11-15 July 2005

DataStreme Water in the Earth System will return for Fall 2005 with new Water News and Investigations files starting during Preview Week, Monday, 29 August 2005. All the current online homepage products will continue to be available throughout the summer break period.

• Hurricane updates -- Hurricane Dennis, one of the most powerful hurricanes to develop in the tropical North Atlantic during the month of July, was made landfall along the Gulf Coast on Sunday near Pensacola FL as a Category 3 hurricane (on the Saffir-Simpson scale). [USA Today] This hurricane followed Tropical Storm Cindy, which developed and moved across the Southeast earlier last week. Some of the news items from these systems include:
• Tropical Storm Cindy made landfall on Wednesday along the Mississippi Gulf Coast resulting in heavy rain and a storm surge that caused some flooding [USA Today]. Remnants of this storm moved across Georgia spawning tornadoes and producing heavy rain. At least two fatalities in Georgia were attributed to the remnants of Cindy [USA Today].
• Hurricane Dennis intensified to a Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained surface winds of 150 mph in the Caribbean before crossing Cuba on Friday. As many as 10 people were killed by Dennis in Haiti, with another 10 fatalities in Cuba [USA Today]. After weakening as it passed across Cuba, Hurricane Dennis showed some strengthening as it brushed by the Florida Keys and the west coast of the Florida Peninsula, accompanied by heavy rain, strong winds and tornadoes [USA Today].
• A 3-D view at inside of a hurricane is now available -- NASA scientists are developing a method that can process rainfall intensity data from the TRMM (Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission) satellite and display it as three-dimensional images showing the structure of tropical cyclones (tropical storms and hurricanes) in near real-time. [NASA]
• Breakthroughs in sea level change research noted -- NASA scientists along with their colleagues at NOAA and several universities with National Science Foundation sponsored grants have been using a variety of techniques and instruments to study changes in sea level. Some of these instruments include those on satellites and floats. [NASA] A related article describes how NASA satellites measure and monitor sea level. [NASA]
• Evacuations in India from monsoon rains -- Rains from the southwest monsoon over India caused floods that caused the evacuation of one half million people, including stranded passengers on a train at the beginning of July. Over 100 people died during that week because of the floods. [USA Today]
• Mysterious Antarctic clouds may be associated with Space Shuttle -- In a report funded by the Naval Research Laboratory and NASA, scientists found that exhaust from the Space Shuttle appear to be responsible for creation of high-altitude clouds at altitudes of approximately 110 km over Antarctica a few days after a Shuttle launch. [EurekAlert!] In related research, the scientists studied the high-altitude clouds developed over Antarctica in January 2003 following the launch of the final flight of space shuttle Columbia. Their analysis leads to consideration of the role these clouds may play in global climate change. [EurekAlert!]
• Plant disease management found in aquatic plants -- A scientist at Cornell University has noted that many aquatic plants appear to have unique mechanisms that provide resistance to attack by microbes, meaning that scientists can learn management techniques associated with freshwater plant disease and climatic change. [EurekAlert!]
• Europe is also experiencing drought --A lack of adequate precipitation coupled with persistent hot weather has resulted in drought conditions across many parts of Europe, including France, Spain and Portugal. [USA Today]
• Thunderstorms are now more frequent in Alaska -- Records from the National Weather Service and the Bureau of Land Management indicate that many locations in Alaska are experiencing a marked increase in thunderstorms and lightning strikes over the last several decades. [USA Today]
• Thunderstorms in Colorado caused problems -- At least nine people were injured when struck by lightning over the 4th of July weekend in Colorado. Lightning from these thunderstorms were also were responsible for starting 23 wildfires in the state. Earlier, strong thunderstorm winds capsized a boat, resulting in the deaths of two women. [USA Today]
• 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.

• 11 July1988...Thunderstorms produced heavy rain in southern Texas, with totals ranging up to 13 inches near Medina. Two men drowned when their pickup truck was swept into the Guadalupe River, west of the town of Hunt. (Storm Data)
• 11 July 1990...Most costly hailstorm in U.S. history battered the Colorado Front Range from Estes Park to Colorado Springs. A supercell dropped a swath of hail the size of baseballs which dented tens of thousands of cars, defoliated thousands of trees, knocked out power and phone service for thousands. Denver was hardest hit. Total damage reached $625 million. (Intellicast)
• 12 July 1892...A hidden lake burst out of a glacier on the side of Mont Blanc, western Europe's highest mountain, flooding the valley below and killing around 200 villagers and holiday-makers in Saint Gervais. (Wikipedia)
• 12 July 1951...The Kaw River flood occurred. The month of June that year was the wettest of record for the state of Kansas, and during the four days preceding the flood much of eastern Kansas and western Missouri received more than ten inches of rain. Flooding in the Midwest claimed 41 lives, left 200 thousand persons homeless, and caused a billion dollars property damage. Kansas City was hardest hit. The central industrial district sustained 870 million dollars property damage. (The Kansas City Weather Almanac)
• 12 July 1988...Evening thunderstorms produced severe weather over the Dakotas, including baseball size hail at Aberdeen, SD and softball size hail near Monango and Fullerton, ND. Thunderstorms produced heavy rain in Arkansas and northeastern Texas, with 6.59 inches reported at Mesquite, TX in just an hour and fifteen minutes. Garland, TX reported water up to the tops of cars following a torrential downpour. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
• 12 July 1989...Early morning thunderstorms over eastern Kansas deluged McFarland with more than six inches of rain. Afternoon thunderstorms in Wyoming produced up to eighteen inches of dime size hail near Rock Springs, along with torrential rains, and a three foot high wall of mud and water swept into the town causing one death and more than 1.5 million dollars damage. Evening thunderstorms produced severe weather in Oklahoma and Arkansas, deluging Dardanelle, AR with 3.50 inches of rain in less than twenty minutes. About seventy cows were killed when lightning struck a tree in Jones County, TX. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data) (Intellicast)
• 12 July 1996...Up to three inches of rain fell in one hour near Buffalo Creek, CO on forestland denuded by a May wildfire. The resulting 20 foot high wall of water uprooted trees and utility poles, buildings were moved from their foundations and bridges destroyed. Two people were killed when vehicles were washed away. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 12 July 2001...A nearly stationary supercell thunderstorm dropped large hail and between 3 and 6 inches of rain during one hour southeast of Cohagen, MT. Hail drifts up to ten feet deep were measured in coulees. Four days later, golf ball sized hail was still embedded in the mud and straw, along with drifts to four feet deep. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 13 July 1975...Dover, DE was deluged with 8.50 inches of rain to establish a 24-hour maximum precipitation record for the state. (The Weather Channel)
• 14 July 1886...Los Angeles had its greatest 24-hour July rainfall with 0.24 inches. (Intellicast)
• 14-15 July 1911...Baguio, Luzon, Philippines reported 46 inches of rain, which represents Asia's greatest 24-hour rainfall: (The Weather Doctor).
• 15-16 July 1916...A dying South Atlantic Coast storm produced torrential rains in the southern Appalachian Mountains. Altapass, NC was drenched with 22.22 inches of rain, a 24-hour rainfall record for the Tarheel State, and at the time, a 24-hour record for the U.S. (The current 24-hour rainfall record for the US is 43 inches set 25-25 July 1979 at Alvin, TX). Flooding resulted in considerable damage, particularly to railroads. (David Ludlum) (Intellicast) (NCDC)
• 15 July 1983...The Big Thompson Creek in Colorado flooded for the second time in seven years, claiming three lives, and filling the town of Estes Park with eight to ten feet of water. (The Weather Channel)
• 15 July 1989...Thunderstorms drenched Kansas City, MO with 4.16 inches of rain, a record for the date. Two and a half inches of rain deluged the city between noon and 1 PM. Afternoon thunderstorms in South Carolina deluged Williamstown with six inches of rain in ninety minutes, including four inches in little more than half an hour. (The National Weather Summary)(Storm Data)
• 15 July 1993...Four-inch diameter hail fell at Hot Springs, SD. In North Dakota, Jamestown recorded 6.40 inches of rain, Fargo 5.09 inches and Bismarck 4.08 inches. (Intellicast)
• 15 July 2001...Rain fell at 3.91 inches per hour in Seoul, South Korea, the heaviest amount since 1964. In total, 12.2 inches of rain fell in Seoul and Kyonggi. The rain was responsible for 40 reported fatalities. (The Weather Doctor)
• 17 July 1987...Slow-moving thunderstorms caused flooding on the Guadalupe River in Texas resulting in tragic loss of life. A bus and van leaving a summer youth camp stalled near the rapidly rising river, just west of the town of Comfort, and a powerful surge of water swept away 43 persons, mostly teenagers. Ten drowned in the floodwaters. Most of the others were rescued from treetops by helicopter. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
• 17-18 July 1996...Heavy rains were responsible for unprecedented flooding across north central and northeast Illinois, resulting in hundreds of millions of dollars in damage. Aurora, IL received 16.91 inches of rain, which established a new 24-hour precipitation record for the Prairie State. Approximately 60 percent of the city's homes were affected by flooding. At Romeoville, 10.36 inches of rain fell. Interstates were closed and some towns were isolated. Rampaging floodwaters scoured out roads near Dayton, leaving gravel and sand deposits to twenty feet high. (NCDC) (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, 2005, The American Meteorological Society.