I was truly shocked. I had a chat with AI about how much hotter it is on concrete, on blacktop, and on outdoor dirt paths. How much hotter is a blacktop parking lot surface than the “ambient air” temperature as reported.  I know that when I walk out of the supermarket or out of any […]

The sun rises over Eastern Boulder County at the Erie Balloon Festival. I arrived at 5:15 AM to make sure I did not miss part of the show! The rising sun lights the clouds where the hot air balloons are welcomed! Here we are at the third picture and so far not even one balloon! […]

Pool for cool or for a place to melt? It can be either. Even in the water we are being cooked in the microwave we call the “sun.” As the temperatures rise, the summer heat can pose serious dangers, especially when engaging in physical activities. It’s crucial to prioritize staying cool and avoiding heat-related illnesses […]

The Friday sunset was so interesting and beautiful that I’m sharing what I saw as a “sunrise” blog. Heavy virga is in the middle of the jumble of clouds. Virga would be rain, but when the humidity is low enough, it evaporates before hitting the ground. It falls from clouds and disappears into the sky […]

When I was re-born in Boulder in 1975, and for some decades after that, it was “common knowledge” that tornadoes could not form close to the front range. Generally it was thought by many that tornadoes West of I-25 were not possible. We KNOW that is wrong. Personally we’ve seen funnel clouds several miles South […]

The cycle of a flower and fruit’s life is integral to the beauty we watch as flowers form form buds, develop into flowers, yield fruit, and finally reach the end of their life cycle as drying color and dropping petals.                                                An Iris in full bloom, with the inner working plainly visible The life cycle […]

In Boulder, during hot afternoons, we see afternoon hailstones forming, some of which are baseball size! How does that happen? Large hailstones are a fascinating meteorological phenomenon that have puzzled scientists and captivated the public for centuries. The process of hailstone growth is a complex and intricate one, involving a delicate interplay of atmospheric conditions […]

Notice the higher banded clous and then the lower cumulus rounded clouds. It was the contrast between the two and the heavy banding that caught my attention. Taken from a red light through the windshield, a technique I do NOT recommend and which I would not admit. There are some basic rules (which have exception) […]

Is lightening really a dangerous Boulder phenomenon or is it just a GREAT light and sound show suitable for the concert stage? I’d name bands but it would too seriously date me. I have to avoid that because my wife does not let me date. Let’s look at the facts and not just the flash. […]

As recently as 10 years ago, Boulder weather reporting was reliable and precise. While Boulder Valley has always presented a prediction challenge, even in Boulder the question was more along the lines of demarcation of different areas of moisture, temperature and wind. BUT since then, weather prediction has been poor. Rain might come as predicted, […]