Look High

This map shows you the delicate tracery of wind flowing over the U.S. (Hint.fm) h/t @nprnicole

theatlantic:

Picture of the Day: Snowfall Across Italy, From Space

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’a Aqua satellite captured this picture of Italy last week, shortly after recent snowstorms had blanketed much of the country. The Aqua satellite has been in orbit since 2002, collecting information about all aspects of the Earth’s water cycle, including evaporation, clouds, soil moisture, and fluctuations in sea and land ice cover.

See more. [Image: NASA]

People of Earth, say “cheese”

propagandery:

Behold: the first image from NASA’s newest Earth-observing satellite

You’re looking at a section of the first image to be compiled from measurements made by the Visible Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) onboard NPP — NASA’s newest Earth-observing satellite. (In case you were wondering, “NPP” is the drastically shortened acronym for the agency’s National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System Preparatory Project).

The image featured above is a section of a larger image (hi-res versions of which can be downloaded here) that captures an enormous swath of the Earth’s surface, extending from Canada’s Hudson Bay all the way to the northern coast of Venezuela. In the image up top, you can make out Florida and Cuba just left of the image’s center.

click for full image

(VIIRS First Light:io9)

Great. More Extreme Weather On The Way

Brace yourself for more extreme weather. A group of more than 200 scientists convened by the United Nations says in a new report that climate change will bring more heat waves, more intense rainfall and more expensive natural disasters.

These conclusions are from the latest effort of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change — a consensus statement from researchers around the world. (NPR)

Photo: Dust storm approaching Stratford, Texas. (Credit: NOAA Photo Library, Historic NWS collection via NASA)

sNOw way

nycdigital:

Happy first snow, NYC! Stay warm and stay safe.

writings-ofthe-traveling-gnome:

A city of rain. (taken from my window a few minutes ago).

***

Heavy rain from Tropical Storm Lee pounded the Gulf Coast today as it approaches New Orleans — bringing as much as 20 inches of rain and putting levees that failed six years ago to the test.

The rain has been relentless, coming down nonstop since Friday morning along with winds - with gusts as high as 40 miles an hour.

There are tropical storm warnings in effect from Pascagoula, Miss., across the coast to Sabine Pass, Texas. (ABC News)

CosmicKitchen: My Mom’s backyard in Morehead City [N.C.] b4 & after

(via http://yfrog.com/gzelqkyfj)

Brave folks getting one last taste of the ocean as #Irene blows into Wilmington, N.C., Aug. 26, 2011. (Twitpic)

Her parents wanted to call her Stormy

NBC News correspondent Lilia Luciano getting pelted by sleet in the Bahamas, Aug. 25, 2011. (Twitpic)

According to this, bright, loud colors are attacking the D.C. area (NBC4)

Heavy Rain in Namibia and South Africa

How To Survive A Tornado: Plan Ahead, Avoid Debris

People who don’t have a tornado shelter can still do a lot to protect themselves from flying debris, says  Harold Brooks, a research meteorologist at the National Severe Storms Laboratory.

The important thing is to put as many walls as possible between you and the wind, he says. That usually means going to a closet, an interior bathroom or even a small hallway.

“Once you get in there, something like a bicycle helmet or a football helmet on your head can dramatically improve your chances of surviving without significant injury,” Brooks says.

But a lot of people don’t do any of that, tornado experts say. And what they do instead can make things worse. (Read more.)

What To Do During A Tornado

• Indoors: Move to a basement or the building’s lowest possible floor. Find an interior room, hallway or stairwell – the more walls between you and the tornado, the better. Stay under a sturdy piece of furniture and protect your head. Move away from windows, and be sure to keep them closed, as high winds and dangerous debris can enter if they’re opened.

• Outdoors: Find a ditch, depression or ravine in the ground, lie flat and cover your head. Be aware of the potential for flash floods. Watch for flying debris, as they cause the most fatalities during tornadoes.

• In a vehicle or mobile home: Leave your vehicle or mobile home and, if possible, enter a nearby building. If there’s no building around, lie flat in a depression in the ground. Do not seek shelter under a highway overpass. If you do stay behind the wheel, don’t try to outrun the tornado — drive at a 90-degree angle away from the storm.

Sources: FEMA, Center for Analysis and Prediction of Storms, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

(via NPR)

(Photo: Amy Womack and her daughter, Alexis Nelson, sit on the front steps of her parents’ house in Cleveland, Tenn., in late April. - Wade Payne/AP)

A tornado, which at its zenith was three-quarters of a mile wide, roared across the heart of Joplin, Mo., at 5:30 p.m. Sunday, killing dozens of people and injuring hundreds. (via The Joplin Globe)

(Photo: Home Depot on Rangeline Road / by Aaron Kafton - Cloven Life via Flickr)

(via Newseum)