Much drier mid & upper level air moved over the First Coast Thu. putting a pretty effective "lid" on convection. However, a few thunderstorms still formed over Central Ga. & have been steadily marching south & east as other cells try to develop southwest into N. Central Fl. .... apparently in advance of a weak upper level disturbance. Most of these should dissipate with sunset before making much progress into Southeast GA & Northeast Fl. though a few showers or thundershowers will still be possible into the middle of the night until the disturbance moves off the coast.
Thunderstorms will still be pretty widely scattered Fri. though a little more activity than Thu. before storms pick up again over the weekend.
It may not seem like it, but our hurricane season in the Atlantic Basin has been active for so early in the season. We don't normally see our 2nd named storm until Aug. 6th & our first hurricane until Aug. 14....we've already had 4 named storms & 2 hurricanes. And we're a long ways from the peak of our hurricane season -- Sept. 10th.
The Kingfish tourney is here -- Fri. & Sat. The weather will generally cooperate -- seas will be quite calm averaging 2-3 feet but temps. will be hot with midday into the afternoon readings -- even offshore -- reaching near 90 degrees for a time. There will be a threat for a widely scattered storm heading offshore Fri. but a greater threat Sat. Click here for buoy reports off the First Coast.
I was in beautiful Brunswick, GA Thu. talking about hurricanes to the local Rotary Club. What a beautiful city -- the perfect "one tank trip" when gas prices are so high. A sign I saw there: "Aspire to Inspire Before You Expire" -- motto for the day! And I found gas for $3.82/gallon just off I-95 at the Brunswick exit. (Which begs the question if oil is down some 20+ bucks per barrel, why is it taking so long for gas prices to fall??!!)
I saw an interesting story on CNN this morning about a turtle mourning the loss of another turtle on a beach in Hawaii. You need to see this -- click here.
RAGBRAI -- The Register's Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa -- is known as the biggest bike ride across any of our states. I came across a number of stories from KCRG-TV in Cedar Rapids....a city not far from where I grew up. In fact, RAGBRAI made an overnight stop Wed. in my hometown of Toledo.
Earth Gauge: Hot Dogs
Did you know that the temperature inside a car can rise by up to 40 degrees in one hour, even when outdoor temperatures are as low as 72 degrees Fahrenheit? When the sun shines on car windows, they collect light and trap heat inside the vehicle, raising temperature quickly. And, as the outdoor temperature rises, the effect becomes more pronounced. The inside temperature of a car can reach 102 degrees in ten minutes on an 85 degree day, and on hot and humid days, cars parked in direct sunlight can warm up by 30 degrees per minute.
Tip: Pets are even more susceptible to overheating than humans are - dogs' sweat glands, which are located on their noses and pads of their feet, are inadequate for cooling off on hot days. And, just like humans, certain pets are more sensitive to heat: short-nosed breeds, older or very young pets, and animals with weight, respiratory, or heart problems. Many people are inclined to take pets along on summer travel or errands, but summer heat can be deadly for companion animals. If you’re headed to a place where pets may not be allowed, leave them at home with plenty of water and shade, instead of leaving them in the car.
(Stanford School of Medicine, July 2005. “Parked Cars Get Dangerously Hot, Even on Cool Days, Stanford Study Finds.” ; Humane Society of the United States. “Cool It! Summer’s Heat can be Deadly for Your Pet.”
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Climate Fact: Carbon Catch in the Amazon
Since at least the late 1970’s, trees in the Amazon have been growing faster despite the fact that climbing vines (lianas), which grow on trees as parasites and sap their energy, have also increased in number and spatial extent. This growth means that the rate at which each hectare (2.47 acres) in the Amazon takes carbon dioxide (CO2) out of the atmosphere has been increasing by about one metric ton (2200 pounds) per year since 1975, a trend can be largely explained by an increase in available atmospheric CO2, of which concentrations have grown from 280 parts per million in pre-industrial times to around 386 parts per million today. Another factor that helps to explain this faster growth is an increase in sunlight over the region during the last 30 years. More sunlight means more available energy for photosynthesis, the process through which plants use energy from the sun to convert atmospheric carbon into chemical energy and living matter. Increases in nitrogen and phosphorous (two key plant nutrients) deposition on the area, as a result of more burning and more dust blowing over the Atlantic from the Sahara, may also be contributing to the increased plant growth.
(Sources: Baker, TR et al. “Increasing biomass in Amazonian forest plots.” Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London B 359 (2004): 353-365 and Phillips, OL et al. “Changes in the Carbon Balance of Tropical Forests: Evidence from Long-Term Plots.” Science 282 (1998): 439-442 and Phillips, OL et al. “Pattern and process in Amazon tree turnover, 1976-2001.” Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London B 359 (2004): 381-407.)
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Climate in the News – "NOAA: Eighth Warmest June on Record for Globe." – Science Daily, July 21, 2008 -
The combined ocean and land surface temperature in June was 0.9 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than the 20th century average. It was also the wettest June on record in parts of southern China, including Hong Kong.
I'll be "out of the loop" a bit but only 'til Mon. Have a great weekend!
