You are browsing the archive for May 2010 - Page 3 of 3 - Dan's Wild Wild Science Journal.
8 May 2010
New Views of Iceland Ash Cloud & Gulf Oil Slick. Bad news on both.
The winds aloft are blowing the ash mainly over the Atlantic today. Some of it is rotating around an upper level low and causing problems in Spain. The wind flow in the mid levels of the atmosphere will blow it more toward the UK and Europe starting late Sunday. Heathrow and Gatwick could very well be affected. The ash is up to around 5,000 meters today. Transatlantic flights can get …
7 May 2010
Oil and Ash from Space- Update
The upper level winds are not blowing the ash toward the UK today and that is very good news. If they were, there would be widespread cancellations of flights. The cloud is especially thick. The good news is that late today the eruption has become much quieter and the ash is not as high as earlier. Geological experts in Iceland are reporting that there are no signs the eruption will …
6 May 2010
Returning To The Age of Galileo?
Meteorologist Sean Sublette works for the ABC affiliate in Lynchburg Va. We have something in common. We both have talked about importance of research into climate change, and why we should listen to the IPCC reports. Something that is frankly not a popular topic in our part of the country. At least among some people. What we do about climate change is a political question. The reality of it, is …
5 May 2010
Jeremy Jackson- How We Wrecked The Oceans
This TED talk by coral reef expert Jeremy Jackson is a must watch state of the oceans. With the oil spill in the Gulf making news, it’s especially apropos.
4 May 2010
Flood Waters and Ash From Space
The ash is back. Ireland has just announced airspace closings for tomorrow and there is now concern that the ash may start to seriously effect flights in the UK. If Gatwick and Heathrow in London shut down the impact will be felt worldwide. Looking at the model data tonight, the greatest threat seems to be Ireland but there may be a narrow window late tomorrow when the ash will be …
Oil and Water From Space
NASA’s AQUA satellite made a pass over Nashville and the Gulf at 1850GMT today. (1:50pm Central U.S. summer time). The flooded rivers around Nashville are clearly evident in the image (see below). Nashville is at the center of the image. Accurate rain gauges from Central Tennessee show a rain event of incredible proportions. Areas around Nashville had over 17 inches of rain in 24 hours. This is more than one …
3 May 2010
Is The Ash Coming Back?? Maybe
Ireland is closing it’s airspace at 7am Tuesday morning because of ash. The ash is below 20,000 feet so it may not be too disruptive to transatlantic air traffic. The ash is expected to drift over the UK later Tuesday and this may impact Heathrow and Gatwick. If that happens, you will see major disruptions. Below is the latest forecast from the UK Met office: The eruption shows no sign …
If This Isn't Cool, You Don't Have A Nerdy Bone In Your Body!
The Spirit Rover on Mars hasn’t been heard from in a few weeks now. This was expected because it’s winter up there and the sunlight, and the cold, have drained the batteries. It is assumed that Spirit went into hibernation mode as it was designed to do. Hopefully it will wake up in the Spring. Hopefully. There are no guarantees and we cannot claim we didn’t get our moneys worth. …
2 May 2010
Amazing Flood Event In Tennessee. Climate Related??
Mobile homes floating down I-24 in Tennessee on Saturday. That is something you don’t see every day. It was an amazing and tragic event. Five deaths and many people are homeless and many more have flooded homes and businesses. This was a lot more than a 100 year flood. Nashville weather records go back over 120 years and there has been nothing like this before. (Update: Chris Darden of the …
1 May 2010
Arkansas Tornados, Nashville Floods and Oil Slick Growing
Tornadoes hit Arkansas last night and today and have also done damage in Miss. and Tennessee. Incredible rainfall totals of near or over 10 inches have ben reported across a wide swath of Tennessee. I just saw a recent report of a destroyed mobile home seen FLOATING down I-24 near Nashville. A pass by one of NASA’s MODIS satellites at 11:40am (1640GMT) shows the oil slick in the Gulf has …
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.