Another snowstorm!

[Gob]

Sat through a day's cricket in 37c / 98f degree heat yesterday.

We were six rows in front of the Aussie Prime minister. (No I didn't hit him, and luckily he didn't try to shake my hand in passing.)

[Lord Jim]

(No I didn't hit him, and luckily he didn't try to shake my hand in passing.)

Lucky for him, indeed...

No telling where your hand has been...

[Big RR]

[Gob]

Scorching temperatures and an extreme bushfire risk are in store for Adelaide and much of South Australia as the United Nations global forecast predicts it will be the hottest city on earth.

The UN’s World Meteorological Organisation expects, if reached, Adelaide’s 46 degrees would be the world’s highest maximum temperature in a major population centre.

The city could post a temperature record, with the peak forecast, close to the 46.1 degrees reached in 1939. Other capital cities are also predicted to reach close to Adelaide, with Melbourne at 44 and Canberra 40

[Sue U]

Looks like lovely weather in Brisbane.

[Gob]

Sean will be along to tell us soon....

[TPFKA@W]

WE are getting another 4 inches on the ground today. Ready to move on to Spring now.

[oldr_n_wsr]

WE are getting another 4 inches on the ground today. Ready to move on to Spring now.

CanI expect the same in a few days? Seems to be the way it went in the past.

[Gob]

Well I listen to the weather
And he's changed his tone of voice
And he can see it on the radar
Only seven hours away
Well there's gonna be a snowstorm
When the t.v.'s goin out
And they got nothin else to think of
And they're letting me go home

Well I'm lookin at the snowflakes
And they all look the same
And the clouds are goin by me
They're playin some kind of game
Well you know there's a snowstorm
When the t.v. has gone out
And they got nothin else to think of
And they're letting me go home

[kristina]

WE are getting another 4 inches on the ground today. Ready to move on to Spring now.

Would you consider mailing any of it westward...we could use precipitation of any kind here on the Left Coast...

[TPFKA@W]

If there were anyway possible I certainly would indeed. there is more falling now.

[kristina]

Must be a good winter for the plow drivers!

[oldr_n_wsr]

Mixure of snow/rain tonight and tomorrow. Typical.

[TPFKA@W]

Lingering snow tonight then 4-5 inches of accumulation tomorrow. I grow weary of this.

[Gob]

Summary
Max 40
Hot. Chance of a storm.
Chance of any rain: 20%
Rainfall amount: 0 to 0.2 mm

Canberra area

Hot. Sunny morning. The chance of thunderstorms from afternoon with little or no rainfall. Light winds becoming northwesterly 20 to 30 km/h in the morning then shifting easterly 15 to 20 km/h in the evening.

WTF?

[Gob]

Photos I took of the rainless thunderstorm approaching;

[Lord Jim]

Brown declares California drought emergency

SAN FRANCISCO -- Gov. Jerry Brown on Friday declared a drought emergency in California as the state struggles with the least amount of rainfall in its 153-year history, reservoir levels fall and firefighters remain on high alert.

"We are in an unprecedented, very serious situation," said Brown, who asked California residents and businesses to voluntarily reduce their water consumption by 20 percent. "Hopefully, it will rain eventually. But in the meantime, we have to do our part."

The drought declaration also streamlines the rules for water agencies to transfer extra water from one part of the state to another, easing shortages. It also directs the state to hire more seasonal firefighters, limits the landscaping of highways and raises public awareness.

Brown was governor in 1976 and 1977, one of California's most severe dry periods in the 20th century. The most recent extended drought was from 1987 to 1992.

The last governor to declare a drought emergency was Arnold Schwarzenegger, who did so during a period of low rainfall in 2008 and 2009. Brown lifted that declaration in 2011 after a wet winter.

Asked how his prior experience as governor during a drought might help now, he replied, "I don't know that I kept my notebook from 1977."

However, the state won't hesitate to redirect whatever resources are necessary, Brown told reporters. "When the house is burning down," he said, "you have to pour water on the fire, and if that costs money, we'll spend money."

Although California has a Mediterranean climate and periodically experiences drought, current conditions are particularly dry.

The Sierra Nevada snowpack on Thursday was 17 percent of normal. And last year, most cities in the state received the lowest amount of rain in any living Californian's lifetime. The rainfall records go back to 1850.

For the past 13 months, a huge high-pressure ridge in the atmosphere has sat off the West Coast, diverting storms that normally would bring winter rain northward to Canada.

As a result, reservoir levels are low, farmers and ranchers are suffering, and fire danger is at an extreme level.

Brown's declaration generally won praise from Republicans and Democrats, environmental groups and farmers.

"It's entirely appropriate for the governor to declare a drought emergency, and we appreciate his timely action," said Paul Wenger, president of the California Farm Bureau Federation.

He called for more state spending on dams and reservoirs, which he hopes will be included in a water bond proposed for the November ballot.

"Farmers across California face wrenching decisions today, as well as in coming months," Wenger said. "Will they have enough water to plant crops, to water their livestock, and keep trees and vines alive?

"An additional concern is how many people they may have to lay off as a result of water shortages. Any way the state and federal governments can provide assistance in adding water to the system will help."

So far, farmers have been affected more by the dry conditions than most California residents.

Although many residents think that population growth is the main driver of water demand statewide, it actually is agriculture. In an average year, farmers use 80 percent of the water used by people and businesses -- 34 million acre-feet from a total of 43 million acre-feet that is diverted from rivers, lakes and groundwater, according to the state Department of Water Resources.

Most of the water goes to irrigate crops. Without rain, many farmers have been heavily pumping groundwater in the Central Valley, and some areas expect that thousands of acres of fields will be fallowed this summer.

In the Bay Area, large water districts that serve the majority of residents say they will wait until March or April to make a decision about whether to put mandatory restrictions in place. Those include the Santa Clara Valley Water District, the East Bay Municipal Utility District, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission and the Contra Costa Water District.

The reason for the delay, officials said Friday, is that many have water in storage and have been running conservation and rebate programs for years, so they are not in a crisis.

http://www.mercurynews.com/science/ci_2 ... erry-brown

Hey, we don't expect you folks in the mid-west and east to send us your precipitation for nothing...

How about we sweeten the pot by trading your waterfall for some of the long string of beautiful, temperatures in the mid seventies with a light breeze, days that we're currently experiencing?

Somebody needs to go off the coast and kick that high pressure system's ass...

[oldr_n_wsr]

You can have my rain but not my snow. I want to go to the Pa house and snowmobile. Been a while.

Good luck out there LJ. I think Feb is your big precipitation month. Hopefully it will come true. Just remember to look out for hte mudslides when it does come.