You are browsing the archive for December 2009 - Page 2 of 2 - Dan's Wild Wild Science Journal.
14 December 2009
UK Scientists Affirm Climate Science
It took them less than a week, I hear, to gather 1700 of the top names in Science across the UK. We are talking the brightest minds in places like Oxford, and Cambridge and dozens more like Kings College and Royal Holloway. Or you can believe the bloggers who are telling us it’s all a hoax and conspiracy. Like the site run by a TV weatherman who couldn’t finish his …
13 December 2009
Cocktail party facts about weather and climate models.
NASA has released this model of Earth’s weather from 9 days in last August. The model was run at a resolution of 7 km. This is a very high resolution for a global model. You can see a bigger picture of the model run HERE. It’s a stunning example of how well we can reproduce our atmosphere inside a computer! The highest resolution weather model I look at on a …
12 December 2009
and they still wonder why most real journalists ignore them…
Peter Sinclair has produced two excellent additions to his series of The Climate Denial Crock of The Week. I’ve read the statements and editorials in Science, Nature and from the AMS. Kevin Trenberth’s paper is easily accessible too. I will send it to you if you want. Unfortunately too many people get ALL their news from TV. What a difference between those who actually look into something and those who …
11 December 2009
Picture of Astronauts On ISS Taken From The Ground!
I love looking at pics from Space of human objects on the ground. You can sometimes even see the outline of streets around Chicago after a snowfall on weather satellite images. I still recall seeing jet contrails on the GOES imagery for the first time in 1978. The GOES imagery resolution has continued to improve and the next generation of weather satellites later in this decade will make it possible …
Editorial in 56 Newspapers from 45 Countries
What we do about climate change is a political question. The reality of the problem is a scientific one. With that in mind, I reprint without comment, an editorial published in 45 countries this week. It’s free to copy. The image above is from the Guardian in London. We somehow have to figure out how to quit burning fossil fuels. My ideas on HOW we do that are probably no …
8 December 2009
Last 10 Years Hottest Decade On Record- UK Met. Office
The UK Met. Office released data today showing that 2000-2009 was the warmest decade since instrumental records began in the 1850’s. The data also highlights the silliness of those claiming that stolen emails show a cover-up. The data was run with Climate Research Unit (CRU) data and with data from NASA and NOAA. There was very little difference. If anyone tells you the planet is not warming, or the warming …
It's not easy going to the South Pole- but it's going to be worth It!
As you may know if you read these ramblings frequently, I am headed to the bottom of the world in three weeks. The National Science Foundation accepted an application from myself and Ann Posegate of the Nat. Env. Education Foundation to visit Antarctica to spread the word about the science and the scientists at the bottom of the world. So once you get selected what happens next? You don’t just …
5 December 2009
Are We Living Through A Notable Moment In Science History??
The class that most impressed me while at university was not taught by one of my meteorology professors. Not that I didn’t have some good ones. One became a provost of the University of Oklahoma, and another has written two text books that are considered the gold standard on dynamics (read that as mean math) and makes frequent appearances on the Discovery Channel with Tornadoes bearing down on him! Instead …
3 December 2009
Get The jab, and learn What a semi-colon means before you accuse scientists of fraud.
I have a pile of things that I’ve wanted to write about, but it’s been a busy time with a family illness. That said, here are some great pieces of good Science I have run across this week. All are worth a look. First of all a salute to the ROYAL SOCIETY by the BBC in the form of an audio visual slide show. Mouse on the pic below to …
2 December 2009
Could That Smoggy Yellow Haze Have Fried Your TV Set??
Lightning kills far more people in an average year than hurricanes and tornadoes. It also fries a lot of electronics too. I speak from experience there. Back in my storm chasing days, I couldn’t hear well for two hours after being very near a big bolt. Ask any storm chaser and they will tell you that lightning scares them far more than a tornado. So what does lightning have to …
Dan Satterfield has worked as an on air meteorologist for 32 years in Oklahoma, Florida and Alabama. Forecasting weather is Dan's job, but all of Earth Science is his passion. This journal is where Dan writes about things he has too little time for on air. Dan blogs about peer-reviewed Earth science for Junior High level audiences and up.