To Be Zonal or Not To Be Zonal?

`Clear Picture of Non Zonal Flow Across the US~
`High Pressure Dominating The Western US
`Low Pressure Dominating The Eastern US

`Clear Picture of Zonal Flow Revealing itself~
`High Pressure no longer in Place as Existing Pacific Low
Creates Equilibrium Progresses into Western US
`Lee Cyclogenesis in Process leaving High Pressure in Eastern US

Ridge of Death! October brings Hope!

It was October 4th 2004 I witnessed from and in my dorm room in Greeley, Colorado my first spinning column of air from afar. You ask in my room...well my room was a disaster from just Skinner style mess...but also outside looking towards the mountains out popped a boundary colliding landspout. 9 to be exact were reported on this day along the front range...it was a fun landspout day....
Why am I mentioning this, well for all meteorologists and chasers the Ridge of Death has been stopping the progression of towers to nuclearize! But not only that GVTH's at this time aren't very popular due to the stable atmosphere. Our only hope lies in the fall season boundaries last minute....looking at the GFS models there shows that tweak of a disturbance making its way into CO around October 4-5th. Just a line of storms developing due to a disturbance colliding with a boundary will be what my eyes set for....till than will let models play out like legos build......

a Wikipedia moment....

Luke Howard (November 28, 1772 – March 21, 1864) was a British manufacturing chemist and an amateur meteorologist with broad interests in science [1]. His lasting contribution to science is a nomenclature system for clouds, which he proposed in an 1802 presentation to the Askesian Society.
Howard has been called "the father of meteorology" because of his comprehensive recordings of weather in the London area from 1801 to 1841 and his writings, which transformed the science of meteorology. [1] In his late twenties, he wrote the Essay on the Modification of Clouds, which was published in 1803.[2] He named the three principal categories of clouds - cumulus, stratus, and cirrus, as well as a series of intermediate and compound modifications, such as cirrostratus and stratocumulus, in order to accommodate the transitions occurring between the forms.

Path of IKE

Hurricane Ike all said and done....continuing prayers for strength and relief efforts by the emergency management teams in Galveston & Houston. There are crazy pics on yahoo if you look up IKE photos...The one with the fish stuck in the fence was funny in my opinion. It must have been a hell of a ride for that fish!

Decision

This is was not an easy decision, but with friends that actually do give meteorological and loving advice....I took this under serious advisement since the atmosphere of chasing a hurricane was not natural to me...There will be a time to chase a hurricane for sure in the future, but this particular one with nothing under my belt....it was not worth it....Thanx friends....My prayers go out to the safety of those in the path of this hurricane and to the emergency management teams for quick and safe efforts to get the people to safety....Till than keep watching the skies....
Skinner

IKE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

by tomorrow...my permanent decision to chase Hurricane Ike will be decided on forecasted landfall. My idea is stay within the premise of Texas and Louisiana border or just Texas....anything east is not worth it....so far all is looking promising so....just a matter of the ridge breaking or not causing the Hurricane to dramatically change its course due directly north pounding Louisiana all of a sudden....this is a possible scenario....
excited to see the intensity of IKE tom. afternoon as it passes over the lovely warm 30-32 degree Celsius waters....
till than keep watchin the skies...peace out!