How Cold was it This Morning?

I’ll need to update this post later today once the official lows from the area start coming in.  Looks like some in Metro Tucson did dip to freezing this morning.  The airport where the official thermometer is, stayed just above.  I did a screen capture of this map of  the National Weather Service observation sites in the area.  This is from 7:30 this morning:

Oro Valley was at 35 and the thermometer closest to my apartment was as well.  At the time my outdoor thermometer was reading 37.  The airport was at 36.  If you follow I-19 down to Sahaurita you can see a 32.  There is another one in the foothills.  Lots of 33 and 35 scattered around the area as well.  This is just a snapshot at 7:30, so it’s possible that some of these temps bottomed out a degree or two or three lower.

I was surprised to see 35 at Mt. Lemmon!  It may be a false reading.  Notice 20 at nearby Scout Camp and 19 at the top of the Rincons!

Tucson Weather: October 29, 2009

Forecast: Sunny but cool.  Today’s high only near 60.  Not as windy as yesterday with winds 5-15 mph.  Freeze Warning tonight with temperatures in Tucson near freezing (makes sense).  Colder in Cochise County and some of the outlying areas around town.

It’s 6:30am as I am writing this and my thermometer is reading 38.  How disappointing!  I’m like a kid on Christmas when it comes to snow.  Less so on a possible early freeze, but still I did anxiously check the thermometer first thing when I got up and the disappointment is real.

There is still hope!  The temperature is still falling.  Although I don’t think we’ll drop 6 degrees in the next hour.  Also, tomorrow morning should be just as cold or maybe colder.  To me the cold is invigorating!  And while I don’t like to be cold, I like to be in the cold.  Also… freezing temperatures kill those pesky bugs!

More on this morning’s temps a little later.

Will it be freezing in Tucson by Sunrise?

I’m thinking yes!  Here’s why.  We have had cold air advection since the cold front passed through almost exactly 24 hours ago.  Today’s (October 28th) high was at midnight and didn’t rebound much from the morning temperature.  The afternoon high might have been 60, but most of the day was in the 50s with a chilly wind.  MUCH below normal for Tucson for October 28th.  More typical of Winter in Tucson rather than Fall.

The cold air has moved in now the skies have cleared and the wind has died down.  Perfect conditions for radiational cooling!  Also, the dewpoint is 10, so the air is dry.  The midnight temperature on my outside thermometer is reading 44 degrees.  Just 12 more to go in 6 or 7 hours.  I think we will make it here at the apartment in Oro Valley.  The National Weather Service is saying 34 for a low at the Tucson International Airport.  They have also issued a Freeze Warning for the entire area from 1am to 9am.

Some of the more favored areas should have no problem getting down to freezing such as outlying areas.  Some of the higher elevations as well, of course.  I’m thinking Oracle will shatter their record low of 31.  Also, low elevations like near the washes will be colder.  Cold air is heavier than the relatively warmer air around it, so the colder air drains into and pools in the low areas like washes.

The record low for Tucson on October 29th is 32 set in 1912.  We have a decent shot!  If not by morning, we can try again Friday morning.  Looks like another night near freezing before we warm up by early next week.

Why Views on Climate Matter

With temperatures cooling and not rising you’d think that the debate on Global Warming, or Climate Change as the kids are calling it these days, would be more of a debate.  Instead, most of the liberal politicians are ignoring the facts and acting to prevent more warming when much of the globe is freezing!

A great example comes to us from the U.K.  Seems some British politicians are hoping to ban plasma TVs because they use too much energy!  Read it for yourself from the Independent.

Energy-guzzling flatscreen plasma televisions will soon be banned as part of the battle against climate change, ministers have told The Independent on Sunday.

“Minimum energy performance standards” for televisions are expected to be agreed across Europe this spring, they say, and this should lead to “phasing out the most inefficient TVs”. At the same time, a compulsory labelling system will be drawn up to identify the best and worst devices.

How do Brits feel about this? The story doesn’t say.

Could you imagine if this was tried in the United States?  I know a few Texans who might say, “They’ll have to pry the remote from my cold, frozen, global cooled fingers!”

This in the face of the coldest Winter in a decade.  Glaciers grew last year in Alaska.  Snow is falling in the south of France and Madrid, Spain!  The Sun is quiet and Solar Scientists say colder decades are ahead.  We should be drilling for more oil and natural gas and burning it to produce electricity and to stay warm!  Not banning plasma TVs.

It really does matter your view of global warming. If you believe man is causing it then you have to control peoples behavior to combat it. If it’s natural and we are entering a very cold spell then it’s time to prepare by mining, and using, more fossil fuels!

It’s a debate we better have. Otherwise we could waste a lot of time, money, resources, and even lives.

Brrrrrrr

Nothing like really cold temperatures to get my blood going! If you read Drudge then you probably already saw these stories. The first one is funny to me. Protesters in Maryland chanting, “Stop Global Warming Now,” while it’s snowing on them! Just kinda funny. Not that a little snow shows that so called “Global Warming” is coming to an end, but the protesters might want to read this next story.

In Russia, they are bracing for killer cold temperatures. They are expected to fall as low as 67 below zero F!!! That’s air temperature without a wind chill! That’s amazingly cold. The article explains that temps have already been 35 below and there have been a couple of fatalities. This is in a place that is used to cold and they are closing schools and warning that the extreme cold could kill heating units. There is also a lake in Georgia, Russia that is frozen over for the first time in 50 years. Hmmmmm.

Greenland is also experiencing extreme cold. There is a bay frozen 10 centimeters thick for the first time in decades there. One very cold Winter doesn’t mean for sure we are back on the down swing in temperatures, but considering what I have blogged about the Pacific Decadal Oscillation and the Russian scientist who says the Sun is coming out of a “warm” cycle, we could see protesters changing their tune from, “End Global Warming Now,” to, “Send Some Global Warming Now.”

Seattle at Green Bay

Cold and snow. The forecast for today’s game. Perfect Packers weather. But wait. Last time the Seahawks and Packers played a snow game it was in Seattle and the Seahawks won! That was last year during the regular season.

It should be a great game this afternoon. Seattle has a decent offense and a great defense! Green Bay has a good defense and great offense! and, of course, Brett Favre. I like both teams, but the Seahawks are my team! It’s tough to win in Green Bay in the snow, but I hope the hawks find a way. If not, I’ll pull for the Packers the rest of the way.

Wouldn’t it be great if the Giants could upset the Cowboys?! The dream scenario has NY traveling to Seattle for the NFC Championship Game! That would be awesome.

On the NFC side you have to believe that the Colts and Patriots are on a collision course for the AFC Championship. It’ll be nice to see New England finish out the perfect season perfectly. However, if Seattle or Green Bay makes it to the Super Bowl I’ll probably have to root against the Patriots.

I guess we’ll find out over the next few weeks! They gotta play the games. I get to watch!

Extended Forecast – Colder!

Another scientist weighs in and he thinks the Global Warming nonsense will be proven that soon. I imagine folks are wondering this Winter as it seems to be much colder than normal in much of the country. This morning they had snow flurries in Central Florida! Not only that, but it was Ocean effect snow! Kinda crazy.

Anyway, this Russian scientist, Oleg Sorokhtin, basically is saying that human activity is minimal when it comes to climate. Sorokhtin says the Sun is the main driver and has very predictable cycles. Everyone knows about the Sun’s 11 year cycle. Sorokhtin also talks about a 200 year cycle. He says the peak warming is already finished and we are headed for much colder weather soon! Here’s an excerpt:

“The latest data, obtained by Habibullah Abdusamatov, head of the Pulkovo Observatory space research laboratory, say that Earth has passed the peak of its warmer period, and a fairly cold spell will set in quite soon, by 2012. Real cold will come when solar activity reaches its minimum, by 2041, and will last for 50-60 years or even longer.”

Read the whole article here. And stock up on warm coats and maybe some soup.

No Global Warming Here

In fact, IT’S REALLY COLD! The article linked is an opinion piece, but it does point out the record cold temperatures around the planet this year. It was exceptionally cold in the Southern Hemisphere during their Winter. Antarctica had more ice around it then EVER seen by humans! Here’s just a small excerpt from the article:

South America this year experienced one of its coldest winters in decades. In Buenos Aires, snow fell for the first time since the year 1918. Dozens of homeless people died from exposure. In Peru, 200 people died from the cold and thousands more became infected with respiratory diseases. Crops failed, livestock perished, and the Peruvian government declared a state of emergency.

People dying from cold? Not rising oceans? Hmmmm.

Here’s another article I found today. New Peer-Reviewed Study Finds ‘Warming is naturally caused and shows no human influence’. I’m sure the story will be in all the network newscasts today. Then again, probably not. Here is the first sentence from the article:

Climate scientists at the University of Rochester, the University of Alabama, and the University of Virginia report that observed patterns of temperature changes (‘fingerprints’) over the last thirty years are not in accord with what greenhouse models predict and can better be explained by natural factors, such as solar variability.

The Sun causing warming??? Wow, that’s amazing. Gee, if the Sun is responsible, and we can see times of warming and cooling in the past, maybe the planet isn’t in such big trouble after all! Sounds like good news to me! Don’t expect to hear much about it, though. The UN, and those that think we need to hand more power over to the UN are using this “Global Warming” lie to enact global taxes that will increase the power of the UN if we let it happen.

The really good news is maybe it’s getting cold enough in time for people to realize they are being lied too. Let’s hope so.

Driving Back from Texas, Thanksgiving Weekend, 2007

November 25, 2007 Snow!

Usually when I’m driving 600+ miles, I don’t stop for anything except gas and maybe a pit stop. This day was different! 4+ inches of snow in Plains was awfully perty. Click on a pic for an 800 x 600 version.

Approaching and leaving Plains, the road was pretty much covered with snow. It was nice of everyone else to make the path in the snow!

Chaves County has an exceptional courthouse. It looks even better in the snow. According to the National Weather Service 7-10″ fell Saturday Night/Sunday AM.

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