Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Rain, Rain and Likely, More Rain

Over 4 inches of rain in the last 3 days, 3.12" today alone, with more on the way.  Joaquin about to become a hurricane in the Atlantic will likely bring more rain by the weekend. And, between now and the weekend, the forecast calls for a cold front to move through dropping temperatures and, you guessed it, more rain.
The muggies will be gone for a couple of days after the front comes through tomorrow but will be back for the weekend when Joaquin does whatever it's going to do to the mid-Atlantic. Keep the boots and raincoats and umbrellas nearby, time to test them.
Good luck staying dry, Today on Earth.

Saturday, September 12, 2015

New Moon with a Taste of Fall

After sliding past the now, morning planets Venus and Mars, the moon will pass between the sun and Earth a couple of hours past midnight tonight and begin another cycle that will culminate with an eclipsed Harvest Moon in a couple of weeks. With clear weather, the eclipse will be completely visible in western Africa and Europe, all of South America and eastern North America. September 27 (28 in the eastern hemisphere) is the day. The moon will be close to perigee (close to Earth) and bigger than usual and if you miss this one it will be a more than a couple of years before we'll see another. A solar eclipse will happen on the east coast of the US before the next lunar. Catch this one!!
The seasons are in flux (always, I know…) and this Sunday and coming week will be a real taste of fall. Lows into the 40's maybe and with dry air, daytime highs only into the low 80's. Daylight hours are shrinking and the dark hours continue to expand; today is two weeks from equal light (actually 3 days after the equinox with our atmosphere tweaking the daylight). Lower sun angle and shorter hours of daylight = cooler days and they are coming.
Fires continue to rage in the western US, with no end in sight (too many people, too little water…just a thought…).  Migrations continue around the uncaring globe, living residents trying to adapt. The rules are strict but clear on the big planet: Adapt, Migrate or Die.
Hope you are adapting to your changes and enjoying it. That's the challenge. I'm adjusting my diet to include shitake mushrooms finally bursting from logs inoculated spring of 2014. Time moves on and change is continuous. Happy Holladays, today on Earth.