MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... August 29, 2012 August 29, 2012 August 29, 2012 August 29, 2012
Round and round he goes!
Who knew Isaac was such a big fan of 1970s cheap plastic toys? Apparently, somebody gave him a Sit 'n Spin for his birthday. And I'm not talking about the cheap Hasbro version kids have today, with pictures of Dora or some other lesser cartoon character. I'm referring to the Kenner version that could hold three people and a dog!
http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20120829/sitnspin.jpg
But that is exactly the toy Isaac appears to be playing with as he spins off the Louisiana coast, bringing wave after wave of torrential rainfall to that area of the Gulf. We certainly feel for those folks, but we would love to get some of that moisture up our way to quell our still-raging drought. The fact that Isaac has been so indecisive thus far is another reason for hope that we might actually get a brush from Isaac's moisture, especially across eastern Oklahoma. The latest official forecast track from the NWS' National Hurricane Center still has eastern Oklahoma in it's probable path cone with Isaac a tropical depression at that point. Arkansas is still their best bet, however.
http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20120829/AL0912W5.gif
Several of the model tracks still have Oklahoma in the realm of possibilities.
http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20120829/AL09_current.png
Now the NHC can see all of these models as well, and they know more about the comings and goings of tropical systems than this humble Associate State Climatologist (I bet I know more about 1970s plastic toys, though!). Here is their reasoning for their forecast track. NOAA loves to yell, by the way.
"SINCE THE SYSTEM HAS ONLY BEGUN TO MOVE RECENTLY...THE INITIAL MOTION IS AN UNCERTAIN. ISAAC IS CURRENTLY MOVING THROUGH A WEAKNESS IN THE SUBTROPICAL RIDGE. OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS...A MID-LEVEL (high pressure system) SHIFTS EASTWARD OVER THE CENTRAL AND EASTERN UNITED STATES. AS A RESULT...ISAAC SHOULD GRADUALLY TURN TOWARD THE NORTH AND NORTHEAST DURING THE FORECAST PERIOD. NEAR THE END OF THE PERIOD...POST-TROPICAL ISAAC SHOULD MOVE EAST-NORTHEASTWARD IN THE FLOW BETWEEN THE MID-LATITUDE WESTERLIES AND THE AFOREMENTIONED ANTICYLONE. THE OFFICIAL TRACK FORECAST IS SIMILAR TO THE PREVIOUS ONE AND CLOSE TO THE MODEL CONSENSUS."
So still a bit tenuous, although we can't just extrapolate Isaac's recent uncertainty into the future. Eventually he will have to move where the atmosphere allows. It makes it a bit more complicated since he is part of that atmosphere. We shouldn't think of him as some sort of solid object moving through a stream. More like a disturbed part of water, maybe.
The latest 5-day rainfall forecast from the NWS' HPC gives eastern Oklahoma a bit of a bath thanks to Isaac.
http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20120829/5-day-rain.gif
Again, that's based on Isaac's favored track from the NHC (if we can get the CIA, the NSA and the FBI involved, we can almost have an alphabet!). Any shift to the west and that brings eastern Oklahoma into the 2-4 inch range, up from the 0.5-1.0 inch range they're in now.
For Oklahoma in general, it's back into the frying pan. A ridge of high pressure builds back over the state and finds it's old friend drought still hanging around, the perfect ingredients for hot weather. Watch for highs to approach 100 degrees across the state by this weekend.
http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20120829/sunday-NWS-forecast.png
By the way, everybody knows the Big Wheel was far superior to the Sit 'n Spin. Would you rather stay in one place and get dizzy, or careen down a hill at 20 mph on a cheap plastic frame with pedals spinning at an incredible skin-scraping speed near your feet?
Roaring! Spinning! Winning!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjTAA_da97w&feature=player_embedded
Kids from the rich side of town got a Green Machine. Those that were not into speed or dizziness just asked for a Stretch Armstrong. There's one in every bunch.
Gary McManus Associate State Climatologist Oklahoma Climatological Survey (405) 325-2253 gmcmanus@mesonet.org
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