July Preview

Half the year is over. Now that July is just about here, it’s time to look ahead at what the month brings climatologically to southwestern Connecticut. Not surprisingly, July is the warmest month of the year with a mean temperature of 74 degrees. The hottest temperature ever recorded at Sikorsky Memorial Airport happened  July 22, 2011, when the mercury topped 103 degrees, tying the record originally set in 1957. The following day, July 23, 2011, another record high of 96 degrees was recorded.

The mercury reached the century mark two other times — July 2, 1966 and July 5, 1999. In fact, the average daily temperature climbs from 72 degrees at the start of the month to 75 by July 31. The warmest July on record happened 18 years ago, in 1994, with an average temperature of 78.4 degrees. However, last July was one of the warmest on record with an average temperature of 77.6 degrees.

July of 2010 was another hot one. You may recall the heat wave over the Independence Day holiday weekend. The high temperatures from July 4 through July 7, 2010, were 97, 93, 98, and 95 degrees, respectively. In fact, record high temperatures were established July 6 and 7. The mercury also reached 95 degrees July 24. The average temperature for the month was 78 degrees, just shy of the all-time record.

Many people have asked me why the hottest time of the year happens over a month after the first day of Summer. Well, it takes the Earth awhile to absorb the heat. As the Sun’s angle gets higher in the sky and the days grow longer in May and June, the Northern Hemisphere slowly starts to warm.

It’s much like warming your home. When you turn your thermostat up to 72 degrees after being away all day in the Winter, it will take awhile for the house to warm up. It doesn’t happen instantly. That’s why our hottest days are typically in July and early August.

On the flip side, the coolest temperature ever recorded in these parts in July was 49 degrees on July 1, 1988. Aside from that, every record low for the month is in the 50s. Believe it or not, according to the National Weather Service record book, a trace of snow fell at the airport on July 4, 1950. I find that too hard to believe.

As far as precipitation is concerned, the wettest July on record happened in 1971 when over a foot of rain (12.84″) fell. The average monthly rainfall is 3.77 inches. There have been several memorable rainstorms in July. For example, nearly a half-foot (5.95″) of rain fell on July 19, 1971, and nearly four inches (3.93″) was recorded on July 29, 1990. Two other days delivered well over three inches of rain — July 30, 1960 (3.57″) and July 23, 1953 (3.45″).

The length of daylight actually decreases next month. For example, on July 1, the Sun rises at 5:23 and sets at 8:30. By the middle of the month, on July 15, the Sun rises at 5:32 and sets at 8:24. However, at the end of the month, it rises at 5:47 and sets at 8:10, meaning we lose 44 minutes of daylight. Remember, the “longest” day of the year happened at the Summer Solstice in late June.

Our weather will be warm and humid today with a good chance of showers and thunderstorms, some of which may produce locally heavy rain. High temperatures will climb into the 70s to close to 80 degrees. More of the same is expected tomorrow, although there will be breaks of sunshine, with highs in the upper 70s to close to 80 degrees. The weather pattern will quiet down later this week, though, before it turns hotter for the Independence Day holiday weekend.

Paul

Tornado Ripped Through Bridgeport Three Years Ago Today

It only took a matter of minutes, but a violent thunderstorm spawned a tornado which ripped through the Greater Bridgeport area three years ago today, resulting in much damage, destruction, and a loss of electricity for thousands. A powerful cold front collided with a hot and humid air mass to set the stage for a Tornado Warning and a strong thunderstorm cell between 2 and 3 o'clock Thursday afternoon, June 24, 2010.

The temperature soared to 90 degrees for the second day in a row at Sikorsky Memorial Airport in Stratford that day, but the dew point --- or moisture content in the atmosphere --- was extremely high. As the front approached, the sky darkened, the heavens opened up, and vivid lightning along with hurricane-force wind gusts ripped through the Park City. Here is a photo of Washington Park in Bridgeport taken by one of our viewers, Melissa, following the storm.

There was dangerous cloud-to-ground lightning and a wind gust of 78 miles-an-hour in Bridgeport. The average wind speed during the height of the storm was 43 miles-an-hour. Nearly a half-inch of rain fell in a short period of time, resulting in some minor flooding of low-lying areas. But, it was the wind damage which caused a state of emergency to be declared in Bridgeport. Take a look at this picture of a fallen tree in the Park City taken by Takina.

Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch and former Governor Jodi Rell arrived on the scene to survey the damage from the storm. "It looks like Godzilla went through and ripped roofs off and threw cars around and tore wires down," Finch said as he spoke with reporters and residents who had gathered in the streets. "I mean, it's really amazing," he added. Shelley sent two photos of the damage on East Main Street.

Bethany sent the following photo of downtown Bridgeport.

Personally, my family and I ran to the basement that afternoon once we heard a Tornado Warning was issued and the skies darkened. In a matter of minutes, the wind began to howl and heavy rain fell. My sons were worried that a tornado would rip apart our home. Not unexpectedly, the power went out, but the storm exited shortly thereafter. We didn't get our electricity back until just before midnight. Here's one more photo taken by Amanda of minor flooding on James Street in Bridgeport.

Paul

Lightning Safety Awareness Week

This is Lightning Safety Awareness Week. People are often surprised to hear that I'm afraid of lightning and thunderstorms. Whenever thunderstorms are in the forecast, I tell our viewers that I'll be hiding under the bed when they arrive. "You're a weatherman, so you should know all about lightning," is the refrain I frequently hear. That's exactly why I'm afraid of it. I know that lightning can kill. This photo of a lightning strike was taken at Calf Pasture Beach in Norwalk.

Lightning is one of nature's most awe inspiring and dangerous phenomenon. The average lightning flash could light a 100-watt light bulb for more than 3 months. The temperature of a lightning bolt may reach 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit. That's even hotter than the surface of the Sun.



Lightning kills about 73 people nationwide each year. In fact, lightning remains one of the most deadly weather phenomena in the United States, and it can occur almost anywhere throughout the entire year. According to the National Weather Service Web site, lightning occurring during snowstorms has even killed people. However, a few simple precautions can reduce many of the dangers posed by lightning.

First, when you first hear thunder, it is time to act to prevent being struck by lightning. Generally speaking, when you can see lightning or hear thunder, you're already at risk for lightning injury or death. If the time delay between seeing the flash of lightning and hearing the bang of thunder is less than 30 seconds, immediately seek a safer location.

If you're outside, you should avoid high places and open fields, isolated trees, gazebos, open sided picnic shelters, baseball dugouts, communication towers, flagpoles, light poles, metal or wood bleachers, metal fences, convertibles, golf carts, and water, whether a lake, pool, or river.

Inside, stay away from the telephone or computer, taking a shower, washing your hands, doing dishes, or any contact with conductive surfaces with exposure to the outside. These include metal door or window frames, electrical wiring, telephone wiring, cable TV wiring, or plumbing. People should stay away from playing computer games, too.

Many years ago my aunt was nearly struck by lightning while walking in an upstairs hallway during a severe thunderstorm. The windows at each end of the hallway were open, and a vivid bolt of lightning traveled through the hallway just as she entered a side room. The experience was frightening, to say the least.

Paul

Super Moon Rises This Weekend

The largest Full Moon of this year, a so-called "Super Moon," will light up the night sky this weekend, but there's more to this lunar delight than meets the eye. Sunday morning, June 23, at 7 o'clock Eastern Daylight Time, the Moon will arrive at perigee, which is the point in its orbit which brings it closest to Earth at a distance of 221,824 miles. The Moon typically reaches perigee once each month, with its respective distance to Earth varying by three percent.

However, Sunday's lunar perigee will be the Moon's closest to Earth of 2013. Just 32 minutes later, the Moon officially will be full. The close timing of the Moon's perigee and its full phase will bring about the biggest Full Moon of the year, a celestial event popularly defined by some as the Super Moon.

As the Moon orbits the Earth, it slowly changes its distance from us. It varies from about 252,000 miles at its farthest to around 220,500 miles at its closest. The Moon’s distance changes very slowly. In fact, it's impossible to tell the difference from night-to-night. However, if you compare this weekend's Super Moon to the farthest Full Moon, which happens on January 15, 2014, the difference is dramatic.

The Super Moon is over 31,000 miles closer, appears 14% larger in diameter, and 30% larger in surface area than next January's Full Moon. The best time to see the Super Moon is just as it rises. Keep looking because as the Sun sets, the Full Moon will rise. The Moon always looks larger near the horizon, but that’s merely an illusion.

Technically, the Moon will be more than 1,000 miles closer around 1:30 a.m. on Sunday morning when it will be higher in the South. That would be the "Super-est Moon."  Since the changing Moon distance is a slow process, Sunday night's viewing will provide an encore. The Full Moon rising Sunday evening, June 23, will be less than one percent farther than that of June 22.

It is also known as the Full Strawberry Moon this month. The name was was universal to every Algonquin tribe. However, in Europe they called it the Rose Moon. The relatively short season for harvesting strawberries comes each year during the month of June, so the Full Moon that occurs during that month was christened for the strawberry!

Paul

What Makes a Top Ten Day

If you watched our newscast this morning, you heard me tell anchors Amelie Wilson and Kathryn Hauser that today will be a Top Ten Day. The last day of Spring will feature sunny skies, low humidity, a light breeze, and seasonably warm temperatures. It's a perfect day to be outside for a long walk, a casual lunch, a round of 18, or at the beach.

That got me thinking. What are the parameters for a Top Ten day? Obviously, it is implied that there will be more than ten days which will qualify for the list every year. Further, the necessary "ingredients" may differ from person-to-person and be somewhat arbitrary, but I decided to create the five most important weather elements for a day to make the Top Ten list.

Sky Cover --- The day should feature mostly clear skies, just like in the photo of Gulf Beach above. Ideally, there shouldn't be any clouds in the sky. Meteorologically, the sky can be classified as clear, having scattered clouds, broken clouds, or overcast clouds. Generally speaking, the sky is mostly clear if more than 90% is cloud-free; the clouds are scattered if 10 to 50% of the sky is covered; broken clouds obscure 50 to 90% of the sky; and overcast clouds cover 90 to 100% of the sky.

Temperature --- Since our daily high and low normal average temperatures are based on 40 years of climatology and differ with the seasons, a Top Ten day should feature an afternoon temperature within five degrees either side of the normal high for the date. Today, for example, the high temperature will be in the upper 70s, which is right at the 78-degree normal high for June 20.

Wind --- This is perhaps the most important ingredient for a number of reasons. First of all, the wind direction plays a pivotal role in our weather, especially during the Spring months. Today's wind will be light out of the South, all but assuring pleasant weather. In fact, the mid-morning observation at Sikorsky Memorial Airport in Stratford reported the wind as "calm." There shouldn't be any sustained winds above 15 to 20 miles an hour or strong wind gusts. A moderate breeze is just fine, and that's what we'll have today.

Dew Point --- The dew point plays an important role in our weather, specifically during the late Spring and Summer months when it can become unbearable. Any time the dew point is below 60 degrees, our weather is comfortable, for the most part. As of late-morning, the dew point at Sikorsky Memorial Airport was 54 degrees. There is very little humidity in the air. The dew point should remain in the 50s this afternoon.

Visibility --- Boaters and pilots need extremely good visibility when they are out on the water or up in the sky. When the sky is mostly clear and the humidity is fairly low, our visibility is better than 20 miles. You can easily see Long Island or part of New York City from the Connecticut shoreline on a day like this. Naturally, when the humidity increases and the air becomes saturated, ground fog develops. That all but obscures our visibility completely.

Today will have all five ingredients for a Top Ten day. What do you look for in a Top Ten day? Do you have your own list of criteria? I'd like to know what you think of my list, too. Feel free to send me an email or make a comment below. I'd sincerely appreciate it. Have a Top Ten day.

Paul

Summer Officially Arrives This Friday Morning

Ask any child when Summer begins, and he or she will undoubtedly respond with the date of the last day of school. Ask an adult and his or her answer is most likely either June 20 or June 21. However, as we approach the start of the new season, our weather has been anything but Summerlike. In fact, 11 of the first 18 days this month have delivered measured rain, and this is the third wettest June on record.

Summer officially arrives this Friday, June 21, at 1:04 a.m. EDT. That’s when the Sun’s rays will be directly over the Tropic of Cancer, marking their northernmost point on the face of the Earth. The Sun rises at 5:19 a.m. and sets at 8:30 p.m., which is the latest Sunset during the year. We’ll enjoy 15 hours and 11 minutes of Sunlight.

Two days later, the Sun rises at 5:20, and the days begin to get “shorter” once again. Remember, since the first day of Summer is “the longest day” of the year, the days actually become shorter by the end of the month and the remainder of the Summer.

So, why does the Summer Solstice actually happen? Well, the seasons of the year are caused by the 23.5 degree tilt of the Earth’s axis. Because the Earth rotates like a gyroscope, the North Pole points in a fixed position constantly, while the Earth is revolving around the Sun. During one half of the year, the Northern Hemisphere has more exposure to the Sun than the Southern Hemisphere, while the reverse is true during the other half of the year. At noontime, the Sun appears high in the sky during Summertime, and when the Sun reaches its maximum elevation, or angle, in the sky, that’s when the Summer Solstice happens.

Summer was a joyous time of the year in prehistoric times for the Aboriginal people who lived in the Northern latitudes. The snow had melted, the ground thawed out, and warm temperatures returned. Flowers were in full bloom, and leaves had returned to the trees. More important, food was easier to find, and crops had been planted and would be harvested for months to come. The Full Moon is June is called the Full Honey Moon. Tradition dictates that this is the best time to harvest honey from the hives.

This time of the year, between the planting and harvesting of crops, is the traditional time for weddings because many ancient peoples believed that the grand union of the goddess and god occurred in early May. Since it was unlucky to compete with the gods, many people delayed their weddings until June. Today, June remains a favorite month for marriage.

Native Americans have constructed many stone structures linked to the Equinoxes and Solstices. Many are still standing today. One of them is called Calendar One. It is a natural amphitheatre of about 20 acres in size in Vermont. From a stone enclosure in the center of the bowl, one can see a number of vertical rocks and other markers around the edge of the bowl. “At the Summer Solstice, the Sun rose at the southern peak of the East ridge and set at a notch at the southern end of the West ridge.” The Winter Solstice and both equinoxes were similarly marked.

I’d love to be at Calendar One this Friday at 1:04 a.m. EDT. The start of each of the four seasons carries more significance to this writer than New Year’s Day, which, in essence, is an arbitrary day on the calendar. The start of Summer is just two days away, and that is reason to celebrate in the Northern Hemisphere. Fortunately, our weather will be more Summerlike this weekend. It will be warmer and more humid with a threat of a shower or thunderstorm Sunday.

Happy Summer!

Paul