Students Join Science Team to Chase and Capture Tornado Data

Students Join Science Team to Chase and Capture Tornado Data

Newswise — Their job is to take measurements of a tornado’s rear flank downdraft.

And yes, said several Iowa State University students who have joined Tim Samaras, a Colorado-based researcher who was named a National Geographic Society “Emerging Explorer” in 2005 and is a principal engineer for Applied Research Associates Inc., some adrenaline is involved. But that’s not why they’re driving instrument-carrying cars a mile or so to the south or east of the storms that have regularly blown across tornado alley this spring and summer.

They’re driving into rain, wind, lightning and hail to chase data: temperature, dew point, barometric pressure, wind speed, wind direction and exact location. The students’ measurements will be analyzed by scientists trying to understand more about how tornadoes are formed.

“We’re measuring air circulation near the tornado,” said Chris Karstens, an Iowa State graduate student in meteorology from Atlantic. “There are questions about that air’s role in forming tornadoes and in tornado longevity. We think it has a central role in tornadoes.”

Karstens, who spent five days on the road with Samaras’ crew last month, said he saw and chased about 12 tornadoes. Most were weak storms. But he saw a few that were a mile wide or bigger.

Bill Gallus, an Iowa State professor of geological and atmospheric sciences, said this is the third year Iowa State students have done field research with Samaras. They’re generally on the road throughout May and June. Students volunteer to be part of Samaras’ “TWISTEX” (Tactical Weather Instrumented Sampling in/near Tornadoes/Thunderstorms Experiment, http://twistex.org). Those selected are usually experienced storm chasers and have done well in forecasting courses. The students are not paid, but their field expenses are covered. The students’ research is part of an Iowa State project supported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and led by Partha Sarkar, an Iowa State professor of aerospace engineering and director of the Wind Simulation and Testing Laboratory.

The idea is to send students out to the field to learn more about how storms develop and evolve, Gallus said. They also learn about working with mobile instruments and taking measurements.

“They come back and they’re so excited about the data they can analyze,” Gallus said.

They’re also excited about the stories they can tell.

Brandon Fisel, a graduate student in meteorology from Hebron, Ind., remembers May 29 near Osborne, Kan. That’s when Samaras dropped three probes containing cameras and instruments in the path of an oncoming tornado. The probes took a direct hit and could yield the first measurements of wind speed at the bottom of a tornado.

W Scott Lincoln, a graduate student in environmental science from Alleman, likes to talk about the day he drove through a tornado that was just beginning to form. He didn’t know what was happening at the time, but the car’s weather instruments later confirmed the storm had begun to circulate over his head.

Jayson Prentice, a senior meteorology student from Terril, says his time with Samaras’ experiment can help him build his research resume for graduate school.

And what about the chase? Does it get scary when the storms kick up, as they have all too often this tornado season?

Well, said Karstens, most of the experiment “is just like you’re on a very long road trip” because the researchers drive hundreds of miles from storm system to storm system.

Prentice remembers the intensity of “a few moments when we were taking near-tornado windfall readings within a mile or a couple of miles of tornadoes. One tornado was over a mile wide.”

But, said Fisel, “the adrenaline is kind of going and you don’t feel scared at all.”

Besides, said Lincoln, the researchers aren’t “yahoo chasers going out for thrills.” They’re calling in reports to the National Weather Service. They’re recording as much data as they can. And they’re working to help scientists develop a better understanding of the deadly and destructive storms.

WEATHER NOTE

A Simulated Hurricane Helps Emergency Responders Prepare

By some predictions, this years Atlantic hurricane season is expected to be well above average: 15 named storms, eight of which hurricanes.

Ed McDonough with PIO MEMA said, "We're trying to prepare for the worst, historically we can say we've only had tropical storms in Maryland, but certainly history can be changed."

That's why local, State and Federal agencies held a hurricane simulation Tuesday.

McDonough also said, "We've worked on procedures to notify the public, almost like the tornado type notification, what they should do and how to protect themselves from very high winds."

Matt Bassett, with MDOT said, "It gives us as an agency the opportunity to coordinate without lives having to be put on the line, so when it does happen we're ready."

Officials urge everyone to be prepared ahead of time with a kit containing water, non-perishable food and blankets.

Hurricane season may catch companies off guard

BY JIM WYSS

After Hurricane Wilma churned through South Florida in 2005, Citibank was having trouble tracking down employees. Even though the company had detailed contact information for its workers, a hotline for them to call, and telephones countywide were working, many employees had only cordless handsets that required electricity to function.

With hurricane season upon us, businesses throughout South Florida are starting to dust off business recovery plans and mull such post-storm pitfalls. Citibank, for one, has been encouraging its employees to have at least one old-fashioned handset that doesn't need additional juice.

But after two years of relatively mild storm seasons, there are some indications that businesses might be growing complacent.

A recent Office Depot survey found that one in four small businesses do not have a disaster recovery plan. The excuses fell into three categories: no time, no money and lack of know how, said Tom Serio, director of global business continuity for Office Depot.

But planning can be as simple as creating a calling tree for employees and storing back-up disks in a zip-lock bag off premises, he said.

The consequences of not planning can be harsh. According to some statistics, about 40 percent of businesses that suffer a major catastrophe never reopen.

The last time South Florida saw a major hit was in October 2005 when Wilma swept through on the heels of Hurricane Katrina. The Small Business Administration reported almost 50,000 requests for business disaster loan applications from the tri-county area and ultimately made 16,622 loans worth $767 million statewide in response to the two storms.

The National Hurricane Center is predicting a ''near normal or above normal'' storm season this year, with 12 to 16 named storms, six to nine hurricanes and two to five major hurricanes.

Since the one-two punch of Katrina and Wilma, the business community has taken on a larger role in post-storm planning. The private sector has a seat at The Miami-Dade Emergency Operating Center, which spearheads recovery efforts.

During regular meetings, state and local planners have tackled such issues as how to ensure that business owners and their suppliers have access to offices in evacuation zones and how to deal with ATM outages that turn South Florida into a cash-dependent economy.

''FEMA has always looked at helping the public, but we also want to look at how to help the business community,'' said Frank Reddish, recovery mitigation manager at the Miami-Dade Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security. ``The idea is to help the entire business sector to recover faster.''

As part of that effort, Florida International University is working on a website, www.bizrecovery.org, that would be a one-stop shop for the business community and state and local recovery agencies to exchange information ranging from up-to-the-minute damage reports to the availability of tarps at local home improvement stores.

''The main focus from our perspective is to prove a hypothesis that if the business community had a way to organize and muster its resources and share information . . . as a community we can recover faster,'' said Steven Luis, who is spearheading the initiative.

FIU estimates that if it could help just 5 percent of businesses reopen one week faster than usual in the wake of a storm, it would prevent $220 million in losses.

Luis, who is director for IT and business relations for the School of Computing and Information Sciences at FIU, hopes to begin testing the system this hurricane season in preparation for a wider release in 2010.

Speaking to a group of business owners during a meeting of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce last week, Office Depot's Serio said the best time to start planning for a disaster is when there's not one in sight.

''You have to do it while the sun is shining,'' he said. ``If you wait until the wind is blowing, you'll never do it. Avoid becoming a statistic.''

MARITIME NOTE

Coast Guard Announces Successful Launch of Nationwide AIS Satellite

WASHINGTON (HQ Publc Affairs) - The U.S. Coast Guard has announced the launch of an ORBCOMM concept demonstration satellite, equipped with Automatic Identification System (AIS) capability, from Kapustin Yar, Russia, Thursday.

The satellite attained a proper orbit and is expected to start transmitting operational data within the next three months. The U.S. Coast Guard Nationwide Automatic Identification System (NAIS) Project sponsored equipment on the satellite to test the feasibility and effectiveness of AIS message reception and reporting from space for ship tracking and other navigational activities. The launch marks an important milestone in the development of the NAIS project.

The NAIS project will improve maritime domain awareness for the U.S. Coast Guard and Department of Homeland Security by using the integrated network of AIS equipment and user interface services that display and exchange AIS-equipped vessel information for maritime safety and security. Data collected by the NAIS supports the nation’s maritime interests by promoting vessel and port safety through collision avoidance, and through detection, traffic identification, and classification of vessels out to 2,000 nautical miles from shore.

The NAIS project is being implemented in three primary increments. Increment one, fielded in September 2007, currently provides the capability to receive AIS messages at 55 critical ports and nine coastal areas across the nation. Increment two (with nationwide AIS transmit and receipt coverage) will provide the capability to receive AIS messages out to 50 nautical miles and transmit AIS messages out to 24 nautical miles along the entire coastline of the U.S. and designated inland waterways. Increment three will extend the coverage for receipt of AIS messages out to 2,000 nautical miles from shore. The upcoming satellite testing will assist in the development of Increment three of the NAIS project.

For more information on the project visit: http://www.uscg.mil/nais/, and for more information on automatic identification system technology, standards and carriage requirements visit: http://www.navcen.uscg.gov/enav/ais/

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Atmosphere Threatened By Nitrogen Pollutants Entering Ocean

Atmosphere Threatened By Nitrogen Pollutants Entering Ocean

ScienceDaily (May 16, 2008) — A large quantity of nitrogen compounds -- emitted into the atmosphere by humans through the burning of fossil fuels and the use of nitrogen fertilizers -- enters the oceans and may lead to the removal of some carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, concluded a team of international scientists led by Texas A&M University Distinguished Professor of Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences Robert Duce.

The team of 30 experts from institutions around the world presented its conclusions in the current issue of the journal Science.

Human-caused atmospheric nitrogen compounds are carried by wind and deposited into the ocean, where they act as a fertilizer and lead to increased production of marine plant life. The increase in plant life causes more carbon dioxide to be drawn from the atmosphere into the ocean. This process results in the removal of about 10 percent of the human-caused carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, thus potentially reducing the climate warming potential, according to the team's paper.

However, some of the nitrogen deposited in the ocean is re-processed to form another nitrogen compound called nitrous oxide, which is then released back into the atmosphere from the ocean. Nitrous oxide is a powerful greenhouse gas itself -- about 300 times more powerful per molecule than carbon dioxide -- thus cancelling out about two-thirds of the apparent gain from the carbon dioxide removal, Duce explained. "But of course, the whole system is so complex that we're still rather unsure about what some of the other impacts might be within the ocean," he said.

In most areas of the ocean, nitrogen is the nutrient that limits the production of plant life, Duce said. So when all of the nitrogen in an area of the surface ocean is used up, no more plant life forms in that area. The team found that human-caused nitrogen deposits account for up to one-third of the external input of nitrogen into the ocean, and this increase in nitrogen available for the production of plant life causes more plants to form, Duce explained.

Oceanic plant life is produced from marine carbon (bicarbonate) in the ocean, and that amount of bicarbonate is in equilibrium with the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. So when more bicarbonate is used up to produce marine plant life, it disrupts the equilibrium, and carbon dioxide is drawn down to the ocean from the atmosphere to restore the balance, Duce explained.

Thus, the human-caused nitrogen fertilization of the ocean removes some of the most important greenhouse gas -- carbon dioxide -- from the atmosphere, Duce said. This gain, however, is offset by the nitrogen compound, nitrous oxide, that also forms in the ocean due to the nitrogen fertilization and is re-emitted into the atmosphere as a powerful greenhouse gas, he added.

"If you don't consider the impact of human-caused nitrogen when trying to model climate change, you're missing a possibly significant part of the overall carbon cycle as well as the nitrogen cycle," Duce said. "So nitrogen deposition is potentially a very important factor in the climate change issue."

According to the team's calculations, about 54 million tons of nitrogen produced from human activities entered the ocean from the atmosphere in the year 2000. The team also found that the current nitrogen emissions are about 10 times what they were in 1860, Duce said. He added that the amount of nitrogen entering the atmosphere is expected to rise in the coming decades with the increase in demand for energy and fertilizers, and the team estimates that by the year 2030, human-caused nitrogen emissions will have risen to around 62 million tons per year.

"Clearly, there is much that we do not know about the extent and timescale of the impacts of this nitrogen deposition on the oceans and the subsequent feedbacks to the climate system," Duce said. "The implications are complex and interactive, and this is a very important issue that policy makers need to address and that scientists trying to model and understand the future of climate and climate change need to take into consideration."

WEATHER NOTE

Storm Chasers to Avoid Chasing Storms in Crane County
by Michael Stafford

NewsWest 9

A recent arrest in Crane County is keeping some storm chasers out of that part of West Texas.

You may recall last week, we showed you that Deputy arresting a professional storm chaser who was helping the Weather Service, and had refused to leave the area.

Now, the head of one storm chasing group says many professionals and volunteers plan to avoid Crane County in the future.

Those volunteers and professionals associated with the National Association of Storm Chasers and Spotters or NASCAS is the group we've been speaking with.

The acting Director, Warren Faidley, says in 20 years he's never had any problems with law enforcement.

In fact, he says troopers and officers have welcomed their help during times of severe weather, because they're helping protect the public.

Faidley tells NewsWest Nine they're going to avoid Crane County in the future, because they believe another arrest is immenent if they go there.

"Well, I think the main reason we're upset is because there were numerous witnesses and also video. So there was very little question of what actually occurred. I think with that kind of information you can draw a pretty fair conclusion. So, a lot of people I've spoken to from storm spotters to storm chasers and just everybody in between from researchers to news people from out of the area are pretty much going to try to avoid the area," Faidley said.

The Sheriff's Office has maintained the Deputy was in the right, and that the storm chaser was obstructing the highway, which is a Class B Misdemeanor.

Crane County does have its own volunteers from that area, but as Faidley says it's always good to have a professional organization assisting with the process when lives are in danger.

Only time will tell what affect this may have on Crane County when severe weather hits there in the future.

Ten Deadliest U.S. Tornadoes

1. 695…Tri-State Tornado…March 18, 1925
2. 317…Natchez, Mississippi…May 7, 1849
3. 255…St. Louis, MO…May 27, 1896
4. 203…Gainesville, GA…April 6, 1936
5. 216…Tupelo, Mississippi…April 5, 1936
6. 181…Woodward, Oklahoma…April 9, 1947
7. 143…Amite, Louisiana to Purvis, Mississippi…April 24, 1908
8. 117…New Richmond, Wisconsin…June 12, 1899
9. 115…Flint, Michigan…June 8, 1953
10. 114…Waco, Texas…May 11, 1953

Source: Christopher Burt’s book Extreme Weather…

MARITIME NOTE

Yachtsman's £40k boat sinks under the waves

A MAJOR salvage operation was underway last night to lift a £40,000 yacht which sank in the Menai Strait as its owner celebrated his 60th birthday.

Trevor Shirley was spending the weekend with his wife at Anglesey’s Gazelle hotel as a treat, when his precious boat slipped beneath the waves.

The couple had launched the yacht from Beaumaris on Friday, and sailed her in the Puffin Island area before mooring her opposite the hotel, where she could be seen in her full glory.

But when they came down from breakfast on Sunday the boat – called the Hindsight – had disappeared from view.

Mr Shirley, from Warrington, had spent the winter refitting the yacht to a gleaming condition.

Hotel owner Mary Brain was serving breakfast on Sunday morning when the couple realised something was wrong.

"They came down for breakfast and said let’s go and have look at the boat, but it wasn’t there," said Mary.

"It was launched on Friday and it must have gone down on Saturday night or Sunday morning," she said.

The couple were devastated when they realised that the mast sticking out of the water was the vessel that was their pride and joy.

A salvage team from Beaumaris Marine Services was called and divers checked the stricken vessel on Monday morning and sealed the fuel tanks.

Diver Scott Waterman from Quest Diving, Menai Bridge, inspected the hull on his first dive.

"The water was very clear on Monday and the sea was flat calm," said Scott, who has been involved in three other similar rescues.

"It was obvious the vessel hadn’t been involved in a collision as the hull was completely intact.

"She was still on the mooring but that hadn’t fouled so the reason for the sinking is still unknown," he said.

On Wednesday Scott and his team fixed lifting strops to the boat’s hull and attached 12 tonne flotation bags.

"We took gas down there and inflated the bags until she started to lift and that pulled her off the bottom," said Scott.

"Timing was quite important because it has to be done at slack water otherwise the boat’s volume causes too much drag," he said.

Yesterday onlookers praised the salvage team for their efforts as the boat partially resurfaced back into view.

"The boat came up in the upright position which is also very important for bringing it back to shore," said Scott.

As the high tide ebbed the salvage team were able to pump the water out of her hull and were hoping to refloat her on the next high tide today (Thursday).

Mr Shirley, who had spent months refurbishing his boat was to upset too talk about the incident but the salvage team believe the boat can be repaired.

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NOAA celebrates 200 years of science

Contributed by: NOAA News on 11/7/2007

(NOAA meteorologists Tom Schlatter and Nikki Prive test their skills on a mirror nephoscope, an antique instrument used to determine the direction and relative speed of cloud motion.

The instrument will be part of an old-time weather station recreated for a public celebration this Friday at NOAA's research center in Boulder. Provided by: NOAA)

NOAA's (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) Boulder campus will celebrate and commemorate the agency's 200-year legacy in science with a dedication ceremony, public activities, and teacher training from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Friday, Nov. 9. All activities will take place at the agency's David Skaggs Research Center at 325 Broadway.

NOAA is hosting the public event as part of a year-long celebration to commemorate its 200 years of science, service and stewardship to the nation. Boulder mayor Mark Ruzzin and other local leaders will participate in the event.

"It all started in 1807 with President Thomas Jefferson'svision to support his fledgling nation's economy by ensuring safe maritime commerce. He accomplished this by creating the Survey of the Coast, the first federal science agency and the precursor to NOAA's navigation services," said Tim Keeney, NOAA deputy assistant secretary for oceans and atmosphere. "With his intense interest in weather and climate, Jefferson would certainly appreciate the world-class scientific community here in Boulder."

Keeney will present an award to U.S. Rep. David Skaggs, former congressman from the Boulder area, for his role in consolidating the agency's Colorado groups into the NOAA center in the late 1990s. Susan Graf, president and chief executive officer of the Boulder Chamber of Commerce, will accept an award for the Chamber's role in attracting the federal labs to Boulder in the early 1950s.

The day's events will begin at 9:30 a.m. with the dedication of a memorial marker placed by NOAA's National Geodetic Survey in the gardens just outside the main entrance on the west side of the building. At 10:30 a.m., visitors will be treated to a "Science Showcase" of new activities and demonstrations, many with a historical focus. Teachers are invited to visit the demos and participate in a special in-service training on Earth science.

Visitors will be able to follow a virtual underwater explorer through four of NOAA's marine sanctuaries, travel aboard a survey ship mapping the coastal ocean floor, mop up a disastrous oil spill, and experience the devastation algae can wreak during a red tide.

For real-world experience, share an expert's view of Boulder's fickle weather as a National Weather Service forecaster walks through a year of big storms. Get a preview of the upcoming weekend weather, spiced with fascinating insider trivia about Front Range climate. Then stop by an old-time weather station to check out a mirror nephoscope, a microbarograph, a Parisian thermograph, and other antique instruments with strange names that meteorologists used to track weather long before computers existed.

NOAA's Boulder lab is the best place in the world to see how scientists measure carbon dioxide levels around the globe, including Boulder County's carbon "footprint." Air-filled flasks arrive daily from remote corners of the planet to be analyzed in Boulder. The most powerful software to understand the world carbon cycle was launched right here last spring and produces colorful maps of atmospheric carbon levels daily.

On the space-weather front, guests will be able to look back through the ages to early evidence of sunspots and find out how they are related to spectacular auroras, or Northern Lights, which are sometimes visible here in Colorado.

Science on a Sphere will display brilliant global presentations of tsunamis, El Niño, a warming world, and what planet Earth looked like 600 million years ago.

Fresh baked goods will be on sale to benefit the Denver Botanic Gardens' certificate program in botanical art and illustration. Coffee will be provided at no charge by a local vendor.

Visitors must stop at the Visitor Center at the Rayleigh Avenue entrance before passing through the gate. Those 16 years old and over should bring a valid state or federal photo ID.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, an agency of the U.S. Commerce Department, is celebrating 200 years of science and service to the nation. From the establishment of the Survey of the Coast in 1807 by Thomas Jefferson to the formation of the Weather Bureau and the Commission of Fish and Fisheries in the 1870s, much of America's scientific heritage is rooted in NOAA.

NOAA is dedicated to enhancing economic security and national safety through the prediction and research of weather and climate-related events and information service delivery for transportation, and by providing environmental stewardship of our nation's coastal and marine resources. Through the emerging Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS), NOAA is working with its federal partners, more than 60 countries and the European Commission to develop a global monitoring network that is as integrated as the planet it observes, predicts and protects.

NOAA: www.noaa.gov

NOAA Boulder 200th celebration: http://www.boulder.noaa.gov/events/noaa200

Weather Notes

"England: Storm surge flooding likely for eastern England"

[Nov 8 London]--Forecasters at the Met Office are providing the Environment Agency with the very latest weather information, ahead of a predicted storm surge down the North Sea.

A combination of north-westerly winds exceeding 50 m.p.h., low pressure and high tides could lead to severe flooding in the east of England. Areas at greatest risk are the Broads and the coast south of Great Yarmouth including Lowestoft and Felixstowe.

Sky News Video on British flood threat!

Update on Mexican floods!

By Arthur Rabjohn MEXICO: Tens of thousands of Mexicans are threatened by ailments ranging from colds, respiratory illnesses and foot fungus. Authorities fear outbreaks of epidemics like cholera due to a lack of running water. Standing water attracts mosquitoes, carrying infectious diseases such as dengue. Government official said that fumigation of waterlogged areas would start in the next few days to reduce the risk of diseases.

Crocodiles and snakes taking to flooded streets are posing a new risk, as the reptiles have started swimming along flooded streets. The floods, caused by rivers overflowing after heavy rain, killed at least 3 people, damaging crops, homes, businesses and infrastructure. A further 4 people were killed, and 21 others were missing as a result of a huge mudslide.

Maritime Notes

Ouch! Here are some pix's from the USCG on the Cosco Busan collision with the Bay Bridge!

M/V Cosco Busan Allides With San Francisco Bay Bridge SAN FRANCISCO (Nov. 7, 2007)- The motor vessel Cosco Busan, a 900-foot container carrier, allided with one of the towers of the San Francisco Bay Bridge Wednesday morning, prompting a response from the Coast Guard, CALTRANS, the city of San Francisco and several other state and local agencies. Coast Guard photo.

And finally and most exciting....

National Storm Chasers Convention 2008 - Denver, Colorado (Click on rwister for further details!)

The 2008 National Storm Chaser Convention will be held February, 16-18, 2008 in Denver!

Hello everyone!

Just a preliminary FYI for the upcoming 2008 National Storm Chaser's Convention. It will be held Feb 15-17 (President's Day weekend as usual) in Denver, CO at the Radisson Southeast (same hotel as last year). Check out www.chaserconvention.com in the coming weeks for updates and more details. Friday evening will be the traditional ice breaker where you can meet your favorite speakers. Saturday will be a day full of great speakers and Keynote Speakers at the evening banquet that you DO NOT WANT TO MISS!! Sunday will be a day of teachings on your favorite severe weather subjects, followed by a spotter training class conducted by the local NWS.

THIS IS THE 10TH ANNUAL CONVENTION AND IT WILL BE HUGE!!! EXPECT SOMETHING VERY SPECIAL TO HAPPEN!

Tune in by early December for the details.

Roger Hill and Tim Samaras



Be sure and register NOW and secure your seat at the largest gathering of storm chasers in the world!


RS