Capital Weather Gang - DC area weather blog, news - November 2, 2008

Powerful Hurricane Paloma Eyes Cuba

Satellite image of Hurricane Paloma from 9:15 a.m. Courtesy NOAA. Paloma strengthened into an "extremely dangerous" Category 4 hurricane overnight, with maximum winds to 140 mph. According to the National Hurricane Center: PALOMA IS TIED FOR THE SECOND STRONGEST ATLANTIC HURRICANE EVER NOTED IN NOVEMBER...THE STRONGEST BEING LENNY IN 1999....

By Jason Samenow | November 8, 2008; 11:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Tropical Weather
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Forecast: Cooler Air Coming

The same weather system that plastered the Dakotas with as much as 46" (not a typo) of snow will skirt through the metro region this morning. Not much will be left of it, but a few showers could develop. The system's main impact will be, in its wake, to usher...

By Jason Samenow | November 8, 2008; 5:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Forecasts
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PM Update Taking a Break

On this unseasonably warm (at or above 70 in most spots) and (finally) sunny afternoon, the short-term weather is worry-free. For tomorrow's cloudy outlook, which includes a chance of showers, and the expected conditions for Sunday into early next week, see our full forecast from earlier today....

By Jason Samenow | November 7, 2008; 3:30 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (0)

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Hurricane Paloma not a Symbol of Peace

Satellite image of Hurricane Paloma from this afternoon. Courtesy NOAA. Its name is of Spanish origin and means "dove." But Hurricane Paloma has not been a symbol of peace for Grand Cayman, which already has received 4-5 inches of rain over the past few days. The National Hurricane Center predicts...

By Dan Stillman | November 7, 2008; 1:00 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Tropical Weather
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Winter Outlooks Gone Wild

A flurry of winter outlooks have been released by meteorologists who participate in the EasternUSWx.com forums and elsewhere over the last week. For the D.C. metro area, most of them call for a cold December followed by average to above average temperatures in January and February. And most of...

By Jason Samenow | November 7, 2008; 10:30 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Local Climate
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Forecast: Shooting for 70, Then Cooler

Is anyone else tired of these gloomy skies? At least the sun will show itself today. And it will be quite balmy, too. Enjoy the warmth, because temperatures will be on the downward trend this weekend. But the good news is that after more clouds and maybe showers Saturday, the...

By Camden Walker | November 7, 2008; 9:20 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Forecasts
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New NOAA Administrator

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), home of the National Weather Service, announced Monday that William J. Brennan became acting under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and acting administrator of NOAA on Nov. 1. Dr. Brennan replaces Navy Vice Admiral Conrad C. Lautenbacher Jr., who resigned last...

By Ann Posegate | November 6, 2008; 7:00 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Government, Posegate
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PM Update: Gray Skies Linger a While Longer

Finally some sunshine on Friday 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. The weather story of the last few days has been clouds...

By Ian Livingston | November 6, 2008; 3:15 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Forecasts
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Fish 'n' Chips and a Boatload of Hail

A thick buildup of hail -- yes, hail -- in Ottery St. Mary, England. Courtesy Margaret Bargmann. I was intrigued by the remarkable and unusual storm across the Atlantic highlighted by Jason's recent post, "What the Hail? Weird Weather in England." Flooding rains and as much as a foot of...

By Steve Tracton | November 6, 2008; 11:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: International Weather, Tracton
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Forecast: Cloudy Conditions Continue

Becoming sunny and milder Friday It's beginning to sound like a broken record: clouds will prevail again today, even though some peaks of sunshine are possible. You'll have to wait until tomorrow for the sun to return in full force. When it does re-appear, it will be accompanied by much...

By Josh Larson | November 6, 2008; 5:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Forecasts
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November Tropics: New Storm Spinning Up?

Last Friday, Dan posted about the status of this year's hurricane season and noted that since 1995, one tropical cyclone (storm or hurricane) has formed in November or December every other year in the Atlantic Basin. Here are some additional November hurricane statistics, courtesy Colorado State hurricane research Phil Klotzbach:...

By Jason Samenow | November 5, 2008; 7:00 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: Tropical Weather
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PM Update: Clouds Remain; A Chance of Rain?

Variably cloudy and warm 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. Though the area has seen plenty of cloudiness today, temperatures...

By Ian Livingston | November 5, 2008; 3:30 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Forecasts
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Obama's Long, Stormy Journey

Riding the winds of change to victory Emerging from the political storm of the campaign. Background photo by Kevin Ambrose (CWG). Obama photo by Paul Beaty (AP) The "stressathon'' (as dubbed by Andrew Freedman to describe the nearly two years of 2008 presidential electioneering) has finally ended. Whew! Even for...

By Steve Tracton | November 5, 2008; 10:30 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (7)
Categories: Government, Tracton
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Forecast: A New Day in Washington, Still Cloudy

If the new president-elect thought that glorious, victorious sunshine would reign down on Washington the "day after" -- well, not so much. Yesterday's clouds haven't gone anywhere, and probably won't until a stagnant coastal storm off the mid-Atlantic coast drifts away. The heaviest of the storm's rain, however, will stay...

By Dan Stillman | November 5, 2008; 9:20 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Forecasts
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PM Update: As Voting Winds Down, Rain Increases

More clouds and some rain Wednesday 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. Mother Nature held the rain off across much of the...

By Ian Livingston | November 4, 2008; 3:15 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Forecasts
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Freedman: TV Weather Attack Ads?

As the two-year national 'stressathon' known as the presidential election comes to a close today, many of us face a daunting question: what will we do with ourselves tomorrow, when we don't have the suspense of an election to obsess about? Will we be the same people we were before...

By Andrew Freedman | November 4, 2008; 10:30 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Freedman, Humor, Media, Satire
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Forecast: Rainy Change You Can Believe In

A slow-moving coastal storm will put an end to our recent dry weather pattern. Look for the rains to gradually develop this morning and start canvassing the area in earnest this afternoon and evening. Like a long election cycle, this storm promises to hang around the area into Wednesday and...

By Matt Rogers | November 4, 2008; 8:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (7)
Categories: Forecasts
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PM Update: Clouds Now, Rain Coming?

Election Day brings threat of unsettled weather 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. Clouds have covered much of the area today, helping to keep highs in the...

By Ian Livingston | November 3, 2008; 5:35 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: Forecasts
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Battleground Weather Forecast

Checking the atmospherics of key election states While the candidates are scurrying about making their last minute appeals to the anxious electorate, could the weather also have a vote in the final outcome? As Capital Weather Gang's Steve Tracton discussed last week, weather can indeed play a role in enhancing...

By Matt Rogers | November 3, 2008; 5:30 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (9)

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SkinsCast: Cloudy, Cool and Dry

Redskins vs. SteelersMonday night, 8:30 p.m., FedEx Field Kickoff2-Min WarningWeatherChance of Precip.55F52FMostly Cloudy%Game time temperatures in the low 50s with no rain, a hot team, a tough opponent, the national spotlight... Does it get any better? If you're headed to the game, wear several layers to ensure your comfort....

By Jason Samenow | November 3, 2008; 5:15 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: SkinsCast
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DC Area Forecast: Election Day Results Cloudy

Tuesday rain chances increasing, but still nebulous Calling the winner of Tuesday's presidential election sure looks easier than predicting the weather at the moment. A slow-moving coastal storm off the Carolinas will crawl northward, and likely spread rain south and east of the metro area. But it's not clear if...

By Jason Samenow | November 3, 2008; 7:45 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Forecasts
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What the Hail? Weird Weather in England

Last week, a remarkable storm dumped a foot of hail in just two hours in a town about twelve miles east of Exeter in the United Kingdom. The combination of rain and hail caused "horrendous" flooding stranding motorists. The hail drifts, up to 6 feet high in places, paralyzed rescue...

By Jason Samenow | November 2, 2008; 4:00 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: International Weather
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Update: Partly Sunny Skies Prevail

Clouds: Latest mid-Atlantic infrared satellite loop, courtesy Unisys. Click here to expand. Refresh page to update. The forecast for overcast conditions and possible drizzle today hasn't materialized due to the strength of the area of high pressure building in from the north. Flow from the northeast will cause some...

By Jason Samenow | November 2, 2008; 10:33 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (6)
Categories: Updates
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Forecast: A Touch of Grey, Then Back to Bright

by Brian Jackson Our weekend concludes with cooler conditions and likely overcast skies. Some sunshine and mild conditions return Monday afternoon, possibly lasting through Election Day. By late Election Day and Wednesday, unsettled weather begins to make an appearance as another coastal storm may dampen our moods and skies. TODAY...

By Brian Jackson | November 2, 2008; 8:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Forecasts
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Capital Weather Gang: November 2, 2008 - November 8, 2008