Getting flaky with weather blogs
Look for a potentially significant change in the region’s weather pattern this week with a cold snap descending from Canada. That’s the frosty forecast from meteorologist Paul Yeager, who blogs the Western outlook as managing editor of AccuWeather.com.
Funny thing, though: Yeager has never set foot in our region. The farthest West he’s been? “Wisconsin,” he said last week. “But I am based in western Pennsylvania.”
If India can handle our customer-service calls, why shouldn’t we get our weather news from a guy back East? As Yeager pointed out, “We have the information we need to generate forecasts anywhere on the globe.”
AccuWeather shares that info on 15 blogs grouped by region – as well as topics ranging from global warming to “meteorological madness.”
The bloggy appeal of politics, celebrity gossip, sex and sports remains strong. But “weather” was AOL’s top search term of 2006. And folks who crave climate updates should warm right up to weather blogs. Here are a few to get you started:
“ “Bringing your weather into perspective” is the aim of USAToday.com’s Doyle Rice and Bob Swanson, who blog as the Weather Guys. They recap national highs and lows, explore interesting weather patterns and focus on such fun topics as categorizing snowflakes and naming windstorms.
The duo also hosts “Ask the Expert” Q&As. Topics include how the “elongated region of low atmospheric pressure,” known as a trough, affects weather, and an explanation of “crepuscular rays, the alternating light and dark beams that appear to radiate from the sun in a fanlike pattern, usually at twilight.” (You might also ask Rice why he recently attributed Spokane’s average annual snowfall to Seattle, but that would be mean.)
“ In addition to its San Francisco-based Western U.S. Winter Weather Blog, Weather Underground includes a blog by Director of Meteorology Jeffrey Masters at wunderground.com that features interesting weather photos. Masters used to fly with a group called the Hurricane Hunters until he was nearly killed flying into Hurricane Hugo.
“ The Weather Alternative, theweatheralternative.blogspot.com, builds on the work of 17th-century astronomer Johannes Kepler to make long-range forecasts. It’s all about how planetary alignments affect Earth’s weather patterns. Sample snippet: “It never ceases to amaze me how the Creator included in his handiwork a built-in and environmentally safe weather forecast system for our benefit. Good thinking!”
“ TheStormTrack.com takes a somewhat less reverent approach to the weather. Last week, the site mocked the Rev. Pat Robertson’s proclamation that God might send a tsunami to U.S. shores this year. Sample: “Get out of my way! The plastic sheeting and duct tape is mine!”
“ Other sites worth a click include the Weather Channel Blog at weather.com; the earthsky.org blog of public radio science show “Earth & Sky”; and New Yorker Jeff Ragovin’s Jeff’s Weather Blog, jeffsweather.com, on which the former TV weatherman posts some striking weather photos.
After sampling those weather blogs, I checked to see if AccuWeather’s Yeager might consider heading our way. “I’m sure there are many West Coast climates that would make me happy,” he said, “but one thing I don’t like is earthquakes.”
Spokane would be perfect for him.
Drilling Down
Locally, KXLY-TV Ch. 4 Chief Meteorologist Kris Crocker writes a Forecast Focus blog for the station’s site. She recently tipped readers to a National Weather Service review of 2006 Inland Northwest weather highlights (and lowlights). Crocker also posts long-range forecasts for the region and puts a personal spin on the weather – like when she wrote about “keeping a very nervous eye on my ponderosa pine” during a December windstorm.
Although KREM-TV Ch. 2 Weather Anchor Tom Sherry occasionally posts to his station’s group blog, Crocker’s appears to be the only local all-weather blog.
For links to mentioned sites, visit www.spokesmanreview.com/blogs/spot. Contact Frank Sennett at (509) 744-5700, or altsourceradio@yahoo.com.