April 17, 2023

Where can you get the most skillful weather forecast? And a cool week ahead. All in my new podcast

 One of the most frequent questions I am asked is where can one get the most skillful weather forecast.

What are the best sources of weather information?  

I answer the question in my new podcast.

In the podcast I refer to a website, forecastadvisor.com, which provides updated comparisons of the forecast skill of various weather prediction websites (see sample below for Seattle's March forecasts).


The WeatherUnderground and WeatherChannel are on top.  The National Weather Service is less skillful.   

Do humans help produce better forecasts? What about TV weathercasters>  All will be revealed in the podcast.

The Forecast

Before I take on prediction skill, I talk about the cool forecast for the next week.  Seattle should be hitting around 60F every day.  As you can see below, Seattle will be much cooler than normal.


To listen to my podcast, use the link below or access it through your favorite podcast service.


Some major podcast servers:

 HTML tutorial HTML tutorial
Like the podcast? Support on Patreon 


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The Northwest Weather Workshop agenda and information are online.  If you want to attend you must register (on the website).   A few speaking slots are still open for those interested in presenting.



April 16, 2023

The Northwest Weather Workshop 2023

 

The Northwest Weather Workshop is the major local meeting for those interested in Northwest weather and is open to both professionals and interested amateurs.    

It will take place on May 12-13, 2023 at the NOAA Sand Point facility in northwest Seattle, and is sponsored by the University of Washington, the National Weather Service, and Seattle/Portland chapters of the American Meteorological Society.

The new agenda and sign-up information are all found on the meeting website: https://a.atmos.washington.edu/pnww/.  As described below, this meeting will be in-person with a virtual option.

The meeting is going to be a fascinating one (the current agenda is here).  

It starts on Friday afternoon (May 12) with a session on heavy precipitation and flooding, including a detailed look at atmospheric rivers and the historic 1962 "ARK" Storm.  Then we turn to a session on wildfire and smoke.

Friday evening there will be a meeting banquet at Ivar's Salmon House, with a wonderful buffet and a talk by Washington State (DNR) meteorologist Mathew Dehr on Washington wildfires.

Saturday morning (May 13) will start with a talk by American Meteorological Society National President, Brad Colman, and then turn to a session on Northwest climate and weather.  This session will include talks on extreme weather events, heat waves, and our changing climate.

Meeting Location in Seattle

Next, a session will examine the extreme February 2023 snowstorms that were both poorly forecast and brought Portland to its knees, followed by a talk by Shannon O'Donnell on the UW Dawgcast public forecast.

Lunch will then be served to attendees, followed by an afternoon session on Northwest weather modeling, social media weather sites, and much more.

Attending the meeting, costs, online versus in person

Everyone attending the meeting must register on the website.  You can attend either in person or online.

If you can attend in person, please do so.   Meeting people is half the fun.  There will be snacks at breaks and lunch on Saturday.  The cost for the in-person registration is $42., except for students ($21).  This covers the food.

The Friday banquet (in a very nice room at Ivar's and including a great buffet) will be $62 (including tax and tip).  As noted above, there will be a talk on wildfires. You can attend the banquet and watch the rest virtually if necessary.

If you want to attend virtually, there is no fee.  We will send you a Zoom link in the days before the meeting.  No food.   

After years of online meetings due to COVID, it will be nice to get the community together in person.  You must register and pay for the above options prior to the meeting (by May 9).  

See you there in person or online....cliff mass

PS:   I still have a few slots for talks.  Let me know right away if you have a presentation you would like to be considered.

The meeting will be in Building 9 (red arrow)


Snow in the Mountains and Wet

The rapid transition to cool, wet conditions occurred yesterday, with temperatures in Seattle declining from 80F on Tuesday to 58F in Wednes...