Skew-T / Log-P Diagram ::: The Paper Calculator (Part 1/3)

Referred hereafter primarily as "Skew-T's," and sometimes, 'soundings,' these diagrams / graphs play a significant role in meteorology. They are used to plot readings from weather balloons (called soundings) which allow the meteorologist to assess the entire state of the atmosphere (troposphere, primarily): from temperature, dew-point, and wind profiles to thunderstorm probability and severe-weather / winter-weather likelihood. Furthermore, you don't really need to have any real data on a blank graph. You can use it for theoretical purposes or basic calculations using limited info on the ground, hence me calling it, 'The paper calculator.'

Photo Courtesy: ShareMyJoys.WordPress.com

Looking at a plotted, or even a blank Skew-T will look very busy and confusing at first. Therefore, in my first post about them, I'll go over the many different lines and what they are used for. Then in my 2nd post I will briefly overview some simple calculations that can be made using them with little-to-no assistance of other tools. The 3rd part will focus on inferences that can be made and signals that are watched for. I'll also conclude with my experience of discovering Skew-T's and how they changed things for me in my education.

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Cold-Air Damming Overview - An Early November Case :: Using Hourly RAP data for Analysis

*DATA WARNING* The blog post contains a video approximately 10MB in size.

If you've been a resident west of the Appalachian Mountains (especially in the foothills) and enjoy watching the weather, it's likely that you've heard your favorite meteorologist describe the unique event called, "Cold Air Damming." Effects can include increased northerly winds, anomalously cold surface temps, and rain (packaged with yucky dreariness). It can even make the difference between seeing wintry-weather or a cold, drenching rain.

In meteorology, we have many acronyms to help save time (and twitter characters) typing. For the duration of this write-up, I'll refer to it as CAD. In addition, I'll be focusing on the Carolinas, but know CAD can occur along many major, elongated mountain ranges,

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Doppler Velocity - Interpretations and Benefits

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One of the tremendous pluses of the uses of radar is the ability for it to determine the speed (relative to the radar's fixed position) of objects (primarily think of cloud/rain droplets) in the air.

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5 Years Later :: An Overview of an Unusual Warm-Up & a Brief Overview of the June 29th, 2012 Derecho

Within this post, I'll be addressing a weird warm-up experienced during the early morning of June 29th, 2012 across the Foothills in Northwest NC. I will also mention some key things regarding the extremely destructive and powerful thunderstorm complex / wind-event (derecho) that marched across a large swath over the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic States

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