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BENNINGTON, Vt. — Things have really been booming at Southern Vermont Orchards. And it's been keeping people up at night. After a series of hailstorms devastated the orchard's apple crop in 2007, the owner resorted this summer to using a hail cannon, a noisemaking machine whose sound waves supposedly disrupt the formation of hailstones. Scientists snicker at such devices. But farmers swear by 'em. As for the neighbors, they just swear.......

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(English-language translation) SAN JUAN - In addition to claiming the lives of four people, the strong tropical wave that has been affecting the island since yesterday established a record rainfall of over 24 inches in some areas within a 24-hour period. Governor Aníbal Acevedo Vilá reported today that over 24 inches of rain fell in the Municipality of Patillas, which exceeds the record established in 1985 with the rains that affected the Mameyes community of Ponce, where 185 people died. "We expect rain to continue falling throughout the entire island today," the Governor warned during a press conference where he...

I have dreaded a monster hurricane coming to our area for years. I even said that last year. My fears came true last week at this time when Hurricane Ike came crashing in. Granted it was just a Category 2 hurricane at landfall with large areas of Category 1 winds. You can hear the loud howling winds and rain. Also, you can hear the debris hitting the ground and transformers exploding and creating bright flashes that look like lightning. Going through a hurricane is torture, like having a bunch of large needles inserted into you one at a time. I...

WHERE IS FEMA?????

One again, a hurricane hits. Once again, transformers detonate in fire and sparks by the hundreds or thousands? preparedness 101 basics: SHUT DOWN THE POWER GRID BEFORE THE HURRICANE HITS. kiss: keep it simple, stupid. How much faster and less costly restoring power would be without the requirement to replace blown transformers? Get this up into the decision network. Regards, kendwell

Post pics and comments from the scene here.

This feature-length special based on Erik Larson's book "Isaac's Storm", weather experts, historians, and survivors' descendants guide us through that horrific day that claimed over 6,000 lives. September 8, 1900, began innocently in the seaside town of Galveston, Texas. Even Isaac Cline, resident meteorologist for the U.S. Weather Bureau failed to grasp the true meaning of the strange deep-sea swells and peculiar winds that greeted the city that morning. Mere hours later, Galveston found itself submerged in a monster hurricane that completely destroyed the town and killed over six thousand people in what remains the greatest natural disaster in American...

A screen grab I just took after feeding my babies. Never seen a more direct hit in my life, nor have I seen a more well defined storm come through on radar.

The site known as Miami Fort is no fort at all, and it is also much larger than previously believed – so large, in fact, that its berms stretch to almost six kilometers in length, making it twice as large as any other Native American earthworks in Ohio, and one of the largest in the nation. Those are discoveries made this summer by members of UC’s Ohio Valley Archaeology Field School project, who spent weeks working at the site in Hamilton County’s Shawnee Lookout park. What they found actually offers great insight into the cultural priorities of the Shawnee –...

In Lafourche Parish, president Charlotte Randolph issued a mandatory evacuation for Hurricane Ike in all areas south of the Leon Theriot floodgates in Golden Meadow, as well as the Pointe-Aux-Chenes community. There, a state of emergency has been called. Also, in Jefferson Parish, a mandatory evacuation has been set up for Grand Isle. There is a voluntary evacuation that begins noon Thursday for Jean Lafitte, Crown Point, Barataria and areas outside of the levee protection system. A bus will be available at Jean Lafitte Town Hall, 2654 Jean Lafitte Boulevard, at noon Thursday for those who need help evacuating. At...

(Too cheap and nondisruptive for 'real' climate change environmentalist advocates) It should be possible to counteract the global warming associated with a doubling of carbon dioxide levels by enhancing the reflectivity of low-lying clouds above the oceans, according to researchers in the US and UK. John Latham of the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, US, and colleagues say that this can be done using a worldwide fleet of autonomous ships spraying salt water into the air. Clouds are a key component of the Earth’s climate system. They can both heat the planet by trapping the longer-wavelength radiation given...

Hurricane Ike to Enter GOM Next Week by Phaedra Friend Rigzone Friday, September 05, 2008 Weather authorities warn that Hurricane Ike will enter the Gulf of Mexico next week. Currently a Category 3 hurricane, Ike is expected to travel southwest, diverting from its previous path, and enter the Gulf of Mexico by way of the Florida Keys. "Essentially, the sales are now tipping strongly toward a Gulf hit late next week, along with the attending threat to the energy production region," state Jim Rouiller, a weather forecaster with Planalytics Inc. With sustained winds of 120 mph, Hurricane Ike is currently...

Wow! Have you seen this video yet? I guess to save our planet we all must be vegetarian. How crazy is it going to get?

The Netherlands will be forced to spend about $170 billion to extend and strengthen its dykes to protect the country from rising sea levels. A committee charged with investigating the future effects of global warming on the Netherlands delivered its findings overnight. It found that the country, nearly two-thirds of which lies below sea level, must spend up to $2 billion per year over the next century on additional safety measures if it is to survive the ravages of rising sea levels. Large-scale work will be needed to extend and strengthen dykes. The report was written by the Delta commission...

More at slideshow here

Per FNC, the Army Corps of Engineers has indicated the "pounding" which could have compromised the integrity of the levees in NO is decreasing, now it's wind driven waves -- which will now begin to recede.

I was headed out to the campaign site to check the updated convention schedule and was greeted with this page when I clicked through. Go ahead and click the Take Action Now button. It goes through to: Cause Greater Than Ourselves Way to go McCain!

how is this supposed to be another katrina? the track is showing this storm going west of NOLA supposed to hit as a cat 3 not 4 as suggested earlier.. anyone here feek me?

Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama said Sunday he will tap his huge political network of donors and volunteers to help U.S. victims of Hurricane Gustav after it comes inland. "I think we can get tons of volunteers to travel down there, if it becomes necessary," Obama told reporters after attending St. Luke's Lutheran Church in Lima, Ohio.

Have been watching FNC today, for the last hour or so, the satellite image of Gustav seems to have been swinging to the west of New Orleans?... Would sure be nice, if the RNC isn't mixed in with live images of New Orleans under water again.

Environmentalism needs good villains. Rather than rely on the public’s ability to blame its own high-consuming tendencies, it’s nice if we can let them point to somsebody who’s trying to kill us all. Sarah Palin is just the thing. Sarah Palin I mean, look at her. That is the smile of the demonically possessed. More substantively, she is typical of Alaskan Republicans in that she’s a staunch ally of big oil. She supports drilling in ANWR, and generally comes down in favor of letting energy companies run pipelines wherever they want. They in turn have contributed generously to her campaigns....

John McCain should come out and suspend the Republican Convention as soon as possible and let the American people know that he is redirecting all Republican Delegates to the hurrican zone to be there, with the people of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast as volunteers...

In the peer reviewed book “Global Warming—Global Cooling, Natural Cause Found”, meteorologist and climate researcher David Dilley utilizes nearly a half million years of data linking long term gravitational cycles of the moon explain the recent global warming, rises in carbon dioxide levels, and for 2200 global warming cycles during the past half million years. The gravitational cycles are called the Primary Forcing Mechanism for Climate (PFM), and act like a magnet by pulling the atmosphere’s high pressure systems northward or southward by as much as 3 or 4 degrees of latitude from their normal seasonal positions, and thus causing...

Tropical Depression 7 has formed in the eastern Caribbean. Public AdvisoriesForecast DiscussionBuoy Data: East Caribbean BuoysWest Caribbean BuoysFlorida Buoys Visible Satellite ImageIR Sat Image LoopWater Vapor Image Loop Category Wind Speed Barometric Pressure Storm Surge Damage Potential Tropical Depression < 39 mph < 34 kts     Minimal Tropical Storm 39 - 73 mph 34 - 63 kts     Minimal Hurricane 1 (Weak) 74 - 95 mph 64 - 82 kts 28.94" or more 980.02 mb or more 4.0' - 5.0' 1.2 m - 1.5 m Minimal damage to vegetation Hurricane 2 (Moderate) 96 - 110 mph 83 -...

Weak sun created cool oceans, lowered rainfall seven times in 7,000 yearsATHENS, Ohio (Aug. 19, 2008) – A stalagmite in a West Virginia cave has yielded the most detailed geological record to date on climate cycles in eastern North America over the past 7,000 years. The new study confirms that during periods when Earth received less solar radiation, the Atlantic Ocean cooled, icebergs increased and precipitation fell, creating a series of century-long droughts. A research team led by Ohio University geologist Gregory Springer examined the trace metal strontium and carbon and oxygen isotopes in the stalagmite, which preserved climate conditions...

Statement as of 8:00 PM MDT on August 16, 2008 ... Record low maximum temperature set in Denver for August 16th... The high temperature at Denver International Airport today was 58 degrees. This 58 degree reading will replace the previous low maximum temperature record for August 16th which was 63 degrees set 118 years ago in 1890.

Forecast highs for Oklahoma City:Today: 85Saturday: 81Sunday: 81Monday: 81Tuesday: 85I can't recall a five day stretch in Oklahoma in mid-August with high temps that low.And still nary a sunspot to be seen as well...But global warming is undisputed science.

Click thread link for graphics. NWS discussion follows. ZCZC MIATWOAT ALL TTAA00 KNHC DDHHMM TROPICAL WEATHER OUTLOOK NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL 800 PM EDT WED AUG 13 2008 FOR THE NORTH ATLANTIC...CARIBBEAN SEA AND THE GULF OF MEXICO... 1. AN AREA OF LOW PRESSURE...ASSOCIATED WITH A TROPICAL WAVE...IS CENTERED A COUPLE HUNDRED MILES EAST OF THE LEEWARD ISLANDS. SHOWER ACTIVITY IS PRESENTLY LIMITED AND DISPLACED WELL TO THE NORTHEAST OF THE LOW CENTER. HOWEVER...UPPER-LEVEL WINDS ARE FORECAST TO GRADUALLY BECOME CONDUCIVE FOR DEVELOPMENT OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS...AND THIS SYSTEM COULD BECOME A TROPICAL DEPRESSION ON THURSDAY...

TV Commercial says - STOP GLOBAL WARMING NOW OR ALL THE REESES WILL MELT Visual is a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup

WTNT85 KNHC 032031 TCVAT5 FIVE WATCH/WARNING BREAKPOINTS/ADVISORY NUMBER 1 NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL AL052008 400 PM CDT SUN AUG 3 2008 .TROPICAL DEPRESSION FIVE LAZ054-059-065-066-067-068-069-040300- /O.NEW.KNHC.TR.W.1005.080803T2100Z-000000T0000Z/ 400 PM CDT SUN AUG 3 2008 INTRACOASTAL-CITY-LA 29.62N 92.04W MOUTH-MISSISSIPPI-RIVER-LA 29.12N 89.10W $$ LAZ051-052-TXZ200-213-214-215-235-236-237-238-040300- /O.NEW.KNHC.TR.A.1005.080803T2100Z-000000T0000Z/ 400 PM CDT SUN AUG 3 2008 PORT-OCONNOR-TX 28.39N 96.41W INTRACOASTAL-CITY-LA 29.62N 92.04W $$ ATTN...WFO...HGX...LIX...LCH...

BEIJING -- Normally smog plagued Beijing bathed in blue skies and sunshine on Saturday in just the sort of weather the Chinese pray will grace their Olympics and banish athletes' health fears six days before the big start. Experts attributed a rare day of fine weather in the Chinese capital to overnight rain and -- finally -- the impact of strict anti pollution measures such as ordering half the cars off the road and closing smoke-belching factories. "You see, we have done it! You can even see the mountains," enthused one Chinese student volunteer near the magnificent, newly built "Bird's...

NHC just called this 91L which is the step below a depression... NHC says they may send a plane into the system tommorrow A SURFACE TROUGH OF LOW PRESSURE ACCOMPANIED BY CLOUDINESS AND SHOWERS HAS MOVED INTO THE NORTHEASTERN GULF OF MEXICO. LITTLE MOTION IS ANTICIPATED TODAY OR SUNDAY...AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS APPEAR TO BE FAVORABLE FOR DEVELOPMENT DURING THE NEXT DAY OR TWO. IF NECESSARY...A RECONNAISSANCE PLANE WILL INVESTIGATE THE AREA ON SUNDAY. Local NWS offices in Texas expect this to drift a little more south then head west towards Texas..

"Whenever we have a little earthquake or something happens, it always reminds us to remind our citizens - are you prepared?" ... Smith said the city's No. 1 priority is the safety of its citizens. He urged residents to consider "what if" scenarios in order to prepare for a disaster. ... "I'll tell you what: When you're thinking about those three things when the building starts to shake, it's too late. Because if you're not prepared before then, you won't be prepared for the catastrophe that you may be facing," he said. Metro said dealing with a catastrophic event has...

Look into "deep time" sheds light on period considered analogous to today's climateUnaweep Canyon in the Rocky Mountains is the site of a deep gorge that reveals ancient landscapes and sediments. The inset image is of a "dropstone" from an eons-old glacier. Geoscientists have long presumed that, like today, the tropics remained warm throughout Earth's last major glaciation 300 million years ago. New evidence, however, indicates that cold temperatures in fact episodically gripped these equatorial latitudes at that time. Geologist Gerilyn Soreghan of Oklahoma University found evidence for this conclusion in the preservation of an ancient glacial landscape in the...

Today, the governmental scientific weather institute of Holland (the KNMI) published a report in which it was stated that: 1. the average temperature in Holland rose twice as much as that of the whole world over the past 100 years (1.5 vs. 0.7 degrees Celsius); and moreover, that this marks the first time that this effect can no longer, with whatever scientific method, be ascribed to coincidence; 2. but there is still no valid proof that this increase in average temperature is due to high levels of CO2-emission. I think it's an interesting piece of news on numerous levels, despite...

HOT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR FRIDAY AUGUST 1, & SATURDAY AUGUST 2, 2008

For the first time since 1836 it has snowed in Sydney - at least that's what the locals are saying. Meteorologists say technically it was soft hail, but that didn't stop the locals making snowmen. Locals say the winter wonderland in the suburbs of Roseville and Lindfield looked like snow to them, and children happily built snowmen and bought out their snowboards. More snow - or soft hail - is predicted today.

PATTEN, Maine - A "Wizard of Oz"-type storm Saturday produced a "wall of hail" so heavy it pounded pumpkins into mush and a wind so fierce it lifted a dog and two pigs into the air and peeled off a roof on Happy Corner Road, residents said Sunday. No one was injured. The storm, which brought...

OK. I had a bit of a water leak (after my hot water tank), so my power bill went up a bit... blah blah. Leak is fixed and everything is back to normal. But just as a side thought, I dug out all the old power bills I could find. The local utility breaks it down by amount used, amount used last year at this time, and avg daily temps. Gettin hot here in Seattle. NOT!!!! First figure is date, second is avg daily temp, third is avg daily temp for the previous year, and last is change. Aug 2007...

If you live along the Texas or Louisiana coast, you need to keep your eyes open for something that could mess with your plans next week. http://moe.met.fsu.edu/cgi-bin/gfdltc2.cgi?time=2008071900-invest94l&field=Sea+Level+Pressure&hour=Animation Click the FWD key. That particular forecast model, which actually has been one of the better ones in recent years, shows a Category 4 hurricane hitting just east of Houston by mid-week.