You are browsing the archive for June 2017 - Dan's Wild Wild Science Journal.
29 June 2017
U.S. About to Fall Further Behind in Long Range Weather Forecasting
The Europeans are now testing a new version of their ECMWF model with a resolution of around 9 km, and so far it looks very good. Not that the present model isn’t since we forecasters now depend on it heavily for long range forecasts beyond 2-3 days. The NOAA GFS model is almost always the least accurate and that is not my subjective opinion. Look at the skill scores below …
25 June 2017
Tom Nichols is Spot On
The Death of Expertise “Tom Nichols, a professor of national security affairs at the US Naval War College, says America has become a country “obsessed with the worship of its own ignorance.” Americans have always been skeptical of intellectuals and experts. Today, says Nichols, that attitude has mutated into outright hostility. In general, Americans have never been so willing to reject the knowledge of those who actually know something. This …
21 June 2017
Head of the American Meteorological Society To Secretary of Energy: You’re Dead Wrong on Climate.
There is just no doubt anymore that the warming of the last century is due to rising greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Yes, there are a ton of myths out there but no one who understands the basic science has any doubt. Even the latest surveys show that among those in the field the agreement is over 99%. So, when the Secretary of Energy goes on TV and says things …
19 June 2017
Fire & Rain, and Heat as Well.
Intense heat, with low humidity has led to a horrible catastrophe in Portugal. The hot and dry weather in Europe led to a firestorm in Portugal that killed at least 60 people. A strong upper level high pressure system will stay over the area tomorrow and little or no rain is in sight. This high pressure is bringing warm weather all the way into the UK with highs tomorrow in …
15 June 2017
Clean Energy Powered 10% of America in March
Look at this graph. The Energy Information Administration data for March 2017 shows 10% of U.S. power came from wind and solar, a level unimaginable two decades ago. The graph below shows the clean power by state: Now, look at the death of coal: Clean Energy Is Winning The Price Race We are living through a total upheaval in the way the world produces energy, and clean energy is rapidly becoming …
13 June 2017
An Anthropogenic Heat Advisory
So, why such a small Heat Advisory? Look at the temps. at 11 PM EDT Monday night: Note the temps. in Central Philadelphia and Wilmington are around 6-10 degrees F. warmer than the surrounding areas. Yes it’s the urban heat island effect, and Philly has a big one.The extra heat pushed Philly beyond the criteria for a Heat Advisory, while areas away from the city were not hot enough. You may …
7 June 2017
The Most Important Military Forecast in History
My friend and fellow meteorologist Paul Gross (WDIV-TV Detroit) is an expert on the D-Day weather forecast and we have had several long talks about it. He posted a piece on it today. My Father had a good friend who came ashore at Omaha Beach and I took my Dad to see it shortly before his death. A friend who is retired from the BBC actually worked under Group Captain Stagg who …
6 June 2017
The Clown Just Popped Out of the Box!
Since the U.S. pulled out of the Paris accord last week, old climate myths have been crawling out of their coffins. This includes some real winners from the past like “They said in the 70’s we were going to freeze to death!”, but I have yet to hear the “but grapes grew in Greenland!” claim. Just in case, John Cook at Skeptical Science has a long list of these along …
1 June 2017
AGU RESPONDS TO TRUMP ADMINISTRATION’S DECISION REGARDING THE PARIS CLIMATE AGREEMENT
1 June 2017 Washington, D.C. – The following statement is attributable to Chris McEntee, Executive Director and CEO of the American Geophysical Union: “When signed in December 2015, the Paris Agreement marked a historic moment. Representatives of 195 nations came together to commit to lowering greenhouse gas emissions to help slow the far-reaching effects of climate change to the nation and the world. Today, in making a troubling, …
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.