"Buresh Blog": The "wet season" has arrived! - June 7th

June 7, 2017 — What a difference a couple of weeks makes!  All of Jacksonville/NE Fl. & SE Ga. has had significant rainfall - particularly NE Fl.  Maps below are for the two weeks ending June 6th & indicate 6-8"+ in the red shaded areas.  The West Mims Fire in Ga. has received a good soaking too (generally 3-5").

So it would appear our "wet season" is off to a roaring start & just about on schedule.  We average more than half our annual rainfall (~52-53") from June through September.

The June skies courtesy "Sea and Sky Telescope":

June 3 (evening): High in the south, the waxing gibbous Moon lies about 2° from Jupiter.

June 3 (dawn): Venus appears farthest west from the Sun (46°); it’s seen best 45 minutes before sunrise.

June 9 (evening): As twilight deepens, look for Saturn shining obviously about 3° right of the full Moon.
June 14: Earliest sunrise of the year.

June 14–15 (all night): Saturn is at opposition to the Sun (rises at sunset, sets at sunrise) and closest to Earth for 2017.

June 17: Morning twilight starts earliest for the year.

June 20: Longest daylight of the year, lasting 15h 1m at latitude 40° north.

June 20 (morning): The waning crescent Moon shines about 8° right of Venus.

June 21: Solstice occurs at 12:24 a.m. EDT; Sun passes directly overhead as seen from Tropic of Cancer (23½° N)

June 21 (morning): The waning crescent Moon shines about 8° to the lower left of Venus.

June 24: Evening twilight ends latest for the year.

June 27: Latest sunset of the year.

June 27 (evening): The waxing crescent Moon is just 1° from bright star Regulus (in Leo). 

June 30 (evening): Look high in the southwest at nightfall to find Jupiter about 4° left of the Moon.

July 3: Earth is at aphelion, farthest from the Sun for 2017; they are 95, 023,200 miles apart (1.7% more than average).

Moon Phases
First Quarter June 1, 8:42 a.m. EDT
Full Moon June 9, 9:10 a.m. EDT (known as Strawberry Moon)
Last Quarter June 17, 7:33 a.m. EDT
New Moon June 23, 10:31 p.m. EDT

Speaking of the skies.... the great U.S. solar eclipse is little more than 2 months away (Aug. 21).  The Eclipse Megamovie Project, a collaboration with UCAR's High Altitude Observatory Laboratory, UC Berkeley, and Google, is looking for volunteers in the path of totality for the upcoming solar eclipse to take part in this citizen science initiative. This group will be presenting at the AMS 45th Conference on Broadcast Meteorology in Kansas City & will focus on the corona at near the path of totality.  Go -- here -- for the info.

May Global Temps.: As part of an ongoing joint project between UAH, NOAA and NASA, Christy and Dr. Roy Spencer, an ESSC principal scientist, use data gathered by advanced microwave sounding units on NOAA and NASA satellites to get accurate temperature readings for almost all regions of the Earth. This includes remote desert, ocean and rain forest areas where reliable climate data are not otherwise available.

The satellite-based instruments measure the temperature of the atmosphere from the surface up to an altitude of about eight kilometers above sea level. 

Global Temperature Report: May 2017

Global climate trend since Nov. 16, 1978: +0.12 C per decade

May temperatures (preliminary)

Global composite temp.: +0.45 C (about 0.81 degrees Fahrenheit) above 30-year average for May.

Northern Hemisphere: +0.42 C (about 0.76 degrees Fahrenheit) above 30-year average for May.

Southern Hemisphere: +0.48 C (about 0.86 degrees Fahrenheit) above 30-year average for May.

Tropics: +0.41 C (about 0.74 degrees Fahrenheit) above 30-year average for May.

April temperatures (revised):

Global Composite: +0.27 C above 30-year average

Northern Hemisphere: +0.27 C above 30-year average

Southern Hemisphere: +0.26 C above 30-year average

Tropics: +0.21 C above 30-year average

(All temperature anomalies are based on a 30-year average (1981-2010) for the month reported.)

Notes on data released June 1, 2017:

Global average temperatures rose steadily through May to levels similar to those seen last fall, when temperatures leveled off after the 2015-2016 El Niño Pacific Ocean warming event, according to Dr. John Christy, director of the Earth System Science Center at The University of Alabama in Huntsville.

Compared to seasonal norms, the coldest place on Earth in May was in the Komi Republic in northwestern Russia, near the town of Zimstan. Temperatures there averaged 3.47 C (about 6.25 degrees Fahrenheit) colder than seasonal norms.

Compared to seasonal norms, the warmest place on Earth in May was near the town of Cambridge Bay on the northwest passage in Nunavut Territory, Canada. Temperatures there averaged 3.47 C (about 6.25 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than seasonal norms.

EARTH GAUGE (NEEF):

June is National Rivers Month! Need a good reason to celebrate? Here are just a few to choose from, courtesy of American Rivers(link is external)…

• In the United States, one out of every three people gets their drinking water from a river or stream (though they might not know it!) 
• Rivers are good for our economy: people spend about $97 billion each year on river-related recreation and tourism.
• Fish and wildlife depend on rivers, especially during breeding and migration.

The United States is home to about 2.9 million miles of river to enjoy and protect.

• Discover your rivers. Find places to boat and fish(link is external).
• Protect water quality where you live. Simple actions at home—picking up after your pet, installing a rain barrel, and using fertilizers sparingly—can reduce water pollution in local rivers and streams.
• Save water at home(link is external). If the entire world's water fit into a one-gallon jug, fresh water available for our use would equal about one tablespoon! Help maintain the flow in local rivers and streams by reducing your water use at home.
• Lend a hand. Participate in a river cleanup(link is external), monitor water quality(link is external) in a nearby river or stream, or join a local citizen science project(link is external).

Cox Media Group