There is only so much News10's weather staff can fit into a single broadcast. So they turn to Your Weather blog to share their thoughts and insights about Southern Oregon's and Northern California's weather.
05/05/13
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
A Red Flag Warning is now taking grip over portions of northern California because of the potential for explosive fire growth. The warning remains in effect until Monday night.
A system centered over California is kicking up instability in our atmosphere. That along with a moist flow and hot temperatures are creating the threat for thunderstorms.
It's been more than two weeks since we've had measurable rain in our area, so you can only imagine how parched the ground is.
The forecasted lightning and very dry fuels will create the potential for new flames to spark with significant fire growth to both new and old fires.
Some of the storms will be dry, especially east of the Cascades, but will still produce lots of lightning. There's also the threat for gusty outflow winds. Wind gusts up to 40 mph are possible. So if lightning sparks a fire, it can easily take off with the winds fanning the flames.
The chance for lightning and thunder lasts through the beginning of the workweek.
For a detailed view of the hazard area, click here.
04/28/13
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
Saturn makes its closest pass near Earth on the night of Sunday April 28, at a distance of only 800 million miles!
Even that far away, experts say it will appear brighter than the stars. You should also be able to see its rings, even with a regular telescope.
To view the ringed planet with your naked eye or through a telescope, you should look halfway up the southern sky at around midnight.
If you check it out, see if you can find the mysterious storm that experts say is brewing on the planet.
If you miss it Sunday night, you can still see it for next couple of weeks as it slowly moves away but it won't be as bright.
04/05/13
Wild weather over the last few days and it looks like it will continue through the weekend. Look for occasional clouds, scattered showers, gusty winds and mountain snow at altitudes above 4,500 ft. through Sunday night.
I'll have more information on Your Weather tonight on News10 at 5, 6 and 11pm.
Have a good one!
Kevin
04/01/13
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
We wrapped up March with a giant bow! The last day of March brought more rain than almost the entire month put together!
We wound up with 0.56" of rain in the gauge by the end of the month, 0.26" of that fell on March 31. The normal for the month is 1.71".
Not just a dry March but also a dry start to 2013. January, February and March totaled up 2.01" of rain. Normal by now would be 6.15". Compare those numbers to 2012 when we had 8.67" in the rain bucket by this point in the year. In 2011, that total was 7.22" and for 2010, 5.90".
March 2013 was also warmer than normal. The average high temperature was 61.8 degrees, normal is 59.5. If you average the average for the month you get 49.4 degrees, which is 1.1 degrees above the seasonal norm.
The warmest day of the month turned out to be the warmest of the year and Medford's first 80 degree temperature which fell on the 30th of the month. The coldest temperature was an overnight low of 25 on the 23rd.
In March, we got to enjoy more sunny days. There were 13 clear, 12 partly cloudy and six cloudy days.
03/10/13
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
The comet PANSTARRS is making its appearance in our skies just after twilight now through mid-to-late March.
Look west just after sunset to catch a glimpse of the comet, which at first will be seen low on the horizon. On March 12, it'll be easy to spot as it makes its way up in the sky near the crescent moon.
NASA says the comet looks somewhat like an exclamation point, with a bright spot and a tail pointing straight up from the horizon.
As each day passes though, the comet will begin to fade away slowly, becoming harder to see without binoculars or telescopes by the end of the month.
PANSTARRS was discovered in June 2011 and was named after the telescopic survey that discovered it: Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System.
Scientists estimate the chance to see a comet without a telescope or binoculars happens only once every five to ten years.
02/24/13
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
Check out this awesome satellite image from this weekend! The clouds are forming what's known as a mountain wave pattern.
What's happening is strong winds aloft are encountering turbulence as they're forced up and over the mountain ridges.
When the air rises it condenses and forms a cloud. The air then sinks leaving an absence of clouds, and then rises again forming another cloud as it moves along.
It keeps going up and down trying to find equilibrium while forming the wavelike effect.
01/20/13
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
If you're like me, you've probably had enough of these cold temperatures already! But cold isn't simply an inconvenience, for some.
Did you know some people are allergic to the cold? Really! It's a condition called cold urticaria.
Researchers still aren't sure how it develops or how widespread it is, but it's real.
Like a typical pollen allergy, doctors say cold urticaria can cause symptoms such as redness, itching, swelling and hives when skin is exposed to the cold.
Another reason for wanting warmer temperatures to come soon!
12/31/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
We wrapped up one of the top ten wettest years on record. 2012 is going down in the record books as the 7th wettest year on record with 26.87" of precipitation.
The number six spot is safe for at least another year with 28.62" in the books for the year 1950.
The wettest year on record was 1996 with 31.41" of rain.
Records in Medford go back to the year 1911.
Have a very happy New Year! What records will we break this time around?
11/17/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
With a clear sky about a year from now, we may be able to see something really spectacular. There's a new comet recently discovered by a couple of Russian astronomers called Comet ISON.
They came up with that name because they were at the International Scientific Optical Network (ISON) where they discovered this comet.
The cool thing about this comet is it's what's called a "sun diver," which means it's going to meet its fiery end as it dives into the gravitational pull of the sun.
The astronomers think it's a brand new comet and one that could produce big tails, possibly even visible in daylight hours.
Again, that will be about a year from now on November 28, 2013. Or it could just fizzle to nothing but we'll be keeping our eye out for it and we will let you know!
10/20/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
Talk about perfect timing! The National Weather Service's annual Winter Weather Awareness Week comes just as we're tracking the first mountain snow of the season.
Sunday October 21 kicks the special week off. During the week, meteorologists will post information about the hazards of winter weather in the Pacific Northwest and give tips on how to protect life and property by preparing and knowing what to do when winter weather strikes.
Our weather ranges from mild to extreme throughout the year. This NWS campaign is an opportunity to refresh locals of the winter weather threats, making sure you're weather-ready for the coming months.
Click here to learn more about how to prepare for snow storms, wind chill, blizzards, ice storms and floods.
10/08/12
Finally - a change in the weather. Not a huge change mind you - but a change and we'll take anything at this point. Temperatures are coming down over the next few days and we'll see a chance for showers (mostly at the coast) by the end of the week.
Meanwhile - nights remain chilly and even a bit frosty at times. Lows in the Klamath Falls/Lakeview area were in the 25 to 30 degree range over the last several nights. So it's starting to feel a bit more like fall at last.
Try to stay warm - ha!
10/06/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
Hurricanes get a name, why not major winter storms? Winter storms can strike with similar life-affecting intensity with their own share of disruptive and dangerous effects.
For the upcoming winter season, The Weather Channel will be giving a name to major winter storms. The idea is to better communicate the threat and timing of severe winter weather to the public.
Named tropical storms are instantly recognizable to people. A storm with a name is easier to follow, which will mean fewer surprises and more preparation.
Forecasters will be looking at a number of criteria, such as snow and ice accumulation and that combination of wind which can produce significant impacts.
Naming the winter storms will help differentiate dangerous systems from normal winter weather. In fact, Europe has been doing this for decades.
The Weather Channel calls them names with an attitude because winter has an attitude and can take on a personality of its own.
The names for the 2012-2013 winter season are: Athena, Brutus, Caesar, Draco, Euclid, Freyr, Gandolf, Helen, Iago, Jove, Khan, Luna, Magnus, Nemo, Orko, Plato, Q, Rocky, Saturn, Triton, Ukko, Virgil, Walda, Xerxes, Yogi and Zeus.
09/29/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
Not a drop of rain in Medford since July 20th but how dry is it really?
The graphic below from the National Weather Service shows that, when you take the year so far into account, yes we are drier than normal, which is represented by the red line but not as dry as last year, although we are close.
In 1908, the rain gauge was the driest on record.
Still, the lack of wet weather right now is causing for extreme fire danger to continue to take grip. When the ground is parched and when conditions are ripe to get a fire sparked, flames can spread very quickly.
The color-contoured graphic highlights the dry spots in the Northwest. Southern Oregon and northern California are just covered in deep red colors, which represents little to no rainfall all summer long. And the dry trend is continuing into this first part of fall too.
The bigger picture graphic compares us to the rest of the country. It's all relative, right? Now we don't look so bad. The red bullseye is over the Great Plains, while portions of our region are shaded in yellow and tan, which means abnormally dry to moderate drought.
At this point, we are at more than 70 days and counting without any measurable rain.
09/21/12
Well it's Friday night and that means FOOTBALL! It also means it must be fall. Technically fall begins tomorrow. Yes, that's right - the atumnal equinox is here at last! Just so happens that the official start of fall actually coincides with a bit of a cool down locally. Not much of cool down - to be sure - but at this point I'll take anything that looks 'normal' or 'average' when it comes to the weather.
The leaves are starting to turn - the evenings are cooling off nicely - and it won't be long before we all start complaining about the rain!
Bring on ski season...
09/16/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
You could say climate change is a hot topic lately. Especially with the drought this summer destroying crops in the Midwest and wildfires scorching the West.
For a few local climate activists, climate change is the reason they're forming a new group called The Rogue Valley Climate Protection Organization.
Brian Ettling, Alan Journet, Susan Bizeau and Jim McGinnis make up the group so far and they want you to join in on the conversation if you're concerned about climate change.
The new group is organizing a climate change meeting on Tuesday, September 25th at 6:30 p.m. in the large community meeting room at the Medford Public Library.
The same climate enthusiasts are organizing a Citizens Climate Lobby Group for the Rogue Valley area and want you to join. An example of the work the group is already doing: they held an international conference call on Saturday, Sept. 8, talking about how climate change is impacting national and local weather.
Group members say that most people are uncertain about climate change and its connection to weather extremes. Members say they want to change that, hoping more people will be apart of the discussion.
Click here for more information about the meeting and the new organization.
09/13/12
Hi everybody,
Starting this Friday we'll be answering some of our FaceBook friend's weather questions. This week I'll be answering questions related to the fall/winter season. Hope you'll tune it - it should be interesting. And don't forget to post your questions - after you become a 'friend' of course...
Also starting something new and fun as a volunteer for the Southern Oregon Humane Society. As an animal lover I'm looking forward to doing what I can to help our furry friends - even if it's just taking a lonely dog for a walk in the morning - or playing a bit with some cats.
As for the weather - almost tied a record today in Medford - only 1 degree below the old record of 101 - but we'll be cooling off a bit over the next few days. We'll still be hot and dry - make no mistake. Temperatures in the inland valleys will be a good 10 degrees above average for this time of year - we're talking low 90s - rather than low 80s. So fire danger is still very high - be careful when working and playing in our forests.
Til next time...
09/09/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
A pair of twisters hit the Big Apple Saturday, giving residents there an unusual experience. Tornadoes in New York is a very rare sight. Almost as rare as seeing a twister here in Oregon or California!
The multiple tornadoes touched down in New York on Saturday during a wave of severe weather moving east ahead of a cold front. One of those tornadoes ripped through the Queens borough of New York City. It left plenty of damage, knocking down trees and snapping power lines.
The severe weather was part of the same system that moved through the Midwest overnight, killing four people. Three of those victims were a girl and her grandparents who died in northeastern Oklahoma, after a fast-moving storm blew their mobile home off its foundation.
How rare were these twisters? The image below shows the average number of tornadoes per state each year. Oregon has an average number of three, Washington only two, and California and New York are tied with an average of nine. Texas averages nearly twice as many tornadoes on an annual basis than any other state.
09/04/12
Hi everyone. Sorry it's been so long since I've updated this blog. Been a tough few months. Not all bad to be sure -- but tough. Had some health issues -- the bulk of which have been resolved. I'm still recovering and getting a little better every day. Won't bore you all with the details -- I'm going to be all right.
As for the weather -- no complaints -- least not from me. This is perfect as far as I'm concerned. Highs around 80 to 90. Cool nights. Light winds. A bit of smoke to contend with but it's certainly been worse here over the years. This is tolerable. We will be cooling off a bit toward next week but no rain in the forecast for some time to come.
Hope you all stay healthy and happy -- enjoy these 'end of the summer' days to the fullest.
09/01/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
If you looked up at the sky Friday night, you probably saw the very special full moon. It's called a blue moon but the name has nothing to do with the color.
The average lunar cycle is about 29.5 days. A blue moon occurs when there is a second full moon in one calendar month. There was a full moon on Aug. 1 and again on Aug. 31, making it a blue moon.
It's pretty rare. It's not going to happen again until July 2015.
The phrase "once in a blue moon" is used to describe something that rarely happens. So if you've ever used that expression to describe something you do, I hope you got it done Aug. 31!
Where does that phrase come from anyway? It goes back to the old English clergy. The date of Easter is determined by the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Spring Equinox. So when there was an extra full moon before lent, it messed up the calendar. The clergy called it the "betrayer moon" and the old English word for betrayer is "belewe" (sounds like "blue").
08/04/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
August 4th wasn't only the hottest day of 2012 but also the hottest day in years! Medford hit a high of 107 degrees, which was just one degree shy of tying the record of 108 degrees set back in 1998.
The last time Medford's temperature topped out at 107 was July 23, 2006.
However, Medford has been hotter than that since then. During the summers of 2008 and 2009, Medford saw the mercury in the thermometer reach 108 and even 109 degrees.
The last time Medford hit the century mark was August 25, 2010 at 105 degrees.
The triple-digit heat has been a long time coming. Before we sizzled at 107 degrees on Saturday, we counted up 709 days in a row with temperatures below 100. That's the second longest consecutive days with sub-100 temperatures on record.
The record longest stretch of below 100 degree temperatures is 732 days which ended on July 25, 1958.
07/28/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
It's been quite some time since Medford hit that century mark. In fact, this is the second longest stretch of sub-100 temperatures on record.
The last time the mercury in the thermometer stacked up to 100+ degrees was Aug. 25, 2010. As of July 28, 2012, that puts us at 703 days without triple digits. The longest stretch was 732 days which ended on July 25, 1958.
If we can make it to Aug. 27 this year without hitting that 100 degree mark, we will break that record.
We still have a chance to hit that magic mark. The latest first time to hit 100 degrees is Sept. 8, a record set back in 1963. The latest to hit 100 in a year (doesn't have to be the first one) is Sept. 27, which had tied records in 1963 and 2003.
07/15/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
Lightning can be really exciting to watch but do it from indoors! Lightning is very dangerous. In the United States, an average of 55 people are killed each year by lightning and many more are injured. To date (July 15), there have been nine deaths in 2012.
When you hear me, Kevin or Lindsey warning of thunderstorms in your area or headed your way, it's your best bet to go inside and wait it out.
Here's something you might not know, and I find very interesting... there can be a thunderstorm miles away, that you can't even hear and it can strike you!
It's called "bolt from the blue." It's a cloud-to-ground lightning bolt from a distant thunderstorm, which seems to come right out of the clear blue sky but really, it's coming from the top or edge of a thunderstorm miles away.
According to the National Weather Service, these lightning flashes have been documented to travel more than 25 miles away from the thunderstorm cloud but recent research from lightning detection networks show that lightning can actually travel 60 miles or more!
Got lightning pictures? Stay in a safe place and send them to khenderson@ktvl.com or ktvl@ktvl.com Thank you!
07/04/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
We all know weather and climate affect our everyday lives but did you know they have such a big impact on Hostess Twinkies that the company has to make two special recipes?
The Hostess Twinkies recipe varies from winter to summer!
Hostess Twinkies actually alters its recipe to account for changes in summer temperatures and humidity.
I thought this was just fascinating! I found out about this in my Applied Climatology course. What a perfect example of how climate affects just about everything!
06/23/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
You have to look at the photo below this text! It totally explains the first weekend of summer's cold temperatures, rain and mountain snow!
06/17/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
The summer solstice is just around the corner.
Summer begins on Wednesday June 20, when the sun is the highest it ever gets in the sky. The summer solstice also marks the official beginning of astronomical summer in the Northern Hemisphere.
The summer solstice is when the sun is directly above the Tropic of Cancer. We have the most daylight on the solstice than any other day of the year because this is the farthest north the sun moves in the sky.
Places south of the equator begin their winter on our summer solstice and it is the shortest day of the year for them.
While we call the solstice the official first day of summer, there isn't any laws making the solstices and equinoxes the "official" changes in seasons.
Meteorologists call the hottest three months of the year "summer." Those months are June, July and August. In terms of weather, that makes more sense than mid-June to mid-September.
Soon after June 20, our daylight will get shorter each day until the winter solstice. The first day of winter begins on December 21, when the shortest amount of daylight occurs.
06/02/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
Get ready for a real sky show this Tuesday, June 5th. What you'll see is Venus slowly inching across the face of the sun.
Unless someone comes across the fountain of youth, this will be your only chance to see it! You see, it's a spectacle that won't repeat for another century.
It's a celestial phenomenon dubbed "transit of Venus."
Museums and schools around the world are holding Venus viewing festivities. Even astronauts aboard the International Space Station plan to check it out.
For a chance to see the star sport a fleeting beauty mark, keep your eyes to the sky beginning at 3:09 p.m. Tuesday. But don't stare at the sun!
Venus covers too little of the sun to block the blinding glare. Instead, use some type of protection or a solar filter.
The passing of Venus over the sun will last about seven hours and will be at its best around sunset, that's if all of our clouds clear out by then.
Tuesday's evening forecast looks to be mostly cloudy with a lingering chance for showers.
Let's hope the break in the clouds will be right where we need it to be!
If you do catch a glimpse of the transit of Venus, please e-mail your photos to ktvl@ktvl.com or directly to me at khenderson@ktvl.com. You can also post them to our News10 Facebook page.
05/28/12
Optimists say "The glass is half full." - pessimists say "The glass is half empty." - realists say "The glass is always full - unless it's in a vacuum."
How does that relate to the weather? Well, I guess no matter how we feel about it (the weather) it is - what it is...
05/26/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
When I was giving the weather on-air the other day, I realized what I had said when it was too late to acknowledge it. This is going to make you laugh.
So I was talking about how clear skies, calm conditions and cool nights are very conducive to getting frost forming. Only I accidentally said fog. So then I said, "no the other 'F' word, frost."
And I continued with my forecast. Seconds later when I had moved on from the subject of frost I was thinking, oh no I said "'F' word."
Just so you know, I dont swear so it didn't even occur to me.
So just so we're clear, my 'F' word is frost.
No one called in and complained so I figure they got what I meant and were laughing along with me!
05/13/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
Did you feel the heat? Medford hit its first 90+ degree day for 2012 on Sunday May 13, making it the hottest day so far this year.
Sunday's high temperature of 95 degrees also tied the record high for the day which was set back in 1973.
So is this too early to be talking 90s? On average, Medford typically hits its first 90 degree mark of the year on May 28.
The record for the earliest first 90 degrees of the year was set on April 13, 1947.
The record latest first 90 degree day was on July 4, 1953.
05/08/12
Although it looks like we'll be cooling off for a few days -- to near normal high temps for this time of year -- we will be heating back up again just in time for the weekend. We're talking highs that are in the 85 to 90 degree range -- about 15 to 20 degrees above normal. I wouldn't be surprised if we didn't see the first 90+ temps in the region. Not much chance for rain any time soon either.
Of course warm temps mean increased runoff into our local rivers. That means the water will be high, cold and fast. We've already seen several accidents this spring. So be cautious when you're having fun on the banks of our beautiful waterways. Especially watch the little ones.
Speaking of little ones -- our little furry friends need your help as well. If your pets are outside a lot during this hot time of the year always make sure they have plenty of water and a shady spot to curl up under. And for goodness sake -- never leave them in the car alone. The temperature inside the vehicle can rise very, very quickly. We're talking as high as 130 degrees. Even if you think you'll just be in and out -- don't do it -- you never know how long the line will be -- or wether or not there will be some problem or delay that slows you down. Your beloved pet's life isn't worth it.
Cheers,
05/05/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
It's time to start thinking about the rest of our spring.
The May outlook from the National Weather Service is calling for cooler temps, a little bit, but drier than normal.
In June and July, temperatures have a better chance of being normal which would be spectacular, not too hot and drier than normal.
Typically May would only have about eight wet days with a monthly total of 1.31 inches; June with five rainy days and a total of 0.62 inches; and July with only two days of rain, usually in the form of thunderstorms that typically would ring out just over a quarter of an inch of rain for the whole month.
So we'll see if we're close to those numbers or lower as predicted.
05/04/12
Unsettled spring weather continues this week with more clouds, wind and rain through Friday. The good news is that our streak of good weather over the weekend looks to last through this coming weekend with more sunshine and warmer temperatures just in time to get outside and enjoy it. Although it won't be quite as warm as last weekend - it'll still be pretty nice with highs approaching the 65 to 70 degree range -- which is about average for this time of year.
Meanwhile the combination of wet weather followed by sunshine and warmth seems to have created an explosion of pollen. Everyone I know with allergies is complaining about one of the worst springs they've ever experienced in terms of allergic reactions. Sigh. Seems we can't win. Either it's too cold and wet -- too hot and dry -- or your nose is running, your eyes are watering and you sneeze so much you can't relax and enjoy either kind of weather.
Come on summer!
05/04/12
Mine's been exploding every few hours. It's alergy season. Every time I sneeze I think my head's gonna fly off my shoulders. Dog's actually run away a few feet and turn back to look over their shoulder every time I go "Ahh... (dog's begin running here) Ahh... (dog's turn to look at safe distance here) AHH CHOOOOOOO" (then give disaproving look here). Either they're afraid of the sound - or just smart enough to dodge flying spittle. Anyway, I've read that our area is the second highest in the NW for pollen counts. First place goes to the Willamette Valley. Not sure I buy it.
Super moon tomorrow night - plus a meteor shower. Sounds way cooler than it probably is - but what the heck - go out and take a look. The better sky show is May 20th. Solar eclipse. Some of the best views will be from right here in the Southern Oregon, Northern California area. More details on that later.
ACHOO!
05/01/12
We have a mutt. Named her Angel. Got her from the Josephine County Animal Shelter when she was just a few months old. Best dog I've ever had. Smartest, sweetest, cutest pup ever - as far as I'm concerned anyway. But, boy does she shed. I could probably knit a sweater every couple of days just with the hair off our floors. Throw in the hair off the couch - the hair off our bed - the hair off MY CLOTHES and I could knit sweaters for an army - weekly. No lie. It's amazing. The hair seems to be magnetized somehow. It attaches itself to everything -- the way starving leeches from a muddy, southern bog latch onto any passing critter. And once attached - good luck gettin' 'em off. Angel's hair laughs at lint rollers - mocks tape wrapped around your fingers. I think if I had a platoon of chimps - picking her hair off my clothes in 'round the clock shifts - I might look presentable on the air. Might. Since I don't have chimps I'm stuck with the thought of shaving her bald - or asking you all to live with a little dog hair on my suits as I present the weather forecast each night. Spring? I call it 'Shedding Season'.
04/22/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
We hit that 80 degree mark for the first time this year on Friday April 20, which is right on cue because we would typically expect to hit 80 by about April 19.
So now for 90 degrees. Medford came awfully close to hitting 90 on Sunday with a high temperature of 89 degrees, which shattered the old record for the day of 84 degrees set back in 1987.
We don't typically expect to make it all the way up to 90 degrees until May 28. However, the record earliest to hit 90 is April 13, set back in 1947. The record latest is July 4, set back in 1953.
04/08/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
So, how do you know when Easter is? Yes, you can always look at a calendar. And yes, it always falls on a Sunday but it's a different date every year, sometimes it lands in March or in April.
Here's a fun fact you can share with your friends and family at the dinner table this Easter: Easter is the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox (first day of spring/March 21). So, Easter can never occur before March 22 or later than April 25.
The following are dates of Easter from 1980 to 2024:
1980 April 6 1995 April 16 2010 April 4
1981 April 19 1996 April 7 2011 April 24
1982 April 11 1997 March 30 2012 April 8
1983 April 3 1998 April 12 2013 March 31
1984 April 22 1999 April 4 2014 April 20
1985 April 7 2000 April 23 2015 April 5
1986 March 30 2001 April 15 2016 March 27
1987 April 19 2002 March 31 2017 April 16
1988 April 3 2003 April 20 2018 April 1
1989 March 26 2004 April 11 2019 April 21
1990 April 15 2005 March 27 2020 April 12
1991 March 31 2006 April 16 2021 April 4
1992 April 19 2007 April 8 2022 April 17
1993 April 11 2008 March 23 2023 April 9
1994 April 3 2009 April 12 2024 March 31
04/07/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
We don't have to worry about tornadoes around here but interestingly enough, some weather service offices in Missouri and Kansas will start to use words such as "unsurvivable," "catastrophic" and "mass devastation" when forecasters warn for severe storms, such as those that spawn tornadoes.
Here's the story that came down on our wires about the new warnings:
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Even expert storm chasers would have struggled to decipher the difference between the tornado warnings sent last May before severe weather hit Joplin and, a few days later, headed again toward downtown Kansas City.
The first tornado was a massive EF-5 twister that killed 161 people as it wiped out a huge chunk of the southwest Missouri community. The second storm caused only minor damage when two weak tornadoes struck in the Kansas City suburbs.
In both cases, the warnings were harbingers of touchdowns. But three out of every four times the National Weather Service issues a formal tornado warning, there isn't one. The result is a "cry wolf" phenomenon that's dulled the effectiveness of tornado warnings, and one the weather service hopes to solve with what amounts to a scare tactic.
In a test that starts Monday, five weather service offices in Kansas and Missouri will use words such as "mass devastation," "unsurvivable" and "catastrophic" in a new kind of warning that's based on the severity of a storm's expected impact. The goal is to more effectively communicate the dangers of an approaching storm so people understand the risks they're about to face.
"We'd like to think that as soon as we say there is a tornado warning, everyone would run to the basement," said Ken Harding, a weather service official in Kansas City. "That's not how it is. They will channel flip, look out the window or call neighbors. A lot of times people don't react until they see it."
The system being tested will create two tiers of warnings for thunderstorms and three tiers for tornadoes, each based on severity. A research team in North Carolina will analyze the results of the experiment, which runs through late fall, and help the weather service decide whether to expand the new warnings to other parts of the country.
Laura Myer, a social science research professor at Mississippi State University, said people she has interviewed want more advance warning about a potential tornado strike and more information on the specific locations where the storms are expected to hit.
"We have found in Mississippi and Alabama and various other Southern states that people feel they would constantly be going to a shelter if they heeded every tornado warning," she said. "For people in mobile homes, that's the craziest thing.
"To get to a shelter, they have to leave home," she said. "They feel like if they left during every watch or warning, they would be on the road all the time."
The primary audiences for weather service's written bulletins are broadcasters who issue warnings on the air and emergency management agencies that activate sirens and respond to the storm's aftermath. In the event of a Joplin-like tornado, the new-look warning would have an urgency hard to ignore.
Andy Bailey, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Pleasant Hill, Mo., said it might look something like this: "THIS IS AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS TORNADO WITH COMPLETE DEVASTATION LIKELY. ... SEEK SHELTER NOW! ... MOBILE HOMES AND OUTBUILDINGS WILL OFFER NO SHELTER FROM THIS TORNADO -- ABANDON THEM IMMEDIATELY."
Had such a warning come across his television set on May 22, Joplin resident Jeff Lehr said he might have sought shelter. Instead, it wasn't until a siren distracted him from a sporting event he was watching on TV that he looked out a window and saw what appeared to be dark thunderstorm clouds.
Even then, he didn't take cover until the windows began imploding in his apartment."After hundreds of times of similar thunderstorms approaching Joplin, many of those with tornado warnings attached, and you see them pass ... after all those storms, you kind of get jaundiced about the warnings and tend not to give them the weight you probably should give them," said Lehr, a reporter at The Joplin Globe.
James Spann, chief meteorologist with WBMA-TV in Birmingham, Ala., said the impact-based warning experiment could provide broadcasters and emergency management agencies with a useful tool in an age when a majority of people still wait for an outdated technology -- tornado sirens -- to seek shelter.
He blames the siren mentality and high number of false alarms for the complacency of people living in tornado-prone areas such as Alabama, where 252 people were killed last April 27 in a tornado outbreak that struck communities across the South.
"A lot of politicians and people who don't understand tornadoes try to jump into this," Spann said. "Their first reaction is, 'We've got to get more sirens.' What are these people thinking? They clearly do not understand the issue."
03/26/12
By Krystle Henderson/KTVL.com
With all the rain in the forecast, I'm sure at some point you're going to hear someone say, "it's raining cats and dogs." When we say that, we don't expect to look outside and actually see it raining animals.
As far as we know anyway, there hasn't ever been reports of cats and dogs falling from the sky but what if I told you there has been reports of it raining animals?
For more than a century, people have reported weird rain which included frogs, toads, fish or turtles.
In 1873, the Scientific American described a shower of frogs that darkened the sky and fell to the ground during a storm in Missouri.
In 1901, people in Minnesota saw a huge green mass falling out of the sky. They said it made a sound as if lumps of mud were plopping to the ground. When the storm cleared out, they saw a pile of hundreds of frogs and toads covering blocks.
Many other animals have also been reported, falling like rain from a storm. Different kinds of fish have fallen on priests in Australia, golfers in England and families in Singapore. According to witnesses, even frozen birds and turtles have dropped to the earth like hailstones.
So how is this weird rain possible? Scientists say the most logical explanation for this strange precipitation is that a violent, strong storm picks up the animals from shallow ponds and creeks and pulls them up into the air. The whirlwinds then carry the animals for miles before dropping them like rain. They compare it to huge dust storms that constantly pick up and drop debris from the sky.
Whether the explanation is true or not, let's just hope we don't start predicting animal showers for tomorrow's forecast!
03/14/12
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