Hail is precipitation that is formed when updrafts in thunderstorms carry raindrops upward into extremely cold areas of the atmosphere. Hail can damage aircraft, homes and cars, and can be deadly to livestock and people. One of the people killed during the March 28, 2000 tornado in Fort Worth was killed when struck by grapefruit-size […]
We are about to flip into April. Grand Rapids starts the month with 12hr 43m daylight (sun rise to sun set) and ends the month at 14h 04m. The sun angle is the same as September 10th on the 1st and ends as the same as August 12th on the 30th. The average mean […]
On the thunderstorm spectrum, supercells are the least common type of thunderstorm, but they have a high propensity to produce severe weather, including damaging winds, very large hail, and sometimes weak to violent tornadoes. What makes a supercell unique from all other thunderstorm types is that it contains a deep and persistent rotating updraft called […]
Though a bit late I am continuing on with my posts on storms – we covered tornadoes last week. I will muddle through, though I still feel I am floundering about on the crap wagon. Once again thanks for your thoughts and prayers and for Slim filling in during my absence. As children we may […]
Thanks for all the thoughts and prayers from the loyal bloggers here for my wife and myself. There is nothing like a bad case of the flu to sweep one off their feet. My wife should be coming home today from Borgess which should give me the opportunity to get some much needed rest. We […]
While we wait on word from MV I will toss up todays post. Today I will touch on a subject that some may want to debate but the truth is here in Grand Rapids the annual mean temperature is 48.1°. Over the years there have been only 11(so far) years where the years mean temperature […]
We all hope that MV’s wife is doing better. While we wait for word on MV’s wife here is some information on Michigan’s Maple syrup Maple syrup season lasts only four to six weeks in the early spring when maple trees are dormant (i.e. before leaf buds swell and break open). When daily temperatures start […]
This week is Severe Weather Awareness week in Michigan by proclamation of Governor Whitmer. While the typical tornado season is often thought of as the peak months of April through June, most months have featured significant tornado events at one time or another. Last week we looked at various tornado events in Michigan, this week […]
With the colder then average March we are having this year lets look back at a March that was much above average. We generally do not think of the term “Heat Wave” when we think of the Month of March but in March of 2012 we had a very remarkable warm event take place. This […]
I conclude this week with the April 3rd 1956 tornado outbreak. On the days of the 2nd and 3rd an outbreak produced 47 tornadoes in the U.S. including an F5 tornado that devastated Hudsonville and Standale on April 3. It was one of three tornadoes to move across southwest Lower Michigan on that day. A […]