Weather... Or Not Archive

Star Light...Star Bright!

Hello all...first off I want to encourage you to send your weather snapshots to me.  We are compiling them for a slide show that will be on our website...and if you're really lucky, I'll put some on the air.

I was inspired by a lot of the photos you sent me during the last storm.  I'm always up for cool shots...if you want to tell me the type of camera you used or special filters that would be great as well.  By the way...you it doesn't have to be fancy...you can use a snapshot from your phone too.  Just make sure it's in focus.

On to some viewer email.  This one comes in from Mike:
"Hi Josh, I always enjoy your forecasts and it's neat to learn about our local cities like the "What's in a Name" segment. I do have a question if you can answer that would be great! I live in Monrovia and in the past few morning at about 6 am in the sky to the southeast there appears to be 2 Planets shinning bright. I don't think they are stars because they are not twinkling.

Any help would be great.

Thanks, Mike in Monrovia"

Well Mike, here's what I found out...The bright light your looking at is probably Venus...and Jupiter.  In order of brightness...it's the Sun, Moon, Venus then Jupiter.  Sky and Telescope has a great rundown of what celestial events you can find during the month of February.  This is a great website to get lost in.  There are tons of fascinating articles and information.

Thanks for the email Mike...hope that helps.

The next one comes from Pat:
"Josh, Colorado has been in drought which has affected the Colorado River flow.  Lake Powell, etc. are very low.  Is there relief in the Rockies for their drought?  Thanks!

Pat Layman, OP"

Pat the Rockies have been doing well with the past several storms...however they are still under the influence of a severe drought.  Now there is some improvement...this time last year...they had extreme drought.

Here is a link to the U.S. drought monitor.

Thanks for checking in Pat.

A Blah Work Week

We are on track for a blah work week here in Southern California.  Daytime highs will struggle to reach the low 60's...overnight lows in the low 40's.  On top of that we are looking at gray skies across the board.  A cut-off low is spinning just off the coast of Northern California.  It will eventually meander down to the Southland...late this week.  If it picks up some subtropical moisture.  We could be in store for a very wet end to the week.  If it goes a little slower...maybe just a light shower day-to-day.

This is the kind of weather that makes weather anchors look bad...because the cut-off-low is going to do what the cut-off-low wants to do.

I've had a lot of emails lately on people wanting to find the perfect weather station for their home.  I found one store that has a pretty comprehensive combination of different brands.

At Weathershack.com you can find radios, stations, and other accessories.

As I am writing this entry I am listening to the democratic debate on CNN and while I am fascinated by this political year...it's becoming increasingly hard to make a decision come election time.  I found a great website that really spells out where all the candidates (republican and democratic) stand.

It's designed like a grid and you can pick out the issue that is most important to you and run down the list to see where everyone stands.

Radio Lab & Viewer Email

First off...I've got something great for you listening pleasure.  I owe a big thanks to the Mighty Dave Malkoff for turning me onto it.  Radio Lab is one of the coolest radio programs out there.  It originates from WNYC in New York.  The show is on public radio and tackles a science topic every week.  But don't get bleary eyed thinking it will be a boring lecture...no way...it will make even the most science-phobic person a believer.  You can listen to it on the website or download an mp3 version for your player.  It's also on itunes.  I suggest the show on sleep...really cool stuff!

On to the viewer email today:
"

Jan 16, 2008

Hi Josh,

I live in Orange County and have for the last 31 years. However, there's something that has practically bothered me since I was 10 and growing up in Long Beach.

Q. How did the "Santa Anas" get their name and why are they called that? For example being younger, I always loved it when the tumbleweeds would woosh down the street! (this was a time way before El Dorado Park was established and their still wasn't a lot of development). I'd ask my mom What are these winds called? And she'd reply: they're called the Santa Anas. Not understanding why, I'd say: But we don't live in Santa Ana! She'd just reply with: well, that's what they're called.

It still bugs me today when there are Santa Anas in places such as Malibu, Oxnard, ect. Who invented the name and what was the logic behind it? Its just one of those things that has never made sense to me. I hope you can find the albeit obscure answer to this weird question that probably nobody else even cares about.

Thanks for the research and keep up the good work. I watch at 12 & 2pm

Sincerely, Becky Potter"

Well Becky let's clear the air so to speak.  Santa Ana's are not named after Santa Ana.  In fact originally it was probably Santana winds...(not the singer...the devil).  Devil winds is how native american and early california settlers described the phenomenon of winds originating from the north, northeast, and east.

Santa Ana also comes from the Santa Ana mountain range.  The winds, when the flow from the east go over that range and warm up the coastal plain below.

Hopefully that clears up the Santa Ana issue Becky...thanks for watching.

Greenland May Have Actually Been Green!

I'm sure you've heard...Greenland is actually Icy...and Iceland is actually green.  Well, apparently Greenland was once very green.  According to an international team of scientists...DNA has been recovered from an ice core that indicates pine, yew, and alder trees once lived in the country.  They say this is direct evidence that Greenland which was discovered by the Vikings once had large forests.  What does this mean to you and me...well maybe if this whole global warming continues...we may be able to invest in Greenland real-estate.  We may have to wait 100,000 years...but hey it could be a good investment.

Now for my web pick...I've hit this site up before...but I really do think it is the best for keeping up to date with what is going on in Los Angeles.  LA Observed is a great website with all kinds of contributions from different authors.  It is a daily must read for me in the news business.

Well That Was Some Rain!

As predicted we recieved three waves of rain over the weekend.  The totals went anywhere from 1.50" to more than 12.00" of rain.  As of this posting we are now nearly 1.50" above average...and we have doubled our total rainfall from last year.  The other bit of good news...for the most part our hillsides held up.  So this really was what the doctor ordered.  Our local ski resorts got some fresh snow...the Sierra snow pack is running above average as well.

I am a little bummed out...I went to Las Vegas this weekend and missed most of the rainfall...and I didn't do very well at craps.  I'm not sure what was worse.

I did want you to see something funny.  I went to the Rose Bowl last week...and my good friend Steve Hartman got me the tickets.  However, there was one mix-up...he got me those tickets in the most USC section of the stadium...so there me and my wife were...in our bright orange (cal trans type) shirts...surrounded by crimson and gold.  The fans were nice enough...but I kept my cheering to a minimum.

One More Way To Kill Time

It is the last day of 2007...I would say the biggest weather story this year would be of course the dry winds of summer and fall that sparked massive brush fires all across Southern California.  As I write this blog we are under a Red Flag Warning again.  This means yet again we have the chance for fires.

On a lighter note...GO ILLINI.  If you'll read my bio I not only worked in Champaign, Illinois...I went to school at the University of Illinois.  So I will be enjoying the Rose Bowl tomorrow...even if we have a very slim chance at beating USC. 

In my last posting I told you about ways to kill time with the hollywood writiers strike...I found one more.  This one is courtesy of my good friend Robin Schorr.  Her material and acting talents as well are on the front page of Funny Or Die.  This is the website run by Will Ferrill...it's also where you will find our weather producer Phil Wilburn's material.

Happy New Year...See You in 2008!

Entertainment In These Trying Times

I know our favorite shows are off the air while the strike is on...so I wanted to make some suggestions for alternative programming.  Things to keep you occupied while you wait for new episodes of "The Office" or "How I Met Your Mother."

So first I will send you to our very own CBS2.com or KCAL9.com.  There are hours and hours of news stories if you like news.  You can watch all kinds of weather forecasts...so there is plenty of fun right here.  However, if you were looking for something a little more on the fictional side...you might want to try the website Funny Or Die.  There are great comedy bits on this site.  I encourage you to check out the work of one of our very own weather producers.  Phillip Wilburn has produced for Johnny Mountain for years and he is darn funny.  Here is a sampling of his work on the website.  If you were a fan of Thirtysomething...or My So Called Life...you will love Quarterlife.  This is a web only fictional show about 20-somethings going through trials and tribulations.  You could tool around on Youtube looking for concert footage.  I suggest this clip from the group called Nickel Creek...it's a song called If You're Gonna Leave Me. If you are into animation you might want to try Red vs. Blue.  This is a funny take on the Halo games.

It's Not Wrigley...But It's Pretty Darn Cool!

It was a busy Sunday for me...I joined Suzanne Rico (the lovely and talented) for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Walk at Dodger Stadium this weekend. It was a wonderful event for a great cause. We had 17,000 people do 4 laps around the stadium.

As one of the MC's for the event I was given the privilege of walking out into centerfield.



Being a baseball fan...I knew what a treat this was! I was excited.





I also got to meet Virginia Madsen