After a cold start Sat. morning, it'll end up being a beautiful fall day with afternoon temps. near 70 & lots of sun. An onshore wind -- albeit light -- will add a few clouds by Sun. but still a very nice day afternoon temps. near or a little above 70 though cooler at the beaches. Interior areas will get down into the mid 30s Sat. night but it won't be a repeat of the freezing temps. early Sat.
Little change in the overall forecast thinking for Thanksgiving week though timing, exact track & intensity of the storm are still up in the air. It is now looking like the front will be close enough T'giving Day to produce afternoon/evening showers & storms in what otherwise will be a warm day. This same storm will cross the U.S. from the Rockies all the way to the East Coast Tue.-Fri. It looks like snow on the "cold side" of the storm might end up relatively limited though there could be a band of freezing rain/sleet close to & just behind the cold front. It still looks wet & stormy in advance of the storm & weather-related airport delays could be a real headache much of the week.
As for travel this weekend...few problems -- either by air or road -- with the closest showers from New Orleans to Macon to Myrtle Beach Sunday.
The Atlanta drought continues to worsen. Some rain occurred a couple of nights ago but nowhere near enough to dent the drought. Deficits won't be wiped out by a single storm system & the pattern doesn't favor a wet winter across the Southeast. Sure...there will be significant weather systems that produce a few periods of heavy rainfall but the overall pattern of drought will continue. The best hope for a real drought-buster might end up being tropical systems next summer-early fall. In fact, the Climate Predicition Center -- see map below -- forecasts the drought to persist (with drought increasing again for the First Coast).
Lake Lanier -- the primary water source for metro Atlanta -- is dropping to critical levels...so low that there's concern about keeping clean what drinking water is left...& there's a chance that Lake Lanier will go dry within the next two or three months.
More upheaval in New Orleans -- nearly several hundred homeless folks have pitched tents on the grounds of city hall. The source of the demonstrations is the lack of affordable housing. The post Katrina debacle continues -- on many, many levels.
A powerful cyclone (hurricane in the Western Hemisphere) -- the 2nd strongest since the late 1800's -- plowed in Bangladesh the last couple days. Jamie Warriner, our morning/noon meteorologist, pointed me to an interesting & informative blog "Dr. Jeff Masters' WunderBlog".
"Earth Gauge":
Climate Fact: Fall Migration in the Eastern U.S.
The warming trend over the last thirty years in the Eastern U.S. has coincided with changes in the behavior of migratory birds. Depending on each individual species’ lifestyle, birds that breed in the northern U.S. and southern Canada may either delay or advance the date at which they begin their journey south in the fall. Because springs are getting warmer earlier, and falls are getting colder later, species that can have two broods of chicks a year are doing so more frequently now than they have in the past, spending more time in their breeding grounds, and delaying their fall migration. Species that moult before migration are also tending to migrate later. On the other hand, species that are physiologically capable of having one brood, as well as species that moult at their wintering grounds, generally have an incentive to start their migration as soon as possible. Earlier breeding dates have corresponded to several species, especially birds that migrate particularly long distances, to start their fall migrations earlier. Some birds that have begun the migrate later compared to the early 1970’s and spend their winters in the Southeast are the Hermit Thrush (an average of 3.5 days later), the Yellow-rumped Warbler (9 days), the Ruby-crowned Kinglet (7.5 days) and the Brown Creeper (14.5 days). The Blackpoll Warbler (4 days) is migrating later as well but spends its winter in the tropics. Some species that are migrating particularly earlier in the year are the Yellow Warbler (an average of 7.5 days earlier) and the Common Yellowthroat (11 days).
(Source: Mills A.M. (2005) “Changes in the timing of spring and autumn migration in North American migrant passerines during a period of global warming.” Ibis 147 (2): 259.)
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Climate in the News: "Top five of the UK species affected by climate change" - icWales, 10 November 2007 - Click here to view
The United Kingdom's marine ecosystems are changing along with the climate. Five examples are highlighted in this article.
Mark Spain & I kicked off the Salvation Army's Angel Tree & Red Kettle holiday programs today at the Avenues Mall. CBS47/FOX30 are the media sponsors for the Angel Tree for which I'm proud to be the station's spokesperson. Please join us in helping thousands of First Coast kids/families have a Christmas that they could only otherwise dream about. I thought I'd share a poem that I read at today's kickoff:
"At Christmas"
Edgar Guest
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"A man is at his finest
towards the finish of the year;
He is almost what he should be
when the Christmas season is here;
Then he's thinking more of others
than he's thought the months before,
And the laughter of his children
is a joy worth toiling for.
He is less a selfish creature than
at any other time;
When the Christmas spirit rules him
he comes close to the sublime.
When it's Christmas man is bigger
and is better in his part;
He is keener for the service
that is prompted by the heart.
All the petty thoughts and narrow
seem to vanish for awhile
And the true reward he's seeking
is the glory of a smile.
Then for others he is toiling and
somehow it seems to me
That at Christmas he is almost
what God wanted him to be.
If I had to paint a picture of a man
I think I'd wait
Till he'd fought his selfish battles
and had put aside his hate.
I'd not catch him at his labors
when his thoughts are all of pelf,
On the long days and the dreary
when he's striving for himself.
I'd not take him when he's sneering,
when he's scornful or depressed,
But I'd look for him at Christmas
when he's shining at his best.
Man is ever in a struggle
and he's oft misunderstood;
There are days the worst that's in him
is the master of the good,
But at Christmas kindness rules him
and he puts himself aside
And his petty hates are vanquished
and his heart is opened wide.
Oh, I don't know how to say it,
but somehow it seems to me
That at Christmas man is almost
what God sent him here to be."
Another NFL weekend is upon us....only 1-2 again last week & 10-17 on the season -- ugh! o.k...it's the Chargers at the Jags. 2 good road wins the last 3 weeks but which Jags team shows up Sun.?? Chargers had their game against the Colts handed to them & otherwise looked pathetic. I'm taking the Jags, 24-20.....
The Bengals are home to the Cardinals (speaking of Cincy, the venerable Joe Nuxhall -- the youngest pitcher ever in the major leagues -- passed away Thu...Joe has great family & was an icon in Cincinnati broadcasting Reds baseball for nearly 40 years!)....2 struggling teams though it seems the Bengals might have righted the ship a bit. I'll take the Bengals at home, 31-17....
The streaking Packers are at home against Carolina. I keep waiting for the cinderella season to come crashing down but instead the Packers seem to be getting stronger. The Panthers are headed the other way. This is sort of a must win for the Pack since they play T'giving at Detroit then a week later at Dallas. I'll take the Pack in a tight one, 20-17.
Have a great & safe weekend!
