7-11 June 2004

Water in the Earth System will return for Fall 2004 with new Water News and Investigations files starting during Preview Week, Monday, 30 August 2004. All the current online homepage products will continue to be available throughout the summer break period.

• Revisiting the Titanic--Marine explorer Robert Ballard is currently assessing the current state of the submerged wreck of the HMS Titanic over an 11-day span (see http://www.returntotitanic.com ). The National Geographic cable-TV channel will feature a live show at 9 PM Eastern Time (See http://titanic.nationalgeographic.com/channel/titanic/)
• Witness an historic event -- Our neighboring planet Venus should pass between the Earth and the Sun early Tuesday (8 June 2004). The celestial geometry is such that Venus crosses the face of the sun in what astronomers call a "transit". Because the orbit of Venus is inclined slightly to that of the orbit of the Earth (by approximately 3.4 degrees), the transit of Venus is relatively rare, with the last one occurring in December 1882; another transit will occur in June 2012 and then again in December 2117. The transit of Venus has had scientific relevance, since it provided an opportunity to accurately determine the Earth-Sun distance (the "astronomical unit") before other more precise means were available. See NASA website http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/sunearthday/2004/index_vthome.htm
  Since this current transit will occur between 0513 and 1126Z (1:13 AM and 7:26 AM EDT), viewers in the eastern half of North America will only get to see an abbreviated portion of the transit just after local sunrise, while those in Europe and much of Africa and Asia should see the entire event, provided that skies are relatively cloud-free.
  NOTE: While Venus should be sufficiently large to be detected by eye as it cross the disk of the sun, do not attempt to look directly at the sun. Use an approved solar filter (as for solar eclipses), a welding glass (#14 or greater) or a proper projection method as provided in the "Safe Viewing Techniques" section of http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/sunearthday/2004/vt_observe_2004.htm. This site also has live webcast information, transit contact times and K-12 Activities.
• Reducing whale-ship collisions--Officials with NOAA Fisheries recently announced a new strategy aimed at reducing collisions between ships and the endangered North Atlantic right whales off the East Coast. [NOAA News]
• Global and US Hazards/Climate Extremes-- A review and analysis of the global impacts of various weather-related events, including drought, floods and storms during the current month. [NCDC]
• Global Water News Watch -- Other water news sources can be obtained through the SAHRA Project at the University of Arizona [SAHRA Project]
• Earthweek -- Diary of the Planet [earthweek.com] Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader.

• 7 June 1972...Richmond, VA experienced its worst flood of record as rains from Hurricane Agnes pushed the water level at the city locks to a height of 36.5 feet, easily topping the previous record of thirty feet set in 1771. (The Weather Channel)
• 7-11 June 2001...Tropical Storm Allison made landfall along the Texas Gulf Coast near Galveston early on the 6^th and drifted northward before becoming stationary as a depression later in the day near Lufkin. Later, it began to drift back southward, moving offshore over the Gulf late on the 9^th at nearly the same place as it had made landfall. On the 11th, Allison became extratropical as it moved from near Morgan City, LA across southern Mississippi. Allison caused disastrous flooding across the Upper Texas Gulf Coast, especially in the Houston where a storm total of 36.99 inches fell at Port Houston. Twenty-three people lost their lives in Texas. Damage in the region amounted to $5 billion, which included 45,000 homes, 70,000 vehicles and 2000 businesses. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 8 June 1960...Hail the size of chicken eggs fell for 45 minutes on Hooker, OK. Nearly four inches of rain also accompanied this storm. Much property and crop damage was reported. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 8-9 June 1991...Two days of rain at Bombay, India topped 30 inches, the heaviest in four decades for this western India city. (The Weather Doctor)
• 9 June 1966...Hurricane Alma made landfall over the eastern Florida Panhandle near Alligator Point during the evening-- the earliest land-falling hurricane on the U.S. mainland on record. Peak sustained winds were near 90 mph. Highest winds reached 125 mph and lowest pressure 970.2 millibars (28.65 inches) were reported at the Dry Tortugas on the 8^th. (Intellicast) (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 9 June 1972...A cloudburst along the eastern slopes of the Black Hills of South Dakota produced as much as 14 inches of rain resulting in the Rapid City flash flood disaster. The rains, which fell in about four hours, caused the Canyon Lake Dam to collapse. A wall of water swept through the city drowning 238 people, injuring 2932, and causing more than 100 million dollars property damage. (David Ludlum)
• 9 June 1989...Severe weather abated for a date, however, showers and thunderstorms continued to drench the eastern U.S. with torrential rains. Milton, FL was deluged with 15.47 inches in 24 hours. Record heat and prolonged drought in south central Texas left salt deposits on power lines and insulators near the coast, and when nighttime dew caused arcing, the city of Brownsville was plunged into darkness. (The National Weather Summary)
• 9 June 1990...San Diego, CA set a new record rainfall amount on this date, as 0.38 inches of rain fell breaking the old record of 0.13 inches established in 1892. Moisture from the remains of Hurricane Boris was responsible for this rare rain event. (Intellicast)
• 10 June 1752...This day is believed to when Benjamin Franklin narrowly missed electrocution while flying a kite during a thunderstorm to determine if lightning is related to electricity. (David Ludlum)
• 10 June 1967...Fergus, Ontario received 3.4 inches of rain in one hour. (The Weather Doctor)
• 10 June 1990...Rains of between 0.75 to more than 1.5 inches in less than one hour caused flash flooding in Las Vegas, NV. Every underpass and most city streets were flooded. Two people died because of the floods, with one woman in a vehicle swept one mile down a concrete wash. A four-foot wall of water swept a bus with 15 people to within 40 feet of Flamingo Wash. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 11 June 1965...Heavy rains fell on unusually deep snowpack in the high Uinta Mountains of Utah. After local midnight, a flash flood roared down Sheep Creek Canyon, destroying three recreational areas, seven bridges and five miles of newly paved roads. Seven people were swept away while sleeping at Palisades Campground. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 11 June 1972...Heavy showers brought 1.64 inches of rain to Phoenix, AZ, a record for the month of June. (The Weather Channel)
• 12 June 1983...The state of Utah was besieged by floods and mudslides. Streets in downtown Salt Lake City were sandbagged and turned into rivers of relief. The town of Thistle was completely inundated as a mudslide made a natural dam. (The Weather Channel)
• 12 June 1991...On the same day that Mt Pinatubo in the Philippines awakened from its 635-year slumber, Typhoon Yunya crossed Luzon province. Mudslides and flooding caused many deaths and when added with impacts of Pinatubo left more than a million homeless. (The Weather Doctor)
• 12-13 June 2000...With 15 to 20 inches of rain falling on parts of Grand Forks County in North Dakota, flooding waters washed out a gravel road to a depth of 30 feet west of Larimore. Two men in a vehicle were killed when they drove into this newly-formed canyon. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 13 June 1977...A tropical cyclone crossed the Arabian Sea from near the Laccadive Islands off southwest India and slammed into the island of Masirah, sultanate of Oman. Winds reached at least 104 mph and the 24-hour rainfall total was 16.95 inches. About 99% of buildings were damaged. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 13 June 1996...Thunderstorms dropped 5 to 8 inches of rain on Leverett and Montague, MA in 4 hours. Thirty miles of roadway were ruined, with all but one road in Leverett destroyed. Flash flooding destroyed a 200-foot long bridge, which was replaced by a 50-foot deep canyon. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)

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Prepared by AMS WES Central Staff and Edward J. Hopkins, Ph.D., email hopkins@meteor.wisc.edu
ã Copyright, 2004, The American Meteorological Society.