First off, we have some bookkeeping to do. When last you read this column, I referenced the eight days in a row with temps 80 or higher that had occurred in Caribou. I remarked that that was quite an unusual occurrence.
Well, guess what? We ended up tacking on two more 80s, for a run of TEN days in a row with temps 80 or higher in Caribou. Now here’s the key part: That had not happened in the entire period of record! The entire period of record! (Weather data began being recorded in Caribou in 1939).
So, I did some rough math and figured there’d be about 8,300 days in the 76 years of records we have, where such a streak *could* have occurred, and again, it had not happened until this run, the dates of which were August 14th, through the 23rd (and oh by the way, the 24th and 25th were close, 79 and 78, respectively!)
Switching gears, I recently had a meeting with representatives of the National Weather Service. One of their ongoing initiatives is to make dangerous weather alerts easier to understand. I told them that one of my initiatives is to bring sky clue training to a younger audience. I find that the “weather” which is taught to elementary-age children through grade 6, does not have a strong component of teaching them how to interpret sky clues. And those clues are easy to see and understand. Even for a third- or fourth-grader!
I’ve know I’ve written about it before, but it is a true passion project. I’d say fourth-, and probably third-graders are old enough to learn how to detect, through simple observation, dangerous weather they should avoid, or even advise their parents to avoid weather danger, like saying, “Mom! Dad! We can’t drive through that water! It’s flowing over the road, and it will sweep the car into the stream!” (The child would be correct!. It takes only *shin-deep* flowing water to move any vehicle into a raging stream!)
Incidentally, since I am talking about teaching, if you are a weather enthusiast, come on out on a Monday or Wednesday from 12:30 to 1:45 p.m. to sample my weather class at UMPI. It is held in Folsom Hall, room 205. You may wish to sign up, if there are still spots open to take the class. The course is FREE, offered through UMPI’s OpenU initiative. If it is filled, you can always sign up next term, since the course is offered every term. It is a standard 16 week course, and you’ll come away with super-useful tips you can use in your everyday life!
The person to contact if you are interested in signing up for the class, is Pam Easler at 768-9450.
Ted Shapiro holds the Broadcast Seal of Approval from both the American Meteorological Society and the National Weather Association. An Alexandria, Va. native, he has been chief meteorologist at WAGM-TV since 2006. Email him at tshapiro@wagmtv.com.
