Capital Weather Gang - DC area weather blog, news - September 28, 2008

Weather Service Open House Two Weeks Away

The inside of the new National Weather Service (NWS) Office in Sterling, Va. It is over 10,000 square feet with a spacious forecast and warning operations area, offices for managers, and a large separate cubicle work area for forecasters. Courtesy NWS-Sterling The week before last, the local National Weather Service...

By Jason Samenow | October 4, 2008; 2:00 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: Government
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Forecast: Fall at its Finest

For at least the next five days, wonderful weather will wow Washington. The forecast is simple, short, and sweet: the days will be partly to mostly sunny with highs mainly 70-75 and the nights will be clear and cool with lows in the 40s (suburbs) to the near 50 (downtown)....

By Jason Samenow | October 4, 2008; 5:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: Forecasts
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UnitedCast: Cool for Kicks

United vs. Chivas USATonight, 7:30 p.m., RFK Stadium KickoffFinal WhistleWeatherChance of Rain63F58FClear0%It will be clear but crisp as temperatures drop into the 50s by the final whistle. Bring a sweater or jacket. UnitedCast appears on the day of every United home game. Also, see our full forecast through...

By Jason Samenow | October 4, 2008; 5:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: UnitedCast
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PM Update: Autumnal Weather Perfected

Spectacular Saturday on tap Webcam: Latest view of D.C. from the Netherlands Carillon at Arlington National Cemetery. Courtesy National Park Service. Refresh page to update. See this image bigger on our Weather Wall. We have entered into another stretch of beautiful autumn weather across the area, and it looks to...

By Ian Livingston | October 3, 2008; 3:15 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Forecasts
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Biden, Palin Clash on Climate Change

In case you missed it, or want to watch it all over again, the video below shows the portion of last night's vice presidential debate focused on climate change. Which candidate do you think won the climate change issue? What parts of Biden's and Palin's statements do you agree or...

By Dan Stillman | October 3, 2008; 1:00 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (72)
Categories: Climate Change
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Glorious Day for a Glory

Courtesy Earth Science Picture of the Day. Photograph by Rick Stankiewicz. At first this may appear as a picture looking up at an airplane flying through a hole in the clouds and surrounded by a circular rainbow. It's not! Rather, the photo depicts what is known as a "glory" surrounding...

By Dan Stillman | October 3, 2008; 10:45 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Science
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Forecast: Awesome Weather Arrives for Weekend

Sun and more sun for this weekend. I say let's soak it up! After all, we paid for this weather with our recent, needed rains. We'll have cool mornings with lows in the 40s and 50s, and comfy afternoons with highs in the 70s. Oh, and UV rays are finally...

By Camden Walker | October 3, 2008; 5:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (13)
Categories: Forecasts
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PM Update: Some Early-Season Chill Tonight

Partly sunny and quite nice Friday Temperatures: Current area temperatures. Powered by Weather Bonk. Map by Google. Hover over and click icons for more info. Click and hold on map to pan. Refresh page to update. See map bigger on our Weather Wall. We have officially been in fall for...

By Ian Livingston | October 2, 2008; 3:15 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (13)
Categories: Forecasts
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Photography: Stormy Scenes, Slow Traffic

Lightning strikes Fairfax, Va., at 7:11 p.m. Tuesday evening. Severe thunderstorms moved into the Washington area Tuesday evening, accompanied by vivid lightning, heavy rain and strong winds. I was in Fairfax, Va., when the storms approached and I captured a few images of the storm to the west of the...

By Kevin Ambrose | October 2, 2008; 1:00 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Photography
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Weather and Baseball

Wx and the City Now that baseball playoffs are underway, let's talk about weather and baseball. Not just whether a game is cancelled due to weather, but how weather affects the ball itself. The best atmospheric recipe for a farther hit? High altitude, low pressure, high humidity, high temperatures and...

By Ann Posegate | October 2, 2008; 10:40 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Posegate, Wx and the City
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Forecast: Ahhh...That Fall Feeling

After a warmer than normal end to September, as Dan mentioned yesterday, you'll notice a distinct fall-like chill in the air over the next few days as temperatures return to normal to slightly below normal levels. The pattern, for the most part, will be dry with most days featuring at...

By Josh Larson | October 2, 2008; 5:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (9)
Categories: Forecasts
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Irked by DC's Lack of Snow? Mars Not Much Better

NASA's Phoneix Mars Lander captures clouds drifting across the Martian horizon on Sept. 25, 2008. Courtesy NASA. Virga -- precipitation that falls through the air, and often shows up on radar, but evaporates before reaching the ground -- is every snow lover's worst nightmare. Turns out Earth isn't the only...

By Dan Stillman | October 1, 2008; 7:00 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (11)
Categories: Science
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PM Update: Briefly Showery, Drying to Follow

Cool and dry on Thursday Radar: Latest regional radar loop shows movement of precipitation over past two hours. Powered by HAMweather. Refresh page to update. Click here to see radar bigger. Or see radar bigger on our Weather Wall. Numerous clouds have continued to hang tough throughout the day and...

By Ian Livingston | October 1, 2008; 2:55 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: Forecasts
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Grading Our Summer Outlook

The dark blue line represents long-term average high temperatures between June 1 and September 21 (spanning both meteorological and astronomical summers). The purple line shows the actual 2008 daily high temperatures. After a warm end to September, we are finally experiencing more autumn-like weather. But before we get too consumed...

By Matt Ross | October 1, 2008; 11:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Local Climate
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Forecast: October Opens on Cooling Note

Welcome to October -- my favorite weather month of the year. The first full month of fall typically brings an end to hot and humid days, some stretches of refreshingly dry air with crisp morning lows and room-temperature highs, and that first legitimate cold snap that says winter is soon...

By Dan Stillman | October 1, 2008; 5:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Forecasts
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UnitedCast: Small Chance of a Passing Shower

United vs. Cruz AzulTonight, 8 p.m., RFK Stadium KickoffFinal WhistleWeatherChance of Rain67F63FPartly Cloudy20%A passing shower isn't out of the question as temperatures drop through the 60s. UnitedCast appears on the day of every United home game. Also, see our full forecast through the weekend....

By Dan Stillman | October 1, 2008; 5:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: UnitedCast
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Severe Storms Moving Through Area

Cool down begins Wednesday 7:45 PM: A cluster of strong storms -- with frequent lightning and capable of producing small hail and winds in excess of 60 mph -- will move west to east across the immediate metro area over the next hour or two. Variably cloudy conditions continue this...

By Ian Livingston | September 30, 2008; 7:45 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (36)
Categories: Forecasts
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Global Warming is Real, O.K.?

Better prediction of local effects needed Observed changes in global average surface temperature. Changes are relative to corresponding averages for the period 1961-1990. Smoothed curves represent decadal average values while circles show yearly values. The shaded areas are the uncertainty intervals estimated from a comprehensive analysis of known uncertainties. Courtesy...

By Steve Tracton | September 30, 2008; 10:30 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (56)
Categories: Climate Change, Tracton
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Forecast: A Rumbler Then a Tumbler

T'storms possible today; temperature plummet to follow Well, we've recently had a taste of summer-like tropical humidity, now we're just a day away from a full serving of crisp, dry fall. Southerly winds ahead of a cold front today should allow temperatures to be on the warm side of normal...

By Matt Rogers | September 30, 2008; 5:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Forecasts
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PM Update: Some Clouds, But Still Dry For Now

Warm, a little muggy Tuesday; showers or storms late Clouds: Latest mid-Atlantic infrared satellite loop, courtesy Unisys. Click here to expand. Refresh page to update. After an unsettled few days, today has been a nice respite. High pressure building in overhead has kept the area dry, though some cloudiness has...

By Ian Livingston | September 29, 2008; 3:15 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: Forecasts
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TV Weather Bloopers

As I've mentioned in previous posts, my early interest in all things weather was greatly reinforced in the 1950s by legendary Boston radio and TV meteorologist Don Kent. Although he had no meteorological degrees after his name, Don was a true-blood meteorologist, and one of the very few TV weather...

By Steve Tracton | September 29, 2008; 11:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: Humor, Tracton
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Forecast: Delightful Drying

Showers late tomorrow; cool weather arrives Wednesday Say goodbye to the sticky, showery weather of the past several days. Winds from the northwest will dry us out today into the first part of tomorrow. A cold front will bring another brief chance of showers tomorrow evening, before we start a...

By Jason Samenow | September 29, 2008; 5:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (10)
Categories: Forecasts
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Photography: Ducks at Sunrise

Sunrise over Washington as ducks frolic in the Reflecting Pool, 7:12 a.m. Wednesday morning. During the spring and autumnal equinox, the sunrise aligns in the eastern sky with D.C.'s monuments and the Reflecting Pool. Within a week or so on either side of the equinox is the optimal time for...

By Kevin Ambrose | September 28, 2008; 12:00 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (6)
Categories: Photography
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Forecast: Rain Chances Linger

Drier then cooler weather on the horizon By Brian Jackson Spotty wet weather continues for one more day. Today will be quite similar to yesterday, cloudy and muggy, with a few showers around and about. A return to nice weather will be brief tomorrow as we see a chance for...

By Brian Jackson | September 28, 2008; 5:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (7)
Categories: Forecasts
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Capital Weather Gang: September 28, 2008 - October 4, 2008