Hi Everyone & Happy New Year.

I hope that Santa treated you well and that Father Time will do likewise and that you have a
blessed and prosperous 2016.

As we unwind from the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, remember that our next ALERT meeting on the 12th.

The Birmingham Hamfest http://birminghamfest.org/ is only nine weeks away, March 4 & 5.
There has been a date change, as it will, at least this year, be a Friday & Saturday affair.
This Birminghamfest is not to be confused with the Birmingham Fest, in Birmingham UK which will run July 15 through 21, http://birminghamfest.co.uk/
I wouldn’t mind going to that one either, but, I guess I had better concentrate on the local one instead.
I hope to see you there!

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Hints, Kinks and Hacks For Net Control Stations
&
Those Checking In To Nets

As we enter the New Year, I have just passed a milestone of completing my 38th year in ham radio.
My first exposure to Ham Radio was in 1973 listening to the Alabama Emergency Net X-ray or AENX, now known as The Jefferson County Ares Net, on the old 146.940 repeater with an old “police radio”.
I vividly remember the night of “The Day of 100 Tornadoes” back in April of 1974, as wave after wave of storms passed through. I remember the power going out at the house just as the NCS began shouting, “someone kill the auto patch”, which had activated itself just as the line hit, jamming the desperate reports that were flooding in, adding to the drama & chaos of that night.
Listening to this and other storms inspired me to get my ham license.
“Can I get a ham license?” a teenage Mark asked his Mom.
“You can, as long as you promise me not to chase tornadoes”, Mom replied.
I agreed.
I lied.
One of the first things I did as a new ham was become active in the 3.965 Net. In the course of time I was an NCS on the AENX which is now the Jefferson County Emergency Net, the AENN which is now the Shelby County Net, the AENB also called the Alabama Section Net, which is a fast speed CW traffic Net and the now defunct AEND, the slow speed CW traffic Net, of which I was also Net Manager. I was Net Manager of now defunct West Jefferson County Emergency Net and the 440 Frontier Net, years, and years ago, and have been Net Manager of the ALERT Sunday Night Net for 15 years.
It is on this experience and knowledge base and consulting with others that I base this article.
Nets are interesting creatures. They are one of the best ways to learn and meet the ham community. If you are shy about rag chewing, they give you a chance to “ham it up”. They also give you an excuse to blow the dust off the radio and remind everyone that contrary to the rumors, you really aren’t Silent Key.
And, they are fun.
So, what are Mark’s suggestions about nets?
First I’ll say this to Net Managers. Especially “old” Net Mangers and to older hams in general.
Don’t despise youth. If a younger operator wants to try their hand at task, let them. Mozart’s 1st Symphony was written when he was 8 years old. I’m turning 58 and haven’t written one yet.
Maturity is not defined by age, license class, call sign design, FCC test requirements or even mistakes of youth. People grow. People Learn.
No, new hams didn’t pass the same test that you did. But, then you didn’t pass the same test as of those from the 40’s, 50’s, 60’s, 70’s or 80’s who called you a “dummy” when you first got started either, did you? And, truth be told, you probably would have trouble passing a 2016 vintage test, and you know it. They’ve invented wire since then. Just take a practice test sometime and then fess up.
New operators want to learn and they want to learn how to “do it right”.
It is up to the older operators to guide them, coach them and encourage them. We should be leading and inspiring, not tearing down and damning. The experience we have is experience learned by “trial & error”, steps and missteps, not because we were prettier or smarter anyone else. We learned by trying, goofing up and trying again and again until we “got it right”.
We should be shepherding” and teaching the younger operators in the right ways of doing things, both technically and operationally.
And as I said previously, they want to learn and want to “do it right”.
Dogging them out is not the right way of teaching. Leading by example is. Giving them a chance is.
We older operators should also be willing to listen and learn from the younger operators. They have much to teach us. They have grown up with and are comfortable with technology that we are still trying to figure out. Listen to them. They can tell you more than a thing or two.
Likewise younger operators should be willing to learn from the experiences of the older operators. Some things are “tried and true” because the “old goats” tried the umpteen “new and improved” methods and gizmos and they old ways just worked better. Fancy looks and names do not guarantee fancy results. There is a reason why we still commonly use antennae designed for World War One zeppelins on HF. It’s because they work.
I believe we potentially have the best generation of hams that has ever been.
Do you want them to be that best generation? Lead by good example
Do you want the next generation of hams to be crotchety, grumpy, condescending old goats that cause people to groan and reach for a knob the second they hear them come on the air? Then lead by bad example.
You see, we all lead by example. Whether you lead by a good example or a bad example is entirely up to you.
Now, let’s get back on topic.
To start, be knowledgeable of net procedures and protocols. Preferably listen to the net a time or two to learn the ebb and flow of the net, and then check in and after some time consider volunteering as NCS.
If you wish to be an NCS, have a decent radio and antenna so you can consistently hit and hear the repeater. While a handi-talkie & rubber duck may suffice for checking into a net, for an NCS it doesn’t qualify unless you can actually see the repeater tower and sometimes not even then, as you may have what I call a “mushy repeater”.
Have a pad of paper and a couple of pens or pencils.
Begin the Net on time and use the issued preamble. Everyone has their own style and rhythm as NCS and on the ALERT Sunday Night Net (Sunday 7PM 146.880 MHz) occasionally the NCS will stray from the preamble, as I am also guilty of doing. On a formal emergency net, however, stick to the script as closely as you can, and as the situation allows.
When checking in (or calling the net) speak clearly and use standard ITU phonetics. “Witch Doctor Four Nice Yellow Lemons” may sound cute, but, it makes life hard on an NCS because they have to change gears and figure out what in the world you are saying. It slows the entire process down.
When checking in, check in at your appointed times and “don’t break the line” except for emergencies and high priority messages. “Could you check me in, my chili is getting cold” doesn’t fit those criteria.
Likewise if one is trying to check in to a net and fails five times, do the net a favor and give up for now. It isn’t working. But, do try again later.
The NCS should pay attention to what is going on. During long lulls it is easy for your mind and concentration to drift. This is especially true if there is a computer nearby. If someone calls you on the radio, quit texting, gaming, Facebooking, Instagramming, semaphoring, smoke signaling and answer the call.
On the other hand, remember to leave enough pause between transmissions so that a station can break in in the event of an emergency. Don’t time the repeater out.
Remember to identify fairly frequently so that stations will know what net they are listening to, and to keep the FCC happy.
Other hints are:
Have some knowledge of weather and what the needs of the National Weather Service are. That way you can better filter out useless “leaf debris” reports from good reports and those reports that sound goofy but, are actually valid, the operator just having a hard time describing what they are seeing. Or the opposite, a very valid, very detailed report, that is way “over the head” of the NCS and therefore not being understood is dismissed as garbage.
Example One:
WD4NYL – “I see green lightning moving across the horizon to my northeast”.
NCS – “Geeze, please keep the frequency clear. It will lightning during thunderstorms, that’s why they are called ‘thunderstorms’ duh”.
Verdict: WD4NYL was seeing “power flashes” from transformers’ blowing up as the power grid was being shredded by some kind of wind concentrated circulation moving on the ground. A valid – but, dismissed report of a possible tornado.
Example Two :
WD4NYL – “I’m in Shelby County looking at the Jefferson County storm. There has been a sharp increase in lightning – almost continuous & the thunderstorm column appears to be twisting or ‘barberpolling’.”
NCS – “(frustrated) Sir we are looking for reports from Jefferson County – Jefferson County only. Please keep the frequency clear.”
Verdict: WD4NYL was seeing evidence that the thunderstorm was rapidly intensifying and seeing visible evidence of possible rotation. A valid – but, again dismissed report of possible severe storm.
Have some knowledge of local geography, and have a map handy so you can assist in relaying a valid location to the NWS. Yes you can track them on APRS if they are so equipped, but, can you track them quickly so as to not miss a vital report, instead of dinking with a computer during a tornado emergency?
Likewise the reporting station should know where they are located. Using street/cross street, house number or mile markers. The NWS does not know where “Old Miller’s Bait and Tackle used to be located”. And, saying I’m on I-65 is of no help, since it runs from Mobile to Chicago.
The reporting station should spell the name if it is a non-common name. A good example of a garbled RF report is the day Mark Rose of the NWS & I spent 30 minutes with an atlas trying to find “Del Ray Road by the Air Force base gate” in Montgomery where it was flooding. We couldn’t find the street and it didn’t help that Montgomery had two Air Force bases.
We called the reporting station back repeatedly and he kept saying “Del Ray Road” and I finally asked him to give the street name phonetically, which he did.
It was “Dalraida Road by Gunter AFB”.
Have more than one way of receiving NWS warning and updates. NOAA weather radio is great, but, not the end all of sources. The NWSBOT on BMXEMA Chat or the IEMBOT Monitor http://weather.im/iembot/ is the fastest method that I have found.
At this point in the life of an NCS you probably will be accused by one of the “Guardians Of Ham Purity” of “Broadcasting Media Reports”.
Those who like to complain I would say this – the reason the reports the NCS gives sounds like what is being reported via the broadcast media is that it comes from the SAME SOURCE – a Ouija Board and Magic Dust.
Or, maybe as rumor has it, the NWS.
All valid warnings will originate from the NWS, not the Weather Channel or a local TV station. And, all media outlets will receive it via the NWSBOT or the IEMBOT which simultaneously relays the same information in real time.
Using these same sources sometimes an NCS may give an NWS warning before the sirens have gone off, the weather radio sounds or the TV Meteorologist reads it. This is because of technical and time delays in the process. This is NOT as NCS “broadcasting” or “jumping the gun”. Once the NWS releases a product on the NWSBOT or IEMBOT it is meant for public distribution.
Time, being our worst enemy during an emergency would indicate we should relay the information as quickly as they receive it, for this will save lives.
Notice I used the term “distribution”, not the term “broadcasting”.
To say most hams are clueless as to what “broadcasting” from the FCC point of view really is may sound a little harsh, but, it is true. The FCC says nothing at all about relaying reports from the media. Just collecting information for the media, which is a big difference.
I beat this subject to death in the December 2010 ALERT Newsletter, and rather than repeat it I refer you to: https://alert-alabama.org/blog/?p=394
Suffice it to say that relaying NWS Watches, Warnings and Updates is NOT broadcasting according to the FCC Rules.
Passing media reports is not forbidden by the FCC either. The problem is that they are “unconfirmed reports” and can cause chaos and much confusion. If they are showing a tornado on their tower cam it is one thing, but, “Joe Blow reports cows being blown in the air around Sispey” is another matter completely.
We will say “let common sense rule”.
Now to all the critics out there I will say that the easiest job in the world is to sit back, do nothing and criticize everything. How about getting up, getting involved, trained and then picking up a mic and actually do something useful for a change?
To the NCSs I say DO expect to run into know it all’s and overly “helpful hands” appearing from time to time. It “goes with the territory”. But in the end YOU are the Net Control. So, Control The Net. In other words “when in command, command”.
Incidentally, there are two schools of thought at to how much information an NCS should pass on a net.
The NWS will issue a tornado warning, and reissue it with updated position reports.
One theory is to give the initial warning and nothing else, as the listeners will numb the updates out. Also, if there are multiple counties under warning, there may not be time to give these updates.
The other theory is that it helps localize spotter response, so that they are looking in the right location. “Where the storm is and not where it ain’t” so to speak. “Is it still in Bessemer or is it now in Forestdale?”, for instance.
Though I prefer the latter position, both, arguments have valid points. I’m a little biased, so I’ll not give judgement on this one.
Have multiple ways of reaching the NWS. The 1-800-856-0758 NWS Emergency Number is an excellent method. Even if you get a recording, be assured that the call is being listened to real-time. The BMXEMA Chat, if you are eligible for it, is another great way. Also there is an NWS online reporting form you can use. http://www.srh.noaa.gov/StormReport/SubmitReport.php?site=bmx
One thing I should mention is that if you are on the BMXEMA chat, the conversations being carried on there are private and NOT for public dissemination, only information released on the NWSBOT or IEMBOTs should be revealed.
That way needless rumormongering and misinformation is avoided.
Know how to relay emergency reports to other agencies, and utilities as well. This includes technical methods in case cell towers or landlines become overwhelmed with calls. Have a list of the direct fire and law enforcement numbers in case 911 should become unusable. Also, have a list of the utility emergency numbers – power, water, gas, etc. I keep one on the fridge and on a file cabinet by the radios.
Remain as calm and patient during emergencies as possible. Exercise diplomacy. Be respectful to operators. Remember people are eager to help and may not give best reports due to fear, excitement & inexperience. Remember when YOU first started and how you would have wanted to be treated and use this as your guide.
Finally, remember that you are doing, even on a practice net, may someday save a life. You may never know what positive impact you have made, but, you have made a difference.
And that is what it’s all about.

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Mark’s Almanac

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

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

Typically in January there is a 53% chance of up to one inch of snow and a 25% chance of over one inch of snow.

With the exception of the southern tip of Nova Scotia, all of Canada and roughly one half of the Continental US, or “CONUS”, are now covered with snow. Canada’s Hudson’s Bay is frozen, as is the ocean water between Baffin Island and Greenland.

http://www.natice.noaa.gov/pub/ims/ims_gif/DATA/cursnow_usa.gif
Barometric pressure is highest in January.
Looking towards the sky, Mercury remains low in the Southwest as twilight fades. Look for him thirty minutes to an hour after sunset.

Saturn, Venus, Mars and Jupiter form a large diagonal line in the early dawn, running from low in the Southeast to high in the Southwest, in that order.

Brilliant Venus, sometimes confused as a UFO, is easy to spot shining at magnitude -4.1.

To the lower left of Venus is Saturn shining much fainter at magnitude +0.5. Saturn and Venus are closing with each other and will be closest, or in conjunction on January 9th.

Bright Jupiter shines high in the predawn sky at magnitude -2.1, widely separated from Venus, with much fainter Mars in between them, shining at magnitude +1.3.

At borderline naked eye brightness, Uranus shines high in the South in Pisces at sunset at magnitude +5.8.

Faint Neptune shines at magnitude +7.0 in Aquarius and is getting lower in the Southwest at sunset.

1919 planets beyond our solar system have now been confirmed as of December 17, per NASA’s Exoplanet Archive http://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/

The Quadrantid Meteor Shower will occur overnight Sunday-Monday, January 3 & 4. This is an above average shower producing between 40 to 100 meteors per hour radiating from the constellation Bootes, in the area near the end of the handle of the Big Dipper and the head of Draco the Dragon.

This shower is a quirky shower in that it has a very narrow particle stream. Therefore, the peak time is only a couple of hours, and that peak varies each year. According the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada’s “Observer’s Handbook 2016” and the International Meteor Organization, the 2016 peak will occur around 2 AM CST on January 4, which will, unlike last year, put the stream above the northeast horizon. But, as with all things astronomical, one should look before the predicted time in case the timing should slip. That way even if the stream arrives before the predicted time, you will see them as, they would still be zipping overhead and will appear longer in the cold sky.

This shower favors the Northern Hemisphere because its radiant point, or the point where the meteors appear to originated in the sky, is so far north on the sky’s dome.

This shower is believed to be produced by dust grains from burnt out comet 2003 EH1, which may also be the remainder of comet c/1490 Y1, which was lost to history after a prominent meteor shower was observed in 1490, possibly due to the breakup of the comet.

The Quadrantid meteors take their name from an obsolete constellation, Quadrans Muralis, found in early 19th-century star atlases between Draco, Hercules, and Bootes.

The constellation Quadrans Muralis was removed, along with a few other constellations, from crowded sky maps in 1922 when the International Astronomical Union adopted the modern list of 88 officially-recognized constellations.

New Moon will occur at 7:30 PM on Saturday, January 9, as the Moon will be located on the same side of the Earth as the Sun and will not be visible in the night sky.

Full Moon will occur Saturday January 23, 7:36 PM CST.

January’s Full Moon is “Wolf Moon” in Native American folklore. This was also called “Wulf-Monath” or “Wolf Month” by the Saxons, because at this full Moon packs of wolves howled in hunger outside of the villages.

It has also been called “Old Moon” and “Moon After Yule”.

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This month’s meeting will be on January 12 at 7PM at the National Weather Service Forecast office at the Shelby County Airport.

If for some reason you cannot attend the meeting in person, you can still participate via telephone. The teleconference number is 1-877-951-0997 & and the participant code is 741083.

Hope to see you there!

Mark / WD4NYL
Editor
ALERT Newsletter

www.freewebs.com/weatherlynx/

Mark’s Weatherlynx
Weather Resource Database

Hi Everyone,

December is here and you know what that means don’t you? Yes you’re right; it’s time for the ALERT Christmas party!

You are all cordially invited to the ALERT Christmas party Tuesday, December 15 at the NWS Forecast Office.

Please note that this will be the THIRD Tuesday, not the second Tuesday in December.

ALERT will provide “the meat and fine china”. We ask that everyone bring a side item – side dish, dessert or drink – non-alcoholic please, to share.

Stephanie Honeycutt is coordinating this event, so please contact her and let her know what you are bringing, how many people will be in your party.

Stephanie can be reached at stephhoneycutt@outlook.com

Bring your spouse, kids, and perspective members and be prepared to have Christmas fun!

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“The Night Before Christmas”, Ham Radio-style
Author Unknown
‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the town,
The snowstorm was raging, the phone lines were down;
The wind it did howl, the tree limbs did crack,
I hope that St. Nick isn’t forced to turn back.
The wife making cookies, the kids making noise,
While away in the shack, by my rig I was poised.
The finals were glowing, the mike gain was set,
I was chasing DX to see what I could get.
The bands were all empty, the frequencies clear,
Except one lone station that sounded quite near.
He was calling CQ and my interest did pique,
When he ended transmission with the words,
“Old St. Nick”.
I answered back quickly, I used great dispatch,
If this were St. Nicholas, good God, what a catch!
We exchanged information, it was really quite graphic,
Then he came back and said,
“I’ve emergency traffic!”
His reindeer were tired, his elves in a grump,
If he didn’t land soon, then his sleigh he would dump.
I thought very carefully, I thought very hard,
Then I gave him directions to my snow covered yard.
As he flew past my window, his hair like a mane,
He reined in his chargers and called them by name:
“Whoa, Anode! Whoa, Cathode! Whoa, Zener! Whoa, Diode!
Stop, Heater! Stop, Grid leak! Stop, Bias! Stop, Triode!
You’re flying too low! you’re flying too fast!
Look out, you dumb reindeer, his antenna mast!”
So into the backyard the reindeer did drop,
St. Nick, the elves, and the sleigh went kerplop!
Then at the back door, I heard this loud knocking,
“Open up in there, or I won’t fill your stocking!”
As I turned off the light and was leaving the shack,
Into the house Saint Nicholas came from the back.
His two-meter rig held to his hip with a strap,
“Hams do it in the shack” on the front of his cap.
The sack that he carried made his aged brow furrow,
And he handed me a card that read,
“QSL Via Bureau”.
His clothes were all sooty, from his shoes to his vest;
I felt like a novice taking his test.
His fingers were calloused and from what I could tell,
This came from a straight key that I’ll bet he used well.
I offered him coffee, I offered him smokes,
I tried easing the tension by telling ham jokes.
Then he nodded his head and raised up his thumb,
He smiled like an Elmer, did I ever feel dumb.
He grabbed up his sack and went straight for the tree,
And placed in it a large present for me.
When he finished his work, he stood up, took a bow,
Then out the back door to his team he did plow.
But I heard him exclaim as he flew o’er the land,
“Beware the FCC, friend, we were both out of band!”
Merry Christmas from my house to yours!

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Mark’s Almanac

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

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

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. In 124 years of records, from 1885 to 2011 there have been 5 December hurricanes. The last December hurricane being Hurricane Epsilon during the 2005 season, the year in which we ran out of hurricane names. That year also featured Tropical Storm Zeta, the latest forming Tropical Storm which formed on December 30, 2005 and lasted until January 7, 2006.

Looking towards the sky, Mercury is hidden behind the Sun at the beginning of the month, but, gradually emerges into the evening sky. On the 29th Mercury reaches greatest eastern elongation of 19.7 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, Mars and Jupiter are gathered together in the Eastern predawn sky with Venus closest to the horizon, Mars above and Jupiter hovering over the pair.

Venus will pass by the moon on the morning of December 7. Also on December 7 Comet Catalina joins Venus and the waning crescent Moon. Venus shines 4° southwest and the Moon 5° southwest of the comet.

Technically, Comet Catalina is currently a 6th magnitude object visible to the unaided eye. In practice, however, the morning twilight overwhelms the comet’s faint glow. So for now you will need a telescope to see it.

It will become easier to see as it recedes from the sun, possibly brightening to 5th magnitude later in December.

This is Comet Catalina’s first visit to the inner solar system–and its last. The comet’s close encounter with the sun in mid-November has placed it on a slingshot trajectory toward interstellar space.

Saturn, at the Libra/Scorpius border is lost in the glow of sunset.

Uranus in Pisces and Neptune in Aquarius are high in the souther sky in the early evening.

1911 planets beyond our solar system have now been confirmed as of November 19, per NASA’s Exoplanet Archive http://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/

New Moon occurs December 11 at 4:29 AM CST when the Moon will on the same side of the Earth as the Sun and will not be visible in the night sky.

The Geminid Meteor Shower peaks on December 13-14. Geminids are one of the year’s best meteor showers. It’s a consistent and prolific shower, and usually the most satisfying of all the annual showers, even surpassing the more widely recognized Perseids of August. This shower typically produces 50 or more multicolored meteors an hour, or about one every minute.

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. If you’re game, you can watch the Geminid shower all the way from mid-evening until dawn.

The Geminids is 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 crescent moon will set early in the evening leaving dark skies for what should be an excellent 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 Ursid meteor shower, a minor meteor shower, 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 shower runs annually from December 17-25. This year the waxing gibbous moon will be bright enough to hide most of the fainter meteors. If you are patient, you might still be able to catch some of 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 Ursa Minor, but can appear anywhere in the sky.

Looking towards the sky, the star of Winter have begun drifting into the night sky. Low in the southern sky is the bright star Fomalhaut.

Whenever Fomalhaut is “southing” (crossing the meridian due south, which it does around 7 p.m. now depending on your location), the first stars of Orion are just about to rise in the east, and the Pointers of the Big Dipper stand vertical straight below Polaris, towards The North Star.

Orion is also valuable as a rough navigation aid as the two left stars forming the elongated square forming Orion always lie on a general north / south line, and the bottom two stars of the square lie on a rough east / west line.

Winter Solstice will be December 21 at 10:48 PM CST. 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 (winter solstice) in the Northern Hemisphere and the first day of summer (summer solstice) in the Southern Hemisphere.

We will have a Christmas Full Moon as Full Moon this year occurs on December 25 5:11 AM CST. 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.

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 hid from inquiring minds and fingers.

A time 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”.

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This month’s meeting will be on December 15 at 7PM at the National Weather Service Forecast office at the Shelby County Airport.

If for some reason you cannot attend the meeting in person, you can still participate via telephone. The teleconference number is 1-877-951-0997 & and the participant code is 741083.
Hope to see you there!
Mark / WD4NYL
Editor
ALERT Newsletter

www.freewebs.com/weatherlynx/

Mark’s Weatherlynx
Weather Resource Database

Hi everyone,
I hope this finds you well and that no hobgoblins created mischief for you overnight.

Have you checked in to the ALERT Sunday Night Net lately? Our net meets each Sunday at 7PM on 146.88 MHz, PL 88.5 Hz.

It is a discussion net, formal, but, with a somewhat laid back style.

As of today, if my memory serves me correctly, I will have completed 15 years as Net Manager.

Our Team of Net Control Stations consists of Jackson Chance, KK4NGD, David Hanna, KK4YPK,
Dale Wisely, N4HEY & Mark Wells, WD4NYL, with Owen Holland W3NH backing us up.

If you haven’t checked into our net, I invite you to do so.

I think you will enjoy it!

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K4NWS D-Star Updated
Ron Arant, N4PHP, and Ken Adkisson, WB4FAY, cleaned up the programming on the ICOM ID-800 at the K4NWS station. As part of the ‘clean up’ the memories were all reprogrammed in the ID-800 at the NWS station.
– Many of the repeater definitions were no longer valid or they were repeaters that were too distant to be remotely possible to use from the NWS office. These memory locations were deleted to eliminate confusion.
– Several usable D-STAR repeaters have been brought online since the ID-800 was originally programmed. These were added to memory locations.
– Echo, Link and Unlink command memories were added to support the use of the D-STAR reflector system.
– Analog FM repeaters were updated to include the PL tones for various local repeaters (e.g. 146.88, 146.98, 147.32, etc.)
– The FM Simplex net frequency (146.58) was programmed
The memories are set as follows:
# Display Name Call Band Location Function
01 DSO-VT K4DSO 2M Birmingham (Double Oak) Vhf general use Talk channel
02* DSO-VE K4DSO 2M Birmingham (Double Oak) VHF Echo
03** DSO-U K4DSO 2M Birmingham (Double Oak) Unlink the repeater from any
Reflector
04** DSO02A K4DSO 2M Birmingham (Double Oak) Link repeater to Reflector 02A
05** DSO58B K4DSO 2M Birmingham (Double Oak) Link repeater to Reflector 58B
06 DSOUHF K4DSO 440 Birmingham (Double Oak) UHF general use talk channel
07* DSO-UE K4DSO 440 Birmingham (Double Oak) UHF Echo
09 SBB-T KI4SBB 2M Birmingham (Red Mtn) VHF general use Talk channel
10* SBB-E KI4SBB 2M Birmingham (Red Mtn) VHF Echo
11** SBB-U KI4SBB 2M Birmingham (Red Mtn) Unlink the repeater from any
Reflector
12** SBB02A KI4SBB 2M Birmingham (Red Mtn) Link repeater to Reflector 02A
13** DSO58B KI4SBB 2M Birmingham (Red Mtn) Link repeater to Reflector 58B
15 AEC-VT W4AEC 2M Clanton (EOC) Vhf general use Talk channel
16* AEC-VE W4AEC 2M Clanton (EOC) VHF Echo
19 TUSC-T W4KCQ 2M Tuscaloosa VHF general use Talk channel
20** TUSC-E W4KCQ 2M Tuscaloosa VHF Echo
22 SIMPLX N/A 2M 145.67 D-STAR Simplex D-STAR Simplex frequency

101 SHL-98 W4SHL 2M Shelby County 146.98 Repeater
102 SHL-32 W4SHL 2M Shelby County 146.32 Repeater
103 BARC88 W4CUE 2M Birmingham 146.88 Repeater
104 147.14 WA4CYA 2M Hoover 147.14 Repeater
106 146.50 N/A 2M 146.50 Simplex
107 146.52 N/A 2M 146.52 Simplex
108 SMPLX N/A 2M Two Meter Simplex Net
109 TALLTR KX4I 2M Tuscaloosa Tall Tower Repeater

Notes:
* Echo memories are used to check how well the station is getting into the particular repeater. Simply select the appropriate ‘echo’ memory location; key the radio and speak a test message (e.g. “This is K4NWS echo testing.”). When the repeater records whatever it hears and then retransmitted the recording when you the input signal drops.
** Various repeater gateway commands (Unlink, Link to REF002A, and Link to REF058B) are programmed in various memories. To use these, select the appropriate memory location and simply ‘kerchuck’ the repeater. The command is transmitted and if properly received by the repeater, it will be executed and a confirmation message will be sent by the repeater. These memory channels are NOT for voice communications. They should be used only to command the repeater for a particular function

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Preparing For The Fall Tornado Season
As we enter our Fall Tornado Season, this month’s ALERT newsletter will focus on training, with a review ALERT’s operational procedures. Please print out these instructions, keep and study them.
This is a general overview. For more detailed instructions and many more resources please refer to the ALERT Handbook written by Roger Parsons, KK4UDU.
Also, remember that most of our “real training” is from “on the job experience”. In other words, please don’t be afraid to respond to a callout even if you feel need more training. 90 percent of our training is “learning by doing” under the supervision of seasoned mentor. That’s how I did it. My training was with David Black KB4KCH “showing me the ropes” during a callout many years ago.

ALERT CALLOUT PROCEDURES
What To Do Before The Callout
Some preparations you should think about before responding are:
1. Attend a storm spotter class. This way you will be more knowledgeable about the situations being encountered and the needs of the NWS. Also you will be better prepared to filter reports and eliminate the well-meant, but oft times goofy “Leaf debris reports”.

2. Familiarize yourself with radar interpretation, especially the new Dual-Pol products, so you can be looking at the radar and anticipating problem areas, as this will give you a head start on seeking pertinent information. I learned radar interpretation at JSU – James Spann University. When the TV meteorologists point out the various things they are seeing on radar, pay attention, learn and remember, for this is a good source for familiarization of standard NEXRAD displays. For the new Dual-Pol products I recommend the NOAA course http://www.wdtb.noaa.gov/courses/dualpol/outreach/ and the instructional posts at http://tennesseewx.com/index.php/topic,3110.0.html
3. Gain knowledge of the various area ARES / Skywarn frequencies and nets. Do be aware that due to propagation and repeater range, sometimes a counties “favored” repeater may not be the one that we can actually reach. Also, understand that some counties have ongoing political “situations” between rival organizations, and in some cases between ham groups and the county’s EMA. There is nothing we can do about this. Our job is to get reports for the NWS, not be a referee or a “ham marriage counselor”. Most groups like us, but, a very few do not. Do not be discouraged or engage in a conflict if you end up dealing with one of the latter groups. Remember that we represent the NWS, and we must practice diplomacy at all times.

4. Make a “go kit” or bag. Teresa & Mark’s go kit contains the ALERT Handbook, an Alabama atlas (the same one the NWS uses), a notepad, pens & a binder with all my “NWS / ALERT guides, and junk” that I’ve gathered over the years. Other useful items would be medicines, your favorite drink (non-alcoholic, please) & a favorite snack. Also included are things to do to keep you awake, for while some callouts are intense, hectic and exciting, others, especially when the storms keep dying near Meridian, are easy cures for insomnia.

Now that we have prepared ourselves, we wait for the callouts.

ALERT Callout Process
1. We want, encourage and welcome Operational members to take active roles in callouts. To receive callouts you must be on our callout list, if you are not receiving callout notifications, contact Russell KV4S so you can be put on the list. Contact Russell at Russell@kv4s.com. Remember that you must be a “paid up” ALERT member to be allowed to respond to a callout. If you are not a member or have let your membership lapse, please join ALERT, for non-members cannot respond.
Also, while guests are more than welcome at meetings, please do not bring guests to callouts. This is due to NWS security concerns and space limitations in the K4NWS cubical.
2. Monitor the weather situation and be prepared for a possible callout. Have more than one way to receive weather warnings. NOAA weather radio is the primary method, phone apps being secondary.
3. Don’t self-activate and just show up at the NWS because you think that help is needed and ALERT hasn’t acted or hasn’t acted fast enough. Remember that ALERT is activated when the NWS request activation. The NWS decides if and when we are needed, not ALERT. Never try to bypass the callout system. The callout system is in place for specific reasons.
The callout system allows us to:
Know who is actually there, so we can maintain accountability, security & control.
Avoid duplication of effort. When we know who is available & what times, we can schedule shifts allowing us to more efficiently utilize our available resources & avoid having a confused, chaotic response.
It helps operators choose which responses they can best give to which entity. This is especially becoming more & more important as many operators belong to more than one emergency response group
For instance, if there are multiple callouts – ALERT, ARES, CERT etc all issuing simultaneous callouts, if one calls the ALERT Liaison & asks if ALERT needs operators or is adequately staffed it will help you decide where you are best needed, since you can’t be everywhere at once.
It allows you to cover more bases, as it can allow you to say, “I can be at the NWS with ALERT from 3PM to 7PM and then at the EMA from 8PM till the duration”.
4. If a callout is issued and you are available, call the contact person listed in the callout notification so you can be scheduled. Always coordinate with the NWS liaison issuing the callout – Russell before responding to the NWS. If it is your first callout, let the liaison know, so you may be teamed with an experienced member. We don’t want to just “thrown you to the wolves”.
5. As mentioned earlier, remember that when you respond to the callout, visitors & guests are not allowed. NWS security restrictions and ALERT policy forbid this.
6. When you leave for the NWS, allow extra travel time, as travel conditions may be slow and dangerous.
7. If you are scheduled and will be late or unable to fill your shift, contact the Liaison you responded to & let him know.
8. When you arrive at the NWS buzz the buzzer to be let in & let them know you are with ALERT, and sign in providing a photo ID.

K4NWS Startup Procedures

1. Did You Sign In At The Front Desk?
2. Obtain a brief situational update from the meteorologist who greets you, or the person he designates.
3. Turn on the power supplies first.
4. Turn on the radios second, so you don’t damage the radios.
5. Starting with the 220 MHz radio on the far left, open the squelch and adjust the volume to a comfortable level, a level which will not distract the forecasters from doing their jobs. Verify that the radio is on 224.500 MHz.
6. Do likewise with the next radio to the right, which is 2 meters. This will be your “roaming” radio that you will use to search distant repeaters for reports. When not searching for distant reports, leave it on 146.880 MHz.
7. Next is the 440 MHz radio, which can be used for roaming UHF, but, is normally monitoring 444.100 MHz.
8. Next is the Icom 706. We currently do not operate on HF, so set this on 146.980 MHz so that if West Alabama is being affected, Shelby County can link with West Alabama and reach.
9. Lastly the D-Star radio is prepared. Test the radio on Channel 1. It can also be used on 146.88 or 98, and other reflectors and repeaters as needs dictate. But, usually it should remain on Channel 1.
The Radio Station is now prepared, now for the Computer Workstation
10. Verify that the computer is up and running, it should already be on.
11. If not, or if you cannot log into the computer or on the Spotterchats, if Jody Aaron or John DeBlock are available, seek their assistance.
One thing to remember is that as long as you can log into BMXspotterchat (the general use chatroom), this is sufficient. You don’t necessarily need to monitor the BMXEMACHAT & relay reports from BMXchat to BMXEMACHAT. After all you are sitting at the NWS – if someone has a report on BMXspotterchat, thank the operator & then simply tell the forecaster what was reported.
Remember also that ALERT members at offsite locations usually are covering the chatrooms. The focus of K4NWS is RF operations.
If you can’t log on the NWSchat system & want to monitor traffic on the BMXEMACHAT you can still do so (assuming you have an NWSchat account). This may be done by opening the Internet Explorer & going to https://nwschat.weather.gov/live/, log in & go to “Chatrooms” at the bottom left of the screen & click the link. From the list that appears find “Birmingham (BMX) EM Chat (bmxemachat)” and click on this & then click “join a chat” on the box that appears. A fully functional interactive version of the chat will then be activated.
Please note that while we can access the “BMXchat” or “Birmingham (BMX) Chat (bmxchat), it is preferred by the NWS that we use the BMXEMACHAT instead. Anything posted on the BMXchat automatically appears on the BMXEMACHAT. You miss nothing.
Now, if you can’t log on to the BMXspotterchat you may do so by going to http://weather.im/live/?nomap log in and find “BMXspotterchat” on the chatroom list at the bottom left of the screen and you may login in from the “join a chat group” box that appears, making sure you remember to identify yourself as K4NWS in the “chat handle” field.
The “ABC33/40skywatcher” chat can be accessed in the same way.
12. To monitor radar go to the College Of Dupage website at http://weather.cod.edu/satrad/nexrad/index.php?type=BMX-N0Q-0-6 The radar may initially display the Chicago area. Click the “radar site map” tab in the upper right of the display to access the available radar sites and select the appropriate Alabama radar. This is a full feature Dual-Pol radar site. As a backup use the NWS NEXRAD site http://radar.weather.gov/ridge/radar.php?rid=bmx&product=N0R&overlay=11101111&loop=no
13. If you are wanting to monitor APRS, though we currently do not have APRS capability, you may use the following websites to monitor APRS activity. http://aprs.fi/#!lat=33.46670&lng=-86.80660 & http://www.findu.com/cgi-bin/find.cgi?call=wb4fay-4 These and many other weather tools and resources are readily available at www.freewebs.com/weatherlynx/.
Do understand that it is not the job of the operators at K4NWS to track people on APRS. During a hectic callout we simply do not have the time to track other counties operators. That is the job of the individual counties Net Control Stations. Each county should be aware of their spotter’s location and/or deployments, and simply relay the reports to us. If we were to try to track one counties operators, it would slow the process down severely and we would miss valuable reports from other counties also needing our attention.
14. When the computer is ready, as best you can, balancing radio coverage with computer coverage, monitor the radar & the Chatrooms. Remember that everyone has limited multitasking capacity & that this capacity varies with each person. Our prime mission is gathering reports via RF.
to him or her. Remember you are NOT intruding. They WANT your reports. That’s why they called you in.
16. You usually will receive requests for information & be given updates by the meteorologists. Honor those requests as best you can.
17. Listen to the background chit-chat in the room and monitor the radar. When an area of concern is mentioned or a suspicious looking cell appears on radar, go to repeaters covering the area of concern & SEEK reports. Don’t just wait for a warning to be issued to react. SEARCH for reports. We are to ACT, not just REACT. If a net is in session, check in with the Net Control Station and let them know that you are available for reports. Always go through the Net Control Station. We don’t “take over” other’s nets. If no net is in session, a general call for reports is acceptable.
If for some reason a counties Net Control Station or Net Manager asks us to not use their frequency, comply with their request and inform ALERT leadership of the situation.
Also be aware that no other ham organization, whether on a local, county, district, state or national level has authority over ALERT. ALERT is a separate entity operating under the authority of the National Weather Service, and they and the Federal Communications Commission are the only entities that have authority over our operations.
18. While monitoring 88 & 98 is desirable, you have to “go where the action is”, which means leaving those frequencies. If you are checked in to a local net, tell the NCS’s you are leaving. They can still reach K4NWS via 220 or 440.
19. Remember to log your reports.
20. When your relief operator arrives, leave, and go get some rest. You may be needed later again & will need to be fresh.
I’ll reemphasize the word “leave”. The guys & gals really don’t have the time to chit chat while an event is ongoing.

Shutdown Procedures

1. If possible, don’t shut down until the meteorologists say that you are no longer needed.
2. After they do, finish your paperwork & straighten up the cubical.
3. If the 88 & 98 Nets are up, let the NCS’s know you are shutting down. This also applies to any other net you are still monitoring.
4. Do likewise on the Spotterchat, as the Buddy List may say “K4NWS” even if no one is there, causing confusion.
5. Shut off the radios.
6. Shut off the power supplies.
7. DO NOT SHUT OFF THE COMPUTER!
8. Sign out and leave.
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Here are a few more words about the Spotterchats.
ALERT and the NWS cover 39 counties. Some have a low Amateur Radio population, who may not even be interested is the Skywarn program. Some counties are outside the VHF/UHF range of K4NWS, or rarely in range, such as is the cases of the Tuscaloosa & Gadsden 82 repeater’s or the Montgomery 84 repeater.
But, as long as the internet is accessible the Spotterchat system is always in range and has the potential to provide full 39 county coverage, which can be monitored remotely be ALERT members, freeing up the operators at K4NWS, and they can be monitored with or without a callout.
So here is a little brush up on the spotter chat protocols.
Operational ALERT members on the chats act as a liaison to the BMXEMACHAT and directly copies and pastes reports onto the BMXEMACHAT. They filter the information when needed, as any regular NCS should do, to insure that only necessary information is passed.
Here are some guidelines to help filter reports. Including reports from both the BMXspotterchat and the ABC33/40 chat, which James Spann has given ALERT permission to use & from which we “copy and paste” to the BMXEMACHAT when appropriate.
The first question to be asked is “is this report usable for NWS purposes? “Clear sky”, “full moon”, “it’s thundering”, “the stars are out”, “it’s getting very dark out here” (especially at sunset) aka “leaf debris reports” are complete wastes of the operators time, energy and Internet bandwidth.
If it is a suitable report, the “what, when and where rules” apply. What has or is happening, when did it happened and where? We will need a clear specific location. A location that is clearly defined with street/cross-street, mile marker, etc. If the location has a strange or unfamiliar sounding name, don’t hesitate to ask the reporting station to spell the street name. Otherwise you may have to waste time chasing down details in a fast pace, hectic, often hellacious situation. Remember that time is our greatest enemy.
We don’t need scanner reports or third hand reports. They are unverifiable and in the case of scanner reports, the EMA usually already knows about the call and will know whether it is a false alarm or not. If it’s the “real deal”, the EMA will pass the information directly to the NWS. Scanner reports are how false rumors are spread, which is something that we – ALERT, the NWS and the EMA’s all seek to avoid.
The BMXchat & BMXEMACHAT are for “weather and weather only” and not places for idle chit-chat or critiquing NWS forecast decisions. This would include the ABC3340 Chat. Publicly criticizing the NWS while flying the ALERT banner is totally unacceptable and can damage the public confidence of the NWS and damage ALERT’s relationship with the NWS.
Remember also that we don’t casually “chat with the guys at the NWS”. They are busy. If the meteorologists ask us a question, we answer, but usually not the other way around.
Information & discussions seen on the NWSchat are NOT to be discussed on the air or on the other chats. The information is confidential and is to be treated as such. The only exceptions would be in cases where you see the forecaster saying something like “rotation is really tightening up over Hueytown”. Then simply say on the other chats or on the air that the “NWS is needing reports from the Hueytown area”.
A final word on this subject is to remember that everyone has a slightly different methodology, based on knowledge, experience and personal preference. Don’t be afraid that you might mess up. It’s when you think that you never mess up, or are afraid to act at all, that you are on the slippery edge of a problem. So hop on in there.
Know that by responding and manning K4NWS you may have saved a life. You may never know whose family you have saved, whose child will still have a mother and father or whose life will continue because of the advanced warning you helped make possible. But, because of the service you provided, you literally saved these lives.
Which is something to be proud of.

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Mark’s Almanac

November, the eleventh month, is named for “Novem”, being the ninth month of the ancient Roman calendar.
With the arrival of November we enter our second tornado season. Alabama and the Southeast is “blessed” by being the only area on Earth having two tornado seasons. And, the cause of the fall season is the same as the spring season – clashes of cold and warm air masses. The cold air of winter invades and tries to push the warmth of the summer back into the sea, which is the same process of springtime, just in reverse.
The second tornado season is often more destructive than the spring season.

Based on NWS statistics from 1950 to 2014 November the third most active month for tornadoes, having seen 247, following just behind second ranked March’s 263 count. April leads with 455 tornadoes.

Jefferson County, incidentally, has now taken the lead for tornadoes per county – 95 tornadoes from 1950 to 2014. Baldwin is second with 90, and Mobile third with 83.

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.
Hurricane season ends November 30.
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 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.

For fun, some November weather folklore is:

“A cold November means a warm Christmas, conversely, a warm November is a sign of a bad winter to come.”

“Wind in the North-west on St. Martin’s Day (Nov 11)
There’s a severe winter on the way

Wind in the South-west on St. Martins Day
There it will remain till February, and a mild winter will be had.”

“Ice before Martinmas (St. Martin’s Day), enough to bear a duck
The rest of winter, is sure to be muck.”

“Martinmas”, incidentally, was the time when autumn wheat seeding was completed, and the annual slaughter of fattened cattle produced “Martinmas beef”.

Looking towards the sky, Mercury is low in the eastern predawn sky, look for him 45 minutes before sunrise.

Venus, Mars and Jupiter be in a rare three planet conjunction at the first of the month, with the planets forming a tight 1 degree triangle in the early morning sky, with the star Regulus lingering nearby. Look to the East at sunrise for this very rare spectacular.

Jupiter and Mars pass through conjunction on Saturday and Sunday the 17th and 18th just 0.4 degrees apart. Then Jupiter moves upward towards Venus and are only 1.1 degrees apart on the 25th and 26th.

Saturn, at the Libra/Scorpius border is very low in the southwest during twilight, near twinkling Antares.

Uranus in Pisces and Neptune in Aquarius are high in the southeast and south respectively by 9 or 10 PM.

The Taurid Meteor Shower peaks the night of November 5 & 6. The Taurids is a long-running minor meteor shower producing only about 5-10 meteors per hour. It is 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.

The second quarter moon will block out all but the brightest meteors this year. If you are patient, 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 Taurus, but can appear anywhere in the sky.

New Moon occurs November 11 at 11:47 AM CST when the Moon will on the same side of the Earth as the Sun and will not be visible in the night sky.

The Leonid Meteor Shower will occur the night of November 17 & 18. The Leonids is an average shower, producing an up to 15 meteors per hour at its peak. This shower is 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 and the next will occur in 2034.

The Leonids is produced by dust grains left behind by comet Tempel-Tuttle, which was discovered in 1865. The shower runs annually from November 6-30. It peaks this year on the night of the 17th and morning of the 18th.

The first quarter moon will set shortly after midnight leaving fairly dark skies for what could be a good show. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Leo, but can appear anywhere in the sky.

The Leonids are well known for producing bright meteors and fireballs. 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.

If you can’t see them, you can listen to them. Try http://spaceweatherradio.com/index.php and click “listen”. You may hear them “pinging” off the US Air Force Space Surveillance radar system.

Full Moon will occur November 25 at 4:44 PM CST. This month’s moon is “Full Beaver Moon” so named by Native American tribes 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 Hunter’s Moon.

1903 planets beyond our solar system have now been confirmed as of October 22, per NASA’s Exoplanet Archive http://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/.

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This month’s meeting will be on November 10 at 7PM at the National Weather Service Forecast office at the Shelby County Airport.

If for some reason you cannot attend the meeting in person, you can still participate via telephone. The teleconference number is 1-877-951-0997 & and the participant code is 741083.
Hope to see you there!
Mark / WD4NYL
Editor
ALERT Newsletter

www.freewebs.com/weatherlynx/

Mark’s Weatherlynx
Weather Resource Database

A flashback to June 2007…..

“Welcome to the new ALERT Newsletter!

This newsletter is designed to keep members & interested “lurkers” informed as to the news and activities of your ALERT. Comments, suggestions & additions are more than welcome.”

With that simple introduction, the current ALERT Newsletter was born….

Welcome to the 100th Edition of the ALERT Newsletter!

This newsletter was actually designed to be “friendly spam” invading peoples email inboxes and gently tapping them on the shoulder and reminding them that “ALERT is still here, don’t forget about us”. Reverse psychology of the “out of sight, out of mind” principle.

Even if one never opens the email, you can’t ignore us….were still here!

Also, it was hoped to update our activities, provide some interesting articles and serve as a training tool.

Over the years we’ve dealt with training, procedural problems, ham political problems aka whining, emergency preparedness and of delved into astronomy with “Mark’s Almanac”.

The ALERT Newsletter has been well received, with very few negative comments.

One thing to be remembered is that this is YOUR newsletter. That being said, I need articles and ideas. Sometimes I can’t think of a single thing to put in the main article. You would be surprised at how many “bottom of the 9th inning” articles have suddenly popped into my head and been quickly written.

So, to put it mildly HELP!!!

What is the future of the newsletter?

At some point I will pass the torch to someone else and hopefully there will be someone there to take the torch.

One unique thing about the ALERT Newsletter is that IT STILL EXISTS. Once upon a time there were quite a few newsletters being produced by various local clubs and groups. Now they are all gone, or have devolved into a monthly email meeting reminder.

This is actually the second incarnation of an ALERT newsletter. When ALERT was founded back in 1996 there was a short-lived newsletter called the “ALERT News”.

Hopefully the current newsletter, now in its 8th year, will in whatever form my eventual successors choose, be here for decades to come.

It’s not going anywhere soon, and neither am I.

So sit back, relax and welcome to edition 100!
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From Mark’s Weather Archives
“Weather Folklore And Wisdom From Divers Sources”

(Some true, some just for fun, you get to observe and decide which is which)

“But He replied to them, “When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ And in the morning, ‘There will be a storm today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ Do you know how to discern the appearance of the sky, but cannot discern the signs of the times?” Matthew 16: 2 &3

“The hollow winds begin to blow, the clouds look black, the grass is low;
The soot falls down, the spaniels sleep, and spiders from their cobwebs peep.
Last night the sun went pale to bed, the moon halos hid her head;
The boding shepherd heaves a sigh, For see, a rainbow spans the sky.
The walls are damp, the ditches smell, closed is the pink-eyed pimpernel.
Hark how the chairs and tables crack! Old Betty’s nerves are on the rack;
Loud quacks the duck, the peacocks cry, the distant hills are seeming nigh.
How restless are the snorting swine, the busy flies disturb the kine,
Low o’er the grass the swallow wings, the cricket, too, how sharp he sings!
Cat on the hearth, with velvet paws, sits wiping o’er her whiskered jaws;
Through the clear streams the fishes rise, and nimbly catch the incautious flies.
The glowworms, numerous and light, illumined the dewy dell last night;
At dusk the squalid was seen, hopping and crawling o’er the green;
The whirling dust the wind obeys, and in the rapid eddy plays;
The frog has changed his yellow vest, and in a russet coat is dressed.
Though June, the air is cold and still, the mellow blackbird’s voice is shrill;
My dog, so altered in his taste, quits mutton bones on grass to feast;
And see yon rooks, how odd their flight! They imitate the gliding kite,
And seem precipitate to fall, as if they felt the piercing ball.
‘Twill surely rain; I see with sorrow, Our jaunt must be put off to-morrow.” – Dr. Edward Jones

“Infallible signs of Rainy Weather, from the Observations of divers Animals!
If Ducks or Drakes their Wings do flutter high
Or tender Colts upon their Backs do lie,
If Sheep do bleat, or play, or skip about,
Or Swine hide Straw by bearing on their Snout,
If Oxen lick themselves against the Hair,
Or grazing Kine to feed apace appear,
If Cattle bellow, grazine from below,
Or if Dogs Entrails rumble to and fro,
If Doves or Pigeons in the Evening come
Later than usual to their Dove-House Home,
If Crows and Daws do oft themselves be-wet,
Or Ants and Pismires Home a-pace do get,
If in the dust Hens do their Pinions shake,
Or by their flocking a great Number make,
If Swallows fly upon the Water low,
Or Wood-Lice seem in Armies for to go,
If Flies or Gnats, or Fleas infest and bite,
Or sting more than they’re wont by Day or Night,
If Toads hie Home, or Frogs do croak amain,
Or Peacocks cry
Soon after look for Rain! “

“Frog goes a hoppin’, rain comes a droppin’”

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 http://www.srh.noaa.gov/epz/?n=wxcalc_cricketconvert
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.
If a cat sits with its back to a heat source expect cold weather.
If a cat takes shelter behind furniture or slinks along the ground for no apparent reason, a thunderstorm may be approaching.
If a dog starts trembling, panting and trying to hide for no apparent reason, he also may hear a thunderstorm approaching. Or an earthquake, some say.
“If your dog howls at the moon it signifies an early snow.”
Ants shore up their anthills before a rain.
Roaches suddenly appearing in houses that normally have none signal rain.
Insects will flee to higher ground before a prolonged rain. (I observed this on Red Mountain as Katrina approached the coast)
If the sun shines while snow is falling, expect more snow very soon.
The length of a recently deceased goose breastbone at Thanksgiving indicates the length of the ensuing winter, while the color of the breastbone indicates its severity. A plain white breastbone indicates a mild winter. A mottled breastbone indicates a more severe winter, and the more mottled the breastbone the more severe the winter to come.
The deeper squirrels bury their nuts, the lower the lowest temperature will be for the upcoming winter.
A ring around the sun or moon indicates rain or snow within 12 to 24 hours.
If the Moon has two rings encircling it, expect snowfall within 24 hours.
Sundogs indicate possible rain in 24 to 48 hours.
Expect a tough Winter is ahead if:
“Corn husks are thick and tight…
Apple skins are tough…
Birds migrate early…
Squirrels tails are very bushy…
Berries and nuts are plentiful…
Bees build their nests high in the trees.”

“Squirrels gathering nuts in a flurry, will cause snow to gather in a hurry.”
“Flowers bloomin’ in late Autumn, a sure sign of a bad Winter comin’.”
“As high as the weeds grow, so will the bank of snow.”
Thunder in the Fall foretells a cold Winter.
“Onion skins very thin, Mild Winter coming in;
Onion skins thick and tough, Coming Winter cold and rough.”

Bees and wasps retreating to their hives and nests indicate rain.

Likewise, bees, wasps, spiders and birds reappearing mean the storms end is near.

The severity of Winter is determined by how far down the feathers have grown on a partridge’s leg. I know I check my partridges often…

The wider the brown (middle) band on a woolly bear caterpillar, the milder the Winter.

If there is thunder in Winter, it will snow 7 days later.

“No weather is ill, if the wind be still.”

“Rain before seven, fine before eleven.”

“A cow with its tail to the West makes the weather best,
A cow with its tail to the East makes the weather least.”

“A sunshiny shower won’t last half an hour!”

“Mackerel skies and mare’s tails make ships carry lowered sails.”

“Mares tales, storms and gales. Mackerel sky, not 24 hours dry.”

“The rain it raineth every day
On the just and unjust fella.
But mostly on the just fella,
because the unjust stole the just’s umbrella!”

The louder the frog, the more the rain.

“When the wind is blowing in the North
No fisherman should set forth,
When the wind is blowing in the East,
‘Tis not fit for man nor beast,
When the wind is blowing in the South
It brings the food over the fish’s mouth,
When the wind is blowing in the West,
That is when the fishing’s best!”

“Wind in the East – the Fish bite the least.
Wind in the West – the Fish bite the best.”

If smoke goes up – clear, smoke comes down – moisture on the way.

“In the morning mountains (of clouds), in the evening fountains.”

“When Windows won’t open,
And the salt clogs the shaker,
The weather will favour
The umbrella maker!”

“If the moon shows a silver shield,
Be not afraid to reap the field,
But if she rises haloed round,
Soon well tread on deluged ground.”

“If fleecy white clouds cover the heavenly way, no rain should mar your plans that day.”

A frosty night means clear weather.

Clear night, cold night, cloudy night, a warmer night.

Sounds are louder on a cloudy day, also, distant sounds, like smoke, are carried by the wind.

The higher the clouds, the finer the weather.

“Rain foretold, long last. Short notice, soon will pass.”

“When the dew is on the grass,
Rain will never come to pass.
When grass is dry at morning light,
Look for rain before the night.”

Many birds roosting on wires or gathering on beaches means rain.

Birds are natural windvanes, when on trees or power lines they point towards the wind so their feathers don’t get ruffled.

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 does signal a cold front.)

The loud, shrill buzz of the cicada warned of long, hot days ahead.

Flies clustered on windows and screens predicted a cold front was on the way.

“When bubbles are rising on the surface of coffee and they hold together, good weather is coming; if bubbles break up, weather you don’t need is coming.”

“A sunshiny shower, last half an hour.”

“Rainbow at night – shepherd’s delight. Rainbow in morning – shepherds warning.”

“When ditches and ponds offend the nose, look for rain and stormy blows.”

Aching joints foretell bad weather.

Chickweed and mimosa close their leaves before a rain.

Dandelion and daisy blossoms close before a storm.

“When the leaves of trees turn over, it foretells windy conditions and possible severe weather

“A large crop of acorns = a harsh winter is due”

“Flowers smell best just before rain”

“When the dogwood flowers, there shall be no more frosts.”

“Ash (leaves appearing) before oak, the summers a soak. Oak before ash, the summer’s a splash.”

“When the rooster goes crowing to bed, he will rise with a watery head.”

“If spiders are many and spinning their webs, the spell will soon be very dry.”

“If wasps build their nests high, the winter will be long and harsh.”

“When the birds are flying low, expect rain and a blow.”

“When geese cackle, it will rain.”

“If the sparrow makes a lot of noise, rain will follow.”

“Trout jump high when a rain is nigh.”

“Pigs gather leaves and straw before a storm

“When birds roost close to the ground – rain or snow are due.”

“Pale moon rains, red moon blows. White moon neither rains nor blows.”

If cumulus clouds are smaller at sunset than at noon, expect fair weather

“A round topped cloud and flattened base, carries rainfall in its face.”

“When mountains and cliffs in the clouds appear, some sudden and violent showers are near.”

And, finally…

“Whether the weather be fine
Or whether the weather be not
Whether the weather be cold
Or whether the weather be hot
We’ll weather the weather
Whatever the weather
Whether we like it or not”

Try these out, watch and see, if a good weather prognosticator thou canst be…

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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 leaf, 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. But after the second half of the month the activity will begin a steady decrease.

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

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.

Looking towards the sky, at the beginning of the month Mercury is hidden in the glare of the Sun. But, at the month progresses He will emerge in the predawn morning sky and reach his highest elevation above the horizon on October 16. At that time He will be 18.1 degrees from the Sun. Look for Him low in the Eastern sky just before sunrise.

Venus is at Her greatest brilliance at magnitude -4.8. Rising well before sunrise between 3 and 4 AM, She will probably trigger reports of UFO sightings. In a telescope She will display a crescent shape.
She will move higher and higher in the predawn morning sky until reaching her maximum altitude on October 26, when she will be 46.4 degrees from the Sun.

Mars, 400 times fainter than Venus, is 10 degrees to the lower left of Venus at dawn, and moving towards each other day by day. On Friday the 25th He will pass very close to the star Regulus, which is slightly brighter than Mars.

Jupiter is even lower in the east during dawn, moving towards Venus. They will be very close to each other on the morning of the 26th, as they reach conjunction, being only 1 degree apart. On the morning of October 28th Mars will join them forming a rare three planet conjunction, with the planets forming a tight 1 degree triangle in the early morning sky, with the star Regulus lingering nearby. Look to the East at sunrise for this very rare spectacular.

Left out of all the fun, Saturn shines at the Libra/Scorpius border in the southwest at dusk, moving lower and lower near the orange star Antares.

Uranus in Pisces has risen in the east by 10 PM. On October 11 Uranus will reach His closest approach to Earth and at magnitude +5.7 will be on the threshold of naked eye visibility in dark skies, away from city lights, all night long. This is the best time to try to observe this distant world. But, due to its distance, it will appear only as a blue-green dot in all but the most powerful telescopes.

Neptune at magnitude +7.8 in Aquarius has risen in the southeast by 10 PM.

On October 1 Comet US10 Catalina may reach naked eye visibility. For now this comet is a Southern Hemisphere event, however after it swings around the Sun on November 15, it will surge into view for Northern Hemisphere observers and may be easily visible in the Northeastern early morning sky at magnitude +3 from late November into January. It will be very close to the star Arcturus on New Year’s night.

Will it live up to expectations or fizzle is too soon to say. But, so far it has closely matched its predicted brightness levels.

The Draconid Meteor Shower will peak on October 8. 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.

New Moon occurs October 13 at 7:06 PM CDT when the Moon will on the same side of the Earth as the Sun and will not be visible in the night sky.

The Orionid Meteor Shower peaks on October 21 & 22. This shower, which runs from October 2 to November 7, is produced by the broad debris trail of Halley’s Comet. Halley’s Comet is set to make its next closest approach to Earth, a much closer approach than the distant passage in 1986 when it and the Earth were on opposite sides of the solar system, on July 28, 2061. I will be 103 years old. So mark your calendars T-Minus 56 years and counting!

By the way, they say that the passage in 2134 will be even better than the one in 2061. I bet you can’t wait for that one!

October’s Full Moon will occur October 27 at 7:05 AM CDT. This month’s moon is “Full Hunter’s Moon” so named by Native American tribes 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 will be the last of 2015’s three Supermoons.

1892 planets beyond our solar system have now been confirmed as of September 18, per NASA’s Exoplanet Archive http://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/.

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This month’s meeting will be on October 13 at 7PM at the National Weather Service Forecast office at the Shelby County Airport.

If for some reason you cannot attend the meeting in person, you can still participate via telephone. The teleconference number is 1-877-951-0997 & and the participant code is 741083.
Hope to see you there!
Mark / WD4NYL
Editor
ALERT Newsletter

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Mark’s Weatherlynx
Weather Resource Database