Today at a Glance

April 25, 2009

Severe Weather:
Slight risk of severe weather for central to northeast Kansas, southeast Nebraska, far northwest Missouri southwest to northeast Iowa, southwest to northeast Wisconsin and far southeast Minnesota to the 25th. Slight risk of severe weather for south southwest to north central Texas, the northwest 2/3 of Oklahoma, Kansas, the southeast 1/3 of Nebraska, Iowa, northwest Missouri, and far southwest Minnesota, the 25th to the 26th. Slight risk of severe weather for northcentral Texas, Oklahoma, the southeast 1/2 of Kansas, the southeast 1/2 of Iowa, the northwest 2/3 of Missouri, the northwest 2/3 of Illinois, northwest Indiana, far northwest Ohio, the southeast 1/3 of Wisconsin, and Michigan the 26th to the 27th.

Flooding:
Flooding likely, possible, or occurring in central to eastern South Dakota, central to eastern North Dakota, far northwest Minnesota, central west Illinois, north central Florida, and central south Louisiana. (6 inches of rainfall forecast for northeast Oklahoma and southeast Missouri)

Fire:
Critical fire danger for far south Nevada, far northwest and western Arizona, New Mexico, southeast Colorado, far southwest Kansa, and far west Oklahoma, far northwest Texas, and southwest Florida the 24th to the 25th. Critical fire danger for southeast Arizona, the southeast 2/3 of New Mexico and western Texas the 25th to the 26th.

Upcoming Meteor Shower

VENUS TO DISAPPEAR DURING METEOR SHOWER: On Wednesday morning, April 22nd, the planet Venus will disappear behind the Moon during the peak of the Lyrid meteor shower. It's a show you won't want to miss. Get the full story from Science@NASA.

Articles of Interest

April 17, 2009

Severe Weather:
Slight risk of severe weather for far eastern Arizona, western to central Texas, western Oklahoma, southeast Colorado, and southwest Kansas the to the 17th. Slight risk of severe weather for central to east southeast and far north Texas, western Oklahoma, and southwest Kansas the 17th to the18th.

Flooding:
Flooding likely, possible, or occurring in South Dakota, North Dakota, far northwest Minnesota, far northeast Wyoming, far southeast Montana, central west Illinois, south Mississippi, south Georgia, north Florida, Louisiana, and central east Texas to the 21th. (5.7 inches of rainfall for central east Texas, and southwest Louisiana).

Fire:
Critical fire danger for the northeast 1/3 of New York into New England, and far southeast New Mexico into central west Texas the 17th to the 18th. Moderate fire danger for Minnesota into Wisconsin, and central and southern Florida from the 17th to the 18th. Critical fire danger for southeast California, northwest Arizona, southern Nevada and southwest Utah the 22nd to the 24th.

AFGHANISTAN - Two moderate earthquakes have hit eastern Afghanistan, killing at least 19 people and destroying dozens of homes. The US Geological Survey says a 5.5-magnitude quake struck at 0157 local time (2127 GMT), followed by a 5.1-magnitude aftershock two hours later. The quakes struck in Nangarhar province, about 50 miles (80km) east of Kabul near the Pakistan border. At least two villages were reported to have suffered serious damage. Villagers told reporters that the death toll was higher.

Tropical Cyclone Bijli, with sustained winds of 50 mph, is located off the coast of Orissa, India and will slightly strengthen while tracking to the northeast along the coastline of Orissa, West Bengal, Bangladesh before making landfall in the vicinity of the Bangladesh and Myanmar boarder region on Saturday.

MADAGASCAR - Five more people were found dead in Madagascar after tropical cyclone Jade, pushing the death toll to 15. A further 22,900 people were also registered as homeless, bringing the number without shelter to over 60,800. The new deaths and homeless figures were reported in the northeastern district of Antalaha, where Jade made landfall on April 6. Officials had been unable to collect the data from the district because of rising waters in the area. The emergency management office also reported that 63 percent of Antalaha's coffee and vanilla crops, the region's key exports, were damaged. Three-quarters of subsistence crops and 65 percent of fruit trees were destroyed. Madagascar's cyclone season runs from November to April. In January, at least nine people were killed and more than 20,000 lost their homes after two cyclones hit the Indian Ocean island.

West Africa faces 'megadroughts' - DROUGHTS LASTING CENTURIES occur regularly in West Africa, scientists find - and another one is coming, climate change or not. Analysis of sediments in a Ghanaian lake shows the last of these "megadroughts" ended 250 years ago. Man-made climate change may make the situation worse. But the droughts are going to happen again anyway, and societies should begin planning for them. "It's disconcerting - it suggests we're vulnerable to A LONGER-LASTING DROUGHT THAN WE'VE SEEN IN OUR LIFETIME.." Droughts lasting a few decades appear to be linked to the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO), a natural climatic cycle in which sea surface temperatures in the tropical Atlantic Ocean vary over time. However, the cause of the longer, multi-century droughts is not clear. "That's one of the scary aspects - we have no idea what causes them." There appears to be a similarity between the outlook for West Africa and the southwestern portion of the US. There, research has also shown a history of shorter and longer droughts.

Pagan Volcano, Mariana Islands
Pagan volcano in the Mariana Islands erupted black ash and steam on 16th April. The Aviation Color Code for Pagan volcano was raised to Yellow. There are no monitoring instruments installed on Pagan. Monitoring is by satellite and ground observers. Pagan volcano is located 173 nautical miles north of Saipan. The island contains two stratovolcanoes connected by a narrow isthmus.

Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii
A magnitude 5.0 earthquake hit the south flank of Kilauea volcano on 14th April at 12:44 pm local time. The epicentre was 14 km south of the town of volcano, near Hilina Pali. Kilauea summit recorded weak deflation after the earthquake. In the past 25 years there have been 3 earthquakes over magnitude 5 in the same area of the volcano. There has been no change in eruptive activity at Kilauea volcano. Magma continues to degass through Pu`u `O`o Crater, and flow from TEB vent and the rootless shield complex through tubes to the ocean at Waikupanaha and Kupapa`u.

Today at a Glance

April 13, 2009

Severe Weather:
Slight risk of severe weather for central north to northeast Texas, central south Oklahoma, southeast Louisiana, central to south Mississippi and southwest Alabama to the 13th. Slight risk of severe weather for southeast Louisiana, Mississippi, northeast Arkansas, southeast Missouri, central to southern Illinois, central to southern Indiana, central to western Kentucky, central to western Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, central to southern South Carolina, and central to northern Florida the 13th to the 14th.

Flooding;
Flooding likely, possible, or occurring in South Dakota, North Dakota, west northwest Minnesota, central west and southeast Illinois, northeast and northwest Indiana, central west and northeast Illinois, central north Missouri, northeast Texas, central to south Georgia, and central north Florida to the 17th.

Fire;
Moderate fire danger for far south Texas the 12th to the 13th. Critical fire danger for southwest California, western Arizona, and southern Nevada the 14th to the 15th. Critical fire danger for far southeast California, central to southern Arizona, central to southern and northeast New Mexico and western Texas the 15th to the 16th. Critical fire danger for southeast Arizona, the southeast 1/2 of New Mexico and western Texas the 16th to the 17th.

Fernandina Volcano, Galapagos Islands
A new eruption began at Fernandina volcano on 10th April 2009 at 2200 hr. The seismic station at Puerto Ayora did not record any earthquakes associated with the eruption. The eruption was observed by rangers from Galapagos National Park, and a tourist boat in the early hours of Saturday morning (local time). An eruption column with low ash content was visible on satellite images extending 300 km west of the volcano. Satellite images show several hotspots at Fernandina volcano, which may indicate lava flows. Personnel from the Galapagos National Park on Isabela Island are making a flight over the volcano, to ascertain more precisely the location of the eruption centre, and assess the extent of the lava flows and their likely impact
fauna and flora of the area. The last eruption of Fernandina volcano occurred in 2005, when lava flows originated from a fissure on the south-eastern flank of the volcano and descend without reaching the sea.

Mayo Update

I have heard from many of you that Mayo Clinic will do wonders for me. After the phone conversations I have had with the finance department last week I now have my own point of view.
I was told to expect to pay anywhere from 15-30 grand next week.
I was in disbelief .
After talking with the finance department and my own doctor I will not be heading to Mayo Clinic. There is no way that I can afford to pay that kind of money.
I will instead continue to do my best to improve my health and follow directions given to me from my own personal doctor.
My wife and I met with our PCP Friday and talked about the conversations we had with Mayo. Our PCP informed us to take care of our home and children before spending that kind of money at Mayo. Mayo would be a great help for me but they offered no guarantees for the service given unless I had enough money.
This all saddens me; I have been out of work since May of 2006 and have become a thought. My wife had worked for about 2 years and has lost her job so now it is all about surviving as best as we can.
Both of our cars are now paid for and we have over 500 pounds of meat in the freezer. I think we will be fine for a while. Time will tell.

21 days absent

Wow, 21 days have gone by since my last post.
I have not been feeling very well the last 3 weeks. I have had some days that were not bad at all.
The wife and I managed to make it to the Lakes Mall to get in some walking over the last 3 weeks. Now that the weather appears to be warming up and the roads are longer snow covered we plan on walking around the neighborhood.
We bought a new freezer a few weeks back. After it was delivered we went to the local butcher shop and ordered a half of cow. Good eating at $2.19 a pound. We can no longer afford the market prices at many of the grocery stores. Tell me were you can get a T-Bone at $2.19 a pound.
The only down to buying a side of beef is having to pay for it. Ours was around the $900.00 adding the $700.00 for the freezer and that puts me broke, but well worth it. I will save on groceries. After all, we have 400 and some pounds of beef.
I have everything all set for Mayo Clinic. The motel rooms are reserved and it looks like my dad and brother will be taking me. I was told to be prepared to be there for 3-5 days. Then again, they say that to everyone I bet. I am not looking forward to going.
So, that is what I have been up to the last 3 weeks.

Global Disaster Network

I would like you to join me and many others at Global Disaster Network.
Global Disaster Network has 25 active members and is growing. The members are not all Armature Radio Operators, they are however Meteorologist, Geologist, Volconologist, Firefighters and Law Enforcement officers, Members of Media Organizations and hobbyist.
The Global Disaster Network has members throughout the United States, New Zealand, Germany, India and Thailand. We try to post daily about events and hold professional discussions about current events.
Information and Education in regards to World Wide Disasters and events to include warnings and updates for:Drought, Earthquakes, Flooding, Health Threats, Hurricanes, Landslides, Severe Weather Warnings, Solar Flares, Space Weather, Tsunamis, Volcanoes, Wildfires and to also discuss thoughts in the many areas of Geophysics.

Global Disaster Network Discussion Page

Global Disaster Network Blog Page

Preparing for Mayo Clinic

Friday afternoon I received a phone call from Mayo Clinic. The have me scheduled for March 23rd. At this point and after much thought and discussions with the family it will be my Dad taking me to Rochester Minnesota.
My wife is going to stay home and tend to our children and animals. I have no idea how long I will be at Mayo Clinic. They said anywhere to 2 days and up. Depends on what all they find and surgery.
I’m not really looking forward to this trip now. Mayo needs 5 grand up front. (Ouch). It really sucks not having insurance. With the wife having been out of work for the last 4 months things have become very tight. At least we are not in the same position many people are in as far as losing there home and vehicles. Those are the things we pay on first. Last payment is now due on our truck. Pretty cool, I have been off work for 3 years and got both vehicles paid off. Not to mention all the work we have had done to our home. So yes, I thank the good Lord for providing for us.

What happened to January?

Wow, January went by pretty fast. I spent most of the month in bed, had been pretty sick. I did have one week where I felt pretty good. I even managed to get out with my brother for the afternoon on Jan 22.
We went to the Great Lakes Naval Memorial & Museum. It was pretty cool. They have only been open for a few months and are still working on exhibits. They have several models of different ships and also have several torpedoes on display. One of them has been opened up and shows you how it works.
According to my brother they plan on having an amateur radio station in the museum. They did have a station on the Silversides at one time but had removed it for some reason.
After the museum we went for lunch the new stopped to visit an amateur radio friend at his place of employment. We sat a rag chewed for an hour then it was time for me to call it a day.
So that is what has been going on with me. I am feeling pretty good this morning even though I have had only 3 hours of sleep. Yesterday was a real rough one though.
I added "Southgate Amateur Radio Club" news feed to the side bar this morning. It is a great source of news and events for amateur radio.

First post of the year.

Happy New Year!
This morning we took down the Christmas decorations, inside and outside. Taking the lights off the tree was a pain this year. We had 10 strings of lights. Four of those strings are those icicle lights that hang on the outside of the house. We do like a lot of lights.
Anyway, the Christmas and New Years decorations are put away for the next 11 months.
Next week the kids will be back in school and the world will be back to normal.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year to all my visitors.
This year will not be missed.
The last 2 weeks have been great. My kids had a great Christmas and my son had the BEST Birthday ever. He said that to my parents.
Not bad for being new to the Blogging world. I managed to get 20 posts since October and had 650 visitors. That is better than my count on QRZ.
Happy New Year all.
73.

Severe Weather

Wow, Look at all the warnings and watches.
For more info; Click Here

Saturday after Christmas

We had a really great Christmas. I think we are one of the lucky parents whose kids slept in. The kids awoke around 9am. Once that happen my wife and I could hear them in the living room with excitement.
It took my wife and me forever to get organized before we handed out the presents.
The snow is almost gone. It has rained for the last 24 hours now. I was worried for awhile, we had a lot of snow on the roof and with the added warmth and rain the snow becomes very heavy.
Flood warnings have been posted throughout the state as the rain continues and the snow melts away.
My current conditions
Observation Time: Saturday, December 27 2:50 PM EST
Humidity ; 94%
Dew Point; 55°F (13°C)
Visibility; 4SM
Wind Speed; 16 MPH Gusts to 22
Wind Direction;South (180°)
Pressure;1003 mb (29.62 in)
Feels Like: 54°F (12°C) It's a Heat Wave
OvercastFog/Mist 57°F (14°C) Temp Trend:Steady

Christmas Eve

The snow just keeps on falling. We have had one storm after another the last 3 or 4 weeks it seems.
I have a 4 ft. fence in my front yard, see the pictures on my Dec. 14 post, anyway, the snow is 8” away from the top of the fence. The Candle in my picture is buried. Same with the snow man figure in my front yard.
This Saturday they are saying we will have rain, 40º temps and a thunderstorm late Saturday evening. Then the temperatures will start dropping to the 20’s on Sunday. Sounds like we may see lots of localized flooding, large puddles of water on roads, then slick roads as the water freezes. Forecast here

I know have recorded 56 inches of snow this season.

I have this link to Tracking Santa. Click Here
My daughter has been checking it out hourly. She is so very excited. Weren’t we all at that age?

Storm Results

We had a really nice Snow Storm on Sunday. It got so bad the NWS issued Blizzard Warnings for West Michigan.
Here in Muskegon the County Road Commission pulled there Snow plows of the road because they could not keep up with the drifts.
We got 11.4 inches of snow from this event. I have not had a chance to add up my snow accumulations yet, my guess is around 50 inches.
I will gather my info and post it here as an update.
Muskegon Chronicle has story on our weather. Click Here
Sunday we had our family Christmas Party. Weather wise it was a bad day but almost everyone showed up, great time and more than enough food.
My wife was asking me several questions today about an HT I use to have. We had gone through the same round of questions a few weeks ago. I wonder if, maybe Santa might have a little something in my Stocking.
I had to sell all my Ham gear to pay bills. I was given a mobile unit with a power supply but I need an antenna. It is a 2 meter rig.
I might try a little harder to upgrade this year. I have lost interest to some extent in Ham Radio. Looking for the bug.