July was a another really, really dull month skies-wise.

And so was the first part of August.
Except for some seriously nice cirrus that were a spinoff of some rather unusual conditions, hurricanes off the coast of Mexico. San Diego got rain, and perhaps you read of the flash flood that washed out a bridge in.. i forget... So.Cal.?.. or AZ?
Here's the lowdown at this excellent blog, much more scientific than I will ever be:

http://www.weatherwest.com/

Worth a bookmark for me.
Here's my skies - dancing, twirling, twisting, spinning:











 

 

RE:Cirrus
http://www.livescience.com/51576-cirrus-clouds-from-space.html

A lively month for wild fires, wasn't it? At last count, over 20 in California, 4 of them 'major'.
Today is a 'spare the air' day in the Bay area, there's a haze that's makes hills not far away look distant.

http://www.nytimes.com/times-insider/2015/08/06/california-burning-photographers-notebook/

El Nino? Still 'sposed to be heading our way.


If this one is anything like the winter of '97-98, we will be in deep doo-doo.
Or should i say 'water'.
I was living in SF at the time, on a nice quiet street, the rain was soooo heavy, it set off car alarms on a regular basis.
The predictions at this point are pretty certain for So.Cal., less certain for Nor.Cal.
Researchers have written that while the data is strong, nothing is certain, nothing.
Mother nature is a fickle bitch.
I hope I'll be able to make and post some images like this frothy angry view:

Plenty of good links this month, lots of interesting reading if you're in the mood.

Lake Mead hits a new low, but the drought has a silver lining -- tourism!

http://touch.latimes.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-83932619/
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Drought hastens decline of Joshua tree

http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Drought-hastens-decline-of-Joshua-tree-6319456.php

On Parched Navajo Reservation, ‘Water Lady’ Brings Liquid Gold
By FERNANDA SANTOS JULY 13, 2015
NYTimes

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/14/us/on-parched-navajo-reservation-water-lady-brings-liquid-gold.html?_r=0

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Summer snowstorm hits California's Eastern Sierra - 7/11
http://touch.latimes.com/#section/1780/article/p2p-83967066/

http://www.azcentral.com/story/opinion/op-ed/2015/06/30/water-arizona-warning/29532993/

And while we're on the topic of drought and climate change... dig these two:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/21/opinion/mark-bittman-what-oysters-reveal-about-sea-change.html

A long read, very interesting:

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/16/opinion/sunday/how-california-is-winning-the-drought.html?_r=0


(If you bookmark any news site, the NYT should be at the top of the list.)

I'm doin' my part, showering once a week or so... and people still sit beside me on the bus, no problem.

Another dull month of drought...

Posted 6/28

6/10
It actually rained! Just for a while, but that's pretty unusual for the SF area in June.
Only got a 10th or a few 100th of an inch in many places, but that broke records!
That's how rare rain in June is here.

6/16 - some 'cirruss-ly'-interesting hi clouds.
Definitely some cirrus fibratus in here...
I am not sure what else... but it's definitely interesting!

So for lack of interesting new images, here's a few oldies but goodies:


Above, somewhere in Nevada, this is called 'virga' - rain starts to fall but a dry layer of air beneath it evaporates the rain before it ever reaches the ground.

Above, early morning low clouds/fog part, enough to let a blast of sun shine on the bay water. Princeton harbor, south of SF, close to the famous Mavericks surf spot.


Let's hope summer brings some fog!

This drought has inspired a whole lot of discussion about water in the west:

http://blog.sfgate.com/stew/2015/05/29/10-california-drought-myths-debunked/

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/federal-dollars-are-financing-the-water-crisis-in-the-west/

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/05/25/the-disappearing-river

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/rich-californians-youll-have-to-pry-the-hoses-from-our-cold-dead-hands/2015/06/13/fac6f998-0e39-11e5-9726-49d6fa26a8c6_story.html

People “should not be forced to live on property with brown lawns, golf on brown courses or apologize for wanting their gardens to be beautiful,” Yuhas fumed recently on social media. “We pay significant property taxes based on where we live,” he added in an interview. “And, no, we’re not all equal when it comes to water.”


An editorial comment? We are all equal, we all live on the same planet...don't we?


http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/19/us-usa-drought-wine-insight-idUSKBN0OZ0CI20150619

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/25/science/troubled-delta-system-is-californias-water-battleground.html?_r=0

http://news.yahoo.com/decades-old-water-rights-california-halted-amid-drought-073114017.html

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/federal-dollars-are-financing-the-water-crisis-in-the-west/

Nor Cal residents worry water bottling plant will hurt environment:

"The glacier-studded stratovolcano is the source of much of California's water. Snowmelt percolates through fractured rock to burst forth in clear cold springs below before making its way to Shasta Lake, which holds about 40% of the federal Central Valley Project's stored supply"
http://touch.latimes.com/#section/1780/article/p2p-83499853/

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http://www.boomcalifornia.com/2015/04/the-great-thirst/

http://www.boomcalifornia.com/2015/04/reading-the-drought/

http://www.npr.org/2015/05/02/403719502/all-tapped-out-in-a-tiny-california-town

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/03/opinion/sunday/the-end-of-california.html?_r=0

The end of California? I don't think so, not by a long shot.