* 31 days until the official beginning of the 2009 hurricane season. It is rare to have one in progress that early, however. (June 1)
* 10 September is the most likely date that tropical storms or hurricanes will be in progress. (Peak of the season’s activity) However there is a huge variation from year to year. Good chance that none will be in progress on that date.
* 16 of the 2009 hurricane or tropical storm names have five letters or less. Makes them easier to pronounce. The first two names are Ana and Bill. Only Joaquin is semi-difficult to pronounce. No more Katrina. That name is retired and good riddance!
* 8.30 inches is the projected rain amount near Fayetteville, Ark., between now and Sunday. Big caution, that is a computerized estimate and it can be way off.
* 5.33 inches of rain drenched Wichita Falls, Tex., in the last 24 hours, near the Oklahoma border. Lawton, Okla., got 4.01 inches.
* 15.58 inches is how much rain that Houston reports this month. (Hobby Airport) That is an amazing 12.25 inches above average. In the recent flash flooding some parts of the Houston Metro area received over 12 inches in 24 hours!
* 22 inches of new snow in the last 24 hours at famous Rogers Pass, Mont. That place is famous for recording the coldest official temperature ever in the Lower 48 States which was 70 below zero. Visited that remote (very remote) location once and had to fight our way through deep drifts to reach it.
* 85 inches of snow now at Alta, Utah, a ski resort in the Wasatch Mountains SE of Salt lake City.
* 2 to 3 inches of additional snow forecast for Yellowstone National Park with thunder and lightning at times. Yes, good ole “thundersnow” Even as late as this weekend they will still be getting snow showers with occasional thunder and lightning. They are already heavily snow covered.
* 13 percent is the average relative humidity inside the average home during the winter heating season. That is twice as dry as some deserts.
* 6 is how many times more often that men are struck by lightning than women according to some studies. Lightning is frightening!
* 4,863 feet is the highest elevation in West Virginia. It is called Spruce Knob in the Allegheny Mountains in the eastern part of the state. That is slightly more than twice as high as Mt. Cheaha, the highest point in Alabama. That part of West Virginia gets considerable snow. Ever heard of Snowshoe?
* 100 times every second is how often lightning strikes somewhere on this Old Earth.
* 98 was the hottest in the USA yesterday at Laredo. That city, on the Rio Grande, has tried to corner the market on being the hottest so far this year. Laredo is also where Interstate 35 begins and it goes all the way north to Duluth, Minn., at the west tip of lake Superior.
PICK WEATHER SITE FOR TODAY
Gunsite Pass, Wyoming, 3 additional inches of snow.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Know what ole Mother Earth said after having a 7.2 earthquake? “Sorry, my fault”
