HS TODAY: New weather satellite helps predict hurricanes

A new satellite set to launch later this month from Cape Canaveral will help weather forecasters better predict hurricanes and assist in pinpointing distress signals to trigger search-and-rescue operations.

The $499 million GOES-O (Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite) will orbit about 22,000 miles above Earth, sending back high-resolution images for the next 10 years.

TECHNOLOGY TIPS: Emergency radios

Emergency managers are constantly trying to get people to be prepared. One of the items on the disaster kit list is a battery powered radio. Well, times have changed - it should be a radio that does not need to be plugged in to the wall.

The difference is that emergency radios have more options for power than just batteries. A good emergency radio should have more than one way to power up. Other sources of power now include solar and wind-up.

Most people are aware of solar power. A built-in solar panel, when placed in sunlight, provides power to run the radio as long as the sun shines. There are obvious limitations - what happens when the sun goes away? What happens when you want to take the radio indoors?

More people are becoming aware of the wind-up option. The radio will have a hand crank that the user winds up, which provides a finite amount of power to run the radio. The limitation here is the wind up eventually winds down. (An approximate result is 60 seconds of cranking gets you 60 minutes of power.)

A good choice would be an emergency radio that has all the optional power sources. If the sun is shining, use the solar panel. When the sun goes down, switch to the hand crank. When you get cranky about cranking, switch over to the batteries. When the power returns, plug into the AC receptacle in the wall. Now that's redundancy!

Aside from the AM/FM bands, other radio options to look for are weather channels (with SAME capability), built-in light, cell phone charger, and maybe even television and/or shortwave frequencies. Another point to consider is how the radio is constructed - after all, it is an emergency radio, so consider durability and water resistance.

Some of the popular brands include Eton/Grundig, Freeplay, Midland, Oregon Scientific, Sony and even Hummer. I also found an Excaliber/Weather Channel brand, although I could not find it on the Weather Channel website. You should have no problems finding the vendors, as well as some good reviews, on the internet. (WFTND has no financial interest in any of these brands, they are provided only as information.)

FREE PRESS: New weather gizmo doubles as clock radio

Oregon Scientific has released a new weather monitor that makes it easy to know when bad weather is on the way: It sounds an alert, lets you push a button any time to hear the government forecast and looks good enough to sit in the kitchen or bedroom where it can serve as a clock radio.

TECHNOLOGY TIPS: Handheld weather stations/meters

Weather information is everywhere, but the accuracy can vary for your specific location. Sometimes you want to know what the weather is right where you are standing. While weather stations can be mobile, such as response team vehicle-mounted stations, if you want to go even more portable, check out the handheld devices listed below.

KESTREL
http://www.kestrelmeters.com/

Kestrel makes the 1000, 2000, 3000, and 4000 Series, with website list prices from $74-$309. The bottom model is a wind meter only, while the top end covers measurements such as compass, altitude, barometric pressure, relative humidity, heat stress, temperature and night vision. The top end models also include date storage and computer interface. They also have specialty meters for specific functions like Delta T, Air Flow, Evaporation Rate, or Humidity Ratio.

SPEEDTECH
http://www.speedtech.com/ (click on weather meters on the left)

Speedtech carries the Skymate and Skymaster models, ranging from $49-$190. The top end Skymaster Weather Meter provides air velocity, temperature, relative humidity, barometric pressure, altitude, dew point, heat index, and wind chill readings. The Skymaster also graphically displays 16-hour pressure history and sounds an audible warning if severe weather threatens, all in a folding pocketknife design. Speedtech also carries the Windmate brand with the 100, 200 and 300 models, listing from $94-$220. Functions range from wind speed only to compass, temperature, humidity, wind chill and dewpoint.

SKYWATCH
http://www.weatherstationcentral.com/skywatch_wind_weather_meters.html

Skywatch makes the Xplorer 1, 2, 3 and 4 models. Like the other meters listed here, the models have a variety of features depending on the model, and list from $49-$139.

WRISTWATCH
There are wristwatches with limited weather capabilities, such as compass, altimeter, barometer and temperature.

A BIT DIFFERENT
A different twist is the Bushnell ONIX400 GPS Weather Tracker, advertised as the world’s first and only handheld GPS with satellite photography and XM weather. From the website at www.ambientweather.com : “Navigate using an actual satellite photo of your surroundings – layered with all your tools, waypoints and other points of reference. Subscription access to real-time XM weather and more than 170 channels of XM Satellite Radio programming featuring news, sports, talk, entertainment and music. Introducing the world’s first handheld GPS to combine navigational aids, satellite photography and XM weather on a single screen. It shows you the perfect pinchpoint for this wind. And how you should dress for the day. NEXRAD weather data downlinked via XM Weather, layered over a georeferenced satellite map of your location keeps you prepared. It’s all housed in a rubberized defensive armor built to XPX7 waterproof standards, with a high gain SIRF GPS receiver. In your palm.”

OTHER
Other websites for handheld weather include:
http://www.ambientweather.com/handheld.html
http://www.accumall.com
http://www.forestry-suppliers.com

NOTE: All prices in this post are either estimates or MSRP, and are highly variable. You MUST do the necessary research to get the best price. I have no connection to any of these vendors. This is by no means an inclusive list, but only a guide to help you narrow your search.

ACCU WEATHER: A Cold Inaugural Day and Maybe a Snow Storm early Next Week

ORIGINAL MORNING POST:
A weak low pressure area from western Virginia will move to the New England coast by late tonight. As of 10:30 this morning, radar showed patches of snow from northern Virginia to southeastern Pennsylvania and southern New Jersey, much of it not reaching the ground. This morning's NMM-WRF model showed an upward motion max over Washington DC at 1 PM and over Philadelphia at 4 PM. On the accompanying video, I show you what this looks like. So what? The airmass in place from Virginia to Southern New England is fairly moist. If this air is forced to rise, it cools to the saturation point and soon some precipitation breaks out. We're not talking about a long period here, or any excessive amounts, but I wouldn't be surprised if we see a few bands of snow that can deliver an inch or 2 in a couple of hours. Of course, the banded structure means places between the bands will get little or nothing.

UPDATE: the bands of snow dropped 1-2 inches on some of Philadelphia's northern and western suburbs in the middle of the afternoon, but that snow retreating to the northeast (actually, the snow is not retreating, but is rather sitting on the ground where it fell. The area where snow is coming out of the clouds is moving northeast). Between 4 and 6 PM the heavier snow moved through sections of northern New Jersey and through New York City.

PORT ORCHARD INDEPENDENT: Kitsap agencies work to weather storm

Emergency Managment, Public Works among those battling to keep county safe.

The ability of different local agencies to work with each other and the public lessened the impact of this week’s heavy weather conditions.

“Every time we have an emergency, we get better at working together,” said Kitsap Department of Emergency Management (DEM) Director Phyllis Mann. “I wish we could resolve everyone’s problems, but that isn’t always possible. Instead, we have a great partnership that allows us to get things done very quickly and efficiently.”