Author Archives: David Black
Christmas in Fairhope
Fairhope, a charming community on Alabama’s Gulf Coast, comes alive with color and decorations during the Christmas season. Enjoy this video montage shot earlier this week, showing what Fairhope looks like at Christmas…
Farewell, GOES-12…
Farewell to a valuable set of eyes 22,300 miles above us! GOES-12, the weather satellite launched in July, 2001 by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, is being retired, its operators have announced. Intended to operate for about five years, … Continue reading
Helena Market Days
If you’re looking for something fun to do, stop in at Helena Market Days, in its last month of operation for the summer. The annual farmer’s market that runs from June through August off Hwy 261 by Buck Creek in … Continue reading
A Severe Weather Voice Goes Silent
No one knows for sure how many tornado or severe thunderstorm watches and warnings he monitored, or how many hours he stayed at his post, but—in the 30-something years of being available around the clock to deal with Alabama weather—one … Continue reading
NWA 2011: A Volunteer’s Perspective
Trying to select a highlight from this week’s annual meeting of the National Weather Association is sort of like walking into your favorite bakery or doughnut shop and having to pick the treat you want most. Good luck. Pink or … Continue reading
NASA Spacecraft Sees Tornado Tracks
Even from 438 miles above the Earth, you can tell that something very significant happened around Tuscaloosa and Birmingham April 27th. For the first time, an energy-sensing instrument aboard a NASA spacecraft has been used to identify tracks left by … Continue reading
Helpers Amid The Chaos…
There are so many groups doing great work in the aftermath of Alabama’s April 27th tornado outbreak that it’s hard to single them all out. Many working to help victims recover will get a lot of media exposure; their names … Continue reading
How Many Lives Did They Help Save?
John Oldshue and Ben Greer downplay it the minute you ask, but the question can’t be denied: How many lives did they help save when Alabama was slammed by the killer storms of April 27th? No one knows, but one … Continue reading
What ‘Pop-up’ Storms Cost Us
Small doesn’t mean insignificant. The ‘pop up’ thunderstorm we see so often in Alabama is something most of us (as weather geeks) love to watch. We’re accustomed to it, and we seldom think much about it. With Alabama’s current cold … Continue reading
Joe Dirt’s Thanksgiving Present
Rex Free says he couldn’t believe the bloody, bizarre scene in front of him during his Thanksgiving weekend outing to north Alabama’s Sipsey Wilderness. Free, an amateur radio operator and storm spotter from Moulton, had headed into the Bankhead National … Continue reading
