Hurricane Harbor

A writer and a tropical muse. A funky Lubavitcher who enjoys watching the weather, hurricanes, listening to music while enjoying life with a sense of humor and trying to make sense of it all!

Thursday, April 28, 2016

Holiday.... V Shaped Storm System... Watching Atlantic Spin Fantasies. Continued Threat of Severe Weather.


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Some interesting clouds in the Atlantic there.... 
far out.... 

Is it just me or does this signature over the US ...
...look like a giant vagina???


See... I don't make this stuff up...



Here in the Carolinas the left over energy from Oklahoma ...
...is falling from the sky like silver rain.

A bit of hail... very little bit.
Distant thunder and the threat that it will rain again soon.


I missed some of it.... I was cooking.
Left the food on the stove and enjoyed the balcony.
You know how much I love rain on the balcony...


I was in Myrtle Beach this week.
Would love to have seen this line there.
Rain on the beach is nice...
...but it washes away the sandcastles.

Would love for some stronger weather. 

Anyway the reason for this blog post is to remind you I'll be offline...
....for 2 days and I'll be back Saturday Night.
Busy with Passover and such... company... life... stuff.

There is a strong chance for more severe weather in the South.
The set up is there this week.
Time will tell.

You know the drill.

Keep watching the Atlantic.
Some models have been spinning fantasies.

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Sweet Tropical Dreams... 

Besos BobbiStorm
@bobbistorm on Twitter

Ps... a long shot on the tropical dreams but worth watching.
Pretty in it's own way.
Even if just spinning wheels.

Bonnie is out there somewhere...




Wednesday, April 27, 2016

Yesterdays Twisters in Oklahoma vs 2011 Outbreak. Thoughts from Old boyfriends and Storm Chasers.



5 years ago there was an epic historic Tornado outbreak.

Last night there was a strong outbreak of severe weather.
Not as severe thankfully as 2011 ....
... unless it was your house that was destroyed.


On radar it looked like this....


I followed it on my phone while traveling in South Carolina.

From the satellite imagery it looked like this...


Pretty classic signature for trouble even from outer space.
Astronauts from Andromedia could tell Planet Earth had problems.
Google it. Saturn's moon...

There has been a lot of discussion on watches and warnings yesterday.
Many thought another "outbreak" would erupt.
There was severe weather but not like 2011.
Understand an outbreak is best seen in the real view mirror.


Good article online at Forbes by Marshall Shepherd.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/marshallshepherd/2016/04/27/was-yesterdays-
severe-weather-forecast-a-bust-depends-on-perspective/#7b66648959eb


As it's a matter of perspective you read the article and see what you think.

Below I'm sharing some videos and links for the 2011 OUTBREAK.


Video of the 2011 Outbreak in Alabama.
It was a huge outbreak across multiple cities and Alabama took it hard.

For those of you who want to see how that played out in real time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cy8LtrCn438

That last link is from TWC coverage.

Spoiler Alert:
"2 merged into 1"

Birmingham is a large city.
Not a Twister tripping along on the prairie.

Extreme damage in a large metropolitan area is problematic.

NWS report is below.

http://www.srh.noaa.gov/bmx/?n=event_04272011

Truth is as my friend says... 
"it's Auntie Em season" so we are in outbreak season.


You know the Wizard ALWAYS had a thing for Dorothy in retrospect..
...but I digress.
But you know you wonder....
.... did Mrs Gulch die in the Twister like the wicked witch??

Whether you are a Baby Boomer or Generation X kid... 
Hollywood has shaped our thoughts and memories.


Fast forward years later... cows still flying.

And Auntie Em becomes Aunt Meg...
Ya... think on that ;)


Cows.... Moo...

So... stay tuned because we will have more Twister weather before...
.... we see Tropical Storm or Hurricane Bonnie.

Besos BobbiStorm
@bobbistorm on Twitter

Ps... weather outbreaks like old boyfriends are better understood...
...in the rear view mirror!!


;) somethings go together.
Words and music.
Grammar and ideas.
Storms and Storm Chasers.








Sunday, April 24, 2016

And the Pattern Continues. Purple Rain and Waiting for Spring Rain to Change into Tropical Rain on Passover.


latest_wv_loop.gif (535×440)

So that's the weather tonight.
Not a lot going on of a huge kind of interest.

Moisture in the Gulf of Mexico.
Some will move N towards the Deep South.
The rest of it will move East towards Florida.

A large Low is swirling way off the coast of Carolina.

sat_wv_east_loop-12.gif (640×512)

Again remember there has been moisture in the GOM ongoing for weeks.
That may be something worth remembering in a few weeks.
Over towards Africa we have the usual dry air and wet air.
Moisture forms low and it's too early to go there.
But never forget to remember.


Further West over the Atlantic we see it's not time yet.


Again note the moisture over the GOM and also..
...notice the storms coming off of South America headed to the Epac.

So that's weather today and tomorrow.

What else? 
Sorry I've been on a sort of working vacation the last week.
A brief explanation on my life so you can see from where I am coming....

I've been busy with the first 2 days of Passover.
They are very busy, hectic and fun.
We had 8 for one meal.
12 people for lunch.
Then 8 for dinner.
I lost track today at lunch.
Some company are leaving tomorrow.
Other parts of the family are coming in tomorrow.
It's like frontal boundaries draped across America moving in unison.
Or draped all over the living room, porch, bedrooms and in the kitchen.

As I write this I'm  drinking Sangria from left over wine from the Passover meals. It's a Ball Jar.. Mason Jar.. I live part of the year in North Carolina so we do that here........in Miami would be a cute pitcher ;)



Recipe:
Wine...not the old fashioned Manischewitz wine...the kosher kind from Trader Joes.



Pineapple Juice left in the can from a salad
1 pineapple slice
Black Cherry Kosher for Passover soda from New York (tastes a lot like Cheerwine



Sugar cause the wine from Spain is very dry....
Ice.

So you can understand I have been out of it for the last few days preparing for the holiday, getting the house ready for guests from Florida and New York and shopping ...cooking and not really watching the weather that much.

Oddly I had complained so much about seeing the nonstop election coverage on the news that I almost feel guilty for wishing it would go away. Rather than watch the election coverage or The Weather Channel I watched two days coverage of the death of Prince. You know of Purple Rain fame.



Not to be confused with Deep Purple ...
...another song and another memory.


I lived in LA once upon the time.
It didn't rain much... just mentioning that.
But I remember the weekend I was in LA and Prince changed his name.
There were massive billboards up on Sunset Blvd.
Old name... had to be changed over to new name.
Whatever... it was a part of my life.
Very vibrant, very there and a very long time ago.

Prince evolved over time.
And yet in ways he always stayed himself.
Kept singing, recording.
A true artist.

Sad to see him go.

Nice to be able to remember a time you could just go crazy ..
...and dance and dance and dance.


So back to my so called life....

Part of the annual rite of the passage of time.

When you get thru Passover you hit that point where...
.... you put away the Passover pots and pans.
The guests leave.
You clean up the house.

And you start to seriously watch the water vapor loops.
You move into the end game.
Past the boring days of waiting for the Hurricane Season to begin.
You move into what could be called Pre-Season.
Talk on Hurricane Preparation.
Talk on possible tropical rotation.
Talk on the names for the 2016 Atlantic Hurricane Season 

Will we get past Lisa?
Will we get to Lisa?


Only time will tell...

And, I'll be here telling it.
But first.... need to get through Passover.

Besos Bobbistorm
@bobbistorm on Twitter

Ps... a tribute to all those we've loved and lost.








Tuesday, April 19, 2016

Houston. 7 Dead. "Like a Tropical Storm" Historic. Interstates Shut Down. Flight Delays. More Rain on the Way.



Watch the video... til the end...see how fast the car goes under...

7 people have died so far and more are missing.
Many of the dead were found in cars submerged.

Understand when they say this is historic... remember it floods often.
Historic flooding for Houston is HUGE.

In May of 2015 there was severe flooding that seemed epic... 


It's a bit early this year... 

On MSNBC they cut into election coverage to show live rescues.

"Like a Tropical Storm..." was what the MSNBC anchor said.

Many people have said the heaviest torrential rain felt like that.


Please understand this was Interstate 10.
Not a small neighborhood street near a bayou.

Bayous are out of their banks in many areas by over a half a mile.
This is really huge...good word.

We feel sad for the horses caught in the flood...


Then we feel guilty worrying on horses .....
.....when people are missing and found dead.

Jim tries to explain why this is happening.


12 hour Water Vapor Satellite loop shows the story well.

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Partially the stalled out low pressure system to the NW... 
..partly the warm, tropical moisture being pulled N from the GOM.

Spring.
Spring Floods.
Historic Flood.

And the next 5 days shows more rain.
I said FIVE DAYS...


More rain on the way.
Some streams are still rising.

wv-animated.gif (720×480)

Not a good set up for clean up ...
...and more is on the way.

Generally best place for news in Houston is KHOU.

http://www.khou.com/

Live blog:
http://www.khou.com/news/local/live-weather-blog-
flash-flood-warning-extended/140763171

As always give what you can to help.

http://www.redcross.org/

I'll update later with more news ...

Besos BobbiStorm.. 
@Bobbistorm on Twitter








Monday, April 18, 2016

2 No Name Storms. Houston & Atlantic

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2 systems without a name are on the maps today.
Both easily visible on the satellite imagery below.


That area in the Gulf of Mexico has been anchored for days.
The moisture streaming north towards the Houston area.
The typical bayous are flooding badly.

Note the blocking High to the East of it keeping it locked in place.

wv-animated.gif (720×480)

It isn't a tropical system it just looks like one here below.


Ironically causing Tropical Storm sort of flooding.


That's a refrigerator .... use anything you can in a flood.


www.Crownweather.com had been writing about this for days.
The set up was in place and it played out as expected.

The moisture feed flowing out of the GOM is causing historic flooding.
Houston has had the most flooding since Tropical Storm Allison.


In the Atlantic Ocean is a small pinwheeling system. 
If this were June 2nd would it have a name?
Or at least some discussion dismissing it?

It does have a small purple splotch.
You know like when you want to paint your bedroom purple but...
...you just aren't sure so you scotch tape it to the wall.


It's their way of saying "duly noted" 

I hear music in the wind...
...tropical music... 


Okay being silly but you know the tropics are slowly waking up.
Stretching out their arms... 
...wiping their eyes and looking about.

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You can see both areas here. 
Area in the Atlantic looks like a blue dragon.
Orange tongue or moisture moving up towards Texas in GOM.

Some small discussion in the Tropical Atlantic Discussion.


I want to include one more map.
This map is shown on www.spaghettimodels.com


The situation in Texas and along Sabine River will only get worse.

Stay tuned... 

Besos BobbiStorm
@bobbistorm on Twitter 

Ps... Rain can be such a blessing.... 
....or such a curse.




Saturday, April 16, 2016

Dr. William M. Gray. Obituary and My Thoughts on His Passing...


Obituary for Dr. William M. Gray is below.

http://tropical.atmos.colostate.edu/Includes/Documents/gray_obituary.pdf

Spoiler alert...the M is for Mason.

I can't believe I mentioned him on Friday in my last post.
It's amazing we don't mention him more.
His name was synonymous with tropical meteorology.

So much to say about William Gray that it's hard to know where to begin. So, I'll just jump in with some random thoughts and memories. I checked my phone tonight for email and the first thing I saw was an email sent out by Jim Williams commenting on the death "of a legendary hurricane forecaster..." was all I could see on my cell phone but I knew it had to be William Gray. Sad really doesn't cut it... reflective.... remembering... amazed at the life he led and the number of lives he taught, touched and influenced in our field. He may have been the team captain but he loved his teams.. both weather wise and sports wise.

Back in 2006 I got to meet Dr. Gray up close and personal at a conference in commemoration of 50 years of Hurricane Research. Back before we did selfies or uploaded pictures in real time to Twitter. Not so long ago, but long enough that all I have are memories and a really nice mug I use during hurricane season with the 50th anniversary image shown below. Over time I got to see him speak ... but the first time I saw him.. met him.... all I could think of was how he was so larger than life in all ways... okay...  he towered over me as I'm short even in high heels but really he was huge in charisma. He was one of the most alive, natural people I've met in many ways.


http://hurricaneharbor.blogspot.com/2006/05/hurricane-research-50th-anniversary.html

My post from way back ten years ago is below.

There they are my rambling out of breath thoughts from 2006. 
Everything I said was true. Wow... doesn't cut it trust me.

You see as the blog post says... I was invited to a private sort of gathering where he was speaking before his friends, not the media and just telling it like it was... is... that was his style. Before he spoke he was speaking with my friend about how various friends were and you could see the care and concern he had for many who were older than him who weren't quite online the way he was ...  Some had passed on and you could see the sadness in his eyes, some weren't as active online and you could see his frustration he had to call them on the phone. He was one of the youngest older people I have ever met. Young, vital, funny, whimsical, brilliant, stubborn and compelling. The list could go on and on.... and on...  Whether discussing the old days when they were studying cloud seeding or Project Storm Fury or talking on his students or his protege Phil Klotzbach you could see the importance of friendship in his life. The man was so full of life and yet he was laid back, funny and natural. To watch him speak was a joy. That man loved clouds, maps, graphs, data and everyone he ever worked with be it a student or a fellow scientist. As I said calling them to wish them Happy Birthday or asking them how they were and why weren't they online ... checking in on them to make sure they were okay. What a man... so hard to describe but I'll try..

Oh his eyes... they sparkled and glowed when he spoke.


Oh his hands... he spoke with this hands.
His hands cut into the air....
.... for punctuation purposes when he explained things.


Oh his shirts... bright sky blue and passionate purple.



Oh his love of his students, friends and tropical meteorology family.


Oh his love of his colleagues and his work.


Oh so many people missing and mourning him today.



You put his name into a Google Search and you find his life.



You find his students and co-workers...


Really not much I can say more so I'll leave you with Dr. Gray.

Oh his ability to speak....


To defend his views, to express his ideas and to educate others.

In 2011 he spoke with Jim Williams from Hurricane City.


Jim was there with Bill Phillips and Derek Sibley.

And yes Dr. Gray explained, defended and spoke on his own views.
As always he was thinking about the future.

It's hard to imagine a future without Dr. Gray.
It's hard to imagine a Hurricane Season without Dr. Gray.

He left behind a wealth of knowledge 

A wealth of warm memories.

This was posted by Dr. Phil Klotzbach on Twitter.
It made me smile despite feeling sad.
So I'm sharing it with you all.


I'm posting a link to an article that's worth reading.
Some good memories and explanations on who is who in meteorology.

It's a good read so please read it.

http://journals.ametsoc.org/doi/pdf/10.1175/BAMS-D-12-00110.1

It has tender, cute tidbits that might make you smile.
Like this...


I will so miss Dr. Bill Gray. Thankful I got to meet him, spend time with him and get to know him. You really haven't lived until you stop yourself from bumping into Dr. Bob Burpee (past Director of the NHC) while he's trying to grab a pastry by falling back into Dr. Gray who looks down at you and laughs. Yeah it was a great conference and listening to Dr. Gray speak was priceless.

I'll end this with how I started Friday's post.
Because his legacy is his what he has left us... 
...a generation of tropical meteorology scientists. 


The 2016 Atlantic Hurricane Seasonal Hurricane Forecast.

http://hurricane.atmos.colostate.edu/forecasts/

Besos BobbiStorm
@bobbistorm on Twitter

Ps. For more information on where to make donations or to read more this link will update info.
http://www.bohlenderfuneralchapel.com/