MARCH 30, 2009: THAT’S A LOT OF WATER!

If an inch of rain falls on an acre of land, how many gallons of water is that?

Get out the abacus or calculator, here is how you figure it out. You have to convert your inch of rainfall into feet (one inch is 1/12 of a foot) and convert your area into square feet (one acre is 43,560 square feet). Multiply your depth by your area to get volume. That is, multiply 1/12 feet by 43,560 square feet to get 3,630 cubic feet of water. This is the volume, now you have to do one more calculation to get gallons. Convert cubic feet into gallons (1 cubic foot = 7.48 gallons) by multiplying 3,630 by 7.48, yielding 27,152 gallons.

Email your weather questions toweather@wtov.com.
I'm meteorologist Jeff Oechslein.

MARCH 29, 2009: IN LIKE A LION, OUT LIKE A LAMB?

With just a couple days left in March, did this age-old expression for March hold up? Well, it depends how you look at it:

Looking at temperatures, we started off very cold. Temperatures for the first four days of March were about 15 degrees below normal…definitely in like a lion. Temperatures for these last few days of March have hovered right around normal…definitely out like a lamb.

Looking at precipitation, it was the opposite. We were very dry (with the exception of a few snowflakes) for the first week of March. However, we’ve had nearly our entire month’s worth of precipitation in this last week.

So, it depends on what you’re preference is…the expression held up for temperatures in the Ohio Valley in March, but the amount of rain we’ve had the last few days was more of a lion’s share.

Email your weather questions to weather@wtov.com.
I'm meteorologist Mike Skurko.

MARCH 28, 2009: OHIO TORNADO DRILLS

If your school or business participated in the Ohio statewide tornado drill this past week, it was all part of Ohio’s Severe Weather Safety Awareness Week. This annual event is conducted by the Ohio Committee for Severe Weather Awareness (OCSWA). Here are some quick tornado facts issued by OCSWA:

- In the U.S. last year, there were 1,630 tornadoes and 125 reported fatalities.

- In Ohio, tornadoes are most likely to occur from April through July, between 2 and 10p.m. But tornadoes, and severe weather that spawns them, can occur any time in any place.

That last one is an important one. Last year, one tornado was reported in Ohio in the month of January! The other 14 for the year occurred in April, May, or June. You can read through the complete list of facts and information regarding tornadoes and tornado saftey at the OCSWA website.

Email your weather questions to weather@wtov.com.
I'm meteorologist Mike Skurko.

MARCH 26, 2009: A RECORD IN THE MAKING?

The end of the month of March is in sight, but snowflakes are not. Our last measurable snow came on February 22, when we had 0.8 inches of snow. February as a whole was not very snowy, with only 3.7 inches for the month.

But February was snowy compared to this month. So far, we have only had a trace of snow, coming on the first three days of the month and then again on March 20. Based on the current forecast, snow is not likely before the end of March. If this indeed holds, then this becomes our first March with no measurable snow ever recorded.

Our least snowy March so far was back in 1946, when only 0.5 inches of snow was recorded. I checked the records from the National Weather Service in Pittsburgh, and the last time they recorded only a trace of snow was way back in 1927. Pittsburgh has never had a March without at least a trace of snow.

Our average snow for March is 7.9 inches, but over the last ten years we have averaged only 4.8 inches. This includes a couple of months with less than an inch of snow (0.7 inches in 2006 and 0.9 inches in 2000). For the season to date, we have measured 30.3 inches, 7.5 inches below average. Since the average April snowfall is only 1.5 inches, it would take an unusual spring snowstorm to push our snow total up to normal.

E-mail your weather questions to weather@wtov.com.
I'm meteorologist Kevin Carter .

MARCH 23, 2009: IT’S TOO DRY!

So far this month of March, we have had only 0.13 inches of liquid precipitation in our official rain gauge, the one kept by the Steubenville Filtration Plant. This includes only a trace of snow this month as well. In an average March, we would have received 2.53 inches of liquid precipitation and 5.9 inches of snow by now.

For the year to date, our precipitation comes in at 4.54 inches, nearly three inches below the average of 7.46 inches. Snowfall for the season since it began in October is 30.3 inches, more than a half foot below the average of 37.1 inches. We have to go all the way back to 2001 to find a year when we were below normal for precipitation, so I guess in a way we are due for a dry stretch of weather.

One really unusual aspect of this current dry spell is how dry the air is. Our dew point is running in the single digits, a level more typical of a January high pressure system, not one in the middle of March. This very dry air along with some gusty winds has produced conditions nearly perfect for brush fires. Hopefully some much needed rain will fall by midweek to help moisten things up.

E-mail your weather questions to weather@wtov.com.
I'm meteorologist Kevin Carter .

MARCH 22, 2009: U.S. SPRING OUTLOOK

On Thursday, NOAA issued their annual “U.S. Spring Outlook.” Here in the Ohio Valley, no drastic changes are expected in temperature and precipiation…we will likely stay right around the seasonal averages. You can see for yourself by clicking both links to view the national map: Temperature / Precipitation. You can also scan through the full report here.

Email your weather questions to weather@wtov.com.
I'm meteorologist Mike Skurko.

MARCH 19, 2009: EQUINOX VS EQUILUX?

Tomorrow, March 20th we welcome in spring at 7:44 am EDT. This is the precise time that the sun’s direct rays impinge on the equator. We call this the Vernal Equinox. Pronounced either EE kwi nocks, the word is derived from a Latin word meaning equal night, the significance of which we'll examine in a minute. An equinox is the moment in time, calculated to the minute, when the center of the Sun is above the Earth’s equator. This occurs only twice a year: in the spring around March 20 and in the fall around September 22-23.

The equal night reference from the Latin word origin refers to the fact that on the dates when the equinoxes occur, day and night are of approximately equal length everywhere on Earth. Note I said “approximately.” You must in fact identify the Spring Equilux if you wish to identify one of the two dates during the year when day and night are closest to being equal at your particular location. Locally our Spring Equilux already occurred a few days ago on March 17th. On that day the sun came up at 7:32 am and set at 7:32 am.

Email your weather questions toweather@wtov.com.
I'm meteorologist Jeff Oechslein.

MARCH 16, 2009: FLOOD SAFETY AWARENESS WEEK

March 16 - 20 is National Flood Safety Awareness Week. Check out the weather blog each day as we reveal a new link to information from the National Weather Service.

Monday, March 16 - AHPS (Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service)
Tuesday, March 17 - Turn Around Don't Drown
Wednesday, March 18 - Ice Jams, Snowmelt, Droughts
Thursday, March 19 - Flood Insurance
Friday, March 20 - Flood Safety

MARCH 11, 2009: PROBABILITY OF PRECIPITATION

When you see the Severe Weather Team 9 five day forecast on WTOV9, you should notice a percentage above each day of the forecast. This percentage, which is in multiples of 10 (0%, 10%, on up to 100%), is the probability of precipitation for that 24-hour period of the forecast.

According to a recent article in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, there is a lot of confusion among the general public as to what this number means. For that matter, there is even some disagreement among meteorologists as to what the probability of precipitation means.

When I assign a probability of precipitation for a given forecast day, it’s the chance that any given spot in our viewing area will have enough precipitation to measure during that 24 hour period. For example, if I forecast that the probability of precipitation is 40%, I think that, in ten days with similar conditions, any given spot in the viewing area would see at least 0.01 inch of rain or melted snow on four of them. Of course, this also means that a spot would likely have less than 0.01 inch of precipitation (either no precipitation or just a trace) on six of those ten days.

Notice that this probability of precipitation says nothing about when it will rain or snow during that 24 hour period, or how much it will rain or snow, or even where in the viewing area it will rain or snow. It tells you only the likelihood of precipitation. The higher the percentage, the better the chance we will have precipitation, but even a high percentage does not necessarily guarantee rain or snow. I like to leave a little wiggle room, so I rarely use the 100% or 0% probabilities of precipitation, and when I do use them, they are almost always just for the first day of the five day forecast.

E-mail your weather questions to weather@wtov.com.
I'm meteorologist Kevin Carter .

MARCH 9, 2009: BECOME A SKYWARN SPOTTER
We had a pretty good light show last night thanks to thunderstorms crossing the Ohio Valley. It made me think that spring weather season is here and SKYWAN needs your help.

Year after year, reports from SKYWARN™ observers have assisted the National Weather Service in issuing timely warnings based on REAL-TIME reports throughout the 36 County Warning Area covering parts of PA, WV, OH, and MD. The NWS's primary mission is to issue warnings to protect life and property.

The ground truth reports from SKYWARN™ spotters are a vital link in using advanced radar data and meteorological skills to carry out the mission. Their observations also provide the National Weather Service with information in compiling documentation of severe weather events and verification of warnings. These reports become part of the Untited States Storm Data publication, which is used by researchers and also provides climatological data on a wide variety of unusual weather phenomenom, including statistics on death, injuries, and property and crop damage.

Over the next several weeks SKWARN classes will be conducted across the Ohio Valley by Richard Kane, Warning Coordinating Meteorologist from the National Weather Service Pittsburgh. Here is a list of dates and times:

Tuesday, 10 March Belmont Cty, OH Emerg Operations 630PM Center 68329 Banncock Rd St. Clairsville, OH Please Call Belmont EMA at 740-695-5984 to register

Wednesday, 11 March Coshocton Cty, OH Emerg Operations 630 PM Center S 7th Street Coshocton, OH

Wednesday, 18 March Columbiana Cty, OH Columbiana Cty 630 PM Career Center State Route 45

Tuesday, 24 March Harrison Cty, OH Puskarich Library 630 PM 200 E Market ST Cadiz, OH

Monday, 30 March Muskingum Cty, OH Genesis:Bethesda Campus 630 PM 2951 Maple Ave Zanesville, OH

Thursday, 2 April Guernsey County, OH Guernsey County 630PM Admin Bldg 627 Wheeling Ave Cambridge, OH PLEASE REGISTER WITH GUERNSEY COUNTY EMA AT 740-432-9292

Monday, 6 April Washington Cty, Pa Emergency Ops 630PM Center 100 West Beau St Washington PA

Tuesday, 7 April Carroll Cty, OH Carroll County Fire 630PM 1101 North Lisbon St Route 9 Carrollton, OH

Wednesday, 8 April Marshall Cty, WV Grand Vue Park 630PM Events Room Moundsville

Tuesday, 21 April Tuscarawas Cty, OH Emergency Ops 630 PM Center 2295 Reiser Ave SE New Philadelphia, OH

Email your weather questions toweather@wtov.com.
I'm meteorologist Jeff Oechslein.

MARCH 8, 2009: ARE WE DONE WITH THE SNOW?

I am getting asked this question a lot lately, and the answer is…probably not. Playing the averages, we are still due for several more inches of snow. The Ohio Valley averages 7.9 inches of snow in the month of March, as well as 1.4 inches in April. So far, we have had just a trace this month. It does not appear we'll be seeing any snowflakes over the next few days, but I wouldn't put away the gloves, hats, ice scrapers, and snow shovels just yet!

Email your weather questions to weather@wtov.com.
I'm meteorologist Mike Skurko.

MARCH 6, 2009: THE ORIGINS OF THE WORD BLIZZARD

A blizzard might be the furthest thing from your mind on a mild spring-like day like today. Did you know the last true blizzard to impact the Ohio Valley occurred on March 13, 1993? But do you know where the word blizzard came from?

It was once believed that the Blizzard family of England had migrated to the western United States and gave their name to northern storms. Others believe it came from the English word blizzer once used to describe a knock down fight, with a blizzard of blows.

The strongest source origin of the word blizzard comes from early settlers of the Midwestern United States. These early settlers came from Germany. The Germans witnessed winter storms brought down by strong northwesterly winds. Blizzard probably comes from the German expression “Der sturm kommt blitzartig”, meaning the storm comes lightning like.

The word "blizzard" first appeared in the United States 139 years ago and its first use was possibly on March 14, 1870, to describe a storm that produced heavy snow and high winds in Minnesota.

Technically, a blizzard is an intense winter storm with sustained winds 35 mph or higher and sufficient falling and/or blowing snow to reduce visibility below one-quarter mile for at least three hours.

Email your weather questions toweather@wtov.com.
I'm meteorologist Jeff Oechslein.

MARCH 5, 2009: BIG TEMPERATURE SWING

We certainly are giving the thermometers a work out lately. The official low temperature on Tuesday morning was 6 degrees, and our high temperature on this Thursday was 59 degrees, a climb of 53 degrees in about 60 hours.

Of course, we didn’t climb constantly over those two and a half days. It was up to 27 for a high Tuesday afternoon, then back down to 10 for the low Wednesday morning, and back up the ladder to 39 Wednesday afternoon, before we bottomed out at 20 degrees for the low Thursday morning.

That set us up for an impressive climb of 39 degrees from the low of 20 degrees to the high temperature of 59 degrees on Thursday. This was a bigger daily temperature range than any day in 2008, when the biggest daily climb was from a low of 45 degrees to a high of 81 degrees on October 12, a 36 degree jump. The last time we had a bigger difference between the high and low temperature on the same day was back on April 22, 2007. That day had a range of 41 degrees, with a low of 39 and a high of 80.

I’m not sure what our biggest daily temperature range is, nor can I readily find the national record for the biggest temperature range for any one calendar day. But in Browning, Montana in 1916, the temperature fell from 44 degrees on January 23 to -56 degrees on January 24. That one hundred degree drop in 24 hours is considered the biggest of its kind by the National Weather Service.

E-mail your weather questions to weather@wtov.com.
I'm meteorologist Kevin Carter .

MARCH 4, 2009: ASTEROID NEARLY MISSES EARTH

On Monday, an asteroid the size of a rock that exploded above Siberia in 1908 with the force of a thousand atomic bombs whizzed by Earth, according to astronomers. The Planetary Society, as well as astronomers' blogs, reported on Monday, that asteroid 2009 DD45, which is estimated to be 68 to 152 feet across, raced by Earth at 1:44 p.m. GMT on Monday. The gap between the asteroid and the Earth was only 44,750 miles, which is a fifth the distance between our planet and the moon.

The size of the asteroid is estimated to be similar to one that exploded above Tunguska, Siberia, on June 30 1908, flattening 80 million trees throughout 800 square miles. Last Saturday, the 2009 DD45 was spotted in Australia by astronomers at the Siding Spring Survey, and was verified by the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center (MPC), which specializes in Solar System rocks. The last flyby listed by the MPC was in 2004, a small asteroid about 20 feet across that came within 4,000 miles of Earth.

Email your weather questions toweather@wtov.com.
I'm meteorologist Jeff Oechslein.

MARCH 3, 2009: WAS FEBRUARY REALLY THAT BAD?

Based on the complaints that I receive this time of year you would have thought that February was a brutally cold and snowy month. What if I were to tell you that temperatures this past month were above average and snowfall was well below average? You might say impossible, but the facts do not lie.

The average high temperature in February was 40.2 degrees which was 1.3 degrees above average. The average low temperature for the month was 23.1 degrees which was also above normal by nearly 2 degrees. Snowfall this February was lackluster at 3.7 inches or nearly five inches below normal.

Last February was much colder and snowier than February ’09. Last year we recorded 18.5 inches of snow for the month! I guess the bottom line is that by early March most of us are tired of any cold and snow. Complaints should go down as temperature come up by later this week. There are signs that mild weather might last until the middle of the month, then it gets colder. Stop complaining, there’s only 17 days until Spring!

Email your weather questions toweather@wtov.com.
I'm meteorologist Jeff Oechslein.

MARCH 1, 2009: SEVERE WEATHER AWARENESS WEEK

With spring coming shortly, this week is Pennsylvania Severe Weather Awareness week. Since our viewing area is governed by the National Weather Service office in Pittsburgh, their website has a lot of information that can also be applied to the Ohio Valley. Check out the NWS site each day this week to view a new topic about severe weather and how to make sure you stay safe in severe situations. (http://www.erh.noaa.gov/ctp/features/SevereAwareness/)

Monday, Mar 2, 2008 - Tornadoes
Tuesday, Mar 3, 2008 - Severe Thunderstorms
Wednesday, Mar 4, 2008 - Flash Flooding
Thursday, Mar 5, 2008 - River Flooding
Friday, Mar 6, 2008 - Skywarn(TM) Spotters

Email your weather questions to weather@wtov.com.
I'm meteorologist Mike Skurko.