9/19/12 New Cloud Type

Meteorologists are seeking to formally recognize a new cloud variety, making it the first since 1951! Meet Asparatus! Specifically, Undulatus Asparatus, meaning "rough waves" in Latin.

As you can see in this video, rain showers or thunderstorms push out, and they are followed by dry, cooler air. That forms these wave-like clouds. However, even though the clouds look very ominous, they do not produce rain. On the backside of many convective showers, warm air and cold air come together, which causes the air to become quite turbulent, and you can see that in the "rough wave" clouds.

Typically they are low level clouds, seen around the level of 6000 feet. These are most commonly seen in New Zealand, along with the central part of the U.S. and Canada, but can be seen anywhere if the weather conditions are right.

Meteorologists and "cloudspotters" around the world are seeking to formally recognize the first new cloud variety discovered since 1951.

So, is this officially a new cloud?

"It will only become an official classification if it is included in the World Meteorological Organization's reference book, the International Cloud Atlas," explains Gavin Pretor-Pinney, president of the Cloud Appreciation Society (CAS). This new cloud obviously thrills the folks over at the CAS, whose website says "we love clouds, we're not ashamed to say it and we've had enough of people moaning about them."

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) in Geneva has the final say in cloud classification by publishing it in the official Cloud Atlas list. Keep in mind, the WMO doesn’t exactly move fast on new information like this, meaning a new  book is likely still a few years away. "The last time they did a new edition of the book was in 1975," Pretor-Pinney says.

However, CAS is trying to help the process out. There is a new iPhone app coming out that will gather geo-tagged cloud sightings from around the world, that will be shared with Reading University. This will allow researchers to study the photos, knowing the location and weather conditions at the time the photo was taken, to better understand how they form.

Sources: National Geographic, WMO, CAS, USA Today, Squidoo, Youtube

9/14/12 Ticks On The Rise

Insects and bugs have been in full force this year thanks to the record hot summer, and the very mild winter. Certain insects, such as ticks, thrive in hot conditions. Now that the weather is finally starting to cool down a bit, many people are going outdoors to enjoy it, but that might land you an unwanted guest on your daily walk or hike through the woods.

“Yes, ticks are definitely an issue in Georgia," explains Dr. Jennifer Keuten of Powers Ferry Animal Hospital. "We’re seeing way more ticks this year than we have in previous years probably because of the milder winter that we have had.”

The best way to prevent a tick from following you home is to make sure your pets are up to date on their flea and tick medicines, and for us humans, try to wear light colored clothing so the ticks are easier to spot.
Prevention is key since ticks can cause illness in both pets and humans, including Lyme Disease and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.

If you do find one on yourself or your pet, Dr. Keuten recommends using tweezers to remove it. You want to place the tweezers by the tick’s head, then squeeze and lift the tick off firmly.

9/06/12 Green Billboards & Walls For Cities?

Green roofs (where plants and/or grasses are planted on the roof of your home) have long been known to keep homes insulated better than standard roofs made out of things such as asphalt, but by adding greenery to other walls, you can help improve air quality.
Placing greenery such as trees, bushes, ivy, and other plants in the concrete jungles of cities, two of the most worrisome air pollutants, nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and microscopic particulate matter (PM), can be reduced dramatically. Past research had suggested that the air quality could be improved by less than 5 percent.

However, a new study done by Dr. Thomas Pugh, from Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), and his colleagues from the universities of Birmingham and Lancaster, concluded that judicious placement of grass, climbing ivy and other plants in urban canyons can reduce the concentration at street level of NO2 by as much as 40 percent and PM by 60 percent. That’s more than eight times higher than previously estimated to improve the air!

The finding even suggesed building plant-covered "green billboards" in these urban canyons to increase the amount of foliage. Dr. Thomas Pugh explained why cities rather than suburbs are ideal candidates for this, "This is where pollution is highest. Green areas may be grown road by road without expensive or big initiatives.”

The nice thing about the "green billboard" idea is that is can be done over-time, and can start on a small scale level, but make a large impact.

"Big initiatives to fight air pollution, such as car-scrap bonuses, catalytic converters, or the introduction of a city toll, are not sufficient," says Professor Rob MacKenzie from the School of Geography, Earth, and Environmental Sciences of the University of Birmingham.

Thomas Pugh and colleagues explain that concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and microscopic particulate matter (PM) — both of which can be harmful to human health — exceed safe levels on the streets of many cities. Past research suggested that trees and other green plants can improve urban air quality by removing those pollutants from the air. However, the improvement seemed to be small, a reduction of less than 5 percent. The new study sought a better understanding of the effects of green plants in the sometimes stagnant air of city streets, which the authors term "urban street canyons." The study concluded that judicious placement of grass, climbing ivy and other plants in urban canyons can reduce the concentration at street level of NO2 by as much as 40 percent and PM by 60 percent, much more than previously believed. The authors even suggest building plant-covered "green billboards" in these urban canyons to increase the amount of foliage. Trees were also shown to

Read more at: http://phys.org/news/2012-07-green-city-street-pollution-previously.html#jCp

Thomas Pugh and colleagues explain that concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and microscopic particulate matter (PM) — both of which can be harmful to human health — exceed safe levels on the streets of many cities. Past research suggested that trees and other green plants can improve urban air quality by removing those pollutants from the air. However, the improvement seemed to be small, a reduction of less than 5 percent. The new study sought a better understanding of the effects of green plants in the sometimes stagnant air of city streets, which the authors term "urban street canyons." The study concluded that judicious placement of grass, climbing ivy and other plants in urban canyons can reduce the concentration at street level of NO2 by as much as 40 percent and PM by 60 percent, much more than previously believed. The authors even suggest building plant-covered "green billboards" in these urban canyons to increase the amount of foliage. Trees were also shown to

Read more at: http://phys.org/news/2012-07-green-city-street-pollution-previously.html#jCp

Sources: Environmental Science & Technology, PC World, and Phys.org

9/04/12 Forecast Future: Mobile Apps

How do people prepare for weather emergencies in their areas? Well a new survey by the Red Cross shows that social media users are preparing for emergencies based on what they see online. Meaning, users are likely to take safety or preparedness action based on the information they see in their social networks. In fact, 75% of these users contacted friends and family to see if they were safe. Additionally, over a third of the users said what they saw on social media determined whether or not they gathered supplies or sought out a safe shelter. These users look for hard facts like road closures, damage reports and weather conditions, which they claim is a better indicator of how serious the weather actually is where they live.

The survey also found that a total of 20 percent of Americans said they have gotten some kind of emergency information from a mobile app, including emergency apps, news outlets and privately developed apps. Plus, the amount of people using social media to alert their family/friends of their safety is up to 40 percent, compared to 24 percent reported last year.

"People are using social media to help others during emergencies by spreading useful information," said Linda Carbone, the Red Cross CEO for Florida's West Coast Region. "We're seeing mobile technology take a bigger role in helping people find critical information, take action and let loved ones know they are safe during a disaster."


TheWeather app

 The Red Cross has apps for shelter location finder, first aid tip, hurricane preparedness, and others. The hurricane preparedness app includes a flashlight feature as well as one-touch, "I'm safe" messaging that connects directly to your social media channels.

In addition to the Red Cross app, other apps such as the iDamage, Weather Channel, WX Reporter, The Weather, eWeatherHD, and Weather Snitch are very popular. Twitter and Facebook also provide great resources for people looking to find out local weather information.


eWeatherHD app



8/17/12 Mars Daily Weather Forecasts



Hazy Mars Day
Courtesy: marsweather.com

Ever wonder what the weather would be like on a day to day basis on Mars? Now you don't have to!

Beginning this past Wednesday, daily weather forecasts will be posted for Gale Crater on Mars.

Gale Crater is where the Curiosity rover landed back on August 5th. On board Curiosity is a weather monitoring station, called Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS), that collects data on wind speed and direction, maximum and minimum temperatures, humidity, pressure, and even UV levels, just in case you wanted to know what your sunburn likelihood would be on Mars. There is a wide variety of weather on Mars; everything from sunny skies to intense dust storms. You can see pictures of said dust storms, hazy days, and sunny days on the Mars Weather Blog. This blog, written by astronauts and other NASA employees, not only describes how the weather impacts Curiosity, but also details all the data collected, and what it means.



Mars Weather Data
Courtesy: marsweather.com

 The interesting thing here is that they aren't just collecting weather data; they are also trying to forecast! Yes, they are using the current conditions, along with the other satellite data, and actually trying to forecast the weather for the next day. They will only be forecasting the high temperature, low temperature, UV Index, and sky condition (cloudy, sunny, dust storm, etc.)

Just in case you would like to have updates with you on the go, there is an app for that! Both iPhone and Android will have these in the next few weeks.

If you are interested in seeing the weather on Mars for yourself, here's the website:
http://marsweather.com/

Curiosity Rover
Courtesy: Baltimore Sun

8/07/12 Blinded By The Light

Courtesy: Geek.com

The image above is a familiar sight when it’s pouring down rain while you are driving at night. The problem isn’t necessarily that your headlights are too dim or dark. It’s actually the opposite; they are too bright, and that causes a glare from the reflections of the raindrops, which can make it very difficult for the driver to see very far. The same thing happens when you are driving through heavy snowfall or hail. It also has an impact on the drivers traveling in the other direction because they don’t see you until much later, which increases the risk of an accident happening. So what can you do? You obviously can’t prevent it from always raining during the evening hours. Well, scientists at Carnegie Mellon University’s Robotics Institute think they have come up with a solution….high tech headlights.

Combining cameras and computers they are able to predict the trajectory of each rain drop. This allows the new smart headlight to adjust the direction of the light being put out by a headlight, avoiding the glare from the raindrops. A high-speed camera that detects drops, uses an algorithm to work out the raindrops location just a few milliseconds later.

Once the algorithm is completed, the headlight flickers very rapidly and redirects light around the drops. To the driver the rain essentially isn’t there, or at least not lit up. The flicker is also not visible to human eyes because it happens so quickly.

"If you know where the rain drops are, you can sort of stream light between them," says lead researcher Srinivasa Narasimhan.



Courtesy: Positive Press Daily

However, this new technology won’t exactly be rolling out on next year’s car models. The current system has a few flaws that need to be tweaked first, including losing effectiveness at higher speeds, and adjusting for turbulence (speed bumps or potholes) or vibrations. But they're working on it. Also, the system being used in the labs at the University use a DLP projector, but the one that would likely end up on your car would be made up of lots LED lights, which are cheaper, and could be turned on and off very quickly.

Courtesy: Dipity

8/03/12 Olympics: Triathlon & the Weather

Olympic Triathlon races combine three separate events into one; swimming, cycling and running - in that order. The swimming is typically done in a lake or other type of open water for a distance of 1.5km (0.9 miles). The cycling is usually done on a large, paved road for a distance of 43km (26.7 miles)…note that this is approximately 3km longer than the normal course length. Finally, the running element is done for a distance of 10km (6.2 miles), also commonly known as a 10k.

Rain: This is by far the biggest issue for Triathletes. This not only impacts the running element of a triathlon, but also the cycling sector. Slippery roads have the biggest risk for the cycling part of the event because all the athletes cycle so close together, that if one person slips and slides, the others are affected as well.

"It could rain anywhere," U.S. triathlete star Gwen Jorgensen said. "We've prepared for that. I think everyone has put themselves in a training situation where their training environment is similar to London's."


U.S. Olympic Women's Triathlon Team
Courtesy: USA Triathlon

Temperature: The swim often takes place in open water, so the temperature of that water is just as important as the air temperature. Also, temperature is an obvious impact element to the running part of the event.

Wind:  A favorable tail wind is essential because it could either assist you by pushing you from behind down the track, or slow you down by pushing against you.

"I like to look at the wind direction and if I know I have a four hour bike ride I will try to do the first two hours into the wind so I have a nice two hours on the way back with the wind behind me,” explains British triathlete Todd Leckie.

Courtesy: USA Triathlon