Hi Everyone,

I hope this finds everyone well as we look forward to the Christmas Season.

Do you know where you stand on the Naughty and Nice List?

I find it’s getting harder to trick Old Saint Nick, especially with Alexa and Siri snitching on me, for you do know they are listening, don’t you? I heard them talking about me just the other day.

Will I get a nice new antenna, good gooey chocolate or that large sack of coal, as the mechanical sounding heifers were saying just yesterday?

Only time will tell.

But, I trust you are all on the Nice list and are safe from unpleasant surprises.

So, I from the House of Mark and Teresa, we wish you all a very safe and Merry Christmas!

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

 

Skywarn Appreciation Day!

It’s time for Skywarn Day 2021!

Skywarn Recognition Day was developed in 1999 by the National Weather Service and the ARRL to honor the contributions that Skywarn volunteers make to the NWS mission – the protection of life and property during threatening weather.

During the Skywarn special event, normally hams operate from ham equipped NWS offices nationwide. The object of the event is for all participating Amateur Radio stations to exchange contact information with as many NWS stations as possible on 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, 6, 2 meters, 220 MHz and 70 centimeters. Contacts via repeaters are permitted.

These of course are not normal times, and while we won’t be activating K4NWS onsite at the NWS, we WILL be an active bunch during this event.

One exciting feature of this year’s event is its expansion to include the NWS social media outreach. There will be Facebook presentations with seminars, interviews, balloon launch footage and many other interesting surprises.

If you have never participated in SRD you definitely want to give it a go, for this is a fun event.

Details from our NWS Liaison and Station Trustee, Russel Thomas follows:

“Skywarn Recognition Day is an event celebrates the contribution of SKYWARN volunteers to the NWS’s mission. More information about the event, including Operating Procedures for the contest, Participating Offices, Echolink Info/IRLP info, all can be found at the link below. Also, NWS request you fill out the Registration form so NWS can associate your operation with a specific NWS office, the form can also be found at the following link:
https://www.weather.gov/crh/skywarnrecognition

To make contact with us via Amateur Radio:

HF: 10,17,15,20 Meters
2M FM 146.880 (BARC), 147.320 and 146.980 (SCARC)
220 FM 224.500
70cm FM 444.700
DMR Talk Group 31013 which is available on all DMR repeaters in the Birmingham area but is also available on various repeaters in the BMX county warning area.
D-Star: REF058B or REF090C/XRF334C
AllStar: 48168
EchoLink: K4NWS-L (155003)
IRLP Experimental Reflector: 0091
WinLink: K4NWS (at) winlink (dot) org

In 2020 and in response to COVID, SRD was expanded outside of Amateur Radio to include all Skywarn Storm spotters.

Here are some ways to contact our station that are not Amateur Radio:

Zello: https://zello.com/channels/k/duTMd
Telegram: http://t.me/K4NWS
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/K4NWS/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/K4NWS
MeWe: https://mewe.com/join/alert

Our participation in SRD in previous years can be found here:
http://alert-alabama.org/SRD/index.htm“

73,

Russell Thomas, KV4S
NWS Liaison and Station Trustee
http://alert-alabama.org

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

How To Manually Program That “Darned Piece Of Junk” Baofeng Radio

The Baofeng UV-5R. Hams have a love hate relationship with these little radios.

It is said by some that they reek when it comes to transmit spectral purity, throwing spurious signals far and wide making it a true all band radio since it transmits on all bands at once.

Mine can’t receive worth dog spit, and transmits even worse, but others rave about how wonderful they are. And, they may be wonderful, I sometimes have questionable luck and may have gotten a lemon.

My main complaint isn’t with the radio at all, but with the unscrupulous advertisers who sell them dirt cheap to preppers, off-roaders and anyone else without even the slightest whisper of “pssssst….you need a ham license to use these” and by doing so promote bootlegging on ham bands, public service frequencies or anywhere else they have the notion to transmit.

Some think they are similar to FRS radios and just don’t know any better and some know and don’t care. They figure “who needs a stinkin’ license, in an emergency anything goes”, and assume they will turn on the radio a radio they don’t know how to use, it will still be charged and they will call out somewhere, anywhere on the radio dial and people will be listening random oddball frequencies anxiously awaiting their call and that they will know that they aren’t just playing with Daddy’s radio, believe them and rush to their rescue.

Radio communications simply doesn’t work that way. But try to tell them and some will “bow up”, use the word “radio police” or wrap themselves in the American flag and try to pretend that displaying stupidity is some sort of patriotic act.

On the plus side, they are the least expensive means of getting on the air, are compact, good looking, which certainly counts, because who wants an pug ugly radio? and they are far superior to the junk I ran or tried to run when I got started back in the Dark Ages in 1977.

One drawback to these and other similar radios is the complexity of programming, which is certainly complicated by a manual apparently originally written in Klingonese.

Many, perhaps most, use an app called “CHIRP” to program these radios. I chose a different route.

“Why don’t you just use the durned cable that came with the radio?” I was asked.

There are two reasons. One, is I’m too old and lazy to try and learn CHIRP, secondly, I don’t want to be overly “computer dependent”.

I wanted to be able to change the programming “on the fly” in case someone said “hey, can you hit the new Podunk repeater? It ain’t even listed yet.” Or, if a repeater changes or adds subtones, I can quickly adjust. And, if I am travelling, I can program the repeaters along the route. These are common scenarios that may occur when I may not have a laptop with me.

Also, by learning this, a lot of the mystique of the radio disappears, and you can unravel other features and tricks, which were there all the time, but you just didn’t know how to access them or were afraid to try.

I will warn you right away not to expect this to work the first time, or second, or third. The CD set “Swearing Effectively In Mandarin” may come in handy. You will try, start over, try again, start over again, try yet again and…wait a minute…IT WORKED! Why did it work?….I got it!” This was my experience.

Once you have mastered the Baofeng, programming other radios such as the Wouxon are not that problematic. They all use similar methods.

So, if you have one of these radios, give it a try (or two).

I will mention that you do not need a license to listen, but you do if you intend to transmit on ham frequencies.

If you don’t have a license yet, you will want one, because, if you purchased it for emergencies, you want to become proficient in its use, protocol, procedures, limits, pros and cons and this proficiency only comes by practice, and, the knowledge gained by preparing for and passing the FCC test.

For more information, seek out your local ham club or go to: Ham Radio Licenses (arrl.org)

I strongly recommend that you find and attend your local ham club. They can help you with licensing and with ideas for setting up and using your equipment to their best advantage.

Two of the best are the Birmingham Amateur Radio Club and the Shelby County Amateur Radio Club.
http://www.w4cue.com/ & http://www.w4shl.com respectively.

Now one question that arises is “are these legal for CB, FRS, GMRS & MURs. The simple answer is “no”, They are too far up the dial to reach the CB band and they are not “type accepted” for the other services. They are legal for amateur radio only.

So, lets look at programming the Baofeng UV-5R,

First you will need a frequency list. I prefer the Repeaterbook site, RepeaterBook.com: Quick Search.

One caution to remember is that that all repeater databases are out of date. Some have been recently updated, some not for years. There is no requirement that a repeater owner list his repeater with any database. Some do, some prefer not to.

The result is you will probably end up programming some “dead” repeaters into your radio. That’s another reason why getting involved with your local club is so important. They know what repeaters are real and which are illusions.

Some repeaters are listed, but can’t be found because someone plans on putting it on the air, but, hasn’t been able to, usually due to time and finances, since putting a repeater on the air is not an inexpensive proposition. Some are missing because they are being repaired or renovated. This may take days, weeks, months even years to accomplish. Again, time and finances dictate speed.

Now, one thing worth mentioning is that unlike programming say a Kenwood or Yaesu, with a Baofeng you have to program the receive and transmit frequencies separately. This can be an advantage, in that since you have 128 channel positions, you can program frequencies that you would never want to talk on anyway. NOAA Weatheradio, for instance. MURs, FRS/GMRS, Marine, etc., you can listen to, but, since the radio is not “legal” for those frequencies, you could just program the receive side and leave the transmit side alone. My radio has many frequencies I like to listen in on, but, have no business nor desire to transmit on.

I have many non-amateur frequencies programmed into mine. The radio has a scan program, so, I can use it just like a scanner.

With that said, let us begin.

PROGRAM RECEIVE FREQUNCY

1. Charge the battery pack. (The battery indicator is for flash only. It will lie to you telling you have a strong battery right until the battery dies. Also, very soon after the battery loses peak charge the receive and transmit capability will rapidly decrease. So charge it before you begin.
2. Turn the radio on.
3. Enter “frequency mode” by pressing the VFO/MR button.
4. Press the AB button to highlight the upper frequency in the display.
5. Type in the receive frequency, for example 146.880.
6. Press MENU.
7. If the repeater uses an output subtone so that only radios set to receive a signal with this subtone will hear the signal, use the following steps to program the receive subtone. Not all repeaters use these tones and if you program them in, any signal without the tone will not be heard. I don’t use this feature, because I want to be able to hear the other signals. Especially if someone is not hitting the repeater and transmits on the repeater output. Especially useful during emergencies. If you do not wish to use this feature skip to Step 14.
8. Press MENU.
9. Using the UP/DOWN ARROW keys, go to option 1, which will be on the right side of the display. The display should show “R-CTCS Off”
10. Press MENU.
11. Using the UP/DOWN ARROW keys select the proper tone.
12. Press MENU to save the setting.
13. Press EXIT.
14. Press MENU.
15. Using the UP/DOWN ARROW keys go to option 27. The display should show “MEM-CH CH 001”
16. Press MENU.
17. Using the UP/DOWN ARROW keys scroll to an empty channel position. (Not that you cannot overwrite a currently stored frequency. You must go to option 28 “DEL-CH”, press MENU, select the channel to be erased and then press MENU to delete that channel. Then you can replace the channel with a more favored one.)
18. Press MENU.
19. Press EXIt.
20. Press VFO/MR button.
21. Using the UP/DOWN ARROW keys go to the programmed channel and see if it “took” and is there. If not, go back to Step 3.

PROGRAM TRANSMIT FREQUNCY

1. Enter “frequency mode” by pressing the VFO/MR button.
2. Press the AB button to highlight the upper frequency in the display.
3. Type in the receive frequency, for example 146.280.
4. Press MENU.
5. Using the UP/DOWN ARROW keys go to option 2 to set transmit power level.
6. Press MENU.
7. Using the UP/DOWN ARROW keys go to set either High or Low.
8. Press MENU.
9. Using the UP/DOWN ARROW keys go to option 13 to set transmit PL tone, display should read “T-CTCS OFF”.
10. Using the UP/DOWN ARROW keys go to set the tone, in this example 88.5.
11. Press MENU.
12. Using the UP/DOWN ARROW keys go to option 27. The display should show “MEM-CH CH 001”
13. Press MENU.
14. Using the UP/DOWN ARROW keys scroll to the channel of the receive frequency of 146.880.
15. Press MENU.
16. Press EXIt.
17. Press VFO/MR button.
18. Using the UP/DOWN ARROW keys scroll to the channel just programmed.
19. Key the radio (don’t forget to identify). If the repeater “kerchunks” Great! If not, go to Step 1 again.

Sometimes you will have to program the transmit information twice to get it to work. Why, only the Lord knows.

Yes, it is a pain in the posterior to try this. But, with time and sooner than you may think, the process will go faster and faster until it’s no big deal. In the process you will lose the “fear of the radio and start to tinker with other settings.

Some of these settings are:

“Using the UP/DOWN ARROW keys scroll to Option:”

Option 8, which turns the beep on or off.
Option 14, which switches the voice to English, Chinese or off.
Option 29. which controls the “tuning” LED color.
Option 30. which controls the “receive” LED color.
Option 31. which controls the “transmit” LED color
Color choices being blue, purple, amber or off.
Option 0. which controls the squelch level.
Or simply press MENU and press 0 to set the squelch level.
Pressing * turns the scan feature on.
Pressing the orange CALL button on the side turns the FM radio on.

Here is my programming scheme:

CH# Receive Transmit PL Tone Remarks

001. 146.880 146.280 88.5 Birmingham (programmed when it was the ARES frequency)
002. 146.280 146.880 – Birmingham – Reverse (to listen for weak signals)
003. 146.880 146.880 – Birmingham – Simplex (in case of repeater failure)
004. 145.130 144.530 103.5 St. Clair County
005. 145.230 144.630 203.4 Birmingham
006. 145.350 144.750 91.6 Tuscaloosa “Tall Tower”
007. 145.450 144.850 100.0 Blount County
008. 146.420 144.420 – Simplex
009. 146.500 146.500 – Simplex
010. 146.520 146.520 – Simplex
011. 146.530 146.530 – Simplex
012. 146.550 146.550 – Simplex
013. 146.555 146.555 – Simplex
014. 146.640 146.040 123.0 Walker County
015. 146.700 146.100 91.5 Blount County
016. 146.760 146.160 88.5 Birmingham (ARES Frequency)
017. 146.840 146.240 156.7 Birmingham
018. 146.880 146.280 88.5 Birmingham
019. 146.980 146.380 88.5 Shelby County
020. 147.075 147.675 67.0 Birmingham
021. 147.120 147.720 100.0 Birmingham
022. 147.140 147.740 156.7 Birmingham
023. 147.280 147.880 100.0 Birmingham
024. 147.320 147.620 88.5 Birmingham
025. 147.555 147.555 – Simplex
026. 146.580 147.580 – Simplex
041. 443.775 448.776 91.5 Birmingham
042. 444.100 449.100 162.2 Birmingham
043. 444.200 449.200 179.9 Birmingham
044. 444.700 449.700 156.7 Birmingham
045. 444.825 449.825 131.8 Birmingham
046. 444.975 449.975 156.7 Birmingham
047. 445.975 445.975 – Simplex
048. 446.000 446.000 – Simplex
049. 446.025 446.025 – Simplex
050. 446.030 446.030 – Simplex

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Receive Only

Multi-Use Radio Service – MURS

061. 151.820 – MURS 1
062. 151.880 – MURS 2
063. 151.940 – MURS 3
064. 154.570 – MURS 4 – Blue Dot (Walmart & Sam’s Club frequency)
065. 154.600 – MURS 5 – Green Dot

Marine Service

070. 156.800 – Marine Channel 16 – Emergency Channel

 

Commercial Dot & Star Frequencies

089. 151.625 – Red Dot
090. 151.955 – Purple Dot
091. 464.500 – Brown Dot
092. 464.550 – Yellow Dot
093. 467.7625 – J Dot
094. 467.8125 – K Dot
095. 467.850 – Silver Star
096. 467.875 – Gold Star
097. 467.900 – Red Star
098. 467.925 – Blue Dot

Family Radio Service & General Mobile Radio Service – FRS & GMRS

101. 462.5625 – FRS 1 / GMRS 1
102. 462.5875 – FRS 2 / GMRS 2
103. 462.6125 – FRS 3 / GMRS 3
104. 462.6375 – FRS 4 / GMRS 4
105. 462.6625 – FRS 5 / GMRS 5
106. 462.6875 – FRS 6 / GMRS 6
107. 462.7125 – FRS 7 / GMRS 7
108. 467.5625 – FRS 8 / GMRS 8
109. 467.5875 – FRS 9 / GMRS 9
110. 467.6125 – FRS 10 / GMRS 10
111. 467.6375 – FRS 11 / GMRS 11
112. 467.6625 – FRS 12 / GMRS 12
113. 467.6875 – FRS 13 / GMRS 13
114. 467.7125 – FRS 14 / GMRS 14
115. 462.550 – FRS 15 / GMRS 15
116. 462.575 – FRS 16 / GMRS 16 / White Dot
117. 462.600 – FRS 17 / GMRS 17
118. 462.625 – FRS 18 / GMRS 18 / Black Dot
119. 462.650 – FRS 19 / GMRS 19
120. 462.675 – FRS 20 / GMRS 20 / Orange Dot
121. 462.700 – FRS 21 / GMRS 21
122. 462.725 – FRS 22 / GMRS 22

128. 162.550 NOAA Weatheradio – Birmingham

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

 

 

Mark’s Almanac

December was the tenth Roman Month, from whence it gets its name, “decem” meaning “ten”. Among many Native American tribes it was called “the Moon of Clacking Rocks”, as it was the time when they prepared and manufactured stone tools, implements and weapons, since the growing season was over, and bad weather prevented them from hunting.

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 our 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.

Average precipitation in Birmingham is 4.47” of rainfall and 0.1” of snowfall.

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 return and the plants are “nipped in the bud”.

Hurricane season is now “officially” over, however Mother Nature sometimes throws a surprise in to make life interesting.

From 1851 – 2019 there have been 19 Tropical Storms and from 1822 to 2020 there have been 8 Category 1 hurricanes, but, none have ever struck the United States.

Two notable December hurricanes are:

Hurricane Alice of 1954, which is the only known Atlantic hurricane to span two calendar years and one of only two named Atlantic tropical cyclones, along with Tropical Storm Zeta of 2005, to do so.

Alice developed on December 30, 1954 from a trough of low pressure in the central Atlantic Ocean in an area of unusually favorable conditions. The storm moved southwestward and gradually strengthened to reach hurricane status. After passing through the Leeward Islands on January 2, 1955, Alice reached peak winds of 90 mph before encountering cold air and turning to the southeast. It dissipated on January 6 over the southeastern Caribbean Sea.

The last December hurricane to occur was Hurricane Epsilon during the 2005 season, the year in which we ran out of hurricane names. The year also featured Tropical Storm Zeta, the latest forming Tropical Storm which formed on December 30, 2005 and lasted until January 7, 2006.

Days continue to grow shorter as the Sun’s angle above the noonday horizon steadily decreases from 34.6 degrees at the beginning of the month to 33.0 degrees at Winter Solstice on December 21 and then the angle begins to lift reaching 33.4 degrees on New Year’s Eve,

Daylight decreases from 10 hours 6 minutes on December 1 to 9 hours 56 minutes at Winter Solstice and then increases to 9 hours 58 minutes on December 31

 

Sunrise and Sunset times for Birmingham are:

December 1 Sunrise 6:33 AM Sunset 4:39 PM
December 15 Sunrise 6:43 AM Sunset 4:40 PM
December 21 Sunrise 6:47 AM Sunset 4:43 PM
December 31 Sunrise 6:51 AM Sunset 4:49 PM

Looking skyward, at the beginning of the month, the Sun, magnitude -26.8 is in Scorpius.

Mercury, magnitude –1.4, in Scorpius is out of sight passing behind the Sun. In late December he will begin emerging from the sunset and will be briefly visible 30 minutes after sunset.

Venus, magnitude –4.9, in Sagittarius, continues to be the brilliant “evening star” in the southwest during and after twilight and reaches her greatest brilliance and highest altitude in the evening sky on December 7th, and then will begin descending a little lower every week.

Earth, magnitude -4.0, as viewed from the Sun, is in the Constellation Taurus.

Mars, magnitude +1.5, in Libra, is emerging from the sunrise and will continue gaining altitude as the months progress.

Dwarf Planet Ceres, magnitude +7.1, is in Taurus.

Jupiter, magnitude –2.3, in Capricornus, shines prominently in the South to Southwest during the evening far upper left of Venus.

Saturn, magnitudes +0.7, in Capricornus. Is 16 degrees or nearly two fist lengths to the lower right of Jupiter.

Nearby at 22 degrees or two fist lengths from Jupiter’s lower left is Fomalhaut, the Autumn Star, magnitude +1.2.

Saturn sets around 9 p.m. Jupiter sets a little more than an hour later.

When looking at Saturn and Fomalhaut, you will notice that one twinkles and the other does not. For unless there is an extremely turbulent atmosphere, planets do not twinkle.

Planets don’t twinkle because since they are closer to the Earth they are appear larger and that larger size in a sense “averages out” the turbulent effects of the atmosphere, presenting a relatively stable image to the eye. Stars, on the other hand are much more distant and being pinpoints of light, any variation is noticeable.

Uranus, magnitude 5.7, in Aries, above the head of Cetus the Sea Monster, is high in the east after dark.

Cetus, incidentally, is in the “watery” portion of the sky, with the water related constellations of Aquarius The Water Bearer, Pisces The Fish and Eridanus The River.

Eridanus is notable for containing the star 40 Eridani A, the host star of Star Trek’s planet Vulcan.

40 Eridani A, which has a formal designation of HD 26965b, has actually been found to possess a planet about twice the size of Earth and is considered the closest “super-Earth” orbiting a sunlike star.

For now, it’s known as HD 26965b, in keeping with naming guidelines set forth by the International Astronomical Union.

This newfound exoplanet is 16 light-years away.

https://www.nbcnews.com/mach/science/astronomers-just-discovered-spock-s-home-planet-vulcan-ncna911136

Live long and prosper.

Neptune, magnitude 7.7, at the Aquarius-Pisces border, is high in the south after dark.

Dwarf Planet Pluto, with his five moons shines at a dim 14.5 in Sagittarius.

Dwarf Planet 136108 Haumea, its ring and moons Hiʻiaka and Namaka, shines at a faint magnitude of 17.4 in Bootes.

Dwarf Planet 136472 Makemake with his moon faintly shines at magnitude 17.3 in Coma Berenices.

Dwarf Planet 136199 Eris and her moon Dysnomia is barely visible in the most powerful telescopes at magnitude 18.8 in Cetus the Sea Monster

4575 planets beyond our solar system have now been confirmed as of November 18, per NASA’s Exoplanet Archive http://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/

New Moon occurs December 4 at 1:44 AM CST or 7:44 UTC. The Moon will on the same side of the Earth as the Sun and will not be visible in the night sky. This is the best time of the month to observe faint objects such as galaxies and star clusters because there is no moonlight to interfere.

On November 19 there was a near Total Lunar Eclipse. If you have a Lunar or Solar Eclipse, there will be a Solar or Lunar Eclipse two weeks following, since both bodies are temporarily still in a proper alignment or orbital plane.

On December 4 there will be a Total Solar Eclipse. A total solar eclipse occurs when the moon completely blocks the Sun, revealing the Sun’s beautiful outer atmosphere known as the corona.
The total eclipse will be limited to Antarctica and the southern Atlantic Ocean. A partial eclipse will be visible throughout much of Southern Africa

The Moon will be at Perigee or its closest approach to Earth on December 4, when she will be 221,701 miles from Earth.

First Quarter Moon, or when the moon has only the Western side illuminated, will occur December 10.

The Geminid Meteor Shower peaks on December 13-14. Geminids are one of the year’s best meteor showers. It is my favorite meteor shower and considered by many to be the best shower in the heavens. 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 multicolored meteors an hour, or about one every minute, and at the peak 120 meteors per hour.

As a general rule, the dazzling Geminid meteor shower starts around mid-evening and tends to pick up steam as evening deepens into late night. No matter where you live worldwide, the greatest number of meteors usually fall in the wee hours after midnight, or for a few hours centered around 2 a.m. local time, as the Earth plows headlong into the stream. If you’re game, you can watch the Geminid shower all the way from mid-evening until dawn.

The Geminids are produced by debris left behind by an asteroid known as 3200 Phaethon, which was discovered in 1982. The shower runs annually from December 7-17. It peaks this year on the night of the 13th and morning of the 14th. The morning of the 15th could also be nearly as active this year.

The waxing gibbous moon will block out most of the fainter meteors this year. But the Geminids are so numerous and bright that this could still be a good show. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Gemini but can appear anywhere in the sky.

The Moon will be at Apogee or its farthest distance from Earth on December 17, when she will be 252,477 miles from Earth.

Full Moon occurs at 10:37 PM CST on December 18 or 4:37 UTC on December 19 when the Moon, being on the opposite side of the Earth as the Sun will be fully illuminated. This full moon was known by early Native American tribes as the Full Cold Moon because this is the time of year when the cold winter air settles in and the nights become long and dark. This moon has also been known as the Moon Before Yule and the Full Long Nights Moon.

As I write this, I am reminded of a Full Moon and a Lunar Eclipse which occurred December 30, 1963. I remember a 5-year-old me looking at it in wonder, which probably planted the seeds of interest that are resulting in the Almanac you are reading today.

I was afraid of the Moon back then, since it kept nosily peeking through the window blinds at me.

Winter Solstice will occur on December 21 at 9:59 AM CST or 19:59 UTC. The South Pole of the earth will be tilted toward the Sun, which will have reached its southernmost position in the sky and will be directly over the Tropic of Capricorn at 23.44 degrees south latitude. This is the first day of winter in the Northern Hemisphere and the first day of summer in the Southern Hemisphere.

The Ursid meteor shower, a minor meteor shower, which runs annually from December 17-25 will peak on the night and morning of December 21 – 22 producing about 5-10 meteors per hour. It is produced by dust grains left behind by comet Tuttle, which was first discovered in 1790.

The nearly full moon will be a problem this year, blocking all but the brightest meteors. But if you are patient enough, you may still be able to catch a few good ones. Best viewing will be just after midnight from a dark location far away from city lights. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Ursa Minor but can appear anywhere in the sky.

Last Quarter Moon, or when the moon has only the Eastern side illuminated, will occur December 26.

One notable object to look for in the December skies is The Great Square of Pegasus. By looking overhead, maybe a tad to the North the Square is easily seen. Looking at it facing North, you will see two parallel arms or streamers of stars coming off the upper left corner of the Square. If you look with binoculars at the second pair of stars, and move just barely North, you will see the hint of a rice grain shaped object, which, due to the nature of the human eye, frustratingly fades from view if you try looking directly at it.

This object is Messier 31, also know The Andromeda Galaxy. Boasting an apparent magnitude of 3.1, under clear, non-light polluted skies, the galaxy can be seen with the naked eye. NASA claims you can see it even in areas with moderate light pollution, though you can’t prove it my me.

If you do spot it with the unaided eye, if someone ever asks how far you can see, you can shrug and nonchalantly say “oh 2.54 million light years, give or take.”

Now if you follow the arm radiating from the Square that lies next to Messier 31 on out you will in short order come to the Double Star Cluster of Perseus, one of the best telescope targets in the heavens, And, it doesn’t take Lowell Observatory size telescope to see it.

Backyard optics will do just fine.

 

’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’

Christmas

Christmas is my favorite time of the year.

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

It is a time when one’s mind and memories drift back to days of childhood, and Christmases now long gone by. Remembering friends and family, some here, some now gone & longing that they were near once again, as it was once upon a time not so long ago.
And it is a time when, if we allow ourselves and don’t choose to “Grinch out” and be sour pusses, we can become kids once again.

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

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

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

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

The December meeting will, due to the Holidays, was held Tuesday, November 30, so the next meeting will be January 11 at 7PM.

The meeting will be done remotely as was last month’s meeting. Details and instructions will be issued as the time nears.

I hope to see you there!

Mark / WD4NYL
Editor
ALERT Newsletter
Wd4nyl@bellsouth.net

Mark’s Weatherlynx
Weather Resource Database
https://weatherlynx.webs.com/

 

 

Hi everyone,

I hope this finds you well, and untouched by the hobgoblin attack of the 31st. We had no trick or treaters this year, so you know what that means. Yes, I have to eat ALL of the candy. Which is a tough job, but someone has to do it.

As we enter November, we also enter the Fall tornado season. The Fall season is often more severe than the Spring Season.

Just as in the Spring, you need to review your plans and procedures for the storms to come.

Take this time brush up on your skills, check and prepare your equipment and make sure that you have reliable methods to receive timely watches and warnings. This includes NOAA Weatheradio and phone Apps from local broadcast media. This does not include social media posts, as the medium’s algorithm can accidently “bury” a warning in the newsfeed. Also, beware of good meaning “amateur weather experts”, including myself. Instead trust the REAL experts at our NWS. They have the training, knowledge and expertise, which you can place confidence in.

Hopefully we will have a calm Fall as we look forward toward Thanksgiving and the Holiday Season.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

“Halap, halap, I’ve fallen and I can’t get up”
Or
How to properly call for help during emergencies

(The following article originally appeared in the September 2011 Newsletter. It was one of the best received articles and I received compliments from First Responders as it deals with situations they deal with quite regularly.)

“Mark call 911!!!” ”Click” as the caller hangs up.

In my line of work, I’ve heard this more than once, and each time I have had to call the caller back and ask for the proper information to give 911, which in turn delayed the response time. This revealed to me that most people really have no idea how to make calls for emergency assistance.

The “who, what, where, when and why” rules apply and should be taught, but apparently are not.

“Call 911!” Tell me why I’m calling, so I can tell the operator. Do you need the police or paramedics?
It makes a big difference. Engine 8 isn’t very helpful in a bank robbery, and Car 347’s officers may not know how to deliver a baby.

What is the situation? The EMS will need to know. “Bringing the paddles” doesn’t do much good for a lady in labor & air splints are overkill for a guy who just fainted because he just read his power bill.

By providing the information of who you are, including an exact location of where the emergency is located and when it happened help streamline the process. The EMS will know what they are heading for and will be better mentally and physically prepared to respond properly. It eliminates the wondering and guesswork.

Another thing not really taught is how to get help via amateur radio. Do you really know how to seek help?

Just saying “Hey can someone out thar call the pair of medics over to the Walls Smart” just might not suffice.

How do you transmit a distress call? I’m glad you asked.

Now the following is to be used only for bonifide emergencies. Using it in any other case and you will end up in Leavenworth, Sing Sing, Atmore or, well, you get the idea.

Distress calling procedure:

1. Tune to your local ARES / Skywarn frequency or the most heavily populated frequency you know of.
2. If you hear stations on frequency, break in and attempt to contact them.
3. If they hear and acknowledge you, calmly give your situation, remembering the “who, what, where, when and why” rules. Then wait at the location for help. Don’t wander off. That turns a rescue into a search and rescue. In 99% of the cases STAY PUT.
4. If it seems no one has heard you, then you will have to “broadcast in the blind”. Don’t let the word “broadcast” scare you. You do this every time you send a CQ or throw your call out on a silent repeater seeking a contact.
5. Say slowly and clearly the words “MAYDAY” three times.
6. Say, “This is” and give your call sign three times and your name once.
7. Give your position as exact as possible. Give your address, or street / cross street, or highway mile marker (you do you pay attention to those little green signs, don’t you?) or if you have GPS, your latitude and longitude. Or give your distance to any well-known landmark that may help rescuers locate the incident location. Use the best or most logical options you have.
Giving latitude and longitude, when you know the street and cross street is a little kooky.
8. Give the nature of the emergency – medical, fire, criminal, etc.
9. Indicate the type of assistance required – police, EMS, etc.
10. Say “over” and listen.

Example:

Mayday – mayday – mayday. This is WD4NYL, WD4NYL, WD4NYL. My name is Mark Wells. I’m located on Highway 45 near Johnson Road. I’ve just been in an accident and I’m trapped in my car. Please call 911. Over”.

If someone responds, great! If not, there is a decent chance someone listening on a scanner could be calling 911.

If you hear no response, repeat the above for two minutes and then listen for three. If still no answer, to save your batteries, cut off the radio and wait until the top of the hour and begin calling again. It’s good if you indicate that you are going to do this, so someone listening will know to listen again.

This method is the recommended procedure for marine radios and can be effectively used on both the ham bands or on the 11-meter band.

And, yes, even though we may cuss it, every amateur in emergency communications or planning on going on a trip, should have a CB radio somewhere in their arsenal.

Repeaters may die; whole forests of repeaters may be uninhabited just when you need someone the most, or you may get stuck somewhere between the Podunk and Possum Hollow repeaters. But, chances are some Bubba is listening on Channel 9 or even more likely on Channel 19. He may call 911…. or he may come in a dually and help haul you boohunkus out of that ditch.

Giving oneself multiple options is savvy move, one that could save your hide someday.

Always have one or more backup plans.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

 

Mark’s Almanac

With the arrival of November we enter our second tornado season. Alabama and the Southeast are “blessed” by being the only area on Earth having two tornado seasons. The cause of the second season is the same as the spring season – clashes of cold and warm air masses. The cold air of winter is invading and trying to push the warmth of the summer back into the sea, which is the same process of springtime.

This second season is often more destructive than the spring season. From 1950 to 2020 there have been 279 November tornadoes in Alabama resulting in 52 fatalities and 1069 injuries. The third largest tornado outbreak occurred on November 24 – 25 2001 when 36 tornadoes occurred and 21 tornadoes occurred during the outbreak of November 23 – 24 2004.

November was Alabama’s leading tornado month from 2001 to 2011 until the dual outbreaks of April 15 and April 27 2011 erased that record.

So beware of a warm & muggy November day. Especially one with a south wind, as something may really be “in the air”.

The Hurricane threat greatly diminishes, with hurricane activity occurring mainly in the open Atlantic, threatening the Eastern Seaboard, but usually veering off into sea as cold fronts off the East Coast deflect them. Hurricanes can still form in the Caribbean, which usually visit the Yucatan, but can enter the Gulf.

From 1851 – 2020 there have been 101 Tropical Storms and 48 hurricanes, 5 of which made landfall in the United States.

Some notable November hurricanes are:

The 1932 Cuba hurricane, known also as the Hurricane of Santa Cruz del Sur or the 1932 Camagüey Hurricane. Although forming as a tropical depression on October 30, it became the only Category 5 Atlantic hurricane ever recorded in November, and was the deadliest and one of the most intense tropical cyclones in Cuban history. On November 6, the tropical cyclone reached its peak intensity as a Category 5 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 175 mph. The storm weakened to Category 4 intensity as it came ashore in Cuba’s Camagüey Province on November 9 with winds of 150 mph. The storm took 3,033 lives.

Hurricane Ida, in 2009 was the strongest land falling tropical cyclone during the 2009 Atlantic hurricane season. Ida formed on November 4 in the southwestern Caribbean, and within 24 hours struck the Nicaragua coast with winds of 80 mph. It weakened significantly over land, although it restrengthened in the Yucatán Channel to peak winds of 105 mph. Ida weakened and became an extratropical cyclone in the northern Gulf of Mexico before spreading across the southeastern United States. The remnants of Ida contributed to the formation of a nor’easter that significantly affected the eastern coast of the United States.

1985’s Hurricane Kate was the latest Hurricane in any calendar year to strike the United States.
Kate formed on November, 15 and reached hurricane intensity on November 16, and reached Category 2 intensity three days later. Kate struck the northern coast of Cuba on November 19. Once clear of land, she strengthened quickly, becoming a Category 3 storm and reached its peak intensity of 120 mph. On November 21 Kate came ashore near Mexico Beach, Florida, as Category 2 hurricane with winds of 100 mph.

Hurricane Lenny, or Wrong Way Lenny, occurred in 1999. It is the second-strongest November Atlantic hurricane on record, behind the 1932 Cuba hurricane. Lenny formed on November 13 in the western Caribbean Sea and moved retrograde from the West to East passing South of Hispaniola and Puerto Rico. He reached hurricane status south of Jamaica on November 15 and rapidly intensified over the northeastern Caribbean on November 17, attaining peak winds of 155 mph near Saint Croix in the United States Virgin Islands. It gradually weakened while moving through the Leeward Islands, eventually dissipating on November 23 over the open Atlantic Ocean.

1994’s Hurricane Gordon claimed 1122 lives in Haiti when it passed just west of the country as a tropical storm on November 13, 1994.

Figure 2 – November Tropical Cyclone Breeding Grounds

Both the Atlantic and Pacific Hurricane seasons ends November 30.

Days rapidly grow shorter as the Sun’s angle above the noonday horizon steadily decreases from 40.9 degrees at the beginning of the month to 34.8 degrees at the month’s end. Daylight decreases from 10 hours 40 minutes on November 1 to 10 hours 07 minutes on November 30.

Sunrise and sunset times for Birmingham are:

November 1 Sunrise 7:06 AM Sunset 5:55 PM
November 15 Sunrise 6:19 AM Sunset 4:45 PM – After Daylight Savings Time Ends
November 31 Sunrise 6:33 AM Sunset 4:39 PM

The blooms of summer have faded, but you may find yourself still sneezing, due to ragweed and mold.

Mold is a fall allergy trigger. You may think of mold growing in your basement or bathroom – damp areas in the house – but mold spores also love wet spots outside. Piles of damp leaves are ideal breeding grounds for mold.

Oh, and did I mention dust mites? While they are common during the humid summer months, they can get stirred into the air the first time you turn on your heat in the fall. Dust mites can trigger sneezes, wheezes, and runny noses.

November welcomes the peak of fall colors. For Birmingham the peak occurs around November 15, but the date can vary depending on your elevation & latitude.

Indian Summer and Squaw Winter continue to battle it out, but the cool or cold weather will eventually win, with the first average frost being on November 11.

The usual fall effects occur in North America with Canada’s Hudson Bay becoming unnavigable due to pack ice & icebergs. Navigation in the Great Lakes becomes perilous due to storms bringing the “Gales Of November” made famous in the Gordon Lightfoot song “The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald”.

And, don’t be surprised if you hear ducks overhead & see wedges of Canadian geese heading south for the winter. And if you see strange birds appearing in your front yard, remember that for 336 species of birds Alabama IS south for the winter.

Looking skyward, at the beginning of the month, the Sun, magnitude -26.8 is in Virgo.

Mercury, magnitude -0.7, in Virgo, is still making his best appearance of the year. As the month progresses, he sinks towards the eastern horizon and slips beyond view midmonth.

He will pass behind the Sun, or reach “Superior Conjunction” on November 28, 2021.

Venus, magnitude –4.5, in Ophiucus, shines brilliantly in the southwest during and after twilight, to the lower right of the vastly fainter Sagittarius Teapot.

Venus remains in the evening sky an hour after dark. She will continue to get a little higher and brighter into early December.

Her prominent glow in the evening sky occasionally triggers UFO reports by those not familiar with “The Morning Star”, Earth’s twin sister.

“Earth’s twin sister” because they are nearly the same size, have the same density, have volcanoes, and dense atmospheres. In the dim mists of ages past they were even more similar, both having oceans. Then they parted ways Venus entering a runaway greenhouse effect, and now sports crushing atmospheric pressure and sulfuric acid rain.

A Venusian Hades, as compared to the Garden of Eden, which is Earth.

Earth, magnitude -4.0, as viewed from the Sun, is in Taurus.

Mars, magnitude +1.5, in Virgo, remains out of sight deep in the glow of sunrise.

Dwarf Planet Ceres shines at magnitude +7.8 in Taurus.

Jupiter, magnitude -2.5, and Saturn, magnitude +0.6, glow in the south during evening, 15° apart in Capricornus. Jupiter is the bright one with Saturn, to his right or lower right.

In twilight they’re just beginning to tilt. As evening advances, they tilt more steeply as they move westward. Saturn sets around between 1 and midnight, Jupiter about an hour later.

Uranus, magnitude +5.7, in Aries, will reach his closet approach to Earth, or opposition on November 5.

The blue-green planet will be fully illuminated by the Sun. It will be brighter than any other time of the year and will be visible all night long. This is the best time to view Uranus. Due to its distance, it will only appear as a tiny blue-green dot in all but the most powerful telescopes.

Neptune, magnitude +7.7, in Aquarius remains at near peak brightness, but is fading slowly.

Dwarf Planet Pluto, with his five moons shines at a dim +14.4 in Sagittarius.

Dwarf Planet 136108 Haumea, its ring and moons Hiʻiaka and Namaka, shines at a faint magnitude of +17.4 in Bootes.

Dwarf Planet 136472 Makemake with his moon faintly shines at magnitude +17.2 in Coma Berenices.

Dwarf Planet 136199 Eris and her moon Dysnomia is barely visible in the most powerful telescopes at magnitude +18.7 in Cetus the Sea Monster

New Moon will occur November 4. The Moon will be located on the same side of the Earth as the Sun and will not be visible in the night sky. This phase occurs at 21:15 UTC or 4:15 PM CDT. This is the best time of the month to observe faint objects such as galaxies and star clusters because there is no moonlight to interfere.

The Moon will be at Perigee or its closest approach to Earth on November 5, when she will be 222,976 miles from Earth.

The First Quarter Moon occurs November 11.

The Northern Taurid Meteor Shower will occur November 11 & 12. The Northern Taurids is a long-running minor meteor shower producing only about 5-10 meteors per hour. This shower is, however, famous for producing a higher than normal percentage of bright fireballs, It is also unusual in that it consists of two separate streams. The first is produced by dust grains left behind by Asteroid 2004 TG10. The second stream is produced by debris left behind by Comet 2P Encke.

The shower runs annually from September 7 to December 10. It peaks this year on the night of the 11th and morning of the 12th. The First Quarter Moon should not overly interfere with what should be an excellent show. Best viewing will be just after midnight from a dark location far away from city lights. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Taurus, but can appear anywhere in the sky.

The annual Leonid meteor shower occurs from November 6 – 30 and peaks on the night of November 17 & the morning of the 18th. Though the Leonids are an “average shower”, producing only an average of 15 meteors per hour, they are well known for producing bright meteors and fireballs.

This shower is also unique in that it has a cyclonic peak about every 33 years where hundreds of meteors per hour can be seen. That last of these occurred in 2001. The Leonids are produced by dust grains left behind by Comet Tempel-Tuttle, which was discovered in 1865.

Its productivity varies per year, but it can deposit 12 to 13 tons of particles across the planet. Which is why having an atmosphere to shield us is such a nifty thing.

Unfortunately, the nearly full moon will dominate the sky this year, blocking all but the brightest meteors. But if you are patient, you should still be able to catch a few good ones. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Leo, but can appear anywhere in the sky.

Full Moon will occur November 19. The Moon will be located on the opposite side of the Earth as the Sun and its face will be fully illuminated. This phase occurs at 3:59 AM CST or 08:59 UTC. This full moon was known by early Native American tribes as the Beaver Moon because this was the time of year to set the beaver traps before the swamps and rivers froze. It has also been known as the Frosty Moon and the Dark Moon.

A Partial Lunar Eclipse will occur November 19. A partial lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes through the Earth’s partial shadow, or penumbra, and only a portion of it passes through the darkest shadow, or umbra. During this type of eclipse, a part of the Moon will darken as it moves through the Earth’s shadow. The eclipse will be visible throughout most of eastern Russia, Japan, the Pacific Ocean, North America, Mexico, Central America, and parts of western South America.

In Birmingham the eclipse timings are:

Eclipse Begins 12:02 AM
Partial Eclipse Begins 1:18 AM
Maximum Eclipse 3:02 AM
Partial Eclipse Ends 4:47 AM
Eclipse Ends 6:03 AM

The Moon will be at Apogee or its farthest distance from Earth on November 20, when she will be 252,448 miles from Earth.

The Last Quarter Moon occurs November 27.

4551 planets beyond our solar system have now been confirmed as of October 25, per NASA’s Exoplanet Archive http://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/.

Finally, don’t forget to set your clocks back one hour at 2 AM, Sunday morning November 7th, as Daylight Savings Time ends and the clock goes back to the way the Good Lord intended.

Look up Hezekiah 4:7, I dare you.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

This month’s meeting will be on November 9 at 7PM.

The meeting will be done remotely as was last month’s meeting.

Details and instructions will be issued as the time nears.

I have had difficulty joining in, but hopefully my technical issues will be resolved and I can will
see you there!

Mark / WD4NYL
Editor
ALERT Newsletter
wd4nyl@bellsouth.net

Mark’s Weatherlynx
Weather Resource Database
www.freewebs.com/weatherlynx/

Hi everyone and welcome to the October ALERT Newsletter.

Fall has arrived and with it we can look forward to the changing of the fall leaves, the occasional nip in the air, and perhaps Hobgoblins visiting us at the end of the month.

October is a fun time of the year, usually being not too hot and not too cold – the “Goldilocks” of seasons.

It is a time to enjoy fall football, the baseball playoffs and the last outdoor adventures of the year.

Here is hoping that you safely enjoy the days that this season and the pretty weather October brings.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Webs Of Mystery

The long-awaited dry spell finally having finally arrived, I decided to catch up on some overdue odds and ends in the basement or as I say do some “drive you crazy work” as you can work all day and not really see much results at the end of the ordeal.

Grabbing two hernia sized garbage bags I walked by the side of the house, glanced to my right at I something or the another, I don’t know what, and then looking straight ahead I came to a dead stop as my two eyes met eight eyes looking back at me from a grinning spider sitting on a gooey three-foot web hanging about three inches from my face.

If I had run headlong into the web, my neighbors would have seen me making moves that would make Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan jealous and I would have been left with an uneasy feeling that Simon The Spider was lurking somewhere on my hide waiting for an opportune moment to inject me with some grim concoction that would do strange and horrid things to me before leading my sorry carcass to the Grim Reaper.

Seeing these large webs hanging from almost every tree, I told my wife Teresa “we were going to have clear weather for a while. The spiders told me so.”

I love nature and I have always found it endlessly fascinating watching how God’s creatures somehow magically know the days forecast and even more so that “changes are in the wind” even though my weather instruments may show no evidence that anything is looming just beyond the horizon.

We also possess these “sixth senses” of nature, that some might call a “gut feeling” about our surroundings, situations, and people.

For example, you probably can recall instances where people, despite what they might be doing, saying or perhaps not saying that somehow triggered an internal signal that something was off and it later proving true. Not unlike that feeling you get that someone is staring at you, and turning towards that person, you find that it was true.

How did you know?

The secret is that we still possess the primal senses and instincts of our ancestors, but, our busy lives, endless distractions and the constant noise of man and his machines have dulled these senses to the point that we don’t even realize that they are still there.

21st Century humans are probably the least “situationally aware” generation that has ever lived.

On a typical day our eyes are pinpoint focused on a screen, as mine are now. We tune out distracting sounds or mask them with music blasting in earbuds. Our sense of touch is focused on a keyboard or screen. Scented candles or colognes mask our sense smell and the mega spiced, overheated enchilada from Macho Taco melts what few functioning taste buds we have left.

With all five senses have been dampened or defeated and our mental focus dulled by our brooding over the latest garbage we read on the Internet and cheerful messages from the YouTube Prophets Of Doom, we are so distracted that almost anything could be going on around us and we won’t have a clue.

Here is a true example. I work on the crest of Red Mountain. One day, there was a blimp visiting Birmingham for a football game, the Birmingham Bowl, if I recall, and the giant sausage came gliding by Red Mountain just a few hundred feet up. I had never seen one THAT close. “Wow!” I thought, and I looked in the parking lot which had maybe 50 people going to and fro and not a single person noticed this beast lumbering by. Everyone was talking, texting, Facebooking, and in their own little worlds.

Even if it had landed on their pointy heads, I doubt they would have noticed.

We are a comatose society.

The good news is that we can retune our senses by either unplugging, plugging in less or making a concentrated effort to just pay attention to what’s going on around us. Which in this day and age, as with any ages past, is a most intelligent move to make.

Our awareness of nature can be regained by getting away from noisy places, people and things. For instance, if you go solo camping for a week, with no radios, phones or people’s conversations to distract you, in a couple of days you will find yourself slowly getting into sync with the natural world around you.

You start hearing sounds – birds, squirrels, the wind in the trees, things which you may have never noticed before. You smell the scents of the forest – the trees, flowers and animal hints and traces. You become aware of the length of shadows and start getting an idea of the time of day, without looking at a watch and find yourself becoming in sync with natures timing. And you discover feelings and a sense of awareness that our ancestors always knew, but are brand new, almost alien to us.

Some are frightened by the thought of that solitude and the unknowns of this wild world. I relish it.

Nature supplies some interesting weather indicators. Some you read of are nonsense, some are not. The following fall into the latter category, as they are true many more times than not.

Spiders, my webbed friends. Spiders do indeed spin larger webs during periods of clear weather. Occasionally they do miss their forecasts and you see them quickly abandoning their webs as large raindrops begin striking their carefully woven artwork. If they sense rain is moving in, they will gather their webs up and stow them, as spiders are economical creatures. It takes a lot of spider goo to build a web, and the goo can be pricey. Ask any spider.

Ants will shore up their hills in anticipation of or in some cases, in response to long periods of heavy rain. The only problem is they don’t deconstruct them after the event, so if you see a foot high anthill is it because it’s going to rain, or is it left over construction?

One interesting thing I saw was on the eve of Hurricane Katrina. I was working the night shift and during my tasks I noticed ants moving en masse in the parking lot towards the West along the crest of Red Mountain. Streams of Hundreds if not thousands of them.

During consequent hurricane landfalls I learned that seismographs could detect microtremors from major hurricanes which are produced as the undersea waves crash into the continental shelf. My theory is the ants felt the vibrations.

There are many examples of ants and roaches fleeing from the shorelines, and animals panicking moments before a tsunami arrived.

Just before a tsunami struck Sri Lanka and India in 2005. elephants screamed and ran for higher ground, dogs refused to go outdoors, flamingos abandoned their low-lying nests and the zoo animals rushed into their shelters and could not be enticed to come back out.

In this case wildlife experts believed the animals’ more acute sense of hearing and other senses enabled them to hear or feel the Earth’s vibration, tipping them off to the approaching disaster long before humans realized what was going on.

With humans sometimes the only clue to an approaching tsunami is when the waters suddenly recede hundreds of feet away from the shore in a process called “drawback”, exposing the seafloor. Seeing this, people go out to collect seashells only to be washed away five minutes later by the tsunami. If you are ever on a coastline and see a mysterious drawback occurring, you have at most five minutes to flee to higher ground.

Roaches panicking in Birmingham don’t mean a tsunami. But, unless you are prone to seeing the miserable louts anyway, the sudden appearance of roaches in your house usually indicates colder weather is arriving.

Other pesky creatures, such as flies, gnats & mosquitoes bite worse before rain sets in.

Wasps, and bees retreat to their homes before rain, along with birds and spiders. When they reappear, it usually indicates the storm is about to end.

Crickets chirp faster when it’s warm and slower when it is cold.

Crickets can serve as thermometers. Tradition says that if you count the cricket’s chirps for 14 seconds and then add 40, you will obtain the temperature in Fahrenheit at the cricket’s location.

Or you can cheat and use the NWS Cricket Chirp Calculator Cricket Chirp Convertor (weather.gov)

Katydids also can give you the temperature. Per the Mississippi State Extension Services “The Gloworm” count the number of calls per minute, add 161 and divide by 3.

They also say that the first killing frost comes precisely three months after the first katydids begin to sing. In late summer when they begin to call during the day from deep shade, frost is six weeks away. Keep your ears open and mark that calendar.

(You do know that the NWS keeps a cage of crickets, katydids and roaches to help verify their instrumentation, don’t you? Would I ever lie?}

Then we come to animals.

Many years ago, I had a gray cat named Smoky who, along with my dog Wendy, were afraid of thunder. If I saw Smoky slinking around in slow motion, or Wendy looking at me with a worried look and trembling, I knew to head to the house, for they could hear the distant rumble of the storms approaching.

Smoky was an excellent sonar unit. I would be in the yard with my telescope exploring the night sky and I would pay attention to his ears as they would home on sounds, I could not hear. If they moved in a random fashion, I ignored it. If both ears locked on something and especially of his eyes opened, I knew something had his attention. It might have been a rabbit or a person in the distance, but he never gave a false indication.

Birds will tell you the wind direction, as they usually sit facing the wind, so their feathers won’t get ruffled, as it is uncomfortable.

Many, many blackbirds covering the ground means a cold front is approaching. My piano teacher told me it meant snow, but I have found it signals a cold front instead. But how they know this is a mystery. My weather instruments will show no change in humidity, dewpoint, temperature, wind speed or direction, the barometer is steady and if there are any clouds at all, they are cirriform clouds. I see no hint of a change, except for the 100 blackbirds gacking, squealing and using my car as a privy.

In the plant world, Mimosa leaves, lilies, dandelions and clover leaves close before rain and at nightfall.

Humans may smell strange or old smells and have aches in old wounds, joints and sinuses as they react to pressure changes.

And lastly, we will discuss Wooly Worms. It is said that “the wider the brown (middle) band on a woolly bear caterpillar, the milder the Winter and vice versa.”

Is this true? I don’t know. I know I am seeing more of these little fuzzballs than I have in the past.

Another mystery, to me anyway, is I have always heard these called “Wooly Worms”. I have read numerous articles saying that Southerners call these “Wooly Bears”. I have lived here 63 years and have never heard this term used even once.

The only two bears I heard of growing up was Bear Bryant and those wooly beasts of the woods that have the largely unfounded reputation of eating sleeping bag breakfast burritos.

It could be that other sections of the South do use this term. Or it may be yet another case of someone somewhere writing this and that and it sounding “good” it was repeated often enough to be taken for fact.

The mystery continues…

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Birmingham NWS Fall 2021 Spotter Courses

The Birmingham NWS will be offering several ONLINE Basic Spotter Courses and a single ONLINE Advanced Spotter Course this fall. These online classes are FREE and allow individuals to complete these courses in the comfort of their own home or office.

By attending any course, which runs about 2 hours, an individual or a group of individuals will become SKYWARN Spotters.

In following COVID-19 guidelines, the NWS is not conducting in-person classes at this time.

Unless you’d like to or are in need of a refresher, you do not need to attend more than one Basic SKYWARN Course, as the material covered is the same; however, it is required that you attend at least one Basic SKYWARN Course before taking the Advanced SKYWARN Course. These courses are two-way, meaning you will be able to interact with the meteorologist leading the training. You will be muted while training is in-progress, but you may use the built-in chat feature to ask questions.

To attend the Online Spotter Class:

1. Via the schedule below, register by clicking the link
corresponding to the class you’d like to attend.
2. Select the ‘join webinar’ button on the registration page or
in your confirmation email and follow the prompts.
3. Enjoy the class and ask questions.

To avoid being hurried, give yourself at least 15 minutes prior to the start of the class to complete the above process.

The current schedule is as follows:

Basic Class Monday, October 5 at 6:30 PM Class Registration Link:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6087494923350984463
Basic Class Wednesday, October 14 at 6:30 PM Class Registration Link:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/7033702744377814287
Basic Class Tuesday, October 21 at 1:00 PM Class Registration Link:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6582530242547858959
Basic Class Thursday, October 25 at 6:30 PM Class Registration Link:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6338615682553668367
Advanced Class Tuesday, November 1 at 6:30 PM Class Registration Link:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2027999037555563791

These classes will help you provide the NWS the vital “ground truth” information they need to verify radar indications, target their attention and help you relay reports in a clear manner to the NWS, either directly via 205-664-3010 and pressing 2, online at https://www.weather.gov/bmx/submit_storm_report
or via chat or amateur radio. This knowledge helps Skywarn Net Control stations filter reports, by giving them knowledge of what reporting stations are trying to describe. This way they can tell if the report is a valid report, an invalid report by an overly excited operator or a valid, but poorly described report, which without this knowledge would be mistakenly dismissed.

For further information on these classes visit: http://www.weather.gov/bmx/skywarnschedule

A PDF of the September 20, 2018 Basic presentation may be found at:
https://www.weather.gov/media/bmx/skywarn/BasicSpotterGSAT.pdf

A PDF of the April 4, 2019 Advanced presentation may be found at:
https://www.weather.gov/media/bmx/skywarn/Gerald_Satterwhite_Advanced_WEBPAGE.pdf

The NWS in Norman, OK have numerous YouTube videos worth exploring at:
https://www.youtube.com/user/NWSNorman/playlists

Other useful resources:

ABC33/40 Basic Storm Spotter Training
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_MzKUTfUKA

ABC 33/40 Storm Spotter Extreme Part 1 – April 2016
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOE69nsaKWE

ABC 33/40 Storm Spotter Extreme Part 2 – April 2016
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8hT7gCCQB0

ABC 33/40 Storm Spotter Extreme Part 3 – April 2016
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKHsAxNzqEM

For information on online training visit:
https://www.meted.ucar.edu/training_course.php?id=23

Note this online course IS NOT intended to replace the courses offered by the NWS offices. The local meteorologists will know factors and variations in the area microclimate that may need to be considered in assessing the observed phenomena. Consider this online course as supplemental information.

 

……………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Mark’s Almanac

The tenth Month, October is so named because it is the eighth month on the Roman calendar. To the Slavs of Eastern Europe it is called “yellow month,” from the fading of the leaves, while to the Anglo-Saxons it was known as Winterfylleth, because at this full moon (fylleth) winter was supposed to begin.

By whichever name you call it, October is a mild and dry month, the driest of the year, in fact. And it is a sunny month with the amount of possible sunshine reaching the ground in the 60% or greater range.

Weather shifts from autumn pattern to revisiting the summer pattern and back again. The Azores-Bermuda High shifts eastward into the Atlantic, but leaves weakened high pressure centers over the Virginias, which still try to block out approaching fronts.

October is usually a quite month for tornadoes, with a 40% decrease in activity. Nationwide an average of 28 tornadoes occur in October and those tornadoes are usually weak.

Our Hurricane threat continues, with hurricane activity increasing during the first half of the month, concentrating in the Caribbean, both from formation in the Caribbean and from the long track Cape Verde hurricanes, which enter the Caribbean. And, we still have the little “gifts” that the Gulf of Mexico occasionally will provide.

Florida, due to its low latitude, becomes especially vulnerable to hurricanes. Since 1851, Florida has endured 31 October hurricane landfalls, nearly triple the next highest state — Louisiana, which has had eight. Also, about 60 percent of all U.S. hurricanes that made landfall after September 26 have done so in Florida. One factor being the cold fronts of Fall penetrating the Gulf and then deflecting storms towards the West coast of Florida.

Luckily after the second half of the month the activity will begin a steady decrease.

28% of the year’s hurricanes occur in October.

From 1851 – 2020 there have been 363 Tropical Storms and 217 hurricanes, 60 of which made landfall in the United States.

Some notable October hurricanes are:

The Great Hurricane of 1780, also known as Huracán San Calixto, the Great Hurricane of the Antilles, and the 1780 Disaster, the deadliest Atlantic hurricane, which killed between 20,000 to 22, 000 people in the Lesser Antilles as it passed through from October 10 – 16, 1780. It is possible that it had winds in excess of 200 MPH when it reached Barbados.

Hurricane Hazel struck the Carolinas in 1954. Weather satellite did not yet exist, and the Hurricane Hunters were unable to observe the core of the storm until it neared land on October 15. Hazel made landfall just west of the North Carolina/South Carolina border slightly northeast of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina with a Category 4 intensity of 130 mph.

Hurricane Wilma still holds the record as the most intense tropical cyclone ever recorded in the Atlantic Basin. In 24 hours, Wilma went from a Category 1 storm on October 18 to a Category 5 storm with 185 MPH Maximum Sustained Winds. She weakened to Category 4 and struck the Yucatan, then restrengthened and struck Cape Romano Florida as a Category 3 storm on October 24, 2005.

Hurricane Mitch became a Category 1 hurricane on October 24, 1998, and within 48 hours grew to Category 5 intensity, and though he weakened to Category 1 before making landfall, he became the second deadliest hurricane on record killing over 11,000, with nearly that number missing in Central America due to intense rainfall and mudslides. He would eventually reach the United States making landfall near Naples Florida on November 5.

Hurricane Michael formed near the Yucatan Peninsula on October 7, 2018, and in 72 hours grew from a Tropical Depression to a Category 5 hurricane striking struck Mexico Beach Florida.

Beware of October hurricanes, for as Wilma, Mitch and Michael have demonstrated, they can experience explosive growth.

 

October Tropical Cyclone Breeding Grounds

This is the month for Alabama’s version of “Indian Summer’s” arrival.

Technically speaking Indian Summer doesn’t occur until “Squaw Winter” or the first frost arrives, but exact date when Indian Summer arrives varies with latitude.

We live in Alabama, and while the earliest frosts have been known to occur by October 17, they usually wait until November. So, we, in our milder climate call the first warm up after the first cool down “Indian Summer”.

The Yellow Giant Sulphur Butterflies are very noticeable as they continue to drift South-Southeast on their migration towards Florida. They prefer red things & if you have red flowers, they will zero in on them.

The Monarchs also will be seen gliding by in their migration towards Central America.

Fall colors will become prominent & by late October & early November the leaves will be reaching their peak fall colors.

Days rapidly grow shorter as the Sun’s angle above the noonday horizon steadily decreases from 53.2 degrees at the beginning of the month to 42.3 degrees at the month’s end. Daylight decreases from 11 hours 50 minutes on October 1 to 10 hours 51 minutes on October 31.

Sunrise and sunset times for Birmingham are:

October 1 Sunrise 5:41 AM Sunset 6:32 PM
October 15 Sunrise 6:51 AM Sunset 6:14 PM
October 31 Sunrise 7:05 AM Sunset 5:56 PM

Looking skyward, at the beginning of the month, the Sun, magnitude -26.7 is in Virgo.

At the beginning of the month Mercury, magnitude 0.5 on Virgo, is hidden behind the Sun and is in conjunction with Mars.

He will pass between the Earth and the Sun or be in “Inferior Conjunction” on October 9 and by midmonth will reappear in the morning sky.

Mercury will reach his closest distance from the Sun or “Perihelion” on October 19.

On October 25 Mercury will reach the highest point in the morning sky or “Greatest Western Elongation. Mercury reaches greatest western elongation of 18.4 degrees from the Sun.

This is the best time to view Mercury since it will be at its highest point above the horizon in the morning sky.
Look for the planet low in the eastern sky just before sunrise.

Venus, magnitude -4.2 in Libra, shines low in southwest during twilight and sets a little after twilight’s end.

Venus will be at his greatest distance from the Sun or “Aphelion” on October 9.

She will be at her highest distance in the Western sky or “Greatest Eastern Elongation” of 47.0 degrees from the Sun on October 29.

This is the best time to view Venus since it will be at its highest point above the horizon in the evening sky. Look for the bright planet in the western sky after sunset.

Earth, magnitude -4.0, as viewed from the Sun, is in Pisces.

Mars is hidden in Conjunction with Sun

Dwarf Planet Ceres shines at magnitude 8.5 in Taurus, The Bull.

Jupiter, magnitude –2.8, in Capricornus, shines in the southeast to south during evening.

Saturn, magnitude +0.5 in Capricornus, shines twentieth as bright as Jupiter, which is 16° away.
They sit equally high in the south-southeast.

Saturn sets around 1 or 2 AM daylight-saving time, followed by Jupiter about an hour later.

Uranus, magnitude 5.7, in Aries, climbs high in the east by 11 or midnight.
Neptune, magnitude 7.7, in Aquarius is well up in the in the southeast by the time darkness is complete.
Dwarf Planet Pluto, with his five moons shines at a dim 14.4 in Sagittarius.

Dwarf Planet 136108 Haumea, its ring and moons Hiʻiaka and Namaka, shines at a faint magnitude of 17.4 in Bootes.

Dwarf Planet 136472 Makemake with his moon faintly shines at magnitude 17.2 in Coma Berenices.

Dwarf Planet 136199 Eris and her moon Dysnomia is barely visible in the most powerful telescopes at magnitude 18.8 in Cetus the Sea Monster

New Moon will occur October 6. The Moon will be located on the same side of the Earth as the Sun and will not be visible in the night sky. This phase occurs at 6:05 AM CDT or 11:05 UTC. This is the best time of the month to observe faint objects such as galaxies and star clusters because there is no moonlight to interfere.

The Draconid Meteor Shower will peak on October 7. This minor shower is produced by dust grains left behind by Comet 21P Giacobini-Zinner, which was discovered in 1900. This shower, which runs from October 6 – 10, is unusual in that it is best observed in the early evening, instead of the early morning hours as with most other showers.

This year, the nearly new moon will leave dark skies for what should be an excellent show. Best viewing will be in the early evening from a dark location far away from city lights. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Draco but can appear anywhere in the sky.

The Moon will be at Perigee or its closest approach to Earth on October 9, when she will be 225,799 miles from Earth.

First Quarter Moon will occur October 12.

October’s first Full Moon will occur October 20. The Moon will be directly opposite the Earth from the Sun and will be fully illuminated as seen from Earth. This phase occurs at 14:57 UTC or 9:57 AM CDT. This full moon was known by early Native American tribes as the Full Hunters Moon because at this time of year the leaves are falling, and the game is fat and ready to hunt. This moon has also been known as the Travel Moon and the Blood Moon. This full moon is also known as the Harvest Moon. The Harvest Moon is the full moon that occurs closest to the September equinox each year.

The Orionid Meteor Shower peaks on October 21 & 22. The Orionids is an average shower producing up to 20 meteors per hour at its peak This shower, which runs from October 2 to November 7, is produced by the broad debris trail of Halley’s Comet.

The full moon will be a problem this year for the Orionids. Its glare will block out all but the brightest meteors. But if you are patient, you should still be able to catch a few good ones. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Orion but can appear anywhere in the sky.

The Moon will be at Apogee or its farthest distance from Earth on October 24, when she will be 252,038 miles from Earth.

The Last Quarter Moon occurs October 28.

Southern Taurids Meteor Shower occurs October 29 & 30. The Southern Taurids is a long-running minor meteor shower producing only about 5-10 meteors per hour. This shower is, however, famous for producing a higher than normal percentage of bright fireballs. The Southern Taurids is produced by debris left behind by Comet 2P Encke. The shower runs annually from September 10 to November 20. It peaks this year on the night of the 29th and morning of the 30th.

The last quarter moon will block out the fainter meteors this year. But should not interfere with the brighter ones. Best viewing will be just after midnight from a dark location far away from city lights. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Taurus but can appear anywhere in the sky.

This is the time of year when the rich star clouds of the Milky Way in Cygnus crosses the zenith, looking like a ghostly band overhead in the hour after nightfall is complete. The Milky Way now rises straight up from the southwest horizon, passes overhead, and runs straight down to the northeast. Later at midnight, Orion the Hunter and the stars of winter rise over the eastern horizon, reminding us to enjoy the mild weather while it is here, for this season, as all seasons, is but a fleeting moment in the never-ending waltz of time.

4521 planets beyond our solar system have now been confirmed as of September 22, per NASA’s Exoplanet Archive http://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/.

If you follow manned spaceflights, October is going to be a busy month.

On October 5th the Russians will launch Soyuz MS-19 carrying three cosmonauts to the International Space Station.

Blue Origin will launch New Shepard NS-18 October 12, carrying four astronauts to space and back.

SpaceX will launch Crew Dragon-3 carrying four astronauts on October 30 to the International Space Station.

China reportedly will launch Shenzhou 13 carrying 3 Chinese astronauts to the Tianhe Space Station.

Depending on weather and technical issues, these dates change

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

This month’s meeting will be on October 12 at 7PM.

The meeting will be done remotely as was last month’s meeting.

Details and instructions will be issued as the time nears.
Hope to “see” you there Hope to see you there!
Mark / WD4NYL
Editor
ALERT Newsletter

Wd4nyl@bellsouth.net

 

Hi everyone,

I hope this newsletter finds you well.

Our newsletter has grown in scope from a local newsletter to one reaching far and wide. How many readers we have and where they are located, we will probably never know, but they are deeply appreciated.

That it has grown popularity and coverage is gratifying experience for me.

And so, I would like to dedicate this month’s newsletter to YOU our readers from Alabama to Hawaii and beyond

I hope you enjoy it.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

NWS Social Media Changes

The NWS will no longer be posting all severe weather warnings on Facebook. These will still be available on Twitter where you can access timely weather updates and the latest watches and warnings.

They did not make this decision lightly, but Facebook’s algorithms simply is not currently built for short-fuse warnings. On Facebook warnings often experience serious delays in reaching the public and sometime can be delayed for hours, or even days in the Facebook feed. Sometimes they are so completely buried by the regular postings and updates from groups and friends that they NEVER appear. They are lost in the feed.

In a circumstance where seconds may mean lives, this is clearly not sufficient and can create a false sense of security where people think they will receive timely warnings, but none appear.

As mentioned for timely weather updates you can visit the NWS Twitter page at www.twitter.com/NWSBirmingham.com

Please note that you do not have to have a Twitter account to view this link or it’s feed.

It is to be remembered however, that the most reliable means of receiving watches and warnings remains via NOAA Weatherradio, which broadcasts continuous weather information directly from the nearest National Weather Service office 24/7, covering nearly the entire continental US.

Another good method is receiving alerts from broadcast media apps.

I subscribe to ABC33/40, CBS 42 and WVTM.

Having multiple ways of receiving information is the smart move.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Emergency Water Purification

As you read this people of Louisiana and Mississippi are enduring the effects of Hurricane Ida. They will be dealing with the aftermath of this storm for weeks if not months.

Whether due to power outages disabling the pumps that force the water through the pipes, polluted floodwaters overwhelming and contaminating the water supply and aquifer making it unsafe to drink. Or as in the case of Hurricane Katrina, the storm surge overwhelming the natural flow of rivers and creeks forcing them to flow in reverse with the salty waters of the Gulf moving upstream well inland and temporarily contaminating the aquifer with salt water, the result is the same – potable water may be a scarce resource.

The following article is a minicourse in Emergency Water Management, both pre-emergency and post emergency. Hopefully it may help someone somewhere or their loved ones as they deal with this emergency.

Whatever the reason for the lack of water may be, the result is the same and the consequences can be the same. With some time, variation dependent upon the temperature and the humidity, the human body will begin dying after 3 days without water. This includes your mental functions being compromised as well as your bodily functions as organs begin to shut down, since your blood is losing its normal liquid nature and beginning to thicken like ketchup. This of course causes an added strain on your heart as it struggles to force the thickening blood through the body.

The human body requires one gallon of water per day to replenish the liquid lost through sweat, urine, transpiration through the skin and respiration. Whether you are properly hydrated or not can be determined by your urine output. If your urine is clear and there is a lot of it, you are properly hydrated, if this is not the case – it’s dark or there is none being produced. You are in serious danger. Thirst is NOT an accurate indicator of hydration. If you are thirsty, you are already dehydrated.

Emergency Water Management consists of six steps:

1. Pre-emergency water storage
2. Resource location
3. Procurement
4. Filtration
5. Purification or Sanitization
6. Consumption and Storage

Pre-emergency water storage can be as simple a process as buying a couple of large cases of bottled water and keeping it in a closet. You can gradually drink it and replenish it to keep the supply fresh. This method has the added benefit that no one will think you are being weird, just “health conscious”. If you have to use this supply in an emergency, don’t throw the bottles away. You will find out why later.

To carry this step further, you can store water in larger containers; some commonly available containers hold 7 gallons each. Rotate the supply once a year.

Three gallons is a three-day supply for one person. 21 gallons a 21-day supply. Three 7-gallon containers will last 1 person three weeks. For more than one person, just multiply the total by the number of persons.
At this stage we must consider an often-overlooked point – the weight of water.

One 16.9oz plastic bottle of water weighs roughly 1lb. A case of 24 bottles therefore will weigh 24lbs. One gallon of water weighs 8lbs. So, a full 7-gallon container will weigh 56lbs.

The point being, that IF as one gentleman on a forum once sarcastically remarked “I would just walk to the Red Cross and get some water”, instead of storing any, you might better to take your daughters pink Hello Kitty wagon with you to haul it back. Because it’s heavy and if you are like me and usually end up hyperventilating just travelling from the sofa to the “chapel”, you will never make it back.

I’m slightly exaggerating of course, as I am a prime specimen of He-man vigor and vitality.

If one knows in advance that the water supply could be compromised, they could quickly fill up every container they can get their hands on, including pots, pans, sinks and bathtubs. However, realistically speaking, except for coastal locations expecting a tropical system, this is seldom a practical option, due to the lack of lead time.

One final item before we move on is taste. Stored water may not necessarily taste like bottled water or tap water. The water may have a chlorine taste or acquire the taste of what was previously stored in the container. Orange juice, for instance. The water is still good water.

Likewise, if you obtain, filter and purify water from a “natural source”, it may still retain some or much of its original taste. If you got the water from a frog pond, it may still taste like frog pond water, even though it is perfectly safe to drink.

The taste can be “disguised” by using it with coffee, tea or mixing it with flavor packets, such as Hi-C, Crystal Lite, PowerAde, etc. Even a pinch of salt will help.

Resource location is simply finding potential sources of water for use if your primary supply is lost.

Unless contaminated by flood waters or other outside pollutants, one source is your “hidden residential supplies”. This includes water stored in the water heater, water in the commode tank, which is clean, despite what you may initially think, and water in the houses water pipes., which may be obtained by placing a container under the lowest spigot, and then opening first the highest and then lowest valves.

Do you have a swimming pool? You can view your pool as “backup” water. Keep it treated, for you never know when this water will be needed. Maintenance of the free chlorine residual will prevent establishment of any microorganisms. Maintenance levels should be kept to 3-5ppm free chlorine. To monitor this, you’ll need a supply of chlorine testers. The problem with using swimming pools is that organics can enter through dirt, sweat, body oils and the inevitable “Mommy Look!” kiddie tinkles. This can form chloramines which are not good to drink.

Also, imagine going in and out of your drinking water a hundred times and then drinking it. Plus, after a disaster every imaginable type of debris, including formerly living creatures could be floating in your pool. The water will have to be filtered and purified before it can be safely used. Fortunately, neither process is as involved as it sounds, as we will discuss later.

Next, we look for outside sources. The most obvious of which is rainwater. With rainwater you would think it would be pure and readily safe to drink. However, this is not the case. We live in an urban area and as the rain falls it collects smoke, chemicals and other particles from the atmosphere. These need to be filtered out. Also, once the rain hits an object whether a roof or in a puddle, then it can be biologically contaminated and must be purified.

Collection can be done by placing containers at roof downspouts, roof gutter outlets or at the “valley” of the roof, or with a tarp rigged into a v shape to collect the water.

Ponds and streams are other sources of water. I live one half mile from Shades Creek, and ¼ mile from one of its tributaries. In its natural state I would no more drink the water from it than I would from a fully loaded urinal. But, properly filtered and purified, preferably by boiling, it would be perfectly safe to drink, taste, as mentioned earlier, notwithstanding.

Again, water from “emergency” or “outside” sources probably will not taste like city or bottled water. Funky tasting as it may prove, if it has been filtered and purified, it is safe to drink and will save your life.

Procurement simply means carrying the water from the source to the filtering location, which may be at the source or at the base of operations, which ever you deem the most convenient spot.

Filtration of water will remove the majority of chemical and waste products from water. This can be achieved by passing water through a filter or by distillation, which we will discuss later.

To begin the discussion on filtration let me say that most commercial water filters designed for use on your residential supply or kitchen sink are neither designed for nor sufficient for filtering polluted or biologically contaminated water. There are filters commercially available designed for camping and survival use such as Aquamira filters. This straw like filter will allow you to safely drink from streams, puddles and other sources normally considered chemically and biologically unsafe. Having one in your emergency kit isn’t a bad idea.

Effective homemade filters and filtration systems can be made.

How elaborate the system or method needed depends on the condition of the source water.
Water from a clear, fast moving stream may only need straining through cloth or a sand filled cloth. Water from a murky or stagnant source will need more serious attention. Water from either source will need to be purified.

The murky source understandably, but even water from the fresh flowing “pristine looking” sources needs purification, as you never know what may be decomposing in it 100 yards upstream. Or as was pointed out in the John Wayne movie “The Horse Soldiers”, “the coffee will taste better if the latrine is located downstream”. You never know what may have been tinkled into the stream 100 yards upstream.

Let’s examine the filtration process using the worst-case scenario – Shades Creek or even better yet, Village Creek.

First you need four containers: A one- or two-liter bottle with a cap for the untreated water, which we shall affectionately refer to as “swamp water”. A similar bottle is needed for the partially filtered water. You need yet another container for the filter itself and finally a container for the filtered water.

1. Collection. Collect your “Swamp Water” into the two-liter bottle with a cap, preferably with
a cloth covering the opening, as this acts as a filter. Fill ¾ full, then cap the bottle.

2. Aeration. This next step in the filtration process adds air to water. It allows gases trapped in the water to escape and adds oxygen to the water. Vigorously shake the bottle for 30 seconds. Continue the aeration process by pouring the water into the second bottle, then pouring the water back and forth between the bottles about 10 times. Once aerated, gases have escaped (bubbles should be gone). Pour your aerated water into your second bottle.

3. Sedimentation This process allows gravity to pull particles to the bottom of the bottle. Allow the water to stand undisturbed in the bottle for 20 minutes. At an actual water treatment plant, there are settling beds that collect solid particles that float to the bottom, allowing the clear water to be drained from the top of the bed and continue through the process.

4. Draining. Pour the upper two thirds of the water contents into the filter, the construction of which we will now detail.

5. Filtration. A homemade water filter is constructed in the following manner. Take one of your bottles and cut the bottom off. Turn the bottle upside down and line the inside of the spout with a cloth, such as a handkerchief or bandana. Pour in layer of gravel or pebbles roughly 2 inches thick. Add a layer of charcoal that has not been exposed to lighter fluid 1 inch thick. This will help absorb chemicals and the bad taste. Add a 3-inch layer of coarse sand. Finally add 4 inches of fine sand.

This filter will remove most of the contamination remaining after the sedimentation process. It is a similar arrangement to the Clapp’s Water Filter dating from 1908, except that that filter is made from a barrel and uses multiple layers of filtration. It is also the exact design currently in use in the Manz Slow Sand and Biosand Filters used in third world countries. The only difference being that they are much larger in size and have different outlet arrangements. One exception with the Biosand filter is that it has a fifth biological filter called a Schmutzdecke, which is a layer of mud and slime that develops over time. This layer of “good bacteria” literally eats the “bad bacteria”. These filters are for long term or open-ended emergencies, which is beyond the scope of this series, but, mentioned so it may pique your interest.

To prime your homemade filter run water through it a couple of times. Now take following Step 4 above pour your water into the filter. The water emerging from the filter may not look crystal clear, but it will be “mostly free” from contamination. I say “mostly free” because it is not wise to claim perfection.

The water will still need to be disinfected.

Purification or Sanitization. Water can be sanitized by three different methods – by boiling, chemical treatment or by a process called “SODIS”.

Boiling the water for 1 minute will kill 100% of harmful pathogens 100% of the time. It is the best and preferred method. The water, after it is cooled may need to be shaken in a clean ¾ full container to add oxygen to remove the “flat” taste. But this water is now absolutely biologically safe to drink.

If you can’t make a fire to boil water, you can use the chemical options – purification tablets, iodine or chlorine bleach.

Dropping a water purification tablet, such as the Coleman Potable Aqua with PA Plus tablets, into a quart of water will make the water bacteriologically safe to drink within 30 minutes.

Iodine can be used if you are not pregnant or allergic to iodine, otherwise don’t try this method. Add 5-10 drops per 32 fluid ounces (about 1 liter) of water. If the water source is a lake or some other still body of water, or if the water is cloudy, you want to add closer to 10 drops.

The iodine needs time to completely purify the water. You need to wait 30 minutes before you can drink the water. After you have waited 30 minutes, your water is purified for drinking.

Common household Clorox Ultra, Clorox, or Purex chlorine bleach may be used to disinfect water in the following amounts. Use four drops per quart in clear water. This amount should be increased to eight drops in cloudy water, and sixteen drops per gallon of clear water. You should be able to get a slight odor of chlorine after the waters sits for the 15 minutes. If not, add more bleach.

Clorox recently changed its formula to “Clorox Concentrated” bleach. Since this has a higher amount of chemical agents, the amount used for purification should be adjusted to 2 drops per quart, 6 drops per gallon, or if the water is cloudy, 3 drops per quart and 12 drops per gallon.

Avoid using bleaches that contain perfumes, dyes and other additives. Also, one thing that organizations which recommend the chlorine method don’t tell you is that chlorinated bleach loses its strength with time. After one year on the shelf, it will have lost 50% of its strength, so double the dose on old chlorine.

The “SODIS” method is perhaps the simplest method of all. In this you take clear plastic PET bottles, like the ones “bottled water” water comes in (you’ll remember me saying don’t throw them away) fill them ¾ full of water to be purified, shake them for 20 seconds to improve the oxygen saturation of the water, and then complete filling the bottles. Expose the bottles to direct sunlight by placing them on a slanted surface, such as a roof, so that they receive direct exposure. By exposing them to continuous sunlight for 6 hours the UV radiation from the sun will disinfect the water. This is a method recommended by the World Health Organization for water treatment and storage, especially for areas located between latitude 15°N and 35°N, and 15°S and 35°S. Birmingham’s latitude is 33.5N.

Distillation will allow you to bypass the filtering and purification steps.

After Katrina, survivors well inland found their water, including well water contaminated by salt water. They were able to purify their water by taking a large stock pot or a canner, turning the lid upside down and suspending a smaller pot from the handle. The “Swamp water” was placed in the large pot, brought to boil and the smaller pot collected the purified water that the steam and condensation produced.

The water was biologically and chemically pure and had no hint of saltiness.

An even simpler desalinization method recommended by Richard Graves, the former Commanding Officer of the Australian Jungle Survival & Rescue Detachment in WW2. With this method, designed to help downed airmen survive on tropical islands and jungles, consists of gently boiling sea water or salt contaminated water is a large pot and covering the pot with a towel, sheet or any other clean cloth covering and wringing out the water that collects in the cloth in a container. It is then ready to drink.

Distillation is the recommended purification process for water from swimming pools.

Consumption and Storage is fairly self-explanatory. Drink as much water as you can and store as much water as you can process. It’s far better to have too much rather than too little.

I will caution that you should not just chugalug an entire glass of water, but sip it slowly so your bodies tissues will have a chance to absorb the water and not just be urinated out.

Also, sports drinks are ok for a once one-jug drink to help replenish your electrolytes, but the body absorbs water much more quickly. This being due to the fact that sports drinks are so loaded with minerals that the body misidentifies the juice as food and waits for it to be digested before sending it on to the lower innards to be absorbed into the body.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Mark’s Almanac

September is the ninth month of the year and the seventh month of the Roman calendar, which is where the month gets its name.

Temperatures are still hot at the beginning of the month, but, by months end, fall will definitely be felt.

Noticeable in September will be the thickening of the cat’s fur, as she begins growing her winter coat & the drift of Yellow Giant Sulphur Butterflies as they migrate towards Florida.

Weather starts shifting from the summer to autumn pattern and then back again. Storm activity resembles the August pattern, but the Bermuda High starts shifting southward and begins weakening, which weakens the blocking effect that has hampered fronts attempting to invade from the northwest.

September is the peak of the hurricane season, the actual peak being on September 10. This peak coincides with the time of “syzygy”, when the effects of the solar and lunar gravity and autumnal equinox combine to provide the highest astronomical tides of the year. Add a hurricane’s storm surge on top of this and you can have incredibly destructive flooding.

From 1851 – 2020 there have been 624 Tropical Storms, 1 Subtropical Storm and 413 hurricanes, 109 of which made landfall in the United States.

Some notable September hurricanes are:

The Galveston Hurricane of 1900, which was a Category 4 Storm whose storm surge overwhelmed Galveston Island, killing 8000 people, and is still the deadliest weather disaster in US history.

The Labor Day Hurricane of 1936, the most intense storm to strike the US, was a Category 5 storm which moved through the Florida Keys and along West Florida, overturning trains and literally sandblasting people to death.

Ivan, the category 3 storm which struck Alabama & Florida in 2004, caused tremendous damage to Gulf Shores and extensive damage to the state’s electrical grid. At the height of the outages, Alabama Power reported 489,000 subscribers having lost electrical power—roughly half of its subscriber base.

Rita, a category 3 storm which struck the Texas – Louisiana border in 2005, and, despite the distance, dropped 22 tornadoes over Western Alabama.

Days continue to grow shorter as the Sun’s angle above the noonday horizon steadily decreases from 64.9 degrees at the beginning of the month to 53.6 degrees at the month’s end. Daylight decreases from 12 hours 52 minutes on August 1 to 11 hours 53 minutes on August 31.

Sunrise and sunset times for Birmingham are:

September 1 Sunrise 6:21 AM Sunset 7:13 PM
September 15 Sunrise 6:30 AM Sunset 6:55 PM
September 31 Sunrise 6:41 AM Sunset 6:33 PM

Looking skyward, at the beginning of the month, the Sun, magnitude -26.7 is in Leo.

At the beginning of the month Mercury, 0.0 in Leo, is very deep in the sunset, about 16° lower right of Venus all week.

On September 5 Mercury reaches his furthest distance from the Sun, or aphelion when he will be 43,689,000 miles from the Sun.

On September 13 he will reach his highest point in the sky, or “Greatest Eastern Elongation”.
He will be 26.8 degrees from the Sun. This is the best time to view Mercury since it will be at its highest point above the horizon in the evening sky. Look for the planet low in the western sky just after sunset.

Venus, magnitude –4.0 in Leo, shines bright white in the west-southwest during twilight. She sets around twilight’s end.

Earth, magnitude -4.0, as viewed from the Sun, is in Aquarius.

Mars, magnitude -1.8 is in Leo.

Dwarf Planet Ceres shines at magnitude 8.9 in Taurus.

Jupiter, magnitude –2.9, in Capricornus, shines in the southeast in late twilight and after dark. At midnight he shines brightly overhead.

Saturn, magnitude +0.3, in Capricornus, shine in the southeast in late twilight and after dark.

Saturn glows 18° (about two fists) to Jupiter’s upper right.

Uranus, magnitude 5.8, in Aries, is well up in the east by midnight, east of Mars, high in the southeast to south in the early-morning hours.

Neptune, magnitude 7.7, on the Aquarius/Pisces border is high in the southeast to south in the early-morning hours.

The blue giant planet will be at its closest approach to Earth or “Opposition”, 2,689,200,000 miles, on September 14. he will be fully illuminated and brighter than any other time of the year and will be visible all night long.

Due to its extreme distance from Earth, it will only appear as a tiny blue dot in all but the most powerful telescopes.

Dwarf Planet Pluto, with his five moons shines at a dim 14.4 in Sagittarius.

Dwarf Planet 136108 Haumea, its ring and moons Hiʻiaka and Namaka, shines at a faint magnitude of 17.4 in Bootes.
Dwarf Planet 136472 Makemake with his moon faintly shines at magnitude 17.2 in Coma Berenices.

Dwarf Planet 136199 Eris and her moon Dysnomia is barely visible in the most powerful telescopes at magnitude 18.8 in Cetus the Sea Monster.

New Moon occurs September 7 at 7:52 PM CDT or 00:52 UTC on September 8, when the Moon will on the same side of the Earth as the Sun and will not be visible in the night sky. This is the best time of the month to observe faint objects such as galaxies and star clusters because there is no moonlight to interfere.

The Moon will be at Perigee or its closest approach to Earth on September 11, when she will be 228,953 miles from Earth.

First Quarter Moon will occur on September 13.

September’s Full Moon will occur September 20 at 6:54 PM CDT or 23:54 UTC.

The Moon will be located on the opposite side of the Earth as the Sun and its face will be fully illuminated. This phase occurs at 23:54 UTC. This full moon was known by early Native American tribes as the “Corn Moon” because the corn is harvested around this time of year.

This moon is also known as the Harvest Moon. The Harvest Moon is the full moon that occurs closest to the September equinox each year.

The name “Harvest Moon” dates from the time before electricity, when farmers depended on the Moon’s light to harvest their crops late into the night. The Harvest Moon was especially important since it coincided with the largest harvest of the year.

Fall begins at Autumnal Equinox on September 22 at 2:11 PM CDT or 19:11 UTC when the Sun crosses directly over the equator and night and day is approximately the same length throughout the world. For the Southern Hemisphere it is Vernal Equinox, the first day of Spring.

One term that occasionally pops up is “equinoctial storms”. Which are severe storms in North America and the UK that supposedly accompany the vernal and autumnal equinoxes. Where this belief originated is obscure. Some say perhaps from the 1700’s when sailors were greeted by West Indies hurricanes, or due to the coincidence of the first fall severe storms sometimes coming in the latter half of September. At any rate, statistics show no evidence to support the belief.

On this date, if there is sufficient solar activity, and you are away from city lights, the aurora may possibly be seen, as the Equinox dates are the two most favored times of the year for auroral sightings.

At this time of year, the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) can link up with Earth’s magnetic field, prying open cracks. Solar wind pours in to fuel displays of the aurora borealis with no geomagnetic storm required. Researchers call this the “Russell-McPherron” effect after the space physicists who first described it in the 1970s.

The Moon will be at Apogee or its farthest distance from Earth on September 26, when she will be 251,432 miles from Earth

Last Quarter Moon occurs September 28.

High in the Southern night sky an asterism or a group of stars appearing clustered together, but not actually gravitationally bound will be seen that resembles a teapot. This is the Teapot of Sagittarius.

To the naked eye, the Teapot is roughly the size of your fist at arm’s length. Above the spout of the Teapot lies a band of light, the Large Sagittarius Star Cloud. A pair of binoculars will reveal a sea of stars and faint grayish patches, the largest of which is the Lagoon Nebula. When you look upon these nebulae you are seeing stars in the process of being born.

The spout, which is tilting and pouring to the right, also points towards the galactic center of the Milky Way, located just beyond the Large Sagittarius Star cloud, but largely hidden by the dust clouds, which lie along the plane of the Sagittarius arm of the galaxy.

4472 planets beyond our solar system have now been confirmed as of August 16, per NASA’s Exoplanet Archive http://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

This month’s meeting will be on September 14 at 7PM.

The meeting will be done remotely as was last month’s meeting.

Details and instructions will be issued as the time nears.
Hope to “see” you there Hope to see you there!
Mark / WD4NYL
Editor
ALERT Newsletter

www.freewebs.com/weatherlynx/

Mark’s Weatherlynx
Weather Resource Database