February 17, 2017 6 PM Update

“The sun has set on another work week. I had a few things after five to finish up at work but now I’m heading home. Today was fairly day cold but a warm up is expected for the weekend. “

Happy Weekend! Mostly clear and 29 degrees in City of Albany. There is a west-northwest breeze at 8 mph.

Tonight will be mostly cloudy, with a low of 21 degrees at 1am. Three degrees above normal. West wind 5 to 8 mph becoming light and variable. In 2016, it got down to 16 degrees with periods of snow. The record low of -21 occurred back in 1973.

Waning Gibbous Moon tonight with 54% illuminated. The moon will rise around 10:34 pm. The Last Quarter Moon is on Saturday night with mostly cloudy skies expected. The Full β€œWorm” Moon is on Sunday, March 12th. The sun will rise at 6:47 am with the first light at 6:18 am, which is 1 minutes and 27 seconds earlier then yesterday. Tonight will have 13 hours and 15 minutes of darkness, a decrease of 2 minutes and 45 seconds over last night.

Tomorrow will be mostly sunny, with a high of 46 degrees at 3pm. 11 degrees above normal. South wind 6 to 9 mph. A year ago, we had snow and a high of 30 degrees. The record high of 63 was set in 1981. 6.3 inches of snow fell back in 2000.

Should be a very nice day. I should get out skiing or doing something fun. It’s going to be quite nice weather this weekend. 

In four weeks on March 17 the sun will be setting at 7:04 pm (Daylight Savings Time), which is 1 hour and 34 minutes later then tonight. In 2016 on that day, we had fog, rain, thunderstorm and temperatures between 61 and 38 degrees. Typically, you have temperatures between 45 and 26 degrees. The record high of 75 degrees was set back in 1990.

Looking ahead, St. Patrick’s Day is a month away, Good Friday is in 8 weeks, Patriots Day is in 2 months, Arbor Day is in 10 weeks, Cinco de Mayo is in 11 weeks and Memorial Day Weekend is in 14 weeks.

February 17, 2017 8 AM Update

“Well soon you’ll have a chance to make your weekends great again with tomorrow being a Saturday and a long weekend to follow at least with businesses that close in observation of President’s Day, as we look back to the era when we had somewhat competent presidents.”

26 degrees under more sun then earlier as we head up to around 33 degrees later. Partly sunny today but about 10 degrees warmer tomorrow. Less wind later which should make things feel less cold.

The sun will set at 5:30 pm with dusk around 5:59 pm, which is 1 minute and 17 seconds later than yesterday. Today will have 10 hours and 43 minutes of daylight, an increase of 2 minutes and 44 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will be mostly cloudy, with a low of 16 degrees at 6am. Two degrees below normal. West wind 5 to 8 mph becoming south after midnight. In 2016, it got down to 16 degrees with periods of snow. The record low of -21 occurred back in 1973.

There isΒ oneΒ month until St. Patrick’s Day when the sun will be setting at 7:05 pm with dusk at 7:33 pm (Daylight Savings Time). Friday, St Patrick’s Day is a good day for drinking green beer, especially when you don’t work on Saturdays. The average high temperature is 45 degrees, with a record high of 70 in 1995. Maybe by then if my weekends are free enough I can get camping. Certainly they are predicting above average temperatures for Saint Patrick Day.

Looking forward to the long weekend,Β although my plans are far from finalized. It’s possible that I will go camping locally one night, but I’m not sure with all the snow everywhere and the difficult of setting up in the snow. I do want to go skiing. I got clean out my truck, get it dug out of the snow and make that wiring change to improve the power I’m getting to the dash cam. One of those days, I’m thinking about Cross Country Skiing at Schodack Island State Park, which is great because it’s flat and relatively close to home — and along the river, you can definitely see a lot of birds and wildlife — especially now that the river is once again unfrozen. I like Hannacroix Preserve, but with the hills, that’s better for snow shoes. Sunday or Monday, I’m thinking the Kaaterskill Rail Trail and North South Lake Campground for cross-country skiing.

NYS Local Unemployment Rate, December 2016

This interactive map shows the 160 communities where Local Area Unemployment Statistics are generated. All 62 counties in New York have an unemployment rate calculated monthly, along with the 98 cities, towns, and villages with a population greater then 25,000. Monthly numbers are not seasonally adjusted, and in some regions of the state unemployment rises during certain periods of the year. You should only compare like months (e.g. October 2015 vs October 2016). You can download the data going back to 1970s here: https://www.labor.ny.gov/stats/LSLAUS

February 17, 2017 Morning

“Cold but increasingly sunny start to our Friday. Nicer weather is expected for the weekend.” 

Good morning! Yeah, it’s Friday! Four weeks to St. Patrick’s Day. Partly cloudy and 17 degrees in Delmar, NY. There is a west-northwest breeze at 14 mph. The current wind chill is 3. Kind of a cold start to our Friday. 

Today will be mostly sunny, with a high of 33 degrees at 2pm. Two degrees below normal. Northwest wind 10 to 15 mph. A year ago, we had snow and a high of 37 degrees. The record high of 60 was set in 1981. 11.9 inches of snow fell back in 2003.