Weather conditions are looking pretty good for district final games Friday night and Saturday afternoon. Even though we don't officially have "Blitz" coverage, we still have a Game of the Week - it's Byron Center at East Grand Rapids:
Here's a script that came in the international portion of our FOX News feed this morning:
"THE SOUTH OF ENGLAND COULD SOON RIVAL FRANCE AS A WINE-GROWING REGION... THANKS TO CLIMATE CHANGE. SOUTHERN ENGLISH VINEYARDS ARE STARTING TO COMPETE WITHIN THE INDUSTRY. WARMER SUMMERS AND MILDER WINTERS HAVE IMPROVED THE REGION'S GRAPES, MAKING FOR A MORE MARKETABLE PRODUCT. CHRIS WHITE, GENERAL MANAGER AT DENBIES VINEYARDS says: "The red wine over the last few years has improved dramatically, both in terms of what we can produce here, in terms of the different varieties we can now grow here in the UK, but also the quality and quantity of what we can now grow here." SOME SCIENTISTS WARN GLOBAL WARMING COULD SHIFT GROWING PATTERNS FOR CROPS. WINEMAKERS ARE IN NO DOUBT - RISING TEMPERATURES HAVE ALREADY REDRAWN THE INTERNATIONAL WINE MAP."
This story is a good illustration of what I feel is the "moderate" position on climate change: Something is happening to our global climate. Stories like this illustrate those very legitimate impacts. But popular media and politics cloud the issues. Now, most of the discussion of climate change focuses on the screamers on either side of the spectrum, touting either impending doom or claiming a vast conspiracy to destroy America.
When you hear those people, I encourage you to tune them out. While there are basic principles and ranges of future impacts that are scientifically sound at this point, there's still a heck of a lot about climate change that we still have to figure out. Data manipulation and exaggeration of conclusions seem to be rampant on both sides, making even some of the science sketchy. But it's certainly worthwhile to study the current impacts that we can observe, and work on improving both our short- and long-term forecasting abilities. We can also strive to find economically and environmentally positive ways to improve the situation. It doesn't have to be a tradeoff, if we're willing to commit the research time and resources to the issue, and end the useless bickering.
How do I know this is a moderate position? Because I get complaints from both sides anytime I express it!
On FOX 17 Morning News Wednesday, we kicked off a new "game" on our Morning News Live Blog.
I've picked out photos of a Michigan landmark, and I reveal pieces of the photo online throughout the morning.
It's just sort of a fun way to pass the time if you're checking out the show and have the computer on in the morning.
Here were this morning's photo clues, along with the full photo of the Kent County Courthouse. Congrats to Danny, who was the first to guess the correct location!
Yep, it's that time again... here's today's official posting from the National Weather Service... full info at this link.
GOVERNOR JENNIFER GRANHOLM HAS DECLARED THE WEEK OF NOVEMBER 1 THROUGH 7 AS WINTER HAZARDS AWARENESS WEEK IN MICHIGAN. THE MICHIGAN COMMITTEE FOR SEVERE WEATHER AWARENESS URGES ALL MICHIGAN RESIDENTS TO PREPARE FOR THE COMING SEASON BY REVIEWING SAFETY PROCEDURES AND MAKING SURE THEIR FAMILIES...HOMES AND VEHICLES ARE READY FOR WINTER WEATHER.
WEATHER CHANGES CONTINUALLY IN MICHIGAN...AND THE COMING WINTER IS LIKELY TO BRING EPISODES OF SNOW...ICE...AND BITTER COLD THAT WILL PUT STRESS ON PEOPLE...ANIMALS...AND MACHINES. DRIVING BECOMES ESPECIALLY DANGEROUS IN SNOW AND ICE...SO BE SURE TO PLAN ALL TRIPS CAREFULLY AND LISTEN TO THE LATEST WEATHER FORECASTS.
VISIBILITY CAN BE REDUCED DRAMATICALLY AS MOTORISTS DRIVE INTO FALLING SNOW. ADD TO THAT THE UNSEEN HAZARD OF ICE ON THE ROADS AND THE SHORTER PERIODS OF DAYLIGHT...AND DRIVING DURING THE WINTER CAN OFTEN BECOME TREACHEROUS. NOW IS THE TIME TO REVIEW DRIVING HABITS AND ALSO TAKE STOCK OF SAFETY PLIES.
DO NOT ABANDON YOUR CAR AND WALK INTO A SNOW STORM. IN CASE YOU ARE STRANDED...YOUR VEHICLE SHOULD BE EQUIPPED WITH AN EMERGENCY KIT. AN EMERGENCY KIT SHOULD INCLUDE BOOSTER CABLES...SHOVEL... TOW ROPE...SAND OR CAT LITTER...AND A FLASHLIGHT WITH EXTRA BATTERIES. DO NOT FORGET A FIRST AID KIT...NON PERISHABLE FOOD...AND BLANKETS OR SLEEPING BAGS. KEEP YOUR GAS TANK NEAR FULL TO AVOID ICE IN THE TANK AND FUEL LINES.
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE...IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE MICHIGAN COMMITTEE FOR SEVERE WEATHER AWARENESS...WILL ISSUE DAILY INFORMATION STATEMENTS THIS WEEK...OFFERING OTHER WINTER WEATHER SAFETY TIPS AND DEFINITIONS OF WINTER WEATHER TERMS.
Grand Rapids just wrapped up the 2nd wettest October on record. When we get to this time of year, folks always ask me, "What does that mean for the winter?" So, I thought I'd oblige by looking at the rest of the list.
10 Wettest Octobers on Record in Grand Rapids
Year Following Season Snowfall ------------------------------------------------------------ 1954 72.3" 2009 ???? 2001 105.3" 1911 53.5" 1969 84.6" 1941 69.0" 1991 87.8" 1959 90.7" 1988 62.4" 1990 60.6"
Average snowfall in Grand Rapids is essentially 72" (6 feet). So, the range here is all over the place, from well below average to well above average. One year right at the average, four below, and four above.
In other words, there's nothing you can take away from that one piece of data. Regardless, you always have to be careful when trying to make these sorts of correlations and predictions. Even the Climate Prediction Center's forecasts deal in probabilities, not what we call "deterministic" forecasts. So it's very easy to read too much into any conclusion you might reach from this sort of analysis.
Expect a soggy daytime, followed by a gradual drying trend through the evening. Regardless, it will be very windy tonight, with gusts out of the southwest likely in the 30-40 mph range.
Good luck to all the area teams in the district semifinals this weekend!
NEW
YORK (AP) -- The Weather Channel plans to show movies
for the first time in its 27-year history and it's easy to guess which one is
leading off.
"The Perfect Storm," of course.
The George Clooney and Mark Wahlberg movie about a horrific
storm off the New England coast will air on Oct. 30, the 18th anniversary of
the actual storm. Network executives had been thinking about adding movies, and
the timing proved too good to pass up, said Geoffrey Darby, the network's chief
programmer.
The network in recent years gradually slipped in longer
programming, including a morning show hosted by Al Roker, to complement its
constantly rotating forecasts.
"The Perfect Storm" begins a four-week period in
which The Weather Channel will try some Friday night movies.
The films are either weather-themed or have plots in which
weather plays a key role, Darby said. Meteorologist Jennifer Carfagno will host
movie night and offer commentary.
Other movies include the documentary "March of the
Penguins," the thriller "DeepBlueSea"
and "Misery," for which Kathy Bates won an Academy Award.
The weather angle is pretty clear in "The Perfect
Storm," but "Misery"? Darby noted the nightmare endured by James
Caan's character begins with a blinding snowstorm.
For The Weather Channel, the risk lies in alienating its
regular weather-obsessed viewers, who tune in for news of high pressure systems
rather than high drama. The potential reward is that new fans will tune in, and
they'll stay on the station for a longer period, pleasing advertisers.
Darby said most viewers on Friday night aren't interested
in much more than the weekend forecast, and that will be updated on the screen
six times an hour.
"It's a way to respond to at least a significant
portion of our audience that says, `Let's expand the definition of
weather,'" he said.
The idea predates NBC Universal's purchase of The Weather
Channel, Darby said. None of the first four movies are distributed by NBC
Universal.
------------------------------------------------
It's official... the Weather Channel has gone the way of MTV, which has long since given up on playing music videos. It makes sense from a business perspective to keep people watching longer than the usual 5-10 minutes for the forecast (which is also why they overhype any significant weather event as well). But it continues to erode the original core mission of the Weather Channel, which was providing a 24/7 place to turn for a national or local forecast.
I shouldn't complain, since they're a competitor (in theory), but it's another sign of the changing media landscape. It's funny that even as outlets become more fragmented, there still seem to be few truly original ideas out there. I can see a scenario a few months down the road where The Weather Channel introduces "TWC2," which might on occasion still show a weather forecast!
Steadier, heavier rain through the morning hours will gradually diminish this afternoon to just light rain and/or drizzle by evening. The football fields will obviously be quite wet across the area since most locations will see one inch or more of rain prior to game time. Again, take rain gear and an umbrella, but the trend will be for the rain to taper off considerably by late afternoon/evening. Since the low pressure area creating this weather is tracking a little further to the west, most of us should get in to a little warmer air by early evening. Many locations should see temps rise into the mid 50s by kickoff time, then slowly fall to around 50 by midnight. Today will also be a windy day with southeasterly winds at 15-30 mph during the day. During the games, winds will become southwesterly at about 10-20 mph. So bundle up and stay dry as well as warm.
Here is the Timeline for our Blitz Game of the Week...Grand Haven at East Kentwood!
The Climate Prediction Center (an arm of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) released its winter outlook on Thursday.
As a whole, it heavily reflects what is considered typical of an El Nino pattern in the winter.
Here are the graphic products:
As you can see, Michigan is on the edge of a warmer and drier forecast. But, don't get too excited about it yet. This type of pattern would be indicative of a STRENGTHENING El Nino. While that is how the current forecast models play out through the winter right now, the forecast could easily flip if the el Nino turns out to be weaker than expected. After all, we've been in a weak El Nino pattern for the last few months, and we know how that has turned out!
Also, the CPC itself admits that they've left the North Atlantic Oscillation mostly out of the forecast because of low predictibility. The NAO is a pressure pattern that can dictate temperatures in the Northeast, especially in the winter. It can have an even more pronounced effect than El Nino.
So, as I've discussed before, I'm not going to put too much stock into ANY seasonal long-range forecast. It can be a matter of a couple hundred miles in the prevailing storm track between warm and wet, cold and snowy, and cold and dry.
This time of year, you take what you can get in the weather department. As such, it's not looking like a terrible night for high school football. We'll stay dry, with a few breaks in the clouds, but with temperatures that will hang around 40 or even drop into the 30s during the evening.
Game of the Week forecast... I'll be the weather department representative at the pregame show at East Grand Rapids, so come say hi!
