I have circular stairs (inside) going up to the third floor, which is the only renovated part of my unit. v. painful today. Around the corner I noticed a few buildings where people hadn't cleaned off their stairs. No way, I'd set one foot on those. BTW, if I tried to sled my down the front stairs, I'd go right into one of those infernal parkway trees that we've discussed on a non-eco topic before. ;-) Concussion city. Or I'd land in the street and get hit by a car.

*sigh* posted pearls of oysters rather than pearls of weather wisdom. Sorry!

scratch the sled idea. What's fun is when those snow-heaped steps do not melt clean and refreeze in the night. You have to end up chipping the stuff off and the brick / stonework with it. Stupid! Love the though of your spiral staircase. Shall we see you starring in Vertigo any time soon?!

Just heard on BBC World service that a tropical cyclone is heading towards Mozambique to add to the misery following recent severe flooding.

Gotta go check the latest africa updating weather map I posted yesterday. Thanks, Maggie!

Our winter was unusually mild. Need not be the greenhouse hop, nor the Nino mambo, just the solar cycle of 11 years, I guess.

I think you are right about that. This new jargon of el Ni�o and La Ni�a are just new manifestations of the old eleven-year solar cycle. Anyone who is interested in short wave radio or Ham radio is well aware of this. We are just climbing out of one of the longest and lowest solar flux since records were kept. Other times, mini ice ages happened as when the Thames froze over and they ice skated on it. Amazing!

Austinites, please check in with us in the morning and let us know what your night was like - weather-wise, of course *grin* Forecast for Austin, TX 400 pm CST tue feb 22 2000 .Tonight...A 70 percent chance of thunderstorms...some possibly severe before the evening is over. Low in the lower 50s. Winds stronger and gusty in and near thunderstorms...then becoming west and northwest and diminishing to 10 mph early morning. .Wednesday...Mostly sunny skies with the high in the mid 70s. West winds 10 to 15 mph. .Wednesday night...Mostly clear. Low in the upper 40s. .Thursday...Mostly sunny and breezy with the high in the mid 70s. .Extended forecast... .Thursday night...increasing cloudiness. Lows near 60. .Friday...Mostly cloudy with a chance of showers or thunderstorms. Highs in the 70s to near 80. .Saturday...Mostly clear. Lows in the 50s. Highs in the 70s. .Sunday...Partly cloudy. Lows in the 50s. Highs in the 70s.

Ricky Williams got arrested and thrown in jail for changing lanes without signaling on Mopac in his hummer. thus joing the Matthew Mcconaughey Hall of Shame.

At least he was not cracking open someone else's head with a hockey stick! We gotta do something. Guess your weather is not too terrible - but in a hummer, what is terrible weather?!

Do you know what a hummer is, Marcia?

Yup! An outrageously expensive and Ugly (with a capital U) vehicle which was origianlly created for the military. They run convoys through Hilo from the Pohakuloa Military Training Area in the saddle between Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa and they always have Hummers included in various shapes and forms. I think it is about the only vehicle I would ever feel truly safe in on the southern California freeways!

I never liked hockey before, but after watching the news last night, I like it even less. I hope they throw that idiot off the Bruins and out of the NHL!

By the way, the lava buttons look great! Really hot!! :-)

Geo conference again looks as we created it on July 10th. I added the buttons (which had ugly white frames around them and which took me some time to find a program to remove them after the brilliant programming magician had done one and made the rest look even worse...) some time later when I could not get the buttons I wanted ( which ended up as the default buttons and which have my heart.) You think I should leave the lava-pool buttons up or only during winter? Guess I'll change the link color if I'm gonna leave the lava buttons up...*sigh*

I think the lava-pool buttons are very appropriate for this conference; seems kind of nice for each conference to develop it's own look. By all means, do what you think best!

I guess you did change the link color! I now see blue instead of green! Very nice! (Blue is my favorite color.. :-)

I am playing with it as we speak. I wanted some sort of royal-to-navy blue but it just is plain boring where it is not emboldened. So, I tried brown - ucky. Red was worse. The forest green I used over Christmas and Thanksgiving. I really like it, but the blue is better. This is indigo and I think I need something more blue than purple. Off I go to fiddle behind the scenes again.

Guess there is no darker blue which is not on the purplish side. I really wanted a deep bluish green, but the ones on the hex color chart are electric bluein that part of the spectrum...*sigh*

Love the lava-look buttons, no doubt Pele would approve.

Thank you. It took some real intelligence and hard work on the part of a few very special people to make Geo look like this. (and I did find Navy blue!) I truly appreciate their efforts and your comments. *grin* Pele must like it - she has not paved over my computer yet with a fresh lava flow, which is the modus operandi of the Goddess when mortals do things with her property she does not like.

From AnneH in Australia: Most of the Northern Territory, the top end of Western Australia, a third of Queensland and the North Western part of New South Wales are under feet of water. All have been declared disaster areas. Movement is by boat or helicopter and people are being rescued everywhere. The phenomenon is called "the wet" this is far worse than usual and stock, i.e. cattle, horses and sheep are drowning in their thousands. As for the wild life you can see then running for their lives to higher ground.

Is it because we care for individuals who live in such different places that natural disasters seem to be more so nowadays? When it is not an earthquake in Hawaii it's a hurricane in Florida, the Wet in Australia, ecc... I hope all is well with AnneH, CatheyP, Maureen and our other Spring friends in Australia.

The world has become a very small sphere, thanks to the Internet and easy access to travel. Who'd have thought some of my dearest friends would live in places like Portugal, England and Australia (not to mention Austin, Home of The Spring)?! We need them to check in from time to time...Anne surely will keep us current on Weather because she is also interested in it. As soon as the mother board is replaced on her new computer, we have hopes that she will be able to post her own weather. Earth is a dynamic place, constantly subject to pull from the moon and sun (pulling us out of round) making us oblate (squashed at the poles) from spinning at 100,000 MPH ( 160,390KM ), and all that movement on our own - mountains erupting, plates sliding and colliding - we are a very busy place!!! It is a wonder we hold together at all.

Latest news on African floods received today from the United Nations: Southern Africa was battered by torrential rains and high winds this week as cyclone Eline moved across Mozambique and into Botswana, Zimbabwe and southern Zambia, causing extensive damage and leaving hundreds of thousands of people displaced. Mozambique launched an international appeal to cope with extensive flooding, Zimbabwe declared a state of emergency and will launch its own appeal next week, while officials in Botswana's National Disaster Management Authority told IRIN on Friday that care for the displaced was being hampered by a shortage of tents throughout the effected region. FLOODS-MOZAMBIQUE: Appeal for international help The Mozambican government and UN agencies launched a joint international appeal on Wednesday for US $65 million to repair damaged infrastructure and carry out humanitarian operations following two weeks of floods that have left at least 70 people dead and 300,000 in urgent need of assistance. The government said several main roads, including connections with neighbouring South Africa and Swaziland were severely affected. "The national road that connects the capital, Maputo, with the rest of the country has been cut at several places, and embankments and bridges have been washed away," a government statement said. The country's railway and electricity networks, added the appeal, have also been devastated and need urgent repairs. The Ressano Garcia line to South Africa, the Goba line that goes through Swaziland to South Africa, and the Limpopo line to Zimbabwe have all been damaged. For a detailed report see: http://www.reliefweb.int/IRIN/sa/countrystories/mozambique/20000224.htm FLOODS-MOZAMBIQUE: Floods threat to food security More than 70,000 hectares of land and a substantial amount of livestock have been destroyed in the floods that have devastated Mozambique over the last two weeks, humanitarian agencies told IRIN on Wednesday. The risk of an outbreak of water-borne diseases such as cholera and malaria as well as meningitis has also increased. For detailed reports see: http://www.reliefweb.int/IRIN/sa/countrystories/mozambique/20000223.htm and: http://www.reliefweb.int/IRIN/sa/countrystories/mozambique/20000222.htm FLOODS-ZIMBABWE: State of emergency declared Zimbabwe declared a state of emergency on Thursday as torrential rains and flooding affected an estimated 250,000 people in four of the country's eight provinces this week. Sibusisiwe Ndhlovu, the deputy director of Zimbabwe's Civil Protection Unit told IRIN on Friday the effects were "the worst we have seen" and the damage to infrastructure in the south and east of the country could "run into billions" of Zimbabwe dollars. She said Zimbabwe was preparing an international appeal over the disaster. Ndhlovu said the main problem at the moment was accessibility to people marooned by flood waters. "We are trying to rescue and provide shelter to a number of communities. There is a problem of foodstuffs, logistics, and telephones are down." The official 'Herald' newspaper reported on Friday that at least 12 people have died. For a detailed report see: http://www.reliefweb.int/IRIN/sa/countrystories/zimbabwe/20000225.htm FLOODS-SOUTH AFRICA: Northern Province battered At least 50 people have been killed and more than 80,000 left homeless in South Africa's Northern Province since heavy rains started more than two weeks ago, government officials told IRIN on Friday. Sam Hlungwane, of the Local Government and Housing department, said many roads in the province's northern region have been washed away while power lines and bridges have collapsed. "All the rivers have been flooded after the dams started overflowing," Hlungwane told IRIN. He added that five regions in the province were affected by the floods. "The rains were heavier this week following the Eline cyclone that cut off whole communities in the Bushbuckridge area, situated east of the province on the way to Mozambique." For a detailed report see: http://www.reliefweb.int/IRIN/sa/countrystories/southafrica/20000225.htm FLOODS-BOTSWANA: North and northeast affected President Festus Mogae put Botswana on full alert as Eline, downgraded to a tropical depression, approached the country still struggling to come to grips with last week's heavy rains. The National Disaster Management Authority told IRIN on Friday the storms hit the north and northeast of the country but their full effect were felt in Zimbabwe and southern Zambia. FLOODS-SOUTHERN AFRICA: New cyclone in Indian Ocean More rain is expected over much of Southern Africa in the next few days, but was likely to taper off towards the end of next week, a researcher from the Climatology Research Group at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg told IRIN on Friday. She said that a new cyclone, Felicia, was currently in the Indian Ocean around Madagascar and Mauritius, but might not hit the Mozambican coast as cyclone Eline did this week with devastating results. If Felicia does move towards Mozambique, it was "likely to weaken down quite a bit, not resulting in severe rain in southern Africa". The researcher said that contrary to the current perception the region is experiencing unusually heavy rainfall, these are "pretty much normal weather patterns for this time of year". The difference, she said, was the "sequencing", with storm fronts following one after the other resulting in "extreme rainfall" over large parts of the region. She added that, according to the research group, the recent torrential rains "had nothing to do with changing global weather patterns".

I noted more articles on Mozambique yesterday when I got home from Softball (we won both games!), but was too tired to post them. Thanks, Maggie. Those thirsty monkeys should move to Mozambique!

VOLCANIC ASH CLOUD HEADING FOR BRITAIN An ash cloud from a volcano is expected over the UK within hours, experts are warning. The Meteorological Office has issued warnings to aircraft about the ash which was blasted into the atmosphere by Mount Hekla, near Keflavik in south-west Iceland. The volcano's main eruption sent the bulk of the ash towards northern Norway, but a thin ash cloud is being blown across the North Atlantic towards the UK at between 10 and 15,000ft.

Thought we may have seen some atmospheric disturbance last night - colour of moon etc. But nothing visible from my area. They say air quality won't be affected.

I was hoping you would get some spectacular sunsets. At least you won't have to breathe it. I wonder where it will settle out of the atmosphere. There is nothing quite like lava grit down your neck!

It should be well into mainland Europe by now. I think they said 10-15,000 feet passing us. I wonder if there's an air traffic problem. I think the cloud level is too heavy and low just now for us to get a good sunset. We had large hail stones yesterday which covered my garden and the road, probably a quarter inch square and very white.

Oh my! Hailstones mean spring is coming. That is the up side of an otherwise messy and destructive form of precipitation! There is a place on the Weather Channel http://www.weather.com where you can check thngs like aircraft advisories and such. Texas is having severe weather. I never even knew Texas had weather before. Now, I worry about every off-looking cloud shows up over the state. High winds and hail pound TX Heavy hail and high winds create hail drifts in Texas, stranding motorists, while gusts blow down power lines and trees.

I remeber wierd weather when I was there two years ago. At least it was wierd to us visitors. Scraping ice of the car in the mornings, and stripping down to Summer clothes in the same afternoon, heavy winds, and then nothing.

YOU were in Texas? Wow!!! I'm so envious! Is is wonderful? (stupid question)

I was working!!!! We had five days of meetings. But - we did see where Kennedy was shot and the herd of bronze cattle (plus cowboys) in the centre of town. We also ate out - a lot (which we don't at home in UK). Driving was wierd, found the traffic light regulations difficult. We couldn't believe people didn't walk anywhere. We tried to walk to the local shops on our first day, and got some really wierd stares. We found out later from our host that you only walk (in their neighbourhood) if you're exercising (i.e. in full sports gear so people know you are). I did enjoy shopping, but never did understand how to add State tax on to prices. I liked seeing houses go by on the backs of lorries, and saw at least one I'd like in a take away lot. Shop assistants seemed to have real problem with my English accent and I had to get rescued a few times. MMm I had a good time.

LOL!!! Texas is a whole nuther world...I guess you found that out. They think you are hard to understand?! Likew THEY don't have an accent you can cut with a knife. How funny! You could understand Terry, though. Too bad you missed his voice-over the other night. It was wonderful to hear him like he was in the room with me. He has a voice which is well-modulated and he enunciates clearly and speaks at just the right speed for clarity without seeming hurried or too slow. He was raised in the mid-west, so that is not precisely a Texas accent with which he speaks, but it does have overtones. I have become a huge fan...!

Am trying to imagine an accent from a Southern Gentleman - Texas mix...I just might really be in trouble with that one...*sigh*

The guy we stayed with NEVER took his hat off - oh except in church, and then he held it. (security blanket?) *lol*

Did he sleep with his boots on, as well? One never knows about these things! That is really funny!

I know a guy like that, a local cinematographer who started wearing cowboy hats and now can't stop.

I guess it's addictive. *lol*

Maybe it makes one's hair fall out and he cannot take off his hat out of vanity? I never have gotten used to wearing a hat in the heat. Especially indoors... Gotta be addictive and comes with the water, though I have never seen Terry wearing one...

Space Science News for March 5, 2000 Residents of Canada and the northern United States should be on the alert for aurora borealis during the night of March 5 and morning of March 6. The best time to view aurorae is usually around local midnight. Tonight's new moon will make even faint activity easy to see. Early on March 5, 2000, the interplanetary magnetic field in the vicinity of Earth developed a significant southward-directed component. This condition often means that solar wind plasma can penetrate Earth's magnetosphere and trigger auroral activity. Data from NOAA's polar orbiting meteorological satellites late on March 5 show an expanded auroral oval. If this high level of activity continues, auroral displays could be visible as far south as the Great Lakes states and in New England. For continuing coverage of aurora and all forms of space weather, please visit http://www.SpaceWeather.com

Midnight here, but no aurora borealis visible from my back porch. :-( Looks a bit hazy or overcast. Only a miserable possum, which scared me half to death, walking on my back fence. Ugly thing. Not going back out there.

Possum??? You live where there is wild life? ! You need an almost inky dark sky (Dark of moon is great for this right now) to see the faint whisps of Aurora

If you were a pioneer woman you would catch that sucker and skin'um and cook up a mess of possum like Granny Clampett used to do.

Well, heck! Thanks for the resport. Seen: One Possum (U G L Y !)

Am glad it was an oppossum. When I first saw it last summer, sitting on my back porch, thought it was a giant rat. My neighbors told me what it was. Every agency in the city has been notified (streets & san, alderman's office, pest control) and no one has come out to deal with it. Where it came from is the big question. Catch it and skin it like Granny Clampett? ha! Threw a shoe at last summer and it went cowering behind a plant.

It likes You ! They're marsupials, you know! Be nice =) Share your veggie scraps and you may end up with many possi? possums?

I have seen an Aurora only once in 1947/8 winter - it was particularly cold that year in U.K. and we did indeed see the Northern Lights flickering across the screen - an amazing wave like green in the Northern sky - in those days there were very few street lights in my home town in Southern England and the stars were wonderful in those days. It is something I have never forgotten it was beautiful, strange and even at my young age I believe gave me my first interest in astronomy.

I'd love to see them in the far north. They make crackling and booming noises, I've heard tell. All in England are certainly are far enough to see the aurora, BTW, so go out and look at it and report back. My notice was from NASA and usually only covers North American events - but polar is polar. There is also Aurora at the South Pole - Aurora Australis!

Too much backglow, I'm afraid - unlikely to see anything unless I drove out to the country and the clouds cleared away - anyway wasn't it last night?

The solar ejections which cause aruroae arrive over several days. I'll forward any further information get about it, but I am sure if it is visible one night it will be visible it will be so for several days.

I think our cloud layer will be too heavy - as usual. Still, will look tonight.

Marcia why are the large powerful ocean storms which sometimes hit Hawaii called "hurricanes"? Shouldn't they be "typhoons"? It should be very logical "hurricanes" in the Atlantic, "typhoons" in the Pacific, and "cyclones" in the Indian Ocean". But no, the news once informed me that a hurricane hit Guam. Statistically the United States and China are hit by more large tropical ocean storms than any other countries.

Typhoons originate in the Western Pacific. Hurricanes originate in the Atlantic or Eastern Pacific, It depends on which way it is going where it makes landfall. Hurricanes usually follow the island chain westward and often land on Guam. I think the large ocean distance to Guam and the large land masses available for typhoons keep them from hitting Guam...at least most of the time.

You noted that there are no stupid questions. Thank you for that. Hurricanes, et. al., is their rotation ever affected by what hemisphere they're in? Will the hemisphere affect whether it's clockwise or counterclockwise?

Oh yes...they make the cutest curls either side of the equator where they start because they need the warm water to build into such intense storms. The Coriolus effect is directly responsible for the spin!

As soon as the season begins I will post one with the curls in opposite directions on either side of the Equator. It is so cute. Same with those storms on Jupiter! Absolutely, I believe there are no stupid questions. Not so sure I do not give stupid answers, though, from time to time...*grin*

There is still data coming in on Hurricane Andrew. There were some very interesting things about that storm. Firstly, it was really small as hurricanes go. However, it did make in strength what it lacked in size, being a very high Category 4 storm. Another interesting thing which was found were pockets of devastation caused by very high velocity winds (about 240-250 mph). Andrew, it seems, had tiny tornadoes impeded in its eyewall. I'd never heard of that before. I was aware that hurricanes could spawn tornadoes, the truly spectacular ones appear as water spouts over the ocean. It would seem that Hurricane Andrew was a very compact compound storm.

Fascinating stuff! I had never heard of that before. I went through many hurricanes as a child on the East Coast, but never remember tornadoes associated with them. Thanks for the information. Something else I need to check on bye'n'bye when I get a moment. Someone is sure to make a diagram/schematic of what it looked like. Amazing !

Cyclone Steve which has formed three times is now I believe dead - it is incredible it travelled right over the whole of Northern Australia and has gone inland near Exmouth just up from Carnarvon - I hope now our weather will not be 102degreesf for the next couple of days. It was extraordinary though - because our meteorologists can stop talking about it. I hope now that is the end of it but one forecaster this morning said it was possible it could go out to sea and reform again - I hope not cause it could then hit Perth.

102�F (39� C) No wonder your computer did not want to work correctly! That is running a fever outside of your body! National Aspirin time! Cold compresses!

You mean..Steve could be resurrected ? Go away, Steve!

Careful thats my sons name!

oops....Storm, go away and leave Australia alone! *sorry!*

Space Science News for March 8, 2000 Powerful tidal forces from Jupiter have molded two of the solar system's most bizarre worlds, fiery Io and icy Europa. Images released this week reveal new details of tidal action on the two moons. FULL STORY at Jupiter's Terrible Tides CLIMATE NEWS NOTE: Without El Nino to spice up life along the Gulf Coast, it�s been "a boring year" for thunderstorm watchers, say scientists who have found an interesting correlation between El Nino and lightning. FULL STORY at The Lightning of El Nino

Does the wind ever shift directly from east to north? Many people believe the wind never shifts from north to east and back to the north again without veering around by way of the south and west. It is a well-know fact to meteorologists the wind very seldom veers from the north to the east and then, without further shift, back from east to north. However, according to the U.S. Weather Service, such changes can, and often do, occur.

Injuries, Damage As Tornado Strikes Milwaukee MILWAUKEE (Reuters) - A tornado swept through part of Milwaukee on Wednesday, injuring at least 16 people, damaging a commercial area and lifting some homes off their foundations. The twister touched down on Milwaukee's far south side, damaging areas there and in the neighboring community of St. Francis, not far from Mitchell International Airport. The Milwaukee County Sheriff's office said none of the 16 injuries appeared to be life-threatening. Damage, however, appeared to be extensive. Homes were pushed off foundations and others lost their roofs. Cars were tossed about and a semi-trailer wound up on its side in an intersection. The storm damaged a line of shops. Some of the injured were inside a fast food restaurant at which the window was blown in. The storm struck at 6:10 p.m. CST (00:10 GMT) following several days of unusually warm weather across the Midwest that pushed temperatures to levels that were 30 degrees or more above normal. The storms occurred along a cold front which was sweeping across the region, bringing more seasonal late-winter temperatures and even heavy snow to the Northern Plains. A 15-square-block area was evacuated due to the possibility that natural gas leaks and downed power lines might lead to explosions.

Steve has gone inland - very little rain in Perth but oh my further up the coast. It is expected, maybe, to reform in the Great Australian Bight - but this time I think a large depression. It is still hot and horrible here. But we have escaped.

This storm is so strong that it will re-form land features? I AM impressed with this storm. I will look up more about it. That strip of land off of Florida wherein Miami is located was created by a hurricane long ago. I can just as easily be removed! Thanks, Anne.

Aurora Watch, March 10/11, 2000: Residents of northern Europe, Canada, and the northernmost tier of US states should be on the alert for possible auroral activity tonight. The interplanetary magnetic field as monitored by NASA's ACE spacecraft developed a southward-directed component earlier today. This condition often means that solar wind plasma can penetrate Earth's magnetosphere and trigger geomagnetic disturbances. NOAA space environment satellites show an expanded auroral oval at 2304 UT on March 10. To monitor developments, please visit http://www.spaceweather.com

A tornado has touched down in Fort Worth. Much damage and at least one death reported. Please be careful... Forecast For Dallas-Ft Worth, Tx 325 Pm Cst Tue Mar 28 2000 .Tonight...Thunderstorms Likely...Some Severe And With Heavy Rain. Low In The Upper 50S. Southeast Wind 10 To 20 Mph Becoming Northeast By Morning. Chance Of Rain 70 Percent. .Wednesday...Mostly Cloudy With A 40 Percent Chance Of Showers Or Thunderstorms. High In The Lower 70S. North Wind 10 To 20 Mph. .Wednesday Night...Decreasing Clouds And Cool. Low Near 50. .Thursday...Partly Cloudy. High In The Lower 70S. .Extended Forecast... .Thursday Night...Increasing Clouds With A Slight Chance Of Showers And Thunderstorms. Low In The Mid 40S. .Friday Through Saturday...Partly Cloudy With A Slight Chance Of Showers And Thunderstorms. Low Near 50. High In The 70S. .Sunday...Partly Cloudy. Low In The 50S. High In The 70S. Tornado warning 640 Pm Cst Tue Mar 28 2000 ...This Is A Tornado Emergency For Fort Worth... The National Weather Service In Fort Worth Has Issued A * Tornado Warning For... Tarrant County In North Central Texas * Until 715 Pm Cst * At 640 Pm Cst...A Tornado Was Observed By Doppler Radar And Trained Spotters 5 Miles East Of Fort Worth...Moving East At 20 Mph. * Persons Along The Interstate 30 Corridor Between Arlington And Fort Worth Take Cover Immediately! Lat...Lon 3279 9734 3272 9734 3272 9707 3279 9706 Severe thunderstorm warning 533 Pm Cst Tue Mar 28 2000 The National Weather Service In Fort Worth Has Issued A * Severe Thunderstorm Warning For... Tarrant County In North Central Texas * Until 615 Pm Cst * At 533 Pm Cst...National Weather Service Doppler Radar Detected A Severe Thunderstorm 7 Miles West Of Azle...Moving East At 25 Mph. * Locations In The Warning Include Sansom Park...Saginaw...Lake Worth...Haslet...Eagle Mountain And Blue Mound * The Severe Thunderstorm Will Be Near... Eagle Mountain...Lake Worth Around 550 Pm Cst Blue Mound Around 600 Pm Cst Doppler Radar Detected Hail Up To Two Inches In Diameter With This Severe Thunderstorm. Lat...Lon 3299 9754 3277 9753 3277 9722 3299 9727 Severe weather statement 705 Pm Cst Tue Mar 28 2000 ...A Tornado Warning Continues For Tarrant County Until 715 Pm Cst... At 700Pm...Doppler Radar Detected A Tornado 5 Miles West Of Arlington Airport. This Tornado Was North Of I 20 Moving East At 20 Miles Per Hour. Persons In Arlington Take Cover Now! Nnnn Flood warning 643 Pm Cst Tue Mar 28 2000 The National Weather Service In Fort Worth Has Issued A * Flash Flood Warning For... Tarrant County In North Central Texas * Until 945 Pm Cst * At 643 Pm Cst...Weather Service Doppler Radar Indicated Very Heavy Rain Over Fort Worth And Northern Tarrant County Moving Very Slowly East. Another Storm Is Developing In Southeast Parker County And Will Move Into Tarrant County Through 730 Pm With More Heavy Rain. * Avoid Low Lying And Flood Prone Areas. Lat...Lon 3287 9740 3259 9751 3259 9707 3299 9708 Special weather statement 244 Pm Cst Tue Mar 28 2000 There Is A Moderate Risk Of Severe Thunderstorms Across All Of North Texas...Mainly Late This Afternoon And This Evening. This Includes The Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex...Waco...Temple...Sherman...Paris... And Mineral Wells. The Main Storm Threats Will Be Very Large Hail...Damaging Winds...And Heavy Rainfall. There Is A Threat Of A Tornado Or Two During The Late Afternoon And Early Evening...Mainly Northwest Of An Eastland... ...Mineral Wells...Gainesville Line. The Wind Profile Was Becoming More Favorable For Supercell Storms Within This Area. A Threat Of A Few Tornadoes May Spread Further South And East Through Mid-Evening. Scattered Thunderstorms Were Forming Between Abilene And Vernon At Mid Afternoon. A Few Of These Storms Will Become Severe As They Move Into North Central Texas Through 500 Pm...Generally North Of Interstate 20. By Evening...Thunderstorms Will Become Widespread...Mainly Across The Northern Two Thirds Of North Texas. Damaging Wind And Hail Will Occur In Some Areas. Heavy Rainfall Will Become A Threat...Mainly In Northern And Eastern Portions Of North Texas. A Flash Flood Watch Likely Will Be Issued This Afternoon. Emergency Management Officials And Storm Spotters May Be Activated...Mainly After 400 Pm And Into The Evening Hours. For Hazardous Weather/Thunderstorm Outlooks For Adjacent Areas...See Okcspsokc (Northwestern Texas...Western And Central Oklahoma)... Okcspstul (Eastern Oklahoma And Northwest Arkansas)...Newspsshv (Northeast Texas...Northwestern Louisiana...Extreme Southeastern Oklahoma And Southwestern Arkansas)...Satspshou (Southeast Texas)...Satspssat (South Central Texas)...And Lbbspssjt (West Central Texas).

Can anyone tell me the county in which Austin resides? Please.....

Travis! Bastrop is to the East and Blanco County is to the West.

Thanks, Terry. This morning I heard from a friend who lives in Arlington and works in Dallas. She reported this morning: Just got here. They have shuttled us in by police escort. We had a tornado here last night. I am scared. I have been scared; this looks like a war zone down here. They shuttled us in. It was amazing. You should see how bad things look. It is really scary. I worried all night. It was frigtening experience. Thank you, but I much prefer Tsunami and Lava flows.

I have friends there. haven't heard anything yet.

Any problems in Austin? I am also concerned about Wolfie as it was heading her direction when last I checked. Scary, indeed! Let us know what you discover when you hear from your friends, Maggie.

Nope, it's sunny. Getting up to 90 this afternoon. I went for a swim in my pool this morning.

You have two extreme season, it seems. What happened to Spring? I am more delighted than I can say that Austin and it Springizens are well and safe *hugs*

Ok, everybody sing: "Take me out to the Ball Game...." This just came through (our game starts in 3 hours) ULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED FLASH FLOOD WATCH NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI 100 PM HST THU MAR 30 2000 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HONOLULU HAS ISSUED A FLASH FLOOD WATCH EFFECTIVE UNTIL 100 AM HST FRIDAY FOR PERSONS IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS... THE BIG ISLAND OF HAWAII

I don't know all the words, so I'm humming in some places.

Thanks! It worked because it only sprinkled on the field and no time-outs were needed. However, we lost 7-17 to San Jose State University. We play again this evening, with different results, I hope!

A cyclone in far north queensland is imminent = strange name something like Tessi. Expected to increase from 1 to 2 in the near future

When does your cyclone season end? Or, are you 'lucky' enough to get them year round?

The cyclone season is supposed to end at the end of the big wet - which has been particularly wet this season. It is late ending and affects our weather down here in Perth. We will probably have a dry winter and won't start until end of May.

Does it get cold enough to snow in Perth? (How long does it take you to get over expecting July to be HOT and December to be COLD?) Guess Footie is about to supplant cricket for the duration...*sigh*

Cyclone Tessi Crosses Australia's Northeast Coast CANBERRA (Reuters) - Tropical Cyclone Tessi weakened s it crossed Australia's northeast coast early on Monday but still brought with it the threat of flooding inland rains. Tessi brought down some trees and power lines with wind gusts of up to 81 miles an hour as it crossed the coast south of Ingham, 770 miles north of Brisbane in the state of Queensland. Jim Davidson, senior meteorologist at the Queensland Cyclone Warning Centre, said Tessi was downgraded to a category one cyclone from category two just before it crossed the coast at about 9:00 a.m. Australia's far north has barely had time to recover from Cyclone Steve, which damaged homes and uprooted trees with winds of up to 106 miles when it hit the resort town of Cairns in late February. Strong winds associated with Cyclone Tessi were expected to cause more damage to Australia's sugarcane crop, industry officials said. Meteorologists are also monitoring a low pressure system near New Caledonia, which they said has the potential to develop into a cyclone off the Queensland coast within the next 24 hours.

Sotrm watch updating USA map from http://www.earthwatch.com

For the most sensational updating weather maps check http://www.earthwatch.com/SKYWATCH/ I would like to thank the Austin ARES website for pointing me in this direction!

These tropical updating maps will let you watch the hurricanes develop which may be a threat to you and yours...

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI 850 AM HST MON APR 3 2000 WATERSPOUTS WERE OBSERVED OVER NORTH AND EAST HAWAII...SEVEN MILES NORTH OF HILO OVER ONAMEA BAY. IF WATERSPOUTS MOVE ONSHORE THEY CAN PRODUCE DANGEROUS WINDS. IF YOU CANNOT GET OUT OF THE WAY...MOVE UNDER SOMETHING STURDY AND STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS. IF YOU ARE IN THE OPEN LIE FLAT FACING THE GROUND WITH YOUR HANDS OVER YOUR HEAD. CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR WATERSPOUTS TO FORM OVER THE ISLAND AREA. THESE CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED TO TERMINATE AROUND 1200 PM HST. THIS WILL BE THE FINAL STATEMENT UNLESS CONDITIONS REQUIRE FURTHER ISSUANCES. STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...LOCAL TV OR RADIO FOR FURTHER NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE INFORMATION. FARRELL NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU

HIGH WIND WARNING NUMBER 1 NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HONOLULU HAS ISSUED A HIGH WIND WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 400 PM HST FOR... THE SOUTHERN PORTION OF THE CENTRAL VALLEY OF MAUI...THE SOUTH SIDE OF THE WEST MAUI MOUNTAINS AND THSLOPES OF HALEAKALA ON MAUI AND... THE WAIKOLOA SLOPES OF THE BIG ISLAND FROM WAIMEA TO KAWAIHAI ...INCLUDING WAIKOLOA VILLAGE AND... A WIND ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT FOR STRONG AND GUSTY TRADE WINDS OVER ALL HAWAIIAN ISLANDS... A HIGH WIND WARNING MEANS THAT WINDS IN EXCESS OF 40 MPH OR GUSTS IN EXCESS OF 60 MPH ARE OCCURRING. PERSONS IN THE AFFECTED AREAS SHOULD TAKE NECESSARY PRECAUTIONS TO PROTECT PROPERTY. TIE DOWN OR MOVE LOOSE OBJECTS TO A SHELTERED LOCATION. SEVERAL TREES HAVE BEEN UPROOTED IN UPCOUNTRY MAUI AND MOTORISTS ARE LOSING CONTROL OF THEIR VEHICLES IN THE OLOWALU AREA JUST PAST THE TUNNELS ON THE ROAD TO LAHAINA. ONE VEHICLE HAS OVERTURNED THIS MORNING IN THIS AREA. REPORTS OF 40 TO 45 MPH WINDS WITH GUSTS TO 60 MPH WERE RECEIVED FROM PAUKA ON THE WAIKOLOA SLOPES OF THE BIG ISLAND. WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO CONTINUE IN THE 35 TO 45 MPH RANGE WITH GUSTS OVER 60 MPH THROUGH 400 PM HST AND POSSIBLY THROUGH... TUESDAY OVER THE AFFECTED PORTIONS OF MAUI. BRISK TRADE WINDS OF 20 TO 35 MPH WITH HIGHER GUSTS ARE FORECAST TO CONTINUE THROUGH TUESDAY OVER THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS. PERSONS IN AREAS EXPOSED TO THE STRONG WINDS SHOULD TAKE NECESSARY PRECAUTIONS TO PROTECT PROPERTY. TIE DOWN LOOSE OBJECTS OR MOVE THEM TO A SHELTERED LOCATION. MOST SUSCEPTIBLE AREAS ARE MOUNTAIN RIDGES AND VALLEYS ON THE LEE SIDE OF THE MOUNTAINS. THE STRONG WINDS ARE BEING CAUSED BY A LARGE HIGH PRESSURE SYSTEM NORTH OF THE ISLANDS. THE NEXT WARNING ON THIS EVENT WILL BE ISSUED BY 400 PM HST OR SOONER IF NECESSARY. FARRELL NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU

If it's not one thing out here, it's another... HIGH WIND WARNING NUMBER 4 NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI 830 AM HST TUE APR 4 2000 ...A HIGH WIND WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR ALL HAWAIIAN ISLANDS... A HIGH WIND WARNING MEANS THAT SUSTAINED WINDS GREATER THAN OF 40 MPH OR GUSTS GREATER THAN 60 MPH ARE OCCURING. TAKE NECESSARY PRECAUTIONS TO PROTECT PROPERTY..TIE DOWN OR SHELTER LOOSE OBJECTS. DRIVE WITH EXTRA CARE DUE TO BUFFETING AND POSSIBLE DOWNED TREES AND POWERLINES. AN INTENSE 1040MB HIGH NORTH OF THE STATE WILL CONTINUE TO SUSTAIN VERY STRONG TRADE WINDS OVER THE ISLANDS AGAIN TODAY. SUSCEPTIBLE AREAS ARE OVER HIGHER ELEVATIONS AND THRU DOWNWIND VALLEYS. THE HIGH SHOULD BEGIN TO WEAKEN TONIGHT AND SIGNIFICANTLY SO TOMORROW. THE HIGH WIND WARNING WILL LIKELY LOWER SOMETIME TONIGHT. THE NEXT ISSUANCE FOR THIS EVENT WILL BE AT 830 PM TONIGHT OR SOONER IF NEEDED. MATSUDA NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU

We now have cyclone Vaughan off the Queensland coast two days after cyclone Tessi - they have so much rain it is unbelievable. It is a category 2 at present but could increase.

Is this the BIGGER Wet? Heavens...when it rains, it really rains!!! Any Ark builders busy at work yet?!

Space Weather News for April 4-5, 2000 The interplanetary magnetic field in the vicinity of Earth turned southward on April 4. This condition often creates a weak point in our planet's magnetospheric shielding against the solar wind. Geomagnetic activity is currently high. If active conditions continue, observers in northern Europe, Canada, Alaska and the northern tier of US states could be in for a display of aurora borealis around local midnight on April 5 (when April 4 turns into April 5). The Moon is just one day past New, meaning that even very faint Northern Lights could be visible against tonight's dark skies. For more information see: http://www.spaceweather.com

Here is an updating central Europe map for you to bookmark. Very Special People are in Italy from time to time, and one is there now. I shall look at this with great frequency.

Excellently useful Marcia! I shall be in the centre of this map next weekend. Your timing is flawless. :-)

Must be the vibes, Mark. Have a pleasant journey and safe return. Now, I will have two gentlemen of great esteem on that little part of this Big Blue Marble. I shall be watching closely, as well.