Weather & Space News Blog
 since Feb. 2003
 WX - Telegraph abbreviation for weather often used with Morse code
 The Wire - Name once given to the telegraph

Tornadoes, Storms Kill 1 In Ala., Hurt 13 Fla. Children

AccuWeather: Big NE Storm Brewing: Forecast: winds gusting up to 50 mph | Resources: NE radar loop Weather and webcams by city

Wildfire Update: Oklahoma wildfires destroy at least 20 homes, force evacuations | Firefighters battle blazes across North Texas

NW Rain: Flooding, mudflows lead to state of emergency in Washington | Rain stops, easing slide threat in N. Vancouver | Resources: Radar loop Weather and webcams for Seattle and Vancouver

Other Weather News: College students spend break helping hurricane victims

From the Consumer Electronics Show: Something for weather and webcam nuts

Volcano in Alaska erupts for third day

Quake Wire: Fewer earthquake fatalities in 2005

Space News: Reminder: SpaceWeather says, Sunday morning, Jan. 15th, between 1:56 and 1:59 a.m. PST, a brilliant fireball will streak over northern California and Nevada

Astronomy Picture of the Day: Lunokhod: Moon robot from 1970

Top 5 WXnation.com city weather and webcam pages visited on Friday: 1. Atlanta 2. Chicago 3. St. Louis 4. Charlotte 5. Knoxville … See the top 20 so far this month in the center column of our home page.

South, SE Severe Storms: Rough weather possible in Atlanta today: High winds, hail, snow | Resources: Radar loop and watches/warnings map | Weather and webcams for Atlanta and all other cities

NE Weekend Storm: AccuWeather.com is forecasting a big change in the weather this weekend, thanks to a major storm that will slam into the Northeast.

NW Rain: Seattle rain day No. 24 makes for city’s second longest period of consecutive rainfall

Hurricanes ’05 Update: Bush revisits Gulf Coast region, says on rebuilding, locals know best | Interrupted by Katrina, Tulane’s orientation resumes for freshmen | Storms displace 2 million

World Weather: Japan fears avalanches after record snowfall | Rescuers reach crew stranded in Antarctica | From Toronto: It’s January, where’s winter?

January ‘heat wave’ hits upstate New York

New York: Weather disaster stand-in. My review of Sunday’s Weather Channel premiere of “It Could Happen Tomorrow” is here.

Space News: Space tornado whirls for trillions of miles | Trip to Pluto to take at least 9 years

Posted at 10:08 p.m. ET Thurs.: Tornado watch for parts of Ark., East Texas, La., Okla., Mo. through early Friday: NBC 5 Weather Plus streaming video from Dallas/Fort Worth | Radar loop | Watches/warnings map | Weather and webcams for all cities

Top 5 WXnation.com city weather and webcam pages visited on Thursday: 1. Dallas/Fort Worth 2. Vancouver 3. Houston 4. Charlotte 5. New Orleans … See the top 20 so far this month in the center column of our home page.

NW Rain: Relentless rain causes misery in Vancouver: A record set in 1953 could be broken Monday after 29 consecutive days of precipitation | Gov. tours flooded areas in Western Washington | Resources: Radar loop | U.S. West Coast watches/warnings map | Weather and webcams for Vancouver, Seattle, and All other cities

Other Weather News: Warm weather disrupts fun of Midwest winters

Thunderstorms and snow possible in D.C. | D.C. weather and webcams

Arizona begins to dry out a year after heavy snow and rain

Hurricanes ’05 Update: From La.: One body found in Hurricane Katrina’s wreckage over past week; 33 ID’d | Play tells story of Katrina, aftermath | Mardi Gras intrudes on Katrina evacuees | Hurricane Wilma’s victims can apply for FEMA aid until Jan. 19

Weather Channel may air Katrina show: If so, it would be an unaired version of the upcoming series “It Could Happen Tomorrow.”

Note to NBC 5 viewers in Dallas/Fort Worth: Scott Chesner is now Chief Meteorologist at KETK-TV 56 in Tyler. Chesner was on KXAS-TV in D/FW from 1981 to 2004.

Augustine volcano on Alaska Island erupts

Space News: SpaceWeather discusses listening for “meteor scatter” on FM radios.

Top 5 WXnation.com city weather and webcam pages visited on Wednesday: 1. New York City 2. Vancouver 3. Charlotte 4. Las Vegas 5. Orlando … See the top 20 so far this month in the center column of our home page.

Plains Snow: Heavy, wet snow blankets southeast Kansas … KC weather and webcam images | Parts of Oklahoma get snow … OKC weather and webcam images

More Seattle Rain: Flooding, mudslides block roads, trains | Rain inching up on record … Seattle-area weather and webcam images

Hurricanes ’05 Update: Lots of lightning in 2005 hurricanes baffles scientists | Hurricane debris fire burns out of control | Mississippi’s invisible coast | Debris removal moving ahead in Mississippi

World Weather: Heavy snow expected in quake hit areas of Pakistan | Japan struggles to clear snow

Warm weather strands residents of northern town

W. Australia returning to normal after cyclone

Quake Wire: Norfolk called ready in case of a tsunami: First major city on East Coast to meet government standards | Magnitude 4.9 earthquake hits off Oregon Coast this morning … live quake data is in the left column of this page. Other quake resources are in our National/International page

Top 5 WXnation.com city weather and webcam pages visited on Tuesday: 1. Kansas City 2. Oklahoma City 3. St. Louis 4. Indianapolis 5. San Francisco … See the top 20 so far this month in the center column of our home page.

Seattle Soaker: This is a lot of rain, even for Seattle: 22 consecutive days of measurable rain, and more rain predicted over the next several days. The city may break a record set in 1953, when there were 33 consecutive days of measurable precipitation. Full story

Tornado Cat Returns: Cat back to Nebraska home after almost 2 years

Other Weather News: Kansas City area could see a rain and snow mixture

Colorado fire ban in effect

Katrina Update: Greece donates $85,000 for Hurricane Katrina victims | Evacuees in hotels can get an extension

World Weather: Asia suffers in worst cold for 70 years | Japan troops clear snow to reach isolated villages

Space News: Map for brilliant fireball that will streak over N. California and Nevada on Sunday | NASA to return comet samples to Earth | Hubble reveals North Star’s companion

Top 5 WXnation.com city weather and webcam pages visited on Monday: 1. Vancouver 2. Amarillo 3. Dallas/Fort Worth 4. New York City 5. Toronto … See the top 20 so far this month in the center column of our home page.

After viewing an advance copy of the series premiere of “It Could Happen Tomorrow,” which airs on The Weather Channel Sunday, Jan. 15 at 9:30 p.m. ET, I’ve concluded that what I saw couldn’t happen on Tuesday, or even this month … but it could definitely happen later this year.

Before seeing an episode of the series, I questioned whether — in the age of “Day After Tomorrow” and “Category 7″ — it would be concerned more with flashy animations than useful and accurate information.

The first show deals with a Category 4 hurricane striking New York City. It can happen, as the episode illustrates via archived footage of the great hurricane of 1938, which missed NYC by only 75 miles. In a world of unreal reality shows, it’s refreshing to see actual video footage.

After convincing viewers (some in New York) that the possibility exists, the show depicts what would happen if a major hurricane barreled toward the Big Apple, and how the city would deal with the evacuation of millions of people, some who currently say they are more concerned with a terrorist attack than Mother Nature.

More importantly, the show serves as a reminder for New Yorkers who already know — and informs the rest — that the city is due for a hurricane as strong as Katrina. As a result, the first episode of “It Could Happen Tomorrow” proves to be informational while entertaining.

That being said, it would have been nice to have heard a few words on the matter from the director of the National Hurricane Center, Max Mayfield. The episode does sound the alarm, however, especially important considering the forecast for increased hurricane activity over the next 10 years. Those who watch the program may keep a closer eye on the tropics and be better prepared for such a catastrophe.

Additionally, the fast-paced show’s 30-minute runtime may be more likely to keep trigger-happy viewers from reaching for the remote.

The series’ Web site promises a March episode on a major Memphis earthquake and, in the following month, an episode depicting an 8.0 magnitude earthquake rocking San Francisco. I especially look forward to the next episode, which hits close to home: the possibility of an F5 tornado tearing through Dallas.

CapitalWeather.com has linked to a video clip of an unaired episode last spring that looked at a major hurricane slamming into New Orleans.

30 Years And Forecasting: NBC 5 Chief Meteorologist David Finfrock reaches milestone: 30 years of forecasting.

Congrats, David! I have worked in the same newsroom as Finfrock (at the NBC affiliate in Dallas/Fort Worth, KXAS-TV) for the past 6 years, and know that he is extremely dedicated to his job. Many times, I’ll catch him intensely combing over data, and other times, he’ll have photos or weather and space links that he’d like added to our weather Web site.

Many viewers still e-mail the station about the incredibly respected and missed legend, Harold Taft. Finfrock has filled Taft’s shoes as Chief Meteorologist nicely.

Finfrock began working for KXAS-TV on Dec. 21, 1975, but didn’t begin on air broadcast until the first week of Jan. 1976.

I snapped the included image today at KXAS-TV, and promptly added it here. It links to a large version in a new window.

Wildfires Update: Plains fires spread to Colorado, Arkansas | Texas wildfires under control | Okla. emergency director frustrated with FEMA wildfire response | Resources: Current large fires U.S. map | Texas fires info and fire locations map | Weather and webcams by city

World Weather: Japan struck by deadly snowdrifts

Katrina Update: Katrina victims living in dark, eerie New Orleans | Study: Katrina evacuees having trouble coping | Judge halts eviction of Katrina evacuees | Plan: Rebuild all of New Orleans

Other Weather News: Red Cross urges awareness for upcoming hurricane season

Weather has become bogeyman, news staple

Demand for weather radios surges in SW Indiana after tornado

Prayers go out to Coast To Coast AM talk show host Art Bell and those who knew his wife Ramona, after she died Thursday at the age of 47: I have listened to Art Bell on long, late night trips from Oklahoma City to D/FW, and have enjoyed his company for 6 years. Whenever he spoke of Ramona on-air, he talked with a giddiness — like he was the luckiest man in the world because he was with her. Us listeners will miss that, but not as much as Art will miss his departed love.

Quake Wire: Texas man begins recording earthquakes in 1969 | Powerful quake rattles Greece, minor damage: 6.7M to 6.9M

Space News: Comet capsule light show

World Of Webcams: CES 2006: Creative launches wireless webcam

Top 5 WXnation.com city weather and webcam pages visited on Sunday: 1. Vancouver 2. Toronto 3. Boston 4. New York City 5. San Francisco … and on Saturday: 1. Toronto 2. Los Angeles 3. Boston 4. Vancouver 5. Detroit … See the top 20 so far this month in the center column of our home page.

Moved: Chief Meteorologist David Finfrock reaches 30 years of forecasting in D/FW

WeatherBug: Lightning Possible Cause Of W. Va. Mine Explosion: WeatherBug identifies possible direct link between lightning strike and Sago Mine explosion | Investigators find more evidence of lightning strike near Sago Mine

Goodbye 2005 Hurricane Season: Zeta weakens | Last advisory

Drought Update: Spring best chance to end Texas’ fire danger | Drought threatens some Texas lawns: Some types of grasses need water more than others. | Warm weekend in Dallas-Fort Worth: FW weather station

Other Weather News: Freezing rain causes accidents this morning in Michigan

Be prepared? After deaths, Scouts faulted on lightning safety

World Weather: Record snowfalls kill 57, bury western, northern Japan | Almost 250,000 in NW China have been trapped by heavy snowfall amid worst winter in 20 years

Quake Wire: Small magnitude 2.6 earthquake in Lake Erie felt in NE Ohio shoreline city

Space News: Space station travel arrangements set: Next crew confirmed; $44 million deal reached for Russian rides

Top 5 WXnation.com city weather and webcam pages visited on Friday: 1. Vancouver 2. New York City 3. Los Angeles 4. Dallas/Fort Worth 5. Reno … See the top 20 so far this month in the center column of our home page.

Weather News: Firefighters get upper hand on big grass fire near San Antonio: Fire burns more than 100 acres

NorCal storm damage, flooding: What do I do now?

Texas schools get $50 million installment for hurricane relief

Zeta, tropical storm that won’t quit | Latest data from National Hurricane Center and forecast track

FSU meteorologists’ work may lead to better tracking of hurricanes

From Japan: 28 die in record snow

U.S. tsunami alert system streamlined

Space News: Space station travel arrangements set

Top 5 WXnation.com city weather and webcam pages visited on Thursday: 1. Austin 2. Boston 3. Vancouver 4. Toronto 5. Reno … See the top 20 so far this month in the center column of our home page.

Could It Happen Tomorrow?: The hype has begun for an upcoming “fast-paced, action-packed documentary” series, “It Could Happen Tomorrow,” beginning Jan. 15 on The Weather Channel (Trailer clip). I posted here last year that TWC was running ads for the wildly ridiculous miniseries “Category 7: The End of the World” just before it aired on CBS. The biggest problem I have with the CBS specials, and the movie “The Day After Tomorrow,” is that they could still be dramatic and visually appealing (as we all know is possible after seeing frightening images from 2005′s weather events) while being more accurate on factual and scientific details, both big and small. For example, a hurricane will not form over the southern tip of Lake Michigan, and even if it did, it wouldn’t move eastward toward Chicago (as depicted in “Category 6“), and then remain intact and drop tornadoes over Detroit a whole week later. Hopefully the upcoming series on TWC focuses more on possible scenarios than eye candy. In many cases, it appears ratings trump reality.

Puppy Boom: Hurricane Katrina leads to puppy boom

Other Weather News: Zeta barely hanging on to tropical storm status Wednesday night

Blog post from Dr. Steve Lyons of TWC: Beyond the Saffir-Simpson scale

Snow-related accidents kill 3 in Washington state

Governor declares flooding emergency in Nevada after damage tops $10 million

Texas, Okla. Drought, Heat, Fires Update: Suspected arson fire in Okla. contained | Blazes mostly contained across Texas | North Texas remains tinderbox with dry, warm weather | Unusual weather confusing N. Texas plants

ABC 7/WJLA-TV, NewsChannel 8 and WeatherBug(R) begin partnership in D.C. area

Space News: NASA team sees explosion on Moon

Top 5 WXnation.com city weather and webcam pages visited on Wednesday: 1. Vancouver 2. Reno 3. Boston 4. Toronto 5. Minneapolis … See the top 20 so far this month in the center column of our home page.

Joy Turns To Grief: Just One Survivor At West Virginia Mine Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of the victims.

Weather News: Fires burn hundreds of thousands of acres in Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico | Resources: Current large fires U.S. map | Texas fires info and fire locations map | Weather and webcams by city

Weekend rain storms in NorCal cause more than $200 million in damage

Many Mass. schools closed Tuesday as storm warnings issued: 6 to 7 inches of snow was reported in communities south of the Mass. Pike

NW New Jersey gets 8 inches of snow

At least two tornadoes confirmed in Kentucky spring-like storm

Tropical Storm Zeta slightly strengthened Tuesday … still hanging on as a strong tropical storm

Aid to Hurricane Rita victims reaches $580.3 million

200 feared dead after flash flooding, landslide in central Indonesia

NBC Weather Plus launches Web site: nbcweatherplus.com

Quake Wire: Preliminary magnitude 6.7 earthquake shakes Gulf of California early Wednesday | Live quake wire is in the left column of this page

Great moonlit night picture posted at SpaceWeather.com

Top 5 WXnation.com city weather and webcam pages visited on Tuesday: 1. Boston 2. Reno 3. Providence 4. Hartford 5. New York City … See the top 20 so far this month in the center column of our home page.

Fire Close To Home: I was testing out a new webcam in north Fort Worth Monday afternoon, when I spotted a brown smoke cloud moving across the sky. I peered out the window, and it appeared that one of Texas’ many grass fires was about a mile or so from me. I was able to capture an image of the smoke from yesterday’s fire via WXnation Webcam 2. (Image links to a large version in a new window) A grass fire broke out a few months ago in about the same spot. Drought conditions and high winds, plus a high of 80 degrees will make Tuesday another dangerous day for fires. While Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport received 18.97 inches of rain in 2005 (still 15.76 inches below normal), parts of far north Fort Worth have been closer to 15 inches (nearby Fort Worth Alliance Airport got 15.17 inches of rain in 2005). My personal weather station, which I had up and running on the first day of summer only recorded 3.26 inches of rain between late June and the end of the year.

Resources: More North Texas rain totals | Story: Grass fires continue near Texas-Okla. border

Tornadoes In Eastern U.S.: Tornadoes hit Ohio Valley, South on Monday, kill 1

Welcome Back To Work… Winter Storm For NE Tues.: Snowstorm heads for New England: Some areas could receive 8 to 18 inches of snow across interior sections of Massachusetts, northern Connecticut and northern and central Rhode Island. | Northwest hills of Connecticut could see as much as 10 inches of snow by Tuesday evening | Snow, sleet, ice on way for much of NJ | Resources: Watches/warnings map, radar loop and weather and live webcams for Mass., N.H., R.I., Conn., NYC, NJ, Vt., and other cities

Flooding Moves To SoCal: Flash flood warning for Los Angeles County | Rose Bowl marches on despite downpours | Resources: Watches/warnings map, radar loop and weather and live webcams for L.A., Fresno, San Diego, and other cities

From Germany: 11 dead, dozens injured and several trapped as roof of ice rink collapses in heavy snowfall

One Model Predicts Hurricane Zeta: Tropical Storm Zeta defies forecasts and strengthens to 60 mph maximum sustained winds Monday. Weakening is forecast, but Monday night’s discussion from the National Hurricane Center adds the only computer model that kept Zeta alive shows it possibly becoming a hurricane. After the past season, I wouldn’t be surprised by a January hurricane in the Atlantic.

Quake Wire: Snow, rain bring misery to Pakistan survivors | 7.1 magnitude earthquake hits near Fiji | Small 3.6 magnitude earthquake shakes southern Illinois

Top 5 WXnation.com city weather and webcam pages visited on Monday: 1. Reno 2. Los Angeles 3. Atlanta 4. Louisville 5. Fresno … See the top 20 so far this month in the center column of our home page.

Severe Storms Possible In Ohio Valley, SE: Watches/warnings map | Midwest/Ohio Valley radar loop and SE radar loop | From S.C.: Possible severe thunderstorms, tornadoes on Monday

New Year, New Storm: Winter storm moves south as NorCal residents focus on cleanup | Crowds endure rain to watch Rose Parade | Officials keep up guard after Reno area’s worst flood in 9 years | Resources: Watches/warnings map and radar loop | Weather and cams for L.A. | San Francisco | Sacramento | Reno | All cities

Grass Fires: Fires ravage Oklahoma City, Texas towns | Grass fires rage across Texas | Weather and cams for D/FW and OKC

Zeta hangs on as a tropical storm on the first day of 2006. Latest from the National Hurricane Center

Hurricanes ’05 Update: Hurricane brings double load for evacuee schools | East Texans still homeless months after Hurricane Rita | Britain’s Met Office to create ‘Katrina disaster’

Extreme heat set to return to Australia

Space News: Rovers still exploring Mars after 2 years

Top 40 WXnation City Pages Visited In 2005:

The final list is in, as determined by WXnation.com page views. (Last year’s rank follows)… Hurricane Katrina gave New Orleans the top spot, and Hurricane Rita gave Houston a No. 2 finish. Biggest gainers: Minneapolis, Houston, Pittsburgh, Boston, Toronto, Kansas City, L.A., D.C.
New: Reno, Cape Coral/Ft.Myers, Buffalo

Also, see the Top 40 biggest weather days of 2005

Top 5 WXnation.com city weather and webcam pages visited on Sunday: 1. Reno 2. Los Angeles 3. Sacramento 4. San Francsico 5. Las Vegas … and on Saturday: 1. Reno 2. San Francsico 3. New York City 4. Sacramento 5. Los Angeles … See the top 20 so far this month in the center column of our home page.

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