SnowenOutThere

Looks like a boundary collision is about to take place across louden and Fairfax county.

The contrails will cause the storms. Trust the process, the patriots are in control.

My PWS in the backyard has been unable to reach 100 everyday but today.

I’m included even in northern PA!

I think heat lightning rolls off the tongue better than lightning from a distant thunderstorm.

Comparing the soundings from yesterday to today and the whole temperature axis is shifted a bit cooler. On a different note, what a thermodynamic environment for severe weather today. We have 1500 SBCAPE at 6am which is... pretty good. Sadly, like our of all severe weather potential our ML lapse rates probably suck with a value of *checks notes* 9.3 C/km? If we get storms they will have no issue growing up to the tropopause and then crashing back down. I'm up in northern PA so I'll miss out on the fun, but yesterday night had some of the best lightning storms I've had in years. Pouring rain, loud strikes, and constant heat lightning beforehand.

I’ll move our conversation over to banter. I fundamentally agree with you on the doom narrative of climate change or that the environment collapsing is bad. It sets people up to no longer believe in those crisises when the world doesn’t end. Nihilism doesn’t really promote people taking action to cause change. However, I think it’s important to recognize that we both know, you as an expert and myself as a student, that 1.5+ degree C change will be bad. There is no arguing that it is warmer than before the Industrial Revolution. Additionally, there is no arguing that greenhouse gases are responsible for the majority of this increase. Finally, there is no arguing that this increase has, and will continue, to exacerbate increasingly damaging events. The last four sentences aren’t a political narrative, they’re just our scientific understanding of the atmosphere as a fluid body. I recognize that you know more about it than me, so if my logic there was wrong please let me know. The scientific part said, it is frustrating to have people come up to me and say “oh it’s hot because of climate change”. I get that. We need better communication on what it is - an exellerant to extreme patterns - and what it is not - the sole cause of all weather. My last point I want to emphasize as someone who wants to go into environment policy: the ozone hole or acid rain “scares” were extremely detrimental. It is only because of that fear and the groundbreaking legislative effort, both abroad and at home, that we live in a timeline where the ozone hole is a little known fact and confined to the poles. It is because of that effort that acid rain is nonexistent in the US. It is because of that effort and clean air act that our AQI has been in the green despite being trapped under summer ridging. I’ve never known the world my grandparents describe where in summer the sun was dim with smog. It’s important to remember that these are policies that if removed, or gutted, we can and will go back to a more polluted and less healthy planet.

It’s been hot and humid in northern PA. Had storms move through near midnight that were prolific lightning producers. Good old fashioned storm borne of heat and humidity. You could tell the whole atmosphere was ready to go and has reset back to being unstable overnight.

I guess my question for you is who even has climate change as the preferred narrative anymore? The White House thinks it’s a hoax, all of “mainstream media” have had their owners replaced with people who are at the bare minimum sympathetic to climate denialism, and in general the political zeitgeist has moved on. If anything, the current political climate has denialism as the ideology it would push. Of course, I agree that there are social media accounts trying to hype up all of us dying but they are doing that for their own fame and any commentary on climate change is secondary to their own profit.

I think that swim meet I coached from 7-10am might’ve been the most miserable weather one I’ve attended. Coaches area had the sun in the face and reflected off water. The insane dew points next to the pool just suck so bad. Now traveled up to Tionesta PA for Saturday and the cabin doesn’t have any ac… gonna be a long and hot night.

So thats who runs that weather station I kept seeing on Spruce Knob. Love that I get this data now when I'm wondering what its like up there. Currently they just hit 80 degrees.

If you really want to escape the heat you've got to head up to the mountains of WV. For example, Spruce Knob, the highest point in WV, at 4800ft is experiencing a pleasant week of weather with no highs reaching above the mid-80s and dews stuck at 60 degrees. Lapse rate is around 1 degree C 100 meters so the temperature difference follows. Though, that elevation is a double-edged sword as I've gone there a couple times in the past year for hiking and stargazing and seen snow over in late April. The whole peaks of WV are an entirely different world with their geography and climatology! Wish I could head out there again but am tied up coaching. Hope these pictures from my latest visit in Mid-May to both the summit (top picture) and its nearby lake encourage someone to go out there!

Meet tonight was rough. Had a fan, mister, and cooler to keep it tolerable. Despite drinking plenty of fluids still got a nasty headache to deal with for hours after. Morning practice is looking good be annoying with such high dew points and my costume of George Washington to get kids excited for our A-meet Friday.

I'm the head coach so I sadly don't get pool access anymore. I'm going to bring some Gatorade and maybe a cooler with ice water and towels in it so I don't melt.

Swim meet from 5pm on today is gonna suck