November 16, 2008

A Respite from the Rain

So far this month we are running about twice the normal rainfall, mainly due to last week, but temps have been considerably above normal.... my garden is still very much alive. See how dense the fog is this morning (see photo)...that is a very good sign. Generally that means that is mainly clear above, allowing good radiational cooling to space..until the temp drops to the dewpoint and fog starts forming. Thus, we end up with cold air near the surface and warmer air above...an inversion. Right now we have a thin veneer a few hundred meters thick of cool, foggy air...which will burn through by lunch nearly everywhere. The temp observations at the National Weather Service Office in Seattle show this clearly (see figure).The latest satellite picture shows the fog in lower elevation and some scattered clouds (see picture). Expect to see sun this afternoon, with temps getting into the mid to upper 50s.
Tomorrow also will be dry and sunny in the afternoon since the high pressure will remain over us.

1 comment:

  1. I took this photo a few years ago during a morning very similar to November 17's fog inversion:

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/liem/7157483/

    This photogenic type of fog only happens a handful of times a year, I've been able to get up into the Bank of America Tower on two occasions to photograph it.

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