While I continue to work on tomorrow’s column (“My Crazy UFO-Calling Project”), I noticed something a little more urgent and worth a quick discussion:
Heat Records have been falling in some parts of Texas. So what’s up with that?
First some of the data:
A report from the National Weather Service says things aren’t really cooling off at night much:
“The low temperature at DFW (Dallas-Fort Worth) airport was 83 degrees on Wednesday August 10 2016. This ties the record highest minimum temperature for the date. The record was previously set in 2008 and 2011.”
Naturally, when things get this hot, we start paying attention.
Especially because this Saturday’s Peoplenomics.com focus is a Jim-dandy report on Climate Change (the Really Big View) from Captain Midnight. Who, as long-time readers will remember, is a former government official in the .mil world with extreme creds and a very, very deep knowledge of things – including language expertise in things like Chinese – pick your type.
But back to point: It is pretty damn hot. Even Zeus the Cat is grudgingly coming into the house or my office to cool down.
The forecast for today is for a high of 102F, but that is before tossing in the humidity. This will push the comfort (or “feels like”) temp upwards of 109F.
Any way you slice it, this is getting pretty damn hot. We seem to have come back from our vacation a bit too early.
Going over the historical data, things will begin to become reasonable in about 45-days, or so. But between now and then, more high heat readings are likely.
The good news is we should get a break this weekend when for example, it cools to a high of only 93 on Saturday.
Before calling a Party, though, that will be accompanied by 1.47-inches of rain, though this is subject to change. Sunday will be a blessed high of only 82 which is great airplane-flying weather.
Trouble is, with an inch – or three – of rain coming down next week, the week after could be right back into the heart of Southern Misery.
Is it Global Warming? Has Ure’s truly been off-base on this touchy topic?
Not really.
One of the experiments we were able to conduct on our way home from vacation was a “transit of Dallas-Fort Worth” on Sunday. I made mental notes every few miles on what the outside air temperature was reporting on the climate control system.
Up north of Dallas, before getting into the metro area, the temp was running about 98F.
As we snaked our way through Fort Worth and over to Dallas on I-20, the temp rose steadily to the 102 range with occasional excursions to 103.
However, once we got south of Seagoville on Highways 175, the temps dropped to under 100 and by the time we were out in “the woods” we were in the 98 range. Down in the “holler” by Mound Prairie Creek, the temp was a mere 96F.
Wikipedia has a very good description of the effect. It’s called an Urban Heat Island.
“The phenomenon was first investigated and described by Luke Howard in the 1810s, although he was not the one to name the phenomenon.[1] The temperature difference usually is larger at night than during the day, and is most apparent when winds are weak. UHI is most noticeable during the summer and winter. The main cause of the urban heat island effect is from the modification of land surfaces.[2][3] Waste heat generated by energy usage is a secondary contributor.[4] As a population center grows, it tends to expand its area and increase its average temperature. The less-used term heat island refers to any area, populated or not, which is consistently hotter than the surrounding area.”
Using Big Data thinking doesn’t result in simple answers to how extensive the offset of heat island highs from surrounding areas might be.
When you do a Google News search on “record high” you find out about Saudi oil output and the NASDAQ, just for instance.
Pickings for [“record high” +temperature] results in much skinnier pickings.
On the other hand, a simple news search on [“record cold”] reveals all kinds of news stories including the arrival of record lows in New Zealand along with snow. It’s winter down there.
Turns out, a lot of what’s going on at the moment is the behavior of el Nino and the pending arrival of la Nina. As explained over here, these two will drive snowfall in the U.S. to a certain degree….or not.
In the meantime, we did note on our stopover in Payson, AZ last week that there was a lot of talk about the “{Phoenix Monsoons}” arriving and sure enough, they have and are likely to continue thanks to heat pools in the Pacific.
The arrival of the cooler and moister air over the desert Southwest will move our way this weekend and we have Phoenicians to thank for the thunderstorms.
Cattle ranching in Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas/Oklahoma should benefit as a result. The arrival of rains grows range food and high nutrient feeds like alfalfa. Couple that with feedlots that are nearly full and you have a prescription for moderated feed-price pressure.
That’s the kind of thing we watch around here – because there really are links between heat, humidity, and hamburgers.
It will be something to think about next week when we start to whining about the rain,
Meantime, if you’re trying to figure out global warming, none of the data has convinced us yet that it is anything other than a globalist revenue-raising scam so the U.N. can become the One World Government..
No, I haven’t missed my meds.
Most people are unaware that there are two quasi-government outfits trying to take point on the move toward one-world government.
One group is the U.N. of course. But the other is the G-20.
Almost NO ONE has noticed that China is pressing the G-20 toward a global tax system.
It is important to follow though – and for this reason: China is looking for economic means to subdue the U.S. which is on a likely collision course with China over their militarization of former reefs and atolls in the South China Sea.
Since by now, strategic planners of both China and the U.S. have read the RAND REPORT “War with China: Thinking Through the Unthinkable”
The U.S. promotion of sea level rising may have more to do with attempting to bully China into giving up on their island-building. It would only make sense. “Build them islands and Sea Level will take them away over time…so why bother?”
On the other hand, the FACT that China is building islands with impunity should be a serious heads-up for people in America who have swallowed the Kool-Aid on Climate change.
If Climate Change were real, would China be making up islands?
I rather think NOT.
And that means that “climate change” scamming may be – just as Reagan used the SFI – a way to attempt intimidation of China into remaining inside their current “strategic box.’
And except for the record cold in New Zealand and cheap hamburgers and full feedlots, it might have worked.
U.S. hubris is being 1.357 billion people with 5,000 years of continuous existence are dumber than the U.S. 320-million and 240 years.
That’s a bet I’m not willing to take. And one who takes the bet may be lining up at the sucker window.
Life at a Small Town Airport
Summertime, and the living is easy…except at the airport.
And long-time readers have followed along with our periodic reports of grand adventures in the sky – and elsewhere – in the great flying machine.
Wednesday, I went to the airport with a different purpose in mind: A fellow who was interested in buying the plane (or so he claimed) wanted to come look at it…but no showed.
Still, that left me with time to begin the “catch-up” process, since there is nothing in my logbook since March.
If the weather cooperates, Sunday morning by certified flight instructor (CFI) will go up with me and wring me through a BFR – short for biennial flight review.
I do one every year or so…in fact I had one earlier this year.,..but to really be at your peak performance, you need to do these more often than the “book” requires.
That meant, thanks to the no-show would-be buyer, spending some time tweaking with this and that. One item, for example was swapping out the old in-dash color AirMap GPS which has a cranky keyboard for a black and white version. Not as nifty to look at, but the co-pilot position has an iFlyGPS enabled Kindle Fire HD on the yoke. The old GPS is a “hole filler” on the dash more than anything.
A short engine run (yep, still works, oil is perfect having just had an annual inspection, and I was dripping wet.
It was only 10:30 in the morning but already 88-degrees. I pushed the Mouse back in the hangar (which is what an A-23-19 Beechcraft is properly called, since it’s a Musketeer).
A quick drive over to the FBO (fixed base operator) office led me to the washroom, a quart of cool water, and then a half cup of coffee and to catch up on local goings-on.
Turns our I have been lucky to have been out of town the past several weeks.
You see, the fellow who mows the airport also raises chickens. Has like 16-rows of them…and that means a lot of chicken poo.
After a very good cutting of grass on the airport, he decided to fertilize.
While is was a good idea to him, he didn’t think through the impact on the homes around the airport, or the aircraft owners and pilots.
Turns out the smell of chicken poo is just now dissipating…though that did turn out to be the source of all the additional flies that were present for this morning’s engine run.
Other environmental issues were a lot happier.
For example, my plan to turn off the security light at the outer hangars has left the local June Bug population with no lights to steer by; there wasn’t a single one in the hangar.
Still, maintenance is never-ending. I swear, there should be ab advisory with every product made – especially the larger man-toys: “You will really use this product only about XX hours per year. But you will spend YYY dollars maintaining it and that doesn’t count costs for Insurance, AAA, and BBB.
In the case of the airplane, we only flew about 50-hours last year….that’s be the XXX part. The YYY is on the order of $2,400, but that doesn’t count the insurance ($552 – still cheaper than the car) and the Hangar Rent (AAA) and the fuel and such (BBB)/
Boats – especially ski boats – are a similar proposition.
How often have you looked through Craigslist or Boat Trader and see the ideal jet boat?
Might be something like this: “Gold metal flake w/black trim late model Jolly Roger with blown 454-big block and fresh Berkeley jet pump. Two axel trailer, new upholstery, “
The sister ship, a drag boat with a V-drive would be fine, too.
The kid in me screams “Sell the plane and buy a house on a lake and get a jet boat!”
About here, common sense kicks in…and that Total Cost of Ownership formula justs front of mind.
Damn.
My coffee and reverie over, the FBO folks start talking about the important matters of life: “Which is better…a gas cutting rig for your oxy=acetylene welding rig or a plasma cutter?”
Local opinion holds that the oxy-cutter is better, even though a little messier when doing pipe saddles. (Cut outs of pipe for fencing so other pieces will lay in place nicely and finish with a good-looking weld.)
The grinder time required to clean up from the cutting torch in minimal, the new FBO fellow was explaining. I could only assume Ricardo runs a much cleaner cutting torch than I do, or he has superior grinder skills…or both, more’n likely.
Conversation then turned to the latest rumors about who has been buzzing the airport office, who’s called in a complaint about that, and so on.
While mostly in fun, I make mental notes to stay out of the sky when these kind of pilots are in the vicinity. A rabbit’s foot doesn’t work in the sky.
Eventually, coming up on noon, I gave up waiting for the promised looker and went on into town to spend money filling the calorie locker.
By the time I got back to the ranch, the following had occurred:
- Zeus the cat was lethargic due to heat, but didn’t want to stay inside.
- It was 98 degrees outside and a comfort reading of 106F.
- Hillary fans were still twisting the latest Trump remark.
- Trump was not doing anything much in the way of new comments.
- And my position in the QQQ;s was back to what I paid for them.
All, in all, yes, the summer is here and living is easy. But only if you have a good air conditioner and the good sense to stay inside.
To breakfast, then. Write when you get rich,
Morning George. Great wisdom as always. You Beechcrate saga reminds me of advice given to me many years ago by an accountant friend: “If it flies, f____s, or floats, you’re better off renting”. (I am happily married and have ignored his advice much to the detriment of my net worth).
The disinformation campaign of the MSM has elevated to a level I have never witnessed in my 60+ years; my solution is to boycott all NBC,MSNBC,CNBC (including Olympics), CBS, ABC,CNN and sadly most FOX broadcasts. I think many are doing the same with or without intent. If we spread the word, it might send a message to their advertisers. It’s always been a chore to unearth some semblance of the truth from media; thanks for continuing to fight the good fight.
Avoiding watching anything that’s not either informative or truly entertaining leaves much more time to accomplish something useful or to just enjoy life.
Hundreds of millions of us are with you; just do NOT watch it anymore, and do not go to those web sites or read their articles. It is just too easy to spot the lies so it is a waste of time to read them or watch them.
As someone with a history degree, you can’t get a better source than from the ‘horse’s mouth’ – or in this case Donald Trump’s mouth – he’s talking his way out of being president! I hope to be reading some fine discussions or books in the future about his ‘hubris’ – he doesn’t have the self-control needed for the office.
Youtube had a compilation film, showing about 20 news reports on the same day, same subject, and even the same attempt at wit- as if they were reading form a script. Google “VNR” video news release and be [un]shocked.
“my solution is to boycott all…” [MSM]
Yup, agree that there are millions with you. MSM news is a dead medium – it is outliving it usefulness. Real, honest news comes from real, honest people, not from corporate conglamarates with multiple agendas at stake.
Which is why I put a pseudo news and pr machine up to avoid watching hours of wasted time in front of Cyclops HD
Reminds me of the old military saying, “when I die I’m going to heaven because I’ve spent my time in hell!”
Congrats George, you’re dealing with last month’s weather from NM. It was impossible to do anything useful outside between rain, humidity, temperature and direct sun. I actually turned on a real air conditioner(not swamper) and did inside work all month. Both my cat and I were lethargic and sleeping all the time. Even studying was impossible.
Now all that has changed and I’m working long days outside and in. Expect it in a month where you are.
BTW, I cut with oxy-propane. Much cheaper and just a bit sloppier, though gas welding is out. I weld with stick or MIG, and I might try to learn TIG when there’s a cheap rig available. If you don’t have one, buy a plasma cutter! The coolest thing ever for clean cutting, and no gas is required. Once you try it you’ll be hooked. Of course for fencing pipe saddles, you’ll probably be in the field, so you’ll need some kind of generator. There’s also a slip over cheat that you can buy with the end machine finished, so the mate-up and weld is a snap.
It’s suppose to hit a 110 in Las Vegas Nv, on sat and Sunday. It’s been a super hot summer, this summer.
George
Your aviation report reminded me of a colorful event in aviation history.
“Teeterboro tower this is Piper 2-0-2…”
Back in the 1990’s (when I read the newspaper from back to front) there were stories of government strangeness: removal of all temperature monitors from all rural grassy areas in order to measure only “heat sinks”, seizure of climate-related data from libraries, and a raid at a Wood’s Hole Massachusetts climate research facility of some kind (NOAA?). I always wondered why throughout the years; now I have connected the same dots you have.
Why back to front? That’s where the interesting stuff is, not the “look at this!” stuff on the front page.
Well, even if you have it wrong about that global warming thing I will take central Florida weather over western Texas weather every day of the week. Where I live it’s never been over 99 and most days in the summer, there are afternoon rains that cool the place off. If the state sinks while I’m still here, well, it’s been nice reading ya’ George.