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Monthly Archives: October 2012
How were recent heavy rains so well-predicted so many days in advance?
Though we have been relatively dry for much of the autumn, on the weekend of Oct. 13-14 we received a soaking rain of 0.86 inches on Saturday followed by 1.74 inches on Sunday. Two aspects of this heavy rain event are noteworthy to us. First, though Madison averages an inch of rain in a single day about six times each year, the 1.74 inches that fell on Sunday was the most in a single calendar day in Madison since 3.61 inches of rain fell on July 22, 2010. That long stretch includes two full summers (2011 and 2012) in which we never received such a rain. Continue reading
Category: Meteorology
Tags Meteorology, precipitation
Comments Off on How were recent heavy rains so well-predicted so many days in advance?
Tags Meteorology, precipitation
Comments Off on How were recent heavy rains so well-predicted so many days in advance?
What is an air mass?
An air mass is a large body of air whose properties of temperature and humidity are similar in any horizontal direction. Air masses can cover hundreds of thousands of square miles. Air masses are formed when air stagnates for long periods of time over a uniform surface. The characteristic temperature and moisture of air masses are determined by the surface over which they form. An air mass acquires these attributes through heat and moisture exchanges with the surface. Continue reading
What are cooling degree days?
A degree day is a measure of heating or cooling. A degree day is defined as a departure of the mean daily temperature from a given standard: one degree day for each degree of departure above (or below) the base temperature during one day. The degree day is related to the outside temperature and is not related to time. Continue reading
Category: Climate
Tags Climate, Climate impacts, Temperature
Comments Off on What are cooling degree days?
Tags Climate, Climate impacts, Temperature
Comments Off on What are cooling degree days?
How is the ozone hole doing?
Currently, the ozone hole is not as large as it was in 2011, but it is larger than it was in 2010. The ozone hole refers to the rapid depletion of stratospheric ozone over Antarctica. This ozone is located in a layer about 15 miles above the surface. Continue reading
