Hurricane Sandy - Before the storm

Here is some information that can help most people in SE PA
Remember that all of the state of PA is under a state of emergency, please find your local government town, township or city sources on the web for information regarding preparation for this storm.

6abc news reported that the Mayor of Philadelphia declared a state of emergency for the city effective 5 PM today through 5pm on Tuesday.
We could see 24 to 36 hours of heavy rain from this storm event.  Winds of over 40 miles and hour will knock down branches. If we see winds of at least 58 miles and hour or more that could knock down large branches and some trees which they  say could cause long term power outages for PECO and other electric companies.
You should have batteries for a radio and flashlights for at least 3 days.
I also suggest you have a cell phone car charger.

Please visit the 6abc news story and video from the Mayor here; http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=news/local&id=8862760






The American Red Cross has set up shelters in Philadelphia
Sunday beginning at 4:00 p.m.

Philadelphia:
West Philadelphia High School
4901 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, PA

Roxborough High School
6498 Ridge Avenue
Philadelphia, PA

Samuel Fels High School
5500 Langdon Street
Philadelphia, PA
(All open at 4pm Sunday)

Other Pennsylvania shelters include:

Montgomery County:
Pottstown High Schooll
750 North Washington Street
Pottstown, PA 19464
(Opens Sunday 7pm)

Cheltenham High School
500 Rices Mill Road
Wyncote, PA 19095
(Opens Sunday 7pm)

Norristown High School
1900 Eagle Drive
Norristown, PA 19403
(Opens Sunday 7pm)

Chester County:
Avon Grove High School
257 E. State Road
West Grove, PA 19390
(Opens Sunday 7pm)

Lionville Middle School
550 W. Uwchlan Avenue
Exton, PA 19341
(Opens Sunday 7pm)

Delaware County:
Showalter Science and Discovery School
1100 West 10th Street
Chester, PA 19013
(Opens Sunday 7pm)

If you are seeking more information about being prepared or finding more information from the local Red Cross then please visit their web site at; http://www.redcross.org/news/article/SEPA-Red-Cross-Preparations-for-Hurricane-Sandy-Update

Here is the website for PEMA (PA emergency management agency; http://www.pema.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/pema_home/4463

Get your children involved in storm readiness here ;  http://www.ready.gov/kids

Hurricane tracking tools here; http://climatedriver.blogspot.com/p/national-weather-map.html
Local Weather info Alerts and Warnings from the National Weather Service; http://climatedriver.blogspot.com/p/local-radar-news.html

Being Ready for Hurricane Sandy

There is a fine line between informing the public of a dangerous situation and taking a story about a weather event and hyping is up to scare people.  The purpose of this blog page and the social media is to keep people aware of possible danger.   I want people to listen to the experts at the National Hurricane Center, The National Weather Service and NOAA as they watch the skies with satellites, dual pole radar and with super computers to inform us with the best available information.

Hurricane season normally ends November 30th, but now we see what could be a historic and dangerous storm to impact a very highly populated area.   I already see many states around the mid Atlantic area issuing states of emergency and evacuations plans for coastal areas.

The map below shows what Sandy will be doing over the next 5 days, they call this a hybrid storm.
Let us not forget what a Tropical Storm or Hurricane can bring.. These storms could trigger multiple strong thunderstorms and we will need to watch for flood warnings and even tornado warnings.
We could see 24-48 hours of sustained wind and rain if the storm hits Delaware into Philadelphia.

Being Ready

Please check local news and weather reports regularly.
A Tropical Storm Warning means that tropical storm conditions are expected in this case within 24 to 36 hours.
A Tropical Storm Watch means that tropical storm conditions are possible within the watch area, within 48 hours.

Please read and learn about flood and flash flood terminology and safety tips.
Driving through a flooded area can be extremely hazardous.  Almost half of all flash flood deaths happen in vehicles.  When in your car, look out for flooding in low lying areas, at bridges, and a highway dips.  As little as SIX INCHES of water may cuase you to lose control of your vehicle.  Remember - turn around, don't drown.

Flood Watch: Flooding is possible.  Tune in to NOAA Weather Radio, commercial radio, or television for information.

Flood Warning:  Flooding is occurring or will occur soon; if local officials give notice to evacuate, do so immediately.

Flash Flood Watch: Rapid rises on streams and rivers are possible.  Be prepared to move to higher ground: listen to NOAA Weather Radio, commercial radio or television for information.

Flash Flood Warning: Rapid rises on streams and rivers are occurring; seek higher ground on foot immediately.

For detailed information visit www.ready.gov

Supplies (Red Cross)

Water - one gallon per person, per day
Food - non-perishable, easy-to-prepare items
Flashlight
Battery-powered or hand-crank radio (NOAA Weather Radio, if possible)
Extra Batteries
First Aid Kit
Medications (7- day supply) and medical items
Multi-purpose tool
Sanitation and personal hygiene items
Copies of personal documents (medication list and pertinent medical information, proof of address,
deed/lease to home, passports, birth certificates, insurance policies)
Cell phone with chargers
Family and emergency contact information
Extra Cash (ATM machines need electrical power to dispense cash)
Emergency blanket
Map(s) of the area
Fill gas tank of your car or Truck (Gas Stations need electrical power to pump fuel)

Prepare your home
Remember to bring in anything that can be blown away in a storm (lawn furniture, bicycles, etc.)
Turn on your refrigerator and freezer to the coldest setting. Keep them closed as much as possible so that food will last longer if the power goes out.  Place a few zip lock bags of water in your freezer so that you can move them frozen to the refrigerator in case you loose power.
Turn off your propane tank.
Unplug small appliances.

For more information, visit www.redcross.org

An Aurora & Suomi NPP

Satellites can record and collect important data but that is not all they can do.  The Suomi NPP satellite with its multiple instruments can also capture images high above the Earth that we admire and use to study space weather.  Back in the evening of October 4th, a solar flare erupted and shot particles of energy out of the sun which some of this energy was hurled towards the Earth.  This energy collides with the outer atmosphere and affects our magnetic field, and this effect causes  the Aurora Borealis also known as the Northern Lights to be seen in the Northern areas in Canada, Russia Alaska and other areas to the north. The image shown below was taken by the high resolution VIIRS.   There are other images of Auroras taken by the International Space station as well.

A recent online article on a Nasa website mentions that the solar energy particles that strike our atmosphere has an almost fluid like wave effect over the Earth.

The Weather Vane  has tools to help monitor the solar storms that create the Auroras, some of these solar storms can affect satellite communication, certain radio transmissions and in extreme cases power grids in Canada.

Here finally is the image captured by the Suomi NPP on October 8th, 2012

Background and image credit NASA  http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=79373

Weather Satellite Malfunction

You cannot help but to be concerned when a weather satellite malfunctions during Hurricane season.

As mentioned before the NOAA's GOES 13 Weather Satellite was not able to transmit its data and GOES 14 which is another satellite started to be used as a backup to help meteorologists to examine the entire eastern part of the U.S. and the Atlantic Ocean for potential storms.

On October 1st NOAA reported that they had the two satellites switch positions in orbit so that the GOES 14 has same viewable position that the GOES 13 had when it was working properly.

Here is a video showing the two satellites that were moved in orbit

Story source and video credit NOAA

One Weather Satellite Less

GOES 13 NOAA's Geostationary Operations Environmental Satellite 


An important weather satellite that helps us to watch the US east coast was down recently.  With swift action the GOES  14 satellite took the place of the much needed GOES 13

Here is a great animated image of GOES 13 in action last year that followed Hurricane Irene.

Current status information for GOES 13 

http://www.oso.noaa.gov/goesstatus/spacecraftStatusSummary.asp?spacecraft=13

Here is some background information on  GOES13

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GOES_13