Scientists Develop New Way of Classifying Hurricanes
For the past 40 years, the Saffir-Simpson Scale has been used to neatly classify all hurricanes into five categories. The scale, created by Herbert Saffir and Robert Simpson in the early 70s, is simple. It measures a storm’s maximum sustained wind speed — no more, no less.… Read More
U.S. Sees Record-Low Tornadoes and Tornado Deaths
Tornado researcher Harold Brooks wrote on NSSL’s blog that the death toll from tornadoes during the past 12 months was also flirting with a record low, with just 7 tornado fatalities during the period. This is the lowest 12-month tornado death toll on record dating back to 1950, but research has shown that the 12-month period starting in September … Read More
Drought and Heat May Fuel Early Fire Season in West
Fire season may come early this year in the West, as it has more frequently in recent years, thanks to ongoing drought conditions and increasing temperatures. According to a new outlook issued by the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) in Boise, ID, major wildfires in California could begin as early as this month, nearly a month ahead of… Read More
Meet GROVER: NASA’s New Ice-Loving, Roving Robot
The GROVER will initially be operated by scientists at the National Science Foundation’s Summit Camp, where the ice sheet is about 2-miles thick, according to a NASA press release. The robot will be capable of operating at all hours during the 24-hour sunlight that characterizes the Arctic summer.… Read More
Wild Weather Swings May Be a Sign of Climate Change
The bottom line is that the wild swings in weather that have been seen across the Midwest and South Central states during the past few years, from record flood to record drought and back to record flood, may be an example of what’s in store as global warming continues to alter the atmosphere.… Read More
Drought to Floods For Some; Dryness Holds On To West
“Improbably, flooding has now replaced drought as the Midwest’s greatest imminent concern,” said Brad Rippey, U.S. Department of Agriculture meteorologist, in a press release. “In fact, from April 20 to 23, the Mississippi River rose to one of its five highest levels on record from just south of Moline, Illinois, to just north of St. Louis.… Read More
Forest Service Gets New Wildfire Tool in Time for Season
The new sensor transmits data in near real-time to crews on the ground to analyze and use for decision-making purposes. The new instrument operates like a spinning mirror, and it paints a stripe on the ground perpendicular to the motion of flight, scanning that land for signs of heat and other characteristics that mark wildfire activity, Hinkley sa… Read More
At Long Last, Great Plains Sees Some Drought Relief
While the drought is far from over in the Great Plains, the precipitation that fell this week was welcome news for a region that has needed it the most. For example, in parts of South Dakota, about 30 inches of snow fell through Wednesday, carrying more than an inch of liquid water equivalent that will help increase soil moisture.… Read More
