HERE SNAKEY, SNAKEY, SNAKEY
After pushing northward yesterday from Wichita, Kansas, to Yankton, South Dakota, we got a shutout tossed at our tornado chase team. Thunderstorms did bubble up along a cold front sliding across the northern Plains, but for the most part—-at least where we were in far southeastern South Dakota—-they were run-of-the-mill. So we packed it in…
Read MoreTHE GLAMOUR OF STORM CHASING
I’m writing this as our chase team presses through an electric night bound for Wichita, Kansas, from the Texas Panhandle. We won’t arrive in Wichita until the wee hours of Tuesday. Then, after a few hours of sleep, we’ll push even farther north, hoping to capitalize on what should be a turbulent day along and…
Read MoreBIRTH OF A HIGH PLAINS MONSTER
With other members of my chase group, I’m standing on the high plains of the Texas Panhandle, west of Lubbock. A stiff wind, inflow to a supercell aborning, slams into my back as I snap pictures of the strengthening storm. I struggle to stay upright; to hold the camera steady. Daggers of lightning lance into…
Read MoreCOYOTES, CULVERTS AND COUNTY ROADS
It’s dark as a coal mine as we pull off a deserted county road just south of the Red River. In the distance, maybe 20 miles off, twin thunderstorms launch volleys of lightning at each other. A duel in the night. I’m nearest the door in the Silver Lining Tours van, so I’m first out,…
Read MoreYELLOW BRICK ROADKILL?
Friday I leave for Oklahoma City where my week-long quest for the wily, or sometimes not so wily, tornado will begin. My wife is absolutely convinced I’m a dead man walking; certain I’ll get swept up like Dorothy and end up as road kill on the Yellow Brick Freeway. More likely, if conditions ripe for…
Read MoreThe Weather Channel®–The Early Days, Part III
Here’s the third and final blog of a trio describing the early history of The Weather Channel whose 30th anniversary is just around the corner—-May 2. In September 1989, John Hope helped bring The Weather Channel to national prominence as the source for hurricane information. Hurricane Hugo, a classic Cape Verde storm and the first…
Read MoreThe Weather Channel®–The Early Days, Part II
With the 30th anniversary of The Weather Channel fast approaching (May 2), I’ve decided to repost a few blogs I wrote several years ago, near the end of my 13-year stay at the channel. Here’s the second blog of a three-part series looking back at the early days of the channel. Part I can be…
Read MoreThe Weather Channel®–The Early Days, Part I
With the 30th anniversary of The Weather Channel fast approaching (May 2), I thought it might be fun to revisit some stuff I wrote several years ago, near the end of my 13-year stay at the channel. Herewith, the first of a three-part series looking back at the early days of the channel. During the…
Read MoreA RELATIVELY QUIET HURRICANE SEASON COMING UP?
A couple of early outlooks for the 2012 Atlantic Basin hurricane season have been issued, one by the Colorado State University (CSU) Tropical Meteorology Project, and the other by Weather Services International (WSI). Both indicate a near-average season relative to the long-term (since 1966) mean of 11 named storms and hurricanes, but a somewhat quieter…
Read MoreLOOKING OVER MY READERS’ SHOULDERS
I discovered recently, via a weekly email I receive from a Mr. Rob Eager, there’s a way to see which phrases from Eyewall are most frequently highlighted by readers on their Kindles. Another wonder of the electronic-digital era. I can look over my readers’ shoulders. Kindle readers, by the way, have the option of making…
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