Western Skies

Friday, January 2, 2015

So... how 'bout that storm, 12/10 or so?

It started on wednesday night, forecasters were calling for a real whopper, and it didn't let us down, too much:

(Taken out my 4th floor apt window, rain lit by streetlight,
my tax dollars at work :-) )

(Hey, i just had to get creative here (again)!

I also shoot pix of the city lights out my 4th floor window, slow shutter speed,

camera motion. Photoshop at work here :-) )

By Friday morning, it was over.
What will the backside of this system bring??

Nice!

Then we got a bit more on the 19th, this is the kind of satelite image i like to see
the 'pineapple express', low pressure sucking in subtropical moisture:

12/21

Not much rain for a few days, but today interesting patchy 'coastal clouds/over the mountain fog' - that leave hi-lites and throw shadows on the hills.

Reminds me of shadows on the land in the desert.

Alot of the weather out west has to do w/ elevation.

I can dig back into my archives for a few good skies from years ago,

Nevada, the clouds forming over mountains. Land affects sky, and vice versa.

Below, one of the most interesting examples of clouds lighting land

i have ever witnessed:

Nevada Dec. 2008, driving west out of Valley of Fire, north of Las Vegas.

The 'end of day' sun light is bouncing diffusely off the clouds,

lighting the snowy mountains with a warm glow.

Some people just don't get this (elevation vis a vis weather/precipitation).
And they are suddenly screwed, and then some:

Year-End Storm Strands Drivers on Southern California Mountain Roads
Roads to and from mountain communities, such as Big Bear, turned into snow-covered parking lots after a powerful winter storm slammed Southern California

http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Bone-Chilling-Storm-Brings-Snow-Highway-Closures-to-SoCal-287183691.html

Idiots, All!
Weather out west has a whole lot to w/ elevation? - yeah, the higher you get, the more you can get whacked, most unexpectedly, the mountains make the clouds *dump*, bigtime, as snow - I've been there, done that. Why don't some people learn?

After this: Totally boring, nothing happening, and it's now Jan 2, 2015.
Yawn.
The drought is by no means over, but you knew that already.
Here's hoping the first few months of the year will be wild, and WET!

Sunday, December 7, 2014

November started out with a whimper... but ended with a bang.

The month started w/ a whimper...

But ended w/ a bang!

11/20
I've been waiting, hoping ...to take a few frames like this, below.
Finally some rain. Didn't put much of a dent in the drought, but made for some amusing images out of my 4th floor apt window, the rain lit by streetlight, a cacophony of traffic tail lights and city lights get into the act too.

11/26 (wed PM - Thanksgiving eve.)
We are supposed to get some rain/storms over the weekend - i ain't holdin' my breath.

http://forecast.weather.gov/product.php?site=MTR&issuedby=MTR&product=AFD&format=CI&version=1&glossary=1

This tells me that:

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA
1001 AM PST FRI NOV 28 2014

THE MAIN WEATHER STORY IS THE IMPENDING SERIES OF RAIN EVENTS
EXPECTED TO IMPACT THE AREA FOR THE NEXT 5 OR 6 DAYS. THE FIRST IN
A SERIES OF RAIN EVENTS IS CURRENTLY BEARING DOWN ON THE PACIFIC
NORTHWEST AND EXTREME NORTHERN CALIFORNIA COAST. THIS SYSTEM IS
EXPECTED TO BRING RAIN TO THE NORTH BAY BEGINNING THIS
AFTERNOON...

11/28 Friday - sunset - still no sign of anything rainy.

"THIS SYSTEM IS
EXPECTED TO BRING RAIN TO THE NORTH BAY BEGINNING THIS
AFTERNOON.."

Helloo?? it ain't happening.
But when i wake up at 3 AM, it's happening! Steady rain visible by the light of the streetlight outside my window. On and off showers all day, sometimes a break in it all, then clouds and rain take over again.
And it continues on, for days, thankfully. On and off, over and over. Many times the pause between the fury is most awesome.