Can We Survive Extreme Heat?

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Can We Survive Extreme Heat?

On a scorching day in downtown Phoenix, when the temperature soars to 115F or higher, heat becomes a lethal force. Sunshine assaults you, forcing you to seek cover. The air feels solid, a hazy, ozone-soaked curtain of heat. You feel it radiating up from the parking lot through your shoes. Metal bus stops become convection ovens. Flights may be delayed at Sky Harbor International Airport because the planes can’t get enough lift in the thin, hot air. At City Hall, where the entrance to the building is emblazoned with a giant metallic emblem of the sun, workers eat lunch in the lobby rather than trek through the heat to nearby restaurants. On the outskirts of the city, power lines sag and buzz, overloaded with electrons as the demand for air conditioning soars and the entire grid is pushed to the limit. In an Arizona heat wave, electricity is not a convenience, it is a tool for survival.

May 15, 2020 Morning

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Good morning! Yeah, it’s Friday! Could be a stormy one later on as often happens in May. Three weeks to 8:30 PM Sunset ️⛱️. Cloudy and 58 degrees in Delmar, NY. ☁ There is a south breeze at 8 mph. 🍃. The dew point is 52 degrees. The skies will clear tomorrow around 3 am. That said, it’s nice to sleep with the windows open all night.

I think I will go for a walk this morning 🚶 before work. Once my day gets underway I’ll take my wash down to the laundromat and get that done while working on my laptop in my truck. 👚 Besides washing my clothes, I want order those things that I couldn’t get at Wally World.

Today will have a chance of showers and thunderstorms, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after 5pm. Some storms could be severe, with heavy rain. Mostly cloudy 🌩, with a high of 78 degrees at 4pm. Nine degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around June 14th. Maximum dew point of 60 at 1pm. South wind 8 to 11 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. Always the disclaimer. Kind of cloudy summer’s day. A year ago, we had partly cloudy skies in the morning, which became light rain by afternoon. The high last year was 65 degrees. The record high of 93 was set in 1900.

Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:53 pm with sun having an altitude of 66.4° from the due south horizon (-4.4° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 2.6 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:31 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (291°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-northwest (297°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 8:12 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 14 seconds with dusk around 8:43 pm, which is one minute and 3 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:25 pm. At sunset, look for rain 🌧 and thunderstorms 🌩 and temperatures around 71 degrees. The dew point will be 60 degrees. There will be a west-southwest breeze at 14 mph. Today will have 14 hours and 38 minutes of daytime, an increase of 2 minutes and 4 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will have showers and possibly a thunderstorm before midnight, then a chance of showers. Some storms could be severe, with heavy rain. 🌩 Low of 54 degrees at 6am. Seven degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around June 6th. Maximum dew point of 61 at 7pm. 🏖️ Northwest wind 8 to 14 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible. In 2019, we had mostly clear skies in the evening, which became partly cloudy by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 48 degrees. The record low of 33 occurred back in 1980.

Tomorrow will be mostly sunny 🌞, with a high of 73 degrees at 4pm. Three degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around May 27th. Maximum dew point of 51 at 6am. Northwest wind around 9 mph. A year ago, we had partly cloudy skies in the morning, which became light rain by afternoon. The high last year was 69 degrees. The record high of 89 was set in 1991.

Looking ahead to Sunday, a slight chance of showers after 2pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 69. South wind 5 to 7 mph. ☁ Chance of precipitation is 20%. Maximum dew point of 50 at 4pm. Typical average high for the weekend is 70 degrees.

Tomorrow I think I will go hiking 🚶 probably at the back part of Thacher Park. ⛲ While the forecast has improved somewhat for Sunday but I’m not thinking it’s going to be a real nice weekend. ☁ I’m still chewing over Memorial Day Weekend but only if I can get Friday off an leave by dawn to get the best possible campsite. And it depends on the forecast a lot.

As previously noted, there are 3 weeks until 8:30 PM Sunset ️⛱️ when the sun will be setting at 8:29 pm with dusk at 9:04 pm. On that day in 2019, we had rain and temperatures between 83 and 55 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 75 degrees. We hit a record high of 97 back in 1925.

Catskill Creek Valley