You are browsing the archive for March 2018 - Dan's Wild Wild Science Journal.
23 March 2018
Miami Meteorologist John Morales Says No To False Balance
You’ve seen it many times on TV and in print: A story/discussion about climate change includes an interview with a knowledgeable researcher in the field, followed/paired with the opinion of someone who has no expertise at all. Some journalists call this giving both sides, but in reality, it’s not journalism. The real name is False Balance, and many of those with scientific expertise are refusing to be a part of it. Universities make the …
21 March 2018
Four in A Row! Is Tomorrow’s Snow Storm Related to Melting Ice in the Arctic?
Just because it seems like it, doesn’t mean it is so. A subjective feeling means nothing more than,” I wonder if this is true”. Science goes by the data, so when it seems like there have been a lot of snowy winters in the Northeast U.S. over the last couple of decades, you need to see if that has indeed been the case. Then (and only then!) can you ask, what …
12 March 2018
Why We Don’t Have Year-Round Daylight Time and Why We Should Fix it.
The Problem is Sunrise, NOT Sunset! Let’s face it, daylight saving or summer time (Europe) is popular. Everyone seems to enjoy the extra evening daylight, but the change back and forth twice a year is indeed a pain, so I have a proposal for fixing this. It will work well in the Eastern U.S. and for much of the country if we do it right. The objections to staying on …
8 March 2018
Look at What the Coastal Storms Have Done to the Chesapeake Bay
It is amazing what we can see from satellite remote sensing now. Check out what the NOAA Satellite and Information Service says about it: The Chesapeake Bay is experiencing high sediment throughout the Bay, due to several different simultaneous events. River discharge from the Susquehanna River at the north end of Bay has been high (more than 100,000 cubic feet per second) for approximately two weeks, and the high winds …
5 March 2018
Arctic Sea Ice May Be About To Set Another Record Low
Earth science community is all watching the Arctic sea ice right now. We are very close to the winter maximum extent, and it may very well be the lowest on record. The ice has grown slowly due to the incredibly warm temperatures across the region compared to the average. Look how warm the entire Arctic was on 25 February. Since then, it has cooled somewhat. here are today’s anomalies. …
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.