Delightful Weekend Weather to Christen the Start of May

The stormy weather yesterday has moved well offshore, and one more weaker disturbance will move through the region this afternoon before we enjoy a delightful Spring weekend. I am expecting a sunny and breezy Saturday with afternoon temperatures climbing into the low-to-mid 60s, and sunshine mixing with some late-day clouds Sunday and a high in the mid 60s. The weather will be fine for any outdoor activities you may have planned for this weekend. Now, it's time to look ahead to May.

The average daily temperature for May jumps from 54 degrees on May 1 to 64 degrees by the end of the month. There have been several days on which the mercury topped 90 degrees, the most notable being 97 degrees on May 20, 1996, which came one month after the last snow of the snowiest season on record, and 94 degrees on May 26, 2010, which was a record for the date. The record low for the month is 31 degrees, set on May 10, 1966. The warmest May on record was in 1991 when the mercury averaged 64.4 degrees.

Can it snow in May? Yes. Believe it or not, there have been two days with at least a trace of snow, including May 27, 1961, which is just over three weeks from the start of Summer! There was also a trace of snow on May 9, 1977. May is the second wettest month of the year, on average, behind March. The normal rainfall for the month is 4.03 inches, based on 40 years of record-keeping. The wettest May happened in 1989 when 9.53″ fell, while the wettest single day rainstorm delivered 3.21″ on May 29, 1968.


The amount of daylight continues to grow each day through the end of the month. There are exactly 14 hours of daylight on May 1 when the Sun rises at 5:50 and sets at 7:50. However, by the end of the month, there are just about 15 hours of daylight as the Sun comes up at 5:22 and sets at 8:19. Three weeks later, on the Summer Solstice, the Sun sets at 8:30, which is only 11 minutes later than on the last day of May.

I hope you enjoy this coming weekend. As for me, I'm taking my sons to the Bridgeport Bluefish season opener this evening at the Ballpark at Harbor Yard. The Bluefish will start their 14th season in the Atlantic League after reaching the league championship series last year. Saturday, my sons and I are visiting Quassy Amusement Park to ride the brand new wooden roller coaster, the Wooden Warrior, which debuted last week. I'll let you know how it goes.

Have a good weekend.

Paul

Damp & Dreary April to End on Stormy Note

I'm looking forward to turning the calendar page to May. April can't leave soon enough. A Severe Thunderstorm Watch is in effect for southwestern Connecticut through 4 o'clock this afternoon as a line of severe storms marches in our direction. Ahead of the front, a warm and humid air mass is setting the stage for tornado warnings and severe thunderstorms in Northern New Jersey early this afternoon. Needless to say, I'll be watching the radar carefully today.

As far as this month is concerned, it has been dreary and wet. In fact, we've received over four-and-a-half inches of rain (4.59") so far, and that's an inch above normal through today. Based on 40-plus years of record keeping, this month is the third wettest of the year with an average of 3.99 inches of rain. If you're counting, today will be the 15th day with measured rain this month. That means more than half of the days this month have been wet.

There have been two days (April 16 and April 23) with more than an inch of rain, while another storm which stretched from April 12 to April 13 delivered 1.20" inches of rain. Measured rain fell on five of the first seven days this month and a stretch of six out of nine days from April 11 through April 19. Today's rain will mark the fourth day out of the last six with rain. So, yes, it has been an extremely wet month.



Fortunately, our weather will turn the corner by tomorrow, and this weekend may be the best one of the year. Clearing skies are expected late tonight as low temperatures drop into the upper 40s inland and lower 50s along the immediate shoreline. Tomorrow will bring a mix of sun and clouds, but it will be windy and pleasant with a high in the mid 60s. The weekend will be sunny and delightful with daytime highs in the 60s and nighttime lows in the low-to-mid 40s.

Paul

Plan to Take Part in National Walk at Lunch Day Tomorrow

Monday's Springlike weather forced me to lace up my sneakers and walk three-and-a-half miles. My hour-long jaunt was a perfect warm up for National Walk at Lunch Day, which is planned for tomorrow, Wednesday, April 27, 2011. According to the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, obesity, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and diabetes are threatening the lives of Americans everyday. Inactive lifestyles not only affect physical health, they also can cost families thousands of dollars each year in expenses.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies are encouraging their employees and their customers to wear comfortable walking shoes to work and take time during their lunch breaks to start walking toward better health. National Walk at Lunch Day is designed to fit into daily schedules. Obviously, if you are unable to walk during your lunch break, take some time during the day to go for a walk. You'll feel much better. Take a look at the following video about National Walk at Lunch Day:



If you would like to start walking regularly, the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports recommends following a few basic principles that will help keep you safe and comfortable:

• If you have a health condition or have not done any regular physical activity for a long time (men over 40, women over 50), talk with your doctor before starting any new exercise program.
• Choose comfortable, supportive shoes, such as running, walking, or cross training shoes, or light hiking boots.
• If you're going for a longer walk, warm up with stretching exercises, and include a cool-down period to reduce stress on your heart and muscles.
• Maintain a brisk pace. You should work hard to keep up your pace but still be able to talk while walking.
• Practice correct posture — head upright, arms bent at the elbow and swinging as you stride.
• Drink plenty of water before, during and after walking to cool working muscles and keep your body hydrated.

The ideal goal should be to try and add 10,000 steps each day. Exercise doesn't have to be a rigid, time-consuming activity. In fact, it shouldn't be thought of in terms of one activity. Walking your dog, walking with your child to the park, walking to and from the parking lot, and taking the stairs instead of the elevator can be a part of an exercise routine that adds up to an additional 10,000 steps daily.

The challenge is to think creatively about ways you might add "steps" to your day. Here are just a few ideas:

• Take the stairs as often as possible
• Park several blocks from your destination or park at the rear of the parking lot
• Walk the last few blocks instead of riding the bus all the way to work
• Get off the elevator below your destination and walk a couple of flights of stairs
• Park at the opposite end of the mall from where you need to shop
• Walk to do shopping or other errands

Consider adding other walking routines to your day by organizing a lunchtime walking group at work, or a before-or after-work group with friends or neighbors. Instead of watching television after dinner, get the whole family outside for a game of tag, frisbee or a walk around the block. Try not to get stuck in the "all or nothing" rut  — even if you don't have time for a long walk, you might be able to squeeze in a short one, or at least take the stairs.

Mostly cloudy skies are expected tomorrow with a slight chance of a shower, but it will be a mild day with afternoon temperatures climbing into the lower 70s inland and 60s along the immediate shoreline. A cold front will arrive tomorrow night, and strong thunderstorms are possible late tomorrow night into Thursday with a daytime high near 70. Friday will become partly sunny and breezy with a high in the lower 60s, and Saturday will be sunny and pleasant.

Get outside and take a walk! You'll feel so much better.

Paul

Earth Day is Observed This Friday

This Friday, April 22, is Earth Day, which was first observed 41 years ago on the same date in 1970. There's no question we've become better stewards of our planet over the last four decades. Earth Day founder Senator Gaylord Nelson passed away in July of 2005 at the age of 89. He believed strongly that education is the key to changing people’s attitudes about the environment, and he devoted much of his time and energy to that challenge.

“The idea of Earth Day evolved over a period of seven years starting in 1962,” he wrote before his death. “For several years it had been troubling me that the state of our environment was simply a non-issue in the politics of the country. Finally, in November of 1962, an idea occurred to me that was, I thought, a virtual cinch to put the environment into the political ‘limelight’ once and for all. The idea was to persuade President Kennedy to give visibility to this issue. It was the germ of the idea that ultimately flowered into Earth Day.”



According to Senator Nelson, the first Earth Day “worked” because of the spontaneous response at the grassroots level. Though he felt he and his committee had neither the time nor resources to organize the 20 million demonstrators and the thousands of schools and local communities that participated, “it organized itself.”

So, how have things changed in the last 41 years? Certainly, we’ve become more aware of the need to take better care of our planet. Many imporant laws were passed in the wake of the first Earth Day, including the Clean Air Act, and laws to protect water, wild lands, and the ocean. The Environmental Protection Agency was created within three years of the first Earth Day.

Personally, I’ve seen a dramatic change over the last 40 years. What I clearly remember as a child is taking a weekly pilgrimage with my Dad every Saturday afternoon to the town dump. Dad loaded the family car with all kinds of debris and junk from the basement, and we followed the dirt path, greeted the seagulls, and dumped everything at the landfill. The garbage was simply buried. Today, our garbage is turned into electricity or, in some cases, steam.

Garbage isn’t something most of us want to think about, but managing nearly 230 tons we generate each year has consequences. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the amount of garbage Americans generate has increased from 88 million tons to over 229 million tons since 1960. Forty-six years ago, Americans produced about 2.7 pounds of garbage each day. By 2001, though, that amount jumped to 4.4 pounds a person each day.

I’m impressed at what has been done locally to address the issue of waste reduction. The Connecticut Resources Recovery Authority’s Bridgeport Project consists of a 2,250 ton-per-day mass-burn trash-to-energy facility, eight transfer stations, two landfills, a regional recycling center, and the Children’s Garbage Museum. The Bridgeport Project provides solid waste disposal and recycling services to 20 Connecticut communities in Fairfield and New Haven counties.

The Bridgeport Project trash-to-energy plant, which is located at 6 Howard Avenue in Bridgeport is truly an impressive facility. Take your family there, and I’m sure all of you will be amazed at what you see. It’s the perfect example of how “one man’s trash becomes another man’s treasure.” I’ve visited the plant several times, and each time I come away with a better understanding of how we manage our trash.

The solid waste is burned in a controlled environment to create electricity. Through this process, the volume of solid waste is reduced by about 90%. Waste-to-energy plants nationwide generate enough electricity to power nearly 2.3 million homes. Energy created in the Bridgeport facility has about the same environmental impact as energy produced from natural gas, and less impact than from oil or coal plants.

Recycling? We never bothered to recycle anything over a generation ago. Everything was considered “trash” back then. Now, we carefully sort our recyclables each week and place them in the blue bins. Recycled items include paper, aluminum, steel, plastics, glass, scrap tips, cell phones, and electronics. Americans recycled and composted nearly 30% of municipal solid waste in 2001, diverting 68 million tons to recovery.

Did you know, for example, that 71% of all newspapers are recovered for recycling? Over a third goes back into making more newsprint. The remainder is used to make paperboard, tissue, and insulation. Seventy-four percent of boxes are recycled, and nearly 46% of office papers are recovered for recycling. These become raw material for printing and writing paper.

So, yes, we’ve come a long way since the first Earth Day was “celebrated” on April 22, 1970. Much has been done since then, but there’s still a long way to go. Gaylord Nelson said education was the key to changing people’s attitudes about the environment, and the more aware we become about our planet, the better we'll be able to take care of it.

Paul

Full Pink Moon Brightens April's Night Sky

After a windy and soggy start to the weekend, we enjoyed a sunny and blustery Sunday. More than an inch-and-a-half (1.53") of rain fell at Sikorsky Memorial Airport over the last 24 hours, and there was a 41-mile-an-hour wind gust out of the South just before 2 o'clock this morning. Skies will be partly cloudy tonight under a Full Pink Moon, which occurs this evening at 10:44 p.m.

The first Full Moon of Spring, however, is usually designated as the Paschal Full Moon or the Paschal Term. Traditionally, Easter is observed on the Sunday after the Paschal Full Moon. So if the Paschal Moon occurs on a Sunday, Easter is the following Sunday. Following these celestial rules, we know that Easter can fall as early as March 22 and as late as April 25.

Full Moon names date back to the days of the Native Americans in what is now the Northern and Eastern United States. The tribes kept track of the seasons by giving them names to each recurring Full Moon. The names were applied to the entire month in which each occurred. There have been some variations of the Moon names but, in general, the same ones were applied throughout the Algonquin tribes from New England to Lake Superior.

So, how did the Full Pink Moon get its name? Well, the name comes from the herb moss pink, or wild ground phlox, which is one of the earliest widespread flowers of the Spring. Other names for this month’s celestial body include the Full Sprouting Grass Moon, Egg Moon, and the Full Fish Moon, because this was the time that the shad swam upstream to spawn.



Farmers are encouraged to transplant during a Full Moon, when the lunar flower force is supposedly strong. The moisture content becomes low during the waning phase and less sap is rising in the trees and shrubs, so it’s a good time to do your pruning and attack weeds. According to lunar planting folklore, root plants should go into the ground during a waning Moon. It is also the best time to turn over the soil.

We should be able to see the Full Moon tonight as skies become partly cloudy, but it will be chilly and breezy with low temperatures in the upper 30s to lower 40s. Monday will become mostly cloudy with showers developing late in the day or by evening with highs in the middle 50s. Tuesday will feature more clouds and showers with a high in the 50s. So, enjoy the Full Pink Moon.

Paul

Complete Fourth-Grade Weatherkids Program at West School in New Canaan

Have you ever wondered what it's like "behind the scenes" for me and the students during my weekly Weatherkids' program? Here's an unedited 20-minute segment of my visit with the fourth-graders at West School in New Canaan from Wednesday morning, April 13, 2011.

I'm sure you can tell we have a lot of fun with the many weather experiments, weather trivia, songs, and children's forecasts. I hope you enjoy it.



Paul