WEEKLY WATER NEWS

19-23 May 2008

Water in the Earth System will return for Fall 2008 with new Investigations files starting during Preview Week, Monday, 25 August 2008. All the current online website products will continue to be available throughout the summer break period.

Discovery Education/3M Young Scientist Challenge 2008

Students in grades 5 to 8 -- Enter a science competition with a chance for prizes, money and trip to Washington, DC. Application deadline is June 15th. Check it out! http://youngscientist.discoveryeducation.com/about/about.html (Also, there is a teacher entry division.)

Water in the News:

• North American Safe Boating Week -- This week of 17-23 May has been declared 2008 National Safe Boating Week, to help kick off the 2008 North American Safe Boating Campaign. Check the Safe Boating Week site maintained by the Safe Boating Council.
• Hurricane Preparedness Week -- With the beginning of the official 2008 hurricane season for the North Atlantic Basin beginning on 1 June, next week (25-31 May) has been declared National Hurricane Awareness Week. The National Hurricane Center maintains a hurricane preparedness website that provides information and educational material for the various hurricane hazards to include storm surge, high winds, tornadoes and flooding. (A Spanish version of this website is also available.) The 2008 hurricane season has begun in the eastern North Pacific basin last Tuesday (15 May). A similar hurricane preparedness website is also maintained by the Central Pacific Hurricane Center in Honolulu, HI with some information specific for the central Pacific basin.
  Editor's Note: Based upon hurricane records that commence in 1949 for the eastern North Pacific basin, the earliest hurricane of the season for that basin was Hurricane Alma, a category 1 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Scale, that formed on 12 May 1990 and reached hurricane status on the 15th. On the other hand, the latest hurricane of the season was Hurricane Winnie, which became a Category-1 hurricane on 6 December 1983 and dissipated a day later. EJH
• Names are retired from hurricane name list -- Due to the ferocity of several hurricanes during 2007, the names of Dean, Felix, and Noel were officially retired from the rotating list of hurricane names assigned to the North Atlantic basin. An international committee of the World Meteorological Organization has selected new replacement names for the list that will be used in 2013. [NOAA News]
• Eye on the tropics -- As sea surface temperatures increase across the Northern Hemisphere several tropical cyclones (low-pressure systems over tropical waters) have developed across the western North Pacific during the last week. Tropical Storm Matmo formed last week over the Philippine Sea northeast of Luzon. As of this past weekend, this tropical storm was traveling to the northeast and was to pass to the south of Japan.
  Typhoon Halong formed late last week over the South China Sea west of the Philippines. As of the weekend, this category 1 typhoon on the Saffir-Simpson Scale was moving to the northeast and was forecast to pass just to the southeast of Japan. An image obtained from data collected by the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) aboard NASA's Aqua satellite shows the temperatures of the cloud tops surrounding Typhoon Halong. [NASA Hurricane Page]
  Earlier in the week, Typhoon Rammasun (which means "God of Thunder" in Thai) finally weakened and dissipated over the waters of the western North Pacific southeast of Japan. This supertyphoon had been reached category 4 status on the Saffir-Simpson Scale. A variety of satellite images are available for viewing that include the surface wind field around the typhoon generated from data obtained by NASA's QuikSCAT satellite and cloud images from instruments on NASA's Aqua and Terra satellites. [NASA Hurricane Page]
• More on the cyclone disaster in Burma -- As government officials have begun to permit more relief efforts across Myanmar (Burma), they have declared that 78,000 people were killed and 56,000 others remained missing following the passage of Tropical Cyclone Nargis in early May. [CNN] Additional satellite images and astronaut photographs of Tropical Cyclone Nargis have been recently posted. [NASA Hurricane Page] [NASA Earth Observatory]
• Risk models used to identify neediest cyclone survivors -- Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Lehman College, CUNY have been using geographic risk models to identify the regions of Myanmar (Burma) that are at the greatest risk from the aftermath of Tropical Cyclone Nargis. They conclude that as many as 3.2 million Burmese were affected by the cyclone. [Johns Hopkins University]
• New observing system aids mariners -- A new NOAA ocean observing system called Physical Oceanographic Real-Time System (PORTS®) has been recently been installed at the Port of Pascagoula on Mississippi's Gulf coast to provide mariners with free real-time information on water and wind conditions at the port through an easy-to-use Web portal. [NOAA News]
• April 2008 weather review -- Based upon preliminary data for the recently concluded month of April 2008, scientists at the National Climatic Data Center have determined that the month was relatively chilly, as the temperature across the coterminous United States for April was one Fahrenheit degrees below the average April monthly temperature for the entire 20th-century. Many of the states west of the Mississippi had below average temperatures, with Washington experiencing its second coldest April since 1895. On the other hand, the Northeast had above average temperatures, with New York State reporting the second highest statewide April temperature. The month was slightly drier than average on a national scale, with states across the Southwest experiencing below to much below average precipitation. Arizona had the third driest April and California the fifth driest. However, several states in the Mississippi Valley and across the Middle Atlantic had much above average monthly precipitation totals. While the April 2008 average temperature for the coterminous US was below the long-term average, the month's globally-averaged temperature was the thirteenth highest for the record extending back to 1880. [NOAA News]
• Possible transition to ENSO-neutral conditions foreseen -- Scientists at NOAA's Climate Prediction Center recently announced that the sea surface temperatures across the equatorial Pacific Ocean were warming, signaling a possible end to the La Niña conditions that were found across the globe since last July. These scientists foresee a transition to what they identify as "ENSO-neutral conditions" (ENSO=El Niño Southern Oscillation) within the next month. [NOAA CPC]
• Mixed drought outlook is made -- Meteorologists with NOAA's Climate Prediction Center and with the National Drought Mitigation Center have issued an outlook for the upcoming summer (through August 2008) that indicates a Western drought should either develop or persist across the northern Plains, the northern and central Rockies, the Intermountain region and California. Improvement in the drought conditions was expected across the Southeast, the southern Plains and the southern Rockies. [NOAA CPC]
• California schools encouraged to become "ocean guardians" -- NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries announced last week that it was offering between $2000 and $6000 in the form of an "Ocean Guardian" grant to K-12 schools in several California counties whose students create a school or community-based conservation project that protects their local watershed and the ocean. [NOAA News]
• Hollings Scholarship award winners announced -- NOAA's Office of Education has recently selected 111 college students from 36 states to receive the agency's 2008 Ernest F. Hollings Undergraduate Scholarship, designed to encourage undergraduates to pursue careers in the atmospheric or oceanic sciences. [NOAA News]
• Assessing the health of a historic sanctuary -- NOAA's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries recently released a report that it prepared assessing the conditions of NOAA's Monitor National Marine Sanctuary off the North Carolina coast. The sanctuary was assessed to be in overall good health, but the historic shipwreck of the Civil War-era USS Monitor still faces threats. [NOAA News]
• A decline in contaminants found in the nation's coastal waters -- Scientists associated with the NOAA Mussel Watch program recently released a 20-year study entitled "An Assessment of Two Decades of Contaminant Monitoring in the Nation’s Coastal Zone" that shows that the overall contaminant levels in the coastal waters surrounding the US have decreased since environmental laws were enacted in the 1970s. However, some waters near urban and industrial areas continue to have elevated levels of metals and organic contaminants. [NOAA News]
• An uneasy moment for the Big Easy -- A photograph taken by an astronaut on the International Space Station shows the perilous situation faced by New Orleans. LA due to high water levels on the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain because of heavy rains in the Mississippi River basin. The plume of sediments from the river can be seen entering the lake following the opening of a spillway by the US Army Corps of Engineers. [NASA Earth Observatory]
• Naval technology enlisted to search for sunken history -- The potential use of the U.S. Navy's mine-hunting technology for the finding historic shipwrecks by maritime archaeologists from NOAA is being displayed through this week at AUVfest 2008 Narragansett Bay, RI. (An AUV is an autonomous undersea vehicle.) [NOAA News]
• An El Niño may have affected Magellan's historic voyage -- An archaeologist from North Carolina State University and a researcher from the University of Calgary claim that anomalous weather conditions associated with an El Niño event may have affected the portion of Ferdinand Magellan's sixteenth-century voyage across the Pacific Ocean in his attempt to circumnavigate the globe, by taking more than 1000 miles off his intended course. They also indicate that Magellan's voyage may be the earliest historical record of an El Niño event. [EurekAlert!]
• Sandy beaches may not be as clean as seawater -- Researchers with Oceanographic Center of Florida's Nova Southeastern University who conducted an US Environmental Protection Agency study have found high levels of fecal bacteria from sewage in the beach sand along the intertidal zone of Florida beaches, indicating that this bacteria may survive beater in sand than seawater. [Soils Society of America]
• A key molecule found in Venusian atmosphere -- The Visible and Infrared Thermal Imaging Spectrometer instrument onboard the European Space Agency's Venus Express has detected the hydroxyl molecule (OH) in the upper atmosphere of Venus, representing the first time that this molecule has been detected on another planet. Planetary scientists feel that this highly reactive hydroxyl compound is a key component in any planet's atmosphere.[ESA]
• Interesting findings from nitrogen cycle studies -- An international group of scientists including those from Texas A&M University and Britain's University of East Anglia reported that approximately one third of the fixed nitrogen entering the world's oceans from the atmosphere is from anthropogenic activity, which could result in increased biological activity and carbon dioxide uptake, along with increased levels of nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas. They also note that these nitrogen emissions are currently ten times greater than in 1860. [EurekAlert!] [EurekAlert!] In two other studies involving changes in the nitrogen cycle due to human activity, scientists considering how food and energy production were causing excessive concentrations of reactive forms of nitrogen to accumulate in the atmosphere, soil and coastal oceanic waters. [EurekAlert!]
• Wireless transmission affected by weather and waves -- Research conducted at the United Kingdom's University of Leicester indicates that the signal strength of radio waves traveling across the ocean appears to be strengthened during certain hours of the late afternoon and early evening in spring and summer because of weather conditions, resulting in greater clarity and greater distance traveled. [EurekAlert!]
• Deep-sea "secrets" could be unlocked -- Scientists from the United Kingdom's Durham University will depart on a five-week expeditions onboard the British Royal Research Ship James Cook where they will use robotic equipment to explore underwater volcanoes in the Atlantic waters off the Azores and collect rock samples from the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. [EurekAlert!]
• 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.

Historical Events:

• 19 May 1257...On St. Dunstan's Day, a tornado traveled from Windsor to St. Albans in England and was described as a "marvellous sore tempest of weather, the air being darkened on every side from the four corners thereof, and withal chanced such a thunder as few the like had been heard." (The Weather Doctor)
• 19 May 1955...Lake Maloya, NM received 11.28 inches of rain in 24 hours to establish a state record. (The Weather Channel)
• 19 May 1984...Texas received heavy rain from thunderstorms, with 4.22 inches falling on Beaumont in 6 hours and Port Arthur receiving over 6 inches of rain in about 8 hours. (Intellicast)
• 19 May 1987...Thunderstorms in Texas produced thirteen inches of rain northwest of Lavernia. The heavy rain, along with golfball-size hail, destroyed eighty percent of the crops in the area, while high winds toppled trees. Golf ball size hail was also reported south of Dallas and around San Antonio. Up to eight inches of rain drenched Guadalupe County. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
• 19 May 1988...Severe thunderstorms in southwest Texas produced hail as large as tennis balls around Midland, with the hail accumulating up to a foot deep. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
• 19 May 1990...Thunderstorms deluged Hot Springs, AR with thirteen inches of rain in nine hours resulting in a devastating flood. Two waves of water, four to six feet deep, swept down Central Avenue flooding stores and the famous bathhouses on Bathhouse Row. Water released from Lake Hamilton devastated the area between it and Remmel Dam. The 500-foot Carpenter Dam Bridge across Lake Catherine was completely washed away, as were cabins and mobile homes near the lake, many of which flowed right over the top of Remmel Dam. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
• 20 May 1729...A waterspout moved on land at Bexhill, Sussex, England to become a tornado. The tornado leveled many buildings along its path of destruction, 12 miles long and on average 380 yards wide. (The Weather Doctor)
• 20 May 1999...A devastating cyclone, packing winds of up to 170 mph and a high storm surge, struck the Sindh Province in southern Pakistan. Some 600 villages were devastated and more than 400 people killed. (The Weather Doctor)
• 20 May 1990...Nearly 13 inches of rain fell in just 9 hours at Hot Springs, AR. A wall of water 4 to 6 feet high roared though the city. Cars, many occupied, were seen floating down Central Avenue. As many as 85 people had to be rescued from flooded cars and buildings. (Storm Data) (The National Weather Summary) (Intellicast)
• 23 May 1960...Tsunami waves from Chilean earthquakes began to affect the Alaska's coast along the Gulf of Alaska from Prince of Wales Island to Montague Island for as long as one week. The tsunami waves on the 23rd were up to 14 feet high near Yakutat. (Accord's Weather Calendar)
• 24 May 1901...The relative humidity at Parkstone, Dorset in England at 4 PM was reported to be 9.5 percent. This low relative humidity is not typical of the British Islands, which are surrounded by ocean water and have no large high mountain barriers or plateaus. (Accord's Weather Calendar)
• 24 May 1894...Six inches of snow blanketed Kentucky. Just four days earlier as much as ten inches of snow had fallen across Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia. Six days earlier a violent storm had wrecked nine ships on Lake Michigan. (David Ludlum)
• 24 May 1940...Hail fell near Ada, OK to a depth of six to eight inches, and rainfall runoff left drifts of hail up to five feet high. (The Weather Channel)
• 24 May 1951...Northeast gales generated waves to 15 feet high in the harbor of Newport, RI. A 50-ft. Navy launch with about 142 men on board capsized. Nineteen of the men drowned in the incident. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar)
• 24 May 1992...Winds up to 40 knots and seas to 18 feet in the northern Gulf of Alaska, approximately 30 miles southwest of Alaska's Cape Cleare, sent three waves crashing over the Cajun Mama. This 80-foot fishing boat sank, but the crew of five was rescued. (Accord's Weather Calendar)
• 25 May 1987...A man on a boat on Lake Bistineau in northwest Louisiana was struck and killed by lightning, while the other three persons in the boat were unharmed. The man reportedly stood up in the boat and asked to be struck by lightning. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
• 25 May 1990...Heavy thunderstorm rains produced flash flooding in central Missouri. Floodwaters swept through Washington State Park southwest of Saint Louis, and nearly one hundred persons had to be rescued from water as much as twenty feet deep. The floodwaters swept away a number of vehicles; some were carried as much as four miles away. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
• 25 May 1985...The Meghna River delta in Bangladesh was hit with a tropical cyclone with winds of over 100 mph that created a 15- to 20-foot high storm surge that flooded a 400-square-mile area, mainly islands located in the mouth of the river. More than 11,000 people and 500,000 head of cattle died and hundreds of thousands were left homeless because of this cyclone.

Return to DataStreme WES website

Prepared by AMS WES Central Staff and Edward J. Hopkins, Ph.D., email hopkins@meteor.wisc.edu
ã Copyright, 2008, The American Meteorological Society.