Seattle isn't REALLY THERE.

I.E false echoes, ground clutter, birds flying by the radar and even trees blowing in the wind.

This new coastal radar will exponentially improve our view of approaching storms and precipitation.

Seattlelife · May 29th, 2009, 11:27 PM

Oh I see. I just remember Q13 advertising it a lot when it was installed.

Joosanova · June 1st, 2009, 11:42 PM

POSSIBLE T-STORM THREAT!!!!!

A cutoff low of the northern California coast is throwing low level surface moisture up along the cascade crest in southern and central Oregon.

This will enhance and move further northward during the coming week resulting in T-Storms mostly along the cascade foothils and along the crest.

Due to converging winds both offshore and down slope off the cascades it would not be unrealistic to have some of these storms become severe at any given time. Couple that with very tight surface gradients good oragraphic lift due to the onshore flow west of the I-5 corridor and temps in the mid to upper 80's over the next 4 days I would expect pop-up T-Storms to occur with good to great vigor putting down pea to penny sized hail, gusty winds and frequent lightning.

KEEP IN MIND that the chances of any of these storms drifting west out of the cascades and into the metro area are UNLIKELY at this time but ANYTHING is possible.

At the very least we will probably get at least one really good light show over the cascades this coming week.

Some of you may remember a pattern similar to the one that is currently occurring in 2004 that produced one of the best lightning event in recent years where T-Storms developed late in the afternoon and created a lightning show that stretched across the cascade crest and lasted for approx. 7 hrs.

So keep your eyes peeled and if you see any Thunderheads building in the cascades this coming week just note that we could have a good show on the way.

Take care guys !!!!

jessejb · June 1st, 2009, 11:55 PM

Awesome! I love warm season moist southerly flows!

Wow that sounded gross.

Joosanova · June 2nd, 2009, 01:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jessejb

Awesome! I love warm season moist southerly flows!

Wow that sounded gross.

Noooooo

That sounded Gay Jesse....

jessejb · June 2nd, 2009, 02:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joosanova

Noooooo

That sounded Gay Jesse....

(for my response, please refer to avatar)

***Bond James Bond*** · June 2nd, 2009, 05:33 AM

When I was driving home this afternoon I saw a few clouds over the Cascades that looked like they were mini-thunder clouds in the making. So I wouldn't be surprised.

RMacherat · June 2nd, 2009, 08:47 AM

I wonder, does anyone else really dislike those warm season moist southerly flows? They are much like "Kona winds" in Honolulu which make most everybody crabby, frizzed and fogged up.

***Bond James Bond*** · June 3rd, 2009, 05:44 AM

^
I don't like them either.

uwhuskies · June 3rd, 2009, 07:53 AM

c'mon folks...

why is anyone complaining after a nasty winter?!

CrazyAboutCities · June 4th, 2009, 12:12 AM

I don't complain about warm weather. I am enjoying it!

April 7th, 2009, 07:45 PM	#121
jessejb Registered User Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Seattle Posts: 2,706 Likes (Received): 106	Considering its been snowing every Sunday night/Monday morning for the past 4 months I wouldnt be surprised. __________________ Le Tumblr: http://inanevergreenstate.tumblr.com/

April 7th, 2009, 09:33 PM	#122
*Bond James Bond* Licence to kill. Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Apple Maggot Quarantine Area Posts: 6,996	And to think I had just put away my car-scraper thing over the weekend. __________________ Please DO NOT "like" any of my posts or request "friend" status. I don't care if you like me, or my posts. Thank you. - If you do either of these more than once you will be put on my ignore list.

May 11th, 2009, 02:42 AM	#123
jessejb Registered User Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Seattle Posts: 2,706 Likes (Received): 106	I don't know about you guys, but Im enjoying this 70 degrees and sun that they said we would have today! Oh wait. Its 63 and raining. __________________ Le Tumblr: http://inanevergreenstate.tumblr.com/

May 12th, 2009, 12:03 AM	#125
jessejb Registered User Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Seattle Posts: 2,706 Likes (Received): 106	It was funny though reading the Cliff Mass blog and King5 weather and reading about how beautiful and sunny it was yesterday. Ive lived here all my life and even my threshold for what I consider good weather isnt that low! __________________ Le Tumblr: http://inanevergreenstate.tumblr.com/

May 29th, 2009, 03:12 AM	#126
*Bond James Bond* Licence to kill. Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Apple Maggot Quarantine Area Posts: 6,996	OMG I DON'T BELIEVE THIS!! THIS IS THE BEST NEWS I'VE HEARD IN A WHILE!!! http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm..._radar28m.html Originally published Thursday, May 28, 2009 at 12:00 AM Coastal radar station sought to improve storm forecasts The National Weather Service, previously cool to the idea, is requesting $7 million in President Obama's 2010 budget for a new Doppler radar station on the Washington coast, to improve storm forecasting. Weather service director John L. "Jack" Hayes will be in Seattle today for a forum on the need for the radar. By Sandi Doughton Seattle Times science reporter Cliff Mass is used to giving odds on whether it's going to rain or blow. Now, the University of Washington meteorologist is handicapping the chances Washington will get a new Doppler radar station on the coast to better forecast the damaging storms that roll in from the Pacific Ocean. "I would say it's gone to a level of 80 to 90 percent," he said Wednesday. "It's probably going to happen." Once the lonely obsession of Mass and a few others, the radar has rocketed to the top of the National Weather Service's priority list. The agency, which previously was cool to the idea, is now requesting $7 million for the radar in President Obama's proposed 2010 budget. And weather service director John L. "Jack" Hayes will be in Seattle today to participate in a community forum on the need for the radar. "There has been a very substantial turnaround, and the National Weather Service is now enthusiastically supporting it," Mass said. Today's forum is sponsored by U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, who previously gained a $2 million "down payment" for the project via a budget earmark. That money is being used to identify possible sites for the instrument on the central coast. The $7 million is by no means guaranteed, but if the line item makes it into the final budget, it's possible the new radar could be operational by the winter of 2011-12, Mass said. Much of the weather service's change of heart can be traced to several major storms that battered the region over the past several years, Mass believes. The worst hit in early December 2007, with hurricane-force winds on the coast and drenching rains and floods in Southwest Washington that killed several people and shut down Interstate 5 for days. A coastal radar could have provided some advance warning for areas hit hardest by heavy rainfall, Mass said. Like a medical MRI is able to see inside the body, radar is able to peer below the surface of a storm and measure the precipitation and winds swirling inside — something satellite instruments can't do. Western Washington's single Weather Service radar, on Camano Island, has trouble "seeing" storms heading in from the ocean and over coastal communities, because its beams are blocked by the Olympic Mountains. Most of the state's severe weather develops over the Pacific and blows in from the southwest. An independent analysis that will be presented at today's forum found that even in some parts of the Puget Sound region, radar coverage of the lower atmosphere where most weather unfolds is poor. Only about a third of King County is covered, says the report. A coastal radar would fill many of the existing gaps in coverage, the report concludes. "In Washington, the major problem is looking out over the ocean, and to do that you need a large system with a lot of power," said the report's lead author, Jerry Brotzge, of the Center for Analysis and Prediction of Storms at the University of Oklahoma. A coastal radar would be able to track storms 100 miles offshore, Cantwell said in a statement. That would help vulnerable coastal communities and also provide better forecasts for the entire state, she said. Cantwell, who has advocated for the radar for years, is one of several Northwesterners who wield power over the agencies involved: Cantwell chairs the Senate subcommittee that oversees the National Weather Service and its parent agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NOAA is now headed by former Oregon State University marine biologist Jane Lubchenco, while former Washington Gov. Gary Locke is Lubchenco's boss as secretary of commerce. Locally, strong public support — especially from coastal communities — helped sway the weather service, said Brad Colman, meteorologist-in-charge of the Seattle office. Also, additional data and experience have reinforced the value of radar to help in forecasts. A site for the radar could be selected by early next year, Colman said. The ideal spot would be someplace in Grays Harbor County between Pacific Beach and Westport, Mass said. And it's even possible the site wouldn't cost a cent, he added. "I've had about five people ... saying they will provide the land for free." __________________ Please DO NOT "like" any of my posts or request "friend" status. I don't care if you like me, or my posts. Thank you. - If you do either of these more than once you will be put on my ignore list.

May 11th, 2009, 05:24 AM	#124
WESTSEATTLEGUY Here Join Date: May 2007 Location: Seattle/Chicago Posts: 2,016 Likes (Received): 7	It doesn't get any better for a whole week more or less.

May 29th, 2009, 03:42 AM	#127
Seattlelife Registered User Join Date: May 2007 Location: Seattle/Brooklyn Posts: 3,403 Likes (Received): 62	Doesn't KCPQ (Q13) already have one west of the Olympics? __________________ Supersonics Belong in Seattle Sonicsgate, a must see! Just click and watch. http://www.sonicsgate.org/

May 29th, 2009, 03:57 AM	#128
*Bond James Bond* Licence to kill. Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Apple Maggot Quarantine Area Posts: 6,996	^ That's what I've heard. But I guess it's a smaller one, or something? __________________ Please DO NOT "like" any of my posts or request "friend" status. I don't care if you like me, or my posts. Thank you. - If you do either of these more than once you will be put on my ignore list.

May 29th, 2009, 03:31 PM	#129
emopoops BANNED Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 58 Likes (Received): 0	its been too hot lately..... fan doesnt do much.

May 29th, 2009, 11:27 PM	#131
Seattlelife Registered User Join Date: May 2007 Location: Seattle/Brooklyn Posts: 3,403 Likes (Received): 62	Oh I see. I just remember Q13 advertising it a lot when it was installed. __________________ Supersonics Belong in Seattle Sonicsgate, a must see! Just click and watch. http://www.sonicsgate.org/

June 1st, 2009, 11:42 PM	#132
Joosanova Resident Meteorologist Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: West Seattle Posts: 1,004 Likes (Received): 20	POSSIBLE T-STORM THREAT!!!!! A cutoff low of the northern California coast is throwing low level surface moisture up along the cascade crest in southern and central Oregon. This will enhance and move further northward during the coming week resulting in T-Storms mostly along the cascade foothils and along the crest. Due to converging winds both offshore and down slope off the cascades it would not be unrealistic to have some of these storms become severe at any given time. Couple that with very tight surface gradients good oragraphic lift due to the onshore flow west of the I-5 corridor and temps in the mid to upper 80's over the next 4 days I would expect pop-up T-Storms to occur with good to great vigor putting down pea to penny sized hail, gusty winds and frequent lightning. KEEP IN MIND that the chances of any of these storms drifting west out of the cascades and into the metro area are UNLIKELY at this time but ANYTHING is possible. At the very least we will probably get at least one really good light show over the cascades this coming week. Some of you may remember a pattern similar to the one that is currently occurring in 2004 that produced one of the best lightning event in recent years where T-Storms developed late in the afternoon and created a lightning show that stretched across the cascade crest and lasted for approx. 7 hrs. So keep your eyes peeled and if you see any Thunderheads building in the cascades this coming week just note that we could have a good show on the way. Take care guys !!!! __________________ SSC Resident Meteorologist

June 1st, 2009, 11:55 PM	#133
jessejb Registered User Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Seattle Posts: 2,706 Likes (Received): 106	Awesome! I love warm season moist southerly flows! Wow that sounded gross. __________________ Le Tumblr: http://inanevergreenstate.tumblr.com/

June 2nd, 2009, 05:33 AM	#136
*Bond James Bond* Licence to kill. Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Apple Maggot Quarantine Area Posts: 6,996	When I was driving home this afternoon I saw a few clouds over the Cascades that looked like they were mini-thunder clouds in the making. So I wouldn't be surprised. __________________ Please DO NOT "like" any of my posts or request "friend" status. I don't care if you like me, or my posts. Thank you. - If you do either of these more than once you will be put on my ignore list.

June 2nd, 2009, 08:47 AM	#137
RMacherat Buy used books Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 1,742 Likes (Received): 92	I wonder, does anyone else really dislike those warm season moist southerly flows? They are much like "Kona winds" in Honolulu which make most everybody crabby, frizzed and fogged up.

June 3rd, 2009, 05:44 AM	#138
*Bond James Bond* Licence to kill. Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Apple Maggot Quarantine Area Posts: 6,996	^ I don't like them either. __________________ Please DO NOT "like" any of my posts or request "friend" status. I don't care if you like me, or my posts. Thank you. - If you do either of these more than once you will be put on my ignore list.

June 3rd, 2009, 07:53 AM	#139
uwhuskies Registered User Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 647 Likes (Received): 3	c'mon folks... why is anyone complaining after a nasty winter?!

June 4th, 2009, 12:12 AM	#140
CrazyAboutCities Registered User Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Seattle, Washington Posts: 8,332 Likes (Received): 17	I don't complain about warm weather. I am enjoying it!

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