Hi Everyone & Happy New Year!

With the turning of the calendar it’s natural that one reflects on the past & thinks about the future.
In my case these last few days I have found this to be especially true. As I am encountering two milestones in my life.

One, being my reaching age fifty, which if I start weeping about again I’ll short out the keyboard (again) & the other being me celebrating my thirtieth year in Amateur Radio.

What drew my attention to Ham Radio was severe weather and the weather nets.

For a moment, lets journey back in time, to when I first heard of Ham Radio.

It was 1973 & I was a 15-year-old kid interested in meteorology. There was a tornado warning & my sister Diane called and said “tune around 146 on the dial & you can hear the Civil Defense talking about the storm.”

Well, she was partly right, they were talking about the storm. Something called the Alabama Emergency Net X-ray with a weird call sign W4CUE.

With every storm you would find me listening & I learned that these were “ham radio operators” & I began to want to be one of them.

Things were a little different then. The National Weather Service was called the US Weather Bureau, and was located near the Birmingham Airport, as they hadn’t moved to their future location on 11 West Oxmoor Road. The current location wasn’t even imagined.

Nexrad Radar did not exist. Nor did the Birmingham office have radar. The one radar site in Alabama was at Centerville. This was the old WSR57, which had a CRT like a sonar screen in old submarine movies. Someone had to watch the screen constantly when storms were possible to make sure nothing important was missed and the storms were tracked using grease pencils, and the forecasters had to manually turn a crank to adjust the radar’s scan elevation.

During severe weather the Birmingham Amateur Radio Club would send an operator to the Weather Bureau. When a watch was issued the operator would read the entire script, not, just a county outline or “for Jefferson County”.

“The National Severe Storms Laboratory has issued a Tornado Watch 784 for Southern Mississippi & Central Alabama until 7PM CDT. This watch is along & 70 statute miles either side of a line for 30 miles southwest of Greenville Mississippi to 10 miles north of Gadsden Alabama. Tornadoes, hail up to 3 inches in diameter and damaging thunderstorm winds are possible in and close to the watch area”.

This type detail is still available, for all watches & warnings also, with updated tornado position reports, though it is now rarely ever transmitted. One problem being that not everyone knows where to get the information. Another reason being the theory that perhaps it is too much information, that “people just tune it out” and that it just ties the frequency up, thus preventing storm and damage reports.

Others say that perhaps the opposite may be true – that people won’t tune in unless the information is there and that that information, even if annoying to some, helps listeners make decisions that lead to lives saved & allow storm spotters to better target their storm surveillance. Plus the details give the sense of urgency, that this is a real problem…don’t ignore it.

I guess like all things in life, it has to be a balance and sometimes it’s hard to balance the two approaches. I’ll admit I’m a weatherholic & like to hear what’s going on & figure that others do too. And, since the younger generation of hams doesn’t know how things were done in the “Olden Days” some tend to get uptight & downright testy when some of us old weather dogs revert to Old School Skywarn methods & give more than basic rudimentary details. And, this occasionally leads to some very interesting commentary on the operator, his methods and his parentage.

As I look back I remember some of the old Net Managers of the AENX & now called the Jefferson County Emergency Net – Louis Bohorfoush – WB4CXD, Harry Rakes – WB4AYO, Joe Smith – WA4RNP, Boyd Bradshaw – KB4GDN, a lady named Teresa Wells– KQ4JC and some kid named Steven Moss KB4FKN.

Their dedication and service to the Ham community should never be overlooked.

Nor, should the service and dedication of our ALERT.

And, I think our future is bright. New tools are steadily becoming available to us & other innovations like Phase Array Doppler Radar loom on the horizon. And, when I thing of the changes that have occurred in just the last five years, I can’t wait to see what our tomorrow holds.
I remember telling my Mom “I want to be a ham operator” & her saying “OK, if you promise me you won’t go chasing tornadoes”.

Well…. that eventually proved to be a promise blown to smithereens – and me almost with it, which is a story that will wait for another time.

Looking back over the thirty years, it’s been a fun, wacky, sometimes hair pulling, but rarely boring ride that I don’t regret.

So, how about lets shoot for sixty years?

I’m game. Get ‘er done.

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Weather Radar – A National Resource

I spoke earlier of the old WSR57 radar. Back then, in the Stone Age, there were only 66 radar sites nationwide. Today we are blessed with a transcontinental network of WSRD88’s. Every weather office has a Nexrad radar unit – 118 of them. Which is the most sensitive, most detailed radar network on the planet.

No other nation has this resource that we have. Australia has a good radar picket of their coast, but nothing inland over the deserts. Even our deserts are radar covered. Britain has decent radar system now, but, it only updates every 15 minutes & Europe has radar, but any one of our local TV stations has a better radar system than they do.

Think of Birmingham for a moment. At any given time we are being painted by radar from Shelby County, Columbus AFB, Montgomery, Ft. Rucker, Hytop/Huntsville & Atlanta/Peach Tree City. Not to mention the broadcast station radar.

So, next time you are looking at that radar image, just remember how unique it is and realize that we are spoiled totally rotten.

http://www.srh.noaa.gov/ridge/Conus/index_loop.php

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/uk/radar/

http://www.weatheronline.co.uk/

http://www.wetteronline.de/euroradf.htm

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Mark’s Almanac

January is named for the Roman god Janus, the god of gates and doors, and so openings and beginnings.

January receives more sunlight than December, but the equilibrium between incoming solar heat and the heat radiated into space by the northern snowfields does not peak until late January and early February, six weeks after winter solstice. So the weather continues to cool, with January 8 – 20 being the coldest part of the year.

The precipitation pattern usually is in the form of rain, but invasions of cold air can bring frost, snow and tornadoes.

There is a 53% chance of up to one inch of snow & a 25% chance of over one inch of snow.

Barometric pressure is highest in January.

January’s Full Moon is “Wolf Moon” in Native American folklore.

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This month’s meeting will be on January 8 at 7PM at the National Weather Service
Forecast office at the Shelby County Airport.I hope to see you there. Mark / WD4NYL
President
ALERT

www.freewebs.com/weatherlynx/

“Tis the season to be grumpy, tra-la-la-la-la La-la-la-laaa”

Christmastime is a special time of year, which brings out both the best and worst of us all.

Once upon a time I worked in retail at Sears and at Christmastime I saw some amazing sights and shining examples of weird human behavior.

Strange it was, for instance, seeing supposedly otherwise well balanced people, standing in the freezing cold at 4AM for After-Thanksgiving sales and then later seeing some of the same merry souls being carted away by the police for engaging in a donnybrook over a doll whose head resembled a derriere.

And, then later hearing that people were mystified as to why their children were crying and hiding from the Big Derriere Headed Doll’s leering glassy eyed stare – Evil Cabbage Heads from Hades.

Or, seeing people, who looked deceivingly intelligent, ignoring the warnings that “Ma’am, the reason this DVD is priced like a piece of junk is that it IS a piece of junk”, them buying it anyway & then soon and very soon returning it & jumping the salespeople for them having sold them the piece of pre-warned junk.

Also, I saw strange reactions from people, who after blasting people for not having the “New Blue Widget Thingamajig, oh you know what it is, that was in your ad” and, having it pointed out to them that they were in Sears, but, “this is a Wal-Mart ad”, and, seeing their eyes momentarily glaze over.

Yes, everyone ought to serve time, I mean be in retail at Christmas once in their lives. That’s why my hair is gray, even though I am such a young and spry thing..

But, by far and wide the kinder, gentler, brighter side of Christmas rules.

People generally seem to smile more this time of year and are friendlier, as they drift from store to store looking for gifts and treasures.

Christmastime is a time of wonder & mystery. A time of bright lights, shining trees and the time of hide and seek, as presents are hid from inquiring minds and fingers.

And, a time one’s mind and memories drift back to days of childhood, and Christmases now long gone by. And, towards friends and family, some here, some now gone & you long that they were
once again near, as it was once upon a time.

And, it’s a time to remember that the true “reason for the season” occurred in a manger, long, long ago on that first cold and chilly “Silent Night.”

Christmas is still a special time, a magical time….

So as you go about your Christmas preparations remember the magic that was once there when you were a child & don’t let that magic die.

For Christmas truly is “the most wonderful time of the year”.

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Mark’s Almanac

December is the cloudiest month of the year, with only 40 to 60% of possible sunshine poking through the clouds. It is also the stormiest month of the year for the Continental US & the Gulf of Mexico. By “stormy” meaning large-scale storms, not necessarily the tornadic storms that they bring, even though we are still in the Second Tornado Season.

A region of heavy rainfall usually forms from Texas to Northwest Florida to Tennessee and Arkansas. Cold waves bringing rain, snow, ice and occasionally tornadoes, sweep across the region.

Hurricane season is now “officially” over, however Mother Nature sometimes throws a surprise in to make life interesting. In 120 years of records, from 1885 to 2005 there have been 5 December hurricanes. The last being Hurricane Epsilon during the 2005 season, the year in which we ran out of
hurricane names.

Winter begins Winter Solstice on or about December 21 – St. Mary’s Day

December can be cloudy and cold, and, then it can swing into Spring like warmth, luring plants to bloom early, only to have the frosts and freezes to return and the plants be “nipped in the bud”.

Do you want a White Christmas? I hope you like Saskatchewan, for it won’t be happening here.

In over 100 years of weather records, there has never been a White Christmas in Birmingham. The closest we have gotten was in 1985. Flurries fell on Christmas Eve and early Christmas morning, lightly dusting some areas, but the snow was not measurable.

5.5 inches of snow fell December 22, 1929 & there was still 2.5 inches on the ground Christmas Eve. However, Christmas Day the temperature rose to 51 degrees and the snow mushed and melted away.

As my Granddad once said, “we don’t get the snow, just the cold.”

December’s Full Moon is “Cold Moon” in Native American folklore.

The Geminid Meteor Shower peaks on December 13-14. Geminids are one of the year’s best meteor showers. It’s a consistent and prolific shower, and usually the most satisfying of all the annual showers, even surpassing the more widely recognized Perseids of August This shower typically produces 50 or more meteors an hour, or about one every minute. Although some meteors can be seen a couple of days before and after the peak date, you can expect the peak of the Geminid meteors to start flying through the sky around mid-evening.

The moderately fast Geminid meteors slice through Earth’s atmosphere at some 22 miles per second. These meteors originated in a mysterious object called 3200 Phaethon, which looks like a cross between an asteroid and a burned-out comet. The Geminid meteors are named for the constellation Gemini the Twins, the shower’s point of origin. This point – called the radiant point – lies close to Gemini’s bright star, Castor. Castor is one of the two bright stars in Gemini, the other bright star is Pollux.

Gemini rises about 8:00 p.m. The meteors should be visible during the evening & peak around 2:00 a.m. You won’t need binoculars or a telescope, the naked eye is usually best for seeing. The field of view of most binoculars and telescopes is too narrow for good meteor observations.

These meteors produce long, persistent streaks or tails. I’ve only seen them once though, since it’s usually too stinking cloudy.

Give it a try. It’s worth the effort.

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This month’s meeting will be on December 11 at 7PM at the National Weather Service
Forecast office at the Shelby County Airport.

Among other things we will discuss taxes & Skywarn Appreciation day.

I hope to see you there.

And, from Mark & Teresa’s house we wish you a Merry Christmas and 73.

Mark / WD4NYL
President
ALERT

www.freewebs.com/weatherlynx/