Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Tsunami of Weather links

For some reason this month, I have run across what I will call a "tsunami" of weather related articles. I thought I would share them here to not only help me remember them all, but in hopes of stirring up some conversation.

Here is a fascinating article on where the United State's stands in the numerical weather prediction (NWP) game.

Has the U.S. Fallen Behind in Numerical Weather Prediction?

How useful are tornado sirens? To me, this almost seems like two different articles. It is a shame that the most important facts don't come until the end: only meant to be heard outdoors, should be one of multiple ways of receiving notification, just about as many policies for sounding them as jurisdictions that have them. I do, however, have to agree with others that even if they only help a limited number of people, they should remain a part of the warning system.

Tornado Sirens

Can a helmet help you survive in a tornado? This topic came up at the 2012 Severe Storms and Doppler Radar conference in Ankeny, IA this year, so I thought I would include it here.

Helmets for tornado safety

Here is an interesting article from the VORTEX II data analysis. I love the contradiction between the second and fourth paragraphs. Second paragraph: the ribbon spawned the tornado. Fourth paragraph: It is unclear what significance or role, if any, the ribbon might play in creating a tornado.

Low Reflectivity Ribbons

This is one of many articles that discuss the local impact wind turbines have on the environment. This is a hot topic locally here at Iowa State.

Wind Turbines and Local Heating

This article discuss repeat tornado paths. It seems unbelievably unlucky to me that people have experienced multiple tornadoes. I can see training supercells from a single event, but separate events, my goodness.

Do Tornadoes Have a Favorite Path?