3 August 2014
You Don’t Have To Be A Meteorologist To Appreciate Clouds
Posted by Dan Satterfield
Solar halo over an automated weather station (on northern Greenland Icecap). Dan’s picture. (rights reserved.)
Broadcast meteorologists frequently get calls from people when there is a solar halo or sun dog in the sky, and I have to tell you we are always shocked when people tell us that they “have never seen that before!” I cannot imagine how someone can live 40 or 50 years, and never have noticed such basic atmospheric optics. I can shock you even more, because it’s not uncommon to get a panic Facebook message from viewers who spot the Moon in the daytime sky…for the first time in their lives! You probably think I am joking with that last one, but I assure you that at least half of my fellow broadcast mets will tell you they too have had that question, and sometimes from folks who are over 60!
I’ve written about the Cloud Appreciation Society before here but the founder recently was invited to make a TED talk:
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.
Hi Dan! Thanks for posting this. With our page, the Community Cloud Atlas (www.facebook.com/CommunityCloudAtlas, communitycloudatlas.wordpress.com), we strive to not only share our appreciation for clouds, but share our expertise to help the public gain a better understanding of what they see in the sky. It is amazing to learn what some people are shocked by, but overall, it’s been so rewarding helping others to interpret and admire our atmosphere. It’s so important as meteorologists for all of us to help set the record straight and be voices of reason and excitement!
I love the quote “The sky is the daily bread for the eyes.”
Thanks Dan for keeping us looking up, both literally & figuratively.8