Tropics Still Quiet

We talk all the time about how quiet the beginning of the tropical weather season is.  You could probably make the argument that the hurricane season really shouldn't start until July (and shouldn't run all the way through November either, but that's another blog for another day).  This year has held true to that theory.  Only one tropical depression thus far.  And since that depression in late May, it's been very quiet.  The Hurricane Center really has only had a couple "areas of concern" to monitor since then.  Right now things are quiet, with nothing going on in the Atlantic basin.  Now the question becomes; Will El Nino set up later this season and will that have an effect on the hurricane season?  Well, the climate prediction center has sent out a release this month saying that we'll be turning over from a neutral flow into an El Nino flow through August.  In theory this would create more east moving waves, leading to more wind shear.  This could keep down the number and intensity of storms in the Atlantic.  This is why some of the "experts", such as Dr. Gray from Colorado, are downplaying this season from the original forecasts (most of those original forecasts were for an average season anyway).  Nevertheless, the first two storms that we will see will be Ana and Bill, and I've attached a few notes on the history of each storm.  I'll try and blog at least once a week about what's going on in the Atlantic.

Happy Father's Day

Be sure that your plans for this Father's Day Weekend include some air conditioning or the pool.  This weekend's heat will be pretty intense.  We're talking about highs 95-100 today, heat indix values of 100-110.  Very hot conditions here, even worse down to our south in Central Georgia.  Next couple days should be pretty hot, so if you have to be outside take it easy.  Light colored clothing, light fitting clothing.  Drink plenty of water.  Take it easy.  It's the weekend, the yard work will be waiting for you when things improve.  In the meantime, a happy father's day to all the dads out there, especially my dad down in Florida, who is one of the coolest 50+ year olds I know.  To show you how cool he is, a quick story.  My sister was getting married several years ago when the "Hey ya" song by Outkast was out.  As you may or may not know, one of the lines from the song is, "What's cooler than being cool?"  The response was supposed to be "Ice Cold".  But, my father, in his deadpan Marine style didn't miss a beat when he looked us in the eyes and said, "me".  Straight faced.  You're the man, dad.  Happy Father's Day to all out there, and looking forward to hanging with my kids this weekend as well.  Have a good one.

Steve Milone

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