Tuesday, May 31, 2011

See You Later May

Filming today in Seattle? You can grab its weather essence on tape like Sleepless in Seattle or television show Grey's Anatomy on this cold and dreary day. After a pleasantly dry Memorial Day, rain returns as a farewell gift from our chilly, wet May. This gift lasts into Wednesday and Thursday before June gets his head straight on the third.

The details... Steady rain this afternoon with a chance of thunderstorms near the Cascades. If we're lucky we'll have a storm drift into the lowlands for a bang to the last of May 2011. Tonight will feature showers and clouds to ring in the new month.
Wednesday and Thursday outlook... Getting more dry each day with plenty of showers tomorrow and increasing dry times for Thursday.

Check back for the weekend bite for temperatures. Models have it a bit toasty for me to put my hopes up. Regardless Udubians will be in study mode with another element of distraction.. sunshine!

Update 3:50pm

We have all around conditions right now. Partly sunny skies in Bellingham, Seattle's U district, Arlington,  Port Angeles. Raining at Paine Field in Everett, McChord Field Airport, and Puyallup.  This base reflectivity image tells all.  


Friday, May 27, 2011

Sunglasses and Raincoats

Sunglasses and raincoats, what a combination... the weather today is a 'don't  like what's happening outside? Wait thirty minutes.' Rain showers grazed Downtown Seattle earlier and a bit north at the Seattle Center dry! Right now as of 12:24pm sunny in both locations!

That's going to be the bite for today and tomorrow. Spring in the Great Pacific Northwest.


Thursday, May 26, 2011

Pockets Full of Sunshine

Here's a super catchy tune Natasha Bedingfield's Pocketful of Sunshine

And today's bite. Do I have to say anymore than sun breaks, clouds, showers, and cooler than normal temperatures?
This satellite image reveals it all. Right now in the Udistrict blue skies in that pocket full of sunshine.  The whitish stuff is clouds so if it's potent enough rain will fall.  Looking at the models, showers are out of the metro area until late this afternoon for the drive home.

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Tornado Frenzy

Cold in the Pacific Northwest coupled tornadoes on the other side of our country, that has been in the happening this 2011 year. Over the weekend Saturday's highs struggled to reach the low 50's about 10 - 16 degrees before normal and over this weekend one of the most deaths from a single tornado occurred in Missouri. And, yesterday Kansas and Oklahoma felt the brunt of the storms.  I will dig up some data this weekend, but in the meantime Cliff Mass has a post on his blog about why that happens.

The bite for today with that slow moving low, I mean slow as it will park next to the Pacific Northwest, will bring temperatures 5 to 10 degrees below normal in a chilly, showery, and sun breaks pattern after the initial steady rain later this afternoon.

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Today.. The Beautiful Tomorrow

Yesterday I wrote 'the beautiful tomorrow' and today is tomorrow. So where is the sun shining? Well at noon SeaTac, Port Angeles, and Orcas Island to name a few spots reported clear to scattered clouds. Let's take a look at the IR image of the West Coast.

The low pressure system that was giving us clouds and showers this past weekend is now over Colorado and right on queue another low pressure system is lurking off the coast of Washington and Oregon bringing rain tomorrow.  So practically we are in between storms today giving us a mainly dry day with lots of sun breaks if not full sun by late this afternoon. Enjoy it as it is one of those rare May 2011 days where temps may climb above normal (by 1 degree f.)

Monday, May 23, 2011

Transition Day

Showers are roaming around Eastern Snohomish County and the rest of Washington is dry. That's going to be the picture; mainly dry, very few short lasting showers, and more sun breaks than yesterday as this is a transition day to a beautiful tomorrow.

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Out of theTurtle Shell

Today is when it starts; Seattlelites leaving their turtle shells called home and waking up from hibernation. Yeah, we did have people flocking outside the past few days to bask in the sunshine, but now people will come out rain or shine. Why is that you say? The answer is.. it's the start of the Festival and Fair season! The first one is the University Street Fair this weekend.  The Ave will be loaded with food, crafts, and... pale people :)

Also in the happenings today is Quadstock, a music festival at Seattle University, and Relay for Life at Husky Stadium. Wet pavement and cloudy skies above may dishearten some moods, but hey you live in the Northwest.. embrace it. Shower activity this morning from the onshore flow is pushing northward leaving most of Western Washington dry.  The bite calls for a mainly dry day and sun breaks. If it does shower a bit it will not last.

Friday, May 20, 2011

The Grand Finale

Alright folks today is the day we find out if an old record, the latest 70 degree reading in a year, will be broken. Right now it is 49 degrees F and yesterday at the same time it was 46 degrees and it warmed up to 68 degrees at SeaTac. So we have a couple of degrees head start, but depending on how strong our seabreeze is it may only hit 69 degrees!

Shorts, sunglasses, sun tan lotions, sandals yes! enjoy it while it lasts today as it is the grand finale. The long range models isn't promising any warmer than normals days. I do see a couple of dry days peppered in within the showery days though. Relay for Life participants check out the bite tomorrow and find out when the radar lights up.

Update 5:00 pm
It did hit 70 degrees today at SeaTac; the old record stands at May 23rd.

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Warming Up

Two down two to go... as in two days left of full sunshine in our sunny and dry streak.  Four days of sun seems unheard of and unusual with our track record of showers and below normal temperatures for the Pacific Northwest region this year. On Tuesday the thermometer dipped to the record low of 39 degrees F, and places in the South Sound reported frost! Those showery days all seem distant now when we are regularly waking up to sun :) jk.

The bite. Sun, sun, and more sun.  With our air mass still cold, mornings and nights will be chilly, however with the sun as strong as late August the day will warm up nicely.  And, yes if you would like a Seattle tan today and Friday will do it.  Like I wrote earlier, the best chance for a 70 degree day is Friday and for the weather geeks if that temperature is not reached in Seattle, 2011 will go down as the latest first 70 degree reading; the latest date is May 23 according to Scott from KOMO and the models are definitely pointing to cooler weather for the next couple of days.

Here is one of the models with 4km spacing for Friday May 20th temperatures at 5pm.
Seattle is covered with the pink stuff but if a sea breeze kicks in the thermometer may be teasing us with 69 degrees.  Regardless, 71 degrees or 69 degrees both feel the same to me :)

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

The Roof is Off

September 30, 2010. That was the last time Seattle was on a date with a 71 degree reading.  So we are on day 229 Correction: There were no days at 70 degrees in October, come November 3, 2010 Seattle hit a record of 74 degrees F; so 195 days and counting for the another date with 70.. hopefully Friday and please feel free to sing that youtube song.

As for today M's fan will be delighted as the roof will be off tonight. It's still spring so with the sun dialed down a bit, the first pitch at 7:10pm does require jackets. Paige E.'s birthday should be the unofficial start of better weather; when clears days and sunny streaks are longer than the rainy and cloudy streaks. Happy birthday.

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Above Normal

Hmm high temperatures have been below normal and that has been the typical theme for this spring. How about being above normal? Check. The average rainfall for May is about 1.70 inches, and that was reached in two days coupled with daily rainfall records at SeaTac for May 14th and May 15th. That's however typical for a La Nina pattern in the Northwest. Cool showery weather and wetter than normal. The chances of snow in the lowlands is elevated but this year we it was a real hit in some places and miss in others; not to name any names...Seattle.

You know what else is typical; this cool, showery, and wet weather should come to and end soon. And, this will be exhibited in a couple of days from now...I hope.

Sticking to the topic of above normal how about that 70 degree day in Seattle? Friday. I'm being a bit optimistic as most notable weather sources have Friday at 69 degrees :) The weather is always changing so we'll count down and see what happens.

Friday, May 13, 2011

Sunny-ish

Blogger had a super long outage, so quick recap of yesterday; hail around the Kitsap Peninsula and sun in the Udistrict. Some place had hail and showers others place such as Kent and Bellevue remained sunny and dry.

As for today we are near the end of the sunny chapter and about to begin a new story late tomorrow and into Sunday. See the swirl of clouds over the Pacific due west of Washington and south of Alaska? 
That's an area of low pressure that was close enough to push high clouds over the Pacific Northwest for a sunny-ish day, but far enough for us to stay dry. The low will slide SE into Oregon bringing rain into the picture late tomorrow into Sunday.

Thursday, May 12, 2011

One Day Rain Streak

Yesterday was definitely a cold wet one with almost half an in of rain reported from SeaTac and a high in the low 50s. Yuck. To make up for such a cold today we have a mostly dry day on tap with sun filtering through the clouds this morning in the Udist. Will it last? In the radar there are a few light scattered showers in the North Puget Sound area and off the coast the radar shows cool popcorn clouds. Looks like a one day rain streak.

This is a recipe for a mostly dry partly cloudy day with a few shower hinting arrival around the afternoon commute for Bremerton and Seattle stretching to the southeast. But, check back to see if that materializes. As for temps with the sun as strong as late August, any sun peak with warm us up; definitely warmer than yesterday.

Tomorrow Sun.

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Chasing Normal

Is anything or anyone normal? That is a lengthy discussion to be had. In the weather world there's an almanac that keeps track of daily and monthly normals for us and guess what... we are starting another month with below normal high temperatures. So far we had two days at or above the daily normal.  May 1st is the day we were a whooping 1 degree F above normal at 62 degrees at SeaTac, our official record keeping site for Seattle. The daily normal jumps to 62 degrees on May 2nd and slowly increases to 67 degrees by the end of May. Which in the near future seems unobtainable, but we are caught up to April's normal high temperatures :)
The one month outlook for May 2011 from the National Weather Service has a big old B for below normal over the Pacific Northwest stretching east. These are probabilities and it seems like the first half of May is deserving of a B. Sun and warm weather lovers please don't be discouraged, there will be nice days peppered in I promise.

The bite for today. Cold rain. No joke. After the cold frontal band of rain passes this afternoon cooler air and showery weather from the Gulf of Alaska will follow. Tarps is a must for those with outdoor activities.

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Happy Mother's Day

Looks like all of Western Washington is in the belly of a cloud toad that ate us, but we'll be spat out soon. Today is a repeat of yesterday with periods of sun and periods of clouds.. one change mostly dry. It was pouring in Kent yesterday and today sprinkles are hanging around the South Sound; in the Auburn, Federal Way, and Tukwila area right now. That will be wrung out by the Cascades in a bit. Planning an outdoor bbq or a stroll with mama? Do it. Happy Mother's Day!

Friday, May 6, 2011

Flip Flops

My old pair of flip flops are worn out to the max and so I'm shopping for a new pair of flip flops for the next stretch of sun and warm weather. Doesn't look like we'll have a nice stretch in the near future, but we can only hope. This pair is called 'Waldo' at Nordstrom.  The colors are a little much for my age, maybe I'll go for more neutral shades?

The weather is sporting flip flops of its own nature. Yesterday we had rain early in the morning and a mostly cloudy afternoon with showers. Flip flop 1: we'll have a mostly cloudy morning with showers and a wet late afternoon. Flip flop 2: Another weaksauce front? Nope, a front that has been lifting... :) With cold fronts, the cold dense air pushes nudges the warm air causing the warm air to rise or 'lift' from the surface. When the rising air cools and condenses clouds form and then precipitation.

Update 8:30am
It's been raining at the Bellingham International Airport this morning with a whooping 0.31 inches in the gauge in the past 6 hours. Over the Udistrict nil at SeaTac International Airport Trace. But, that will all change this afternoon. Let's see who get the most precip in the next 12 hours.

Update 3:45pm
Steady light rain is moving into the Puget Sound area, and will continue until late tonight. Chinatown this evening? I'll bet on more wet than dry.

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Weaksauce Front

After a warm sunny day the clouds, showers, and cooler than normal temperatures return to our area. The sunny stretch is at best two days so far this season for Seattle. I wonder when I can blog about three straight days of sun, but for me that would be less interesting weatherwise :)

A weak cold front from the system heading into British Columbia grazed Washington and Northern Oregon and dropped enough rain to wet the ground but not enough to water the plants. Yes, weaksauce. Rain fell in South Seattle from 5am to 6am and it looks like the precipitation is banked up on the Cascades leaving us with a mostly cloudy day.

This is an IR image for the Eastern Pacific at 8:30am today. The pink signifying the cold cloud tops which is thick in depth and may produce precipitation.  This morning's front is now over Eastern Washington.
You can see the swirly like system in the Pacific that is heading into BC and setting up a similar situation where we are grazed by the front but this time instead of a quicky this system is expected to linger, maybe has enough punch to actually water the plants, and will roll in late in the day. Check with me tomorrow for developments.

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Sun! Check!

Wow. The sun made a comeback after two days of clouds and rain. What have we been dealing with this winter? Let's recap, the coldest April of all time (high temperature wise), 40+ consecutive days without an official sunny day, a huge snow storm that did materialize not over the metropolis but 40 miles north of Seattle dumping 3 feet of snow, and we're still waiting for that 70 degrees F day.   

We're moving down the scale from weeks in between for sun to days. Then again Seattle is has the most overcast days for a major city, 220. But, hey within the first four months in 2011 we had 83 cloudy days; so maybe more sunny days on tap? With that said when summer rolls around the new tag line would be 'where's the rain the clouds'?

With highs in the mid 60s today relax and have a float :-)

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Rain, Clouds, Sun, Sun.. repeat?

The skies over most of Western Washington and Oregon on Thursday featured rain, Friday lots of clouds, Saturday sun, Sunday sun.  Are we going for a repeat? Let's see Monday rain... check!, today clouds... check! Wednesday sun... check!? maybe and Thursday sun...nope. But, we'll see. The sun is expected to make a comeback tomorrow with a UV index of 6 which is in the high category. You know what this means Aaron, hold that membership and tan outside Northwest style.

The bite from Seatown to P-town: clouds now with more and more sunbreaks later and if you hit a sprinkle, smile because we live in the great Pacific Northwest. With the sun setting at 8:24pm for Seattle, we have a little over 12 hours of daylight left as of now. Do something productive :)

Monday, May 2, 2011

It's Raining...Yes!

The sunny stretch this weekend comes to an end with a wet Monday. Which is welcomed by allergy sufferers. The pollen floating in the air is now grounded thanks to the rain. Checking out the radar, I see a huge blob of precipitation heading our way with more of a steady type of rain for a good chunk of the afternoon hours. But, hey look at the bright side, most of us will be indoors working or going to class without the enticing sun begging us to go outside.

Update 12:30 pm:
Looks like our big umbrella named Olympics is covering most of Seattle as the rain is settling down for today.
 
In the middle of the watermelon guts is a hole over Central and North Seattle that means that the rain has stopped for that area but continues to fall ever so lightly in the surrounding areas.