Three Weekends In A Row . . .Nice?

Tuesday, April 29, 2008


NOWCAST- More showers, hail, thunder and clearing periods through Wednesday. A break Thursday, rain Friday and . . . perhaps the third weekend in a row with fair skies and warm temperatures. We'll see. Temperatures should warm into the 60's to near 70 Saturday through Tuesday. At least for a while we may be out of the real chilly weather. Stay tuned.

OUTCAST- Ski Bowl on the lower slopes of Mt. Hood measured 213 inches of snow early today for a new record going back to the late 1800's (although for a time it was measured across the highway at Government Camp). Over 600 inches of snow has fallen this season. The end of April and still 213 inches on the ground? Amazing. That is nearly 18 feet!

Now that data is coming in showing things have been cooling off global wise and especially after this winters crazy cold weather, more and more experts and politicians are using the term "Climate Change" rather than global warming. Ha!

And with that said, those with their own opinions are still under fire for not conforming with the accepted aspect of climate change. The latest victim is hurricane expert Dr. William Gray of Colorado University and the institution will not promote or support his predictions because of his non conformist view on Climate Change. Read here.

Looks like April will go into the record books as a cooler than normal month and drier than average. If so it will be a string of 15 out of 16 months with less than average rainfall, at least for Vancouver. Trend???

The week of May 4th through 10th is Severe Weather Awareness Week in the Pacific Northwest, including the states of Idaho, Oregon and Washington. More here

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OR
202 PM PDT TUE APR 29 2008

...SNOW POSSIBLE IN THE COASTAL MOUNTAINS AND CASCADE FOOTHILLS
OF SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON AND NORTHWEST OREGON AS WELL AS THE UPPER
HOOD RIVER VALLEY THROUGH WEDNESDAY..

COLD SPRING WEATHER IS TAKING HOLD OVER SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON AND
NORTHWEST OREGON AGAIN DURING THE FIRST HALF OF THIS WEEK.

ANOTHER RATHER COLD SYSTEM IN THE EASTERN PACIFIC WILL LOWER SNOW
LEVELS TO AROUND 2000 FEET LATER TONIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY.

SNOW ACCUMULATIONS ABOVE ABOUT 2000 FEET IN THE COASTAL
MOUNTAINS...THE CASCADE FOOTHILLS...AND THE UPPER HOOD RIVER
VALLEY COULD REACH A COUPLE OF INCHES LATER TONIGHT.. AND AGAIN
ON WEDNESDAY.


-- posted by Pat Timm @ 7:05 PM,


Snow In The Forecast

Thursday, April 17, 2008 

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OR
150 PM PDT THU APR 17 2008


150 PM PDT THU APR 17 2008

...UNSEASONABLY COLD WEATHER WITH VERY LOW SNOW LEVELS AND NEAR
RECORD LOW TEMPERATURES IN STORE FOR SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON AND
NORTHWEST OREGON THIS WEEKEND..

ALL OF NORTHWEST OREGON AND SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON WILL BE AFFECTED
BY AN UNUSUALLY COLD SPRING WEATHER SYSTEM THIS WEEKEND. THIS
SYSTEM WILL BRING SIGNIFICANT SNOW TO THE MOUNTAINS AND
FOOTHILLS...ACCUMULATING SNOW TO ELEVATIONS AS LOW AS 1000
FT...AND NEAR RECORD COLD OVERNIGHT LOWS TO THE VALLEY FLOOR.

THE TIMING OF THE COLD WEATHER IS LATE FRIDAY THROUGH MONDAY. THE
SHARPEST DROPS IN TEMPERATURES WILL OCCUR FRIDAY NIGHT INTO
SATURDAY. SNOW LEVELS WILL APPROACH VALUES MORE IN KEEPING WITH
MID WINTER THAN EARLY SPRING. THE SNOW LEVELS WILL CERTAINLY
DESCEND TO THE LOWER FOOTHILLS...AND ITS POSSIBLE THAT NON
ACCUMULATING SNOW COULD FALL AT ELEVATIONS OF 500 FT OR LESS.

THE COLDEST MORNING LOWS WILL BE ON SUNDAY AND MONDAY. THESE
TEMPERATURES ARE GOING TO CHALLENGE RECORDS AT A FEW LOCATIONS AND
WILL BE COLD ENOUGH TO HARM TENDER VEGETATION.

THIS WEEKEND...DO PROTECT ANY VULNERABLE SPRING PLANTS...AND PREPARE
FOR MID WINTER LIKE CONDITIONS IF TRAVELING THROUGH THE MOUNTAINS
AND FOOTHILLS.

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
 NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA
 422 PM PDT THU APR 17 2008
 

...UNSEASONABLY COOL SPRING WEATHER CONTINUES...

AS OF APRIL 16TH...THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE SO FAR FOR THE MONTH OF
APRIL AT SEA-TAC INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT...THE OFFICIAL CLIMATE SITE
FOR SEATTLE...WAS BEEN 46.8 DEGREES. THE FOLLOWING IS THE TOP FIVE
COOLEST APRILS ON RECORD FOR SEA-TAC.

AVERAGE                      YEAR

44.6                         1955
45.4                         1948
45.6                         1954
45.8                         1975
46.1                         1970

THE NORMAL AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH OF APRIL IS 50.2
DEGREES.

THE LATEST DATE OF SNOWFALL ON RECORD FOR SEA-TAC WAS APRIL 17TH...
SET BACK IN 1972. ON THAT DATE 1.2 INCHES OF SNOW FELL AT THE
AIRPORT. ON APRIL 16TH OF THAT YEAR...1.1 INCHES OF SNOW HAD FALLEN.


THE FOLLOWING ARE STATISTICS FOR OLYMPIA.

THE TOP FIVE COOLEST APRILS ON RECORD ARE AS FOLLOWS.

AVERAGE                       YEAR

43.6                          1955
43.8                          1972
44.0                          1975
44.5                          1964
44.8                          1948 AND 1967

AS OF APRIL 16TH...THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE IN OLYMPIA SO FAR FOR THE
MONTH OF APRIL WAS 44.1 DEGREES. THE NORMAL AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR
APRIL IS 47.4 DEGREES.

THE LATEST DATE OF SNOWFALL ON RECORD FOR OLYMPIA WAS APRIL 12TH...
BACK IN 1972. ON THAT DATE...1.8 INCHES OF SNOW FELL. HOWEVER THE
LATEST DATE OF FROZEN PRECIPITATION...OF ANY TYPE...ON RECORD WAS
APRIL 30TH...SET BACK IN 1988. ON THAT DATE...A TENTH OF AN INCH OF
SLEET OR ICE PELLETS FELL.

BELOW NORMAL TEMPERATURES ARE FORECAST FOR WESTERN WASHINGTON THE
REST OF THIS WEEKEND THROUGH AT LEAST THE FIRST HALF OF NEXT WEEK.
HIGH TEMPERATURES WILL TO BE IN THE 40S ACROSS MUCH OF THE LOWLANDS
FRIDAY THROUGH THIS WEEKEND...WITH MINIMUMS ANTICIPATED TO BE IN THE
UPPER 20S TO MID 30S. THESE READINGS ARE COMPARABLE TO WHAT IS NORMAL
DURING FEBRUARY.

A COLD AIR MASS OVER THE AREA FRIDAY AND THIS WEEKEND WILL RESULT IN
THE POTENTIAL FOR SNOW OR A RAIN AND SNOW MIX ACROSS THE LOWLANDS...
PARTICULARLY DURING THE LATE NIGHT AND EARLY MORNING HOURS.

THE LATEST OUTLOOK FROM THE CLIMATE PREDICTION CENTER INDICATED THAT
LA NINA WILL CONTINUE FOR THE NEXT THREE MONTHS. TYPICALLY...LA NINA
EPISODES TRANSLATE TO COOLER AND WETTER THAN NORMAL CONDITIONS FOR
WESTERN WASHINGTON. FOR CLIMATE OUTLOOKS AND MORE INFORMATION ON LA
NINA...VISIT WWW.CPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV. 

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA
1010 AM PDT THU APR 17 2008

WAZ001-503>519-181200-
SAN JUAN COUNTY-WESTERN WHATCOM COUNTY-SOUTHWEST INTERIOR-
EAST PUGET SOUND LOWLANDS-WESTERN SKAGIT COUNTY-EVERETT AND VICINITY-
SEATTLE/BREMERTON AREA-TACOMA AREA-ADMIRALTY INLET AREA-
HOOD CANAL AREA-LOWER CHEHALIS VALLEY AREA-OLYMPICS-
EASTERN STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA-WESTERN STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA-
NORTH COAST-CENTRAL COAST-WEST SLOPES NORTHERN CASCADES AND PASSES-
WEST SLOPES CENTRAL CASCADES AND PASSES-
1010 AM PDT THU APR 17 2008

...UNUSUALLY COLD WEATHER IS EXPECTED FRIDAY THROUGH EARLY NEXT WEEK..

A VERY COLD UPPER LEVEL LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM MOVING SOUTHEAST FROM
THE GULF OF ALASKA WILL MOVE INTO THE AREA FRIDAY AND WILL LINGER
THROUGH EARLY NEXT WEEK. THIS UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL GIVE QUITE COOL
AND UNSTABLE CONDITIONS TO THE AREA FRIDAY THROUGH THE WEEKEND.
WHILE DRIER AIR WILL BEGIN TO FILTER INTO THE AREA LATER SUNDAY
INTO MONDAY...TEMPERATURES WILL REMAIN UNUSUALLY COOL FOR MID TO
LATE APRIL.

AT THIS TIME OF YEAR...TEMPERATURES IN THE LOWLANDS TYPICALLY
RANGE FROM LOWS 35 TO 45. ..AND HIGHS ARE NEAR 60. LOW TEMPERATURES ON
FRIDAY...SATURDAY AND SUNDAY...WILL GENERALLY BE IN THE 30S...WITH
THE COLDER LOCATIONS FALLING INTO THE UPPER 20S BY SUNDAY. HIGHS
WILL BE MOSTLY IN THE 40S FRIDAY AND SATURDAY. A LITTLE WARMER
CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED ON SUNDAY WITH HIGHS NEAR 50. THESE
TEMPERATURES ARE MORE TYPICAL OF EARLY TO MID FEBRUARY. RECORD LOW
MAXIMUM TEMPERATURES ARE POSSIBLE ALL THREE DAYS. TEMPERATURES IN
THE MOUNTAINS WILL STAY IN THE 20S AND LOWER 30S.

SNOW LEVELS FRIDAY MORNING THROUGH SATURDAY MORNING WILL AVERAGE
AROUND 1000 FEET...AND MAY FALL TO NEAR SEA LEVEL IN HEAVIER
SHOWERS DURING THE NIGHT AND EARLY MORNING HOURS. ANY SNOW THAT
FALLS IN THE LOWLANDS IS UNLIKELY TO STICK...EXCEPT BRIEFLY ON
CARS AND GRASS. THE MOUNTAINS AND CASCADE PASSES WILL SEE
ACCUMULATING SNOW FRIDAY THROUGH SATURDAY...WITH ACCUMULATIONS
NEAR 1 FOOT OVER THE 2 DAY PERIOD.

STRONG HIGH PRESSURE DEVELOPING OVER BRITISH COLUMBIA SUNDAY
INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK WILL ALLOW DRIER AIR TO FILTER INTO THE AREA.
DAYTIME TEMPERATURES WILL MODERATE INTO THE LOWER TO MID 50S MONDAY.
NIGHTTIME LOWS WILL STILL BE QUITE COOL FOR THIS TIME OF YEAR WITH
THE COLDER LOCATIONS BELOW FREEZING THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING.
FROST...WITH FREEZING NIGHTTIME TEMPERATURES IN PROTECTED AND
OUTLYING AREAS WILL LIKELY CAUSE PROBLEMS FOR ANYONE WITH SENSITIVE
NURSERY STOCK...ORNAMENTALS...OR VEGETABLES THAT WERE PLANTED EARLY.

MONITOR THE FORECASTS FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CLOSELY THE
NEXT FEW DAYS.

THE FOLLOWING IS A TABLE OF RECORD LOW MAXIMUM TEMPERATURES FOR
FRIDAY THROUGH SUNDAY FOR SELECTED WESTERN WASHINGTON LOCATIONS.

               APRIL 18TH      APRIL 19TH      APRIL 20TH

SEATTLE          45/1967         47/1975         49/1970
OLYMPIA          48/1973         48/1961         50/1972
BELLINGHAM       47/1973         48/1969         49/1972
FORKS            47/1970         48/1999         48/2006
HOQUIAM          47/1960         46/1955         49/1985



-- posted by Pat Timm @ 9:20 PM,


It Was Fun While It Lasted . . .But Now We Are Past It!

Monday, April 14, 2008

NOWCAST- Showers and cooler today and Tuesday, maybe a thunder boomer and small hail. Chilly! Highs way below the season norm of 60 degrees. Say near 50 or so. Any clearing tonight and Tuesday night, expect widespread frost. Best day this week is Thursday highs 60-63 degrees under partly sunny skies. The weekend looks wet and cold with snow down to 500-1,00 feet and MAYBE wet snow at city levels. If computer models are correct but they have been keeping this on the radar scene for several days now so expect some nasty weather by the end of the week.

OUTCAST - Happy Birthday Packy! Today is Packy the elephants' 46th birthday. We share a lot in common, we both have the same birthday!! Packy had his cake yesterday, I'll have mine today thank you very much. For more on Packy, click here.

Snow in April? As mentioned above colder weather arrives by the end of the week. If this were January I would be expecting sticking snow at city levels. If you are in to computer forecast models take a look at these. Number One.
Number Two.

Summer shaping up to be drier and maybe warmer than average? Click here for the latest outlooks.

I recorded a high of 83 degrees Saturday while Vancouver only had 78 degrees. Even the coast was in the mid to upper 70's. Other communities surpassing 80 degrees Saturday afternoon included Chehalis at 84, Kelso at 82, Olympia at 82 and Scappoose at 81. Some records were:
RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURES TIED OR BROKEN ON SATURDAY APRIL 12TH...

          APRIL 12TH     OLD RECORD

SEA-TAC             79        77 1951

OLYMPIA             82        82 1951

HOQUIAM             78        78 1980

WFO-SEATTLE         79        68 1991


-- posted by Pat Timm @ 8:02 AM,


Spring Has Sprung, The Grass Has Ris' . . . I Wonder Where The Birdies Is?

Monday, April 07, 2008

NOWCAST - More showers and snow in the mountains through mid-week with cooler than average temperatures is in the cards for us. Perhaps, by the end of the week we could see plenty of sunshine and highs in the 70's. Maybe, so stay tuned. For updated local forecasts, click forecast to the right.

OUTCAST - Long time KATU weather man Jim Bosley passed away Sunday of congestive heart failure, he was 73. I sent a comment to KATU today which follows:

"Jim always had a mostly fair and sunny-side up attitude with the weather and told it like it was. I enjoyed his daily rating system and being in the weather business myself, when things got a bit too serious, I would always tune him in for a little relief causing me to laugh at myself at times. I had the opportunity to meet Jim while auditioning for a weekend weather job back in the mid 1980's at KATU. He came in and wished me luck and really calmed me down with his "go get em" cheer leading sense of direction. He will surely be missed and while he will now enjoy sunny skies and a number 10 each day in a better place, it will be only a 2 or so for the rest of us this week."
This touches me a bit because my own father died of congestive heart failure also at the age of 73.

March Rainfall Reports - So let's review some rainfall reports from your friends and neighbors around the region for last month. I recorded 4.00 inches here in north Salmon Creek; Pearson Field, Vancouver, 3.73 inches; Gary Collins, Brush Prairie, 6.80 inches; Claudia Chiasson, Carson, 10.46 inches; Tyler Mode, Minnehaha, 3.73 inches; Bud Maddux, Home Valley, 7.72 inches; Pete Conrad, Tukes Mountain, Battle Ground, 5.00 inches; Jim Knoll, Orchards, 5.82 inches; Bob Starr, Cougar, 16.37 inches; Robin Ruzek, Lakeshore, 3.78 inches; Phil Delany, above Dole Valley, 14.2 inches; Irv St. Germain, SW Prune Hill, 5.00 inches; Ellen Smart, Ridgefield, 4.40 inches; Larry Lebsack, NE Hazel Dell, 4.21 inches; Will Hayden, Five Corners, 9.16 inches; Nancy Ellifrit, Mt. Vista, 6.19 inches; Linda Roberts, Prindle, 7.49 inches; Merle Moore, two miles west of Yacolt 8.98 inches; and Murphy Dennis, Rawson Road next to Clark Rifles, 10.26 inches.

What will they think of next? For the weather and computer geek, you can get an USB plug-in thermometer/humidity sensor that logs readings right to your computer. For more information click here.


Let's see . . .how about one of those Texas ten gallon hats? Quote from our state climatologist commenting on our recent cool winter. "As you move to smaller and smaller time scales, it gets harder and harder to see the effect of rising temperatures. "If La Nina goes away and the long-term temperatures are still below average, I'll eat my hat." -Phillip Mote, March 2008.

Thanks for helping out JR!


-- posted by Pat Timm @ 1:22 PM,