When you are about a mile out in the Atlantic off of Ft. Lauderdale beach on a 14 foot Hobie Cat (small sailboat) water spouts are indeed something to be concerned about. So is lightning. When either came in my direction, I got out of the water.
Many people know that Florida has more lightning strikes than any other state. It also has the most tornados, but they are almost always an F1.
We lived about half a mile from the edge of the Everglades (a real big swamp) for 37 years before leaving Florida. I used to ride my bicycle out to the earth dam that separates the Glades from civilization often to watch or photograph the sunset. It is possible for a water spout to form over flooded ground, then turn into a tornado when it finds dry land, or sucks up most of the available water.
Dust Devils are not so common since the conditions that create the spinning air tend to involve rain, at least in Florida.
I have seen one firenado in my lifetime. They sometimes occur when lightning strikes dry ground in the few moments before the rain comes, usually over the swamp. Sometimes they spin up over an existing fire, which was usually started by lightning.
My only serious up close and personal encounter with any of these was being knocked unconscious by a nearby lightning strike while strapping my Hobie Cat to the trailer on the beach. A serious storm got me out of the water and headed home early.
I was putting the 20 foot aluminum mast in its cradle while standing barefoot on the wet sand. The next thing I know I'm lying on my back looking up at people asking if I was OK or "Is he dead?" I was about 5 feet from the boat. Lightning had struck the water tower across the street and induced enough voltage in my "antenna" to light me up.
Once I figured out what happened and recovered I hastened my exit. I went to the beach in the morning before my afternoon shift at Motorola nearly every weekday with decent wind. If I was still there when the paramedics got there I would have been late for work, or even in the hospital. I went to work as usual and the only side effects were a mild headache and a metallic taste in my mouth.
Many people know that Florida has more lightning strikes than any other state. It also has the most tornados, but they are almost always an F1.
We lived about half a mile from the edge of the Everglades (a real big swamp) for 37 years before leaving Florida. I used to ride my bicycle out to the earth dam that separates the Glades from civilization often to watch or photograph the sunset. It is possible for a water spout to form over flooded ground, then turn into a tornado when it finds dry land, or sucks up most of the available water.
Dust Devils are not so common since the conditions that create the spinning air tend to involve rain, at least in Florida.
I have seen one firenado in my lifetime. They sometimes occur when lightning strikes dry ground in the few moments before the rain comes, usually over the swamp. Sometimes they spin up over an existing fire, which was usually started by lightning.
My only serious up close and personal encounter with any of these was being knocked unconscious by a nearby lightning strike while strapping my Hobie Cat to the trailer on the beach. A serious storm got me out of the water and headed home early.
I was putting the 20 foot aluminum mast in its cradle while standing barefoot on the wet sand. The next thing I know I'm lying on my back looking up at people asking if I was OK or "Is he dead?" I was about 5 feet from the boat. Lightning had struck the water tower across the street and induced enough voltage in my "antenna" to light me up.
Once I figured out what happened and recovered I hastened my exit. I went to the beach in the morning before my afternoon shift at Motorola nearly every weekday with decent wind. If I was still there when the paramedics got there I would have been late for work, or even in the hospital. I went to work as usual and the only side effects were a mild headache and a metallic taste in my mouth.
Some years ago I was visiting friends in St. Louis, and around noon we went out to lunch.
It was just a little overcast at the time. We returned about 45 minutes later, and their next door
neighbor's house about 40 feet away had been completely demolished by a tornado, leaving
all the other houses untouched. There was no warning or siren at all.
It was just a little overcast at the time. We returned about 45 minutes later, and their next door
neighbor's house about 40 feet away had been completely demolished by a tornado, leaving
all the other houses untouched. There was no warning or siren at all.
Not enough pictures here guys!
I'm posting some of the current weather, and with some rowan trees.
Come on people, let's do a round of "todays weather pictures" or something, increase thread quality a bit!
I'm posting some of the current weather, and with some rowan trees.
Come on people, let's do a round of "todays weather pictures" or something, increase thread quality a bit!
Attachments
?? Seems routine? We put laundry outside most of the Maine winter. It may not get above freezing Jan-Feb. Yes, jeans get stiff and you don't dare fold them. I'm told my mother did the same in Colorado Springs when I was wee.
At our NJ house, in Morris Cty NJ they are doubling out the transmission lines. I think they are 360kV. I was chatting with one of the engineers the other day and he said that they use helicopters to string the high tension pylons. NJ was one of the first states electrified (thanks Thomas Alva Edison) but as a result 9% of the power is lost as heat.
Getting to green is going to take quite the investment in residential electrical service. The average EV requires about 40A for several hours to recharge, and this probably a few times per week. At least in NJ, most residences are set for 100A service, or with air condx 150A.
Mbe PRR can opine as he is quite knowledgeable in these affairs. Meanwhile we had a gorgeous autumn day with temps in the low 60's and sunny skies!
With regard to tornadoes, as kids my sister and I saw "The Wizard of Oz" circa 1964. For days afterward she would stand at the window of our bedroom (four kids in one room) and look out for impending tornadoes. Of course, she was looking to the east, and tornadoes generally migrate from the west.
> The average EV requires about 40A for several hours to recharge, .... residences are set for 100A service...
We pull 40A for an hour every laundry day.
If we had an EV we wouldn't drive it every day cuz we don't work.
I think an everyday EV is possible on most residences. The question is a WHOLE STREET of EV chargers. Here that would be 20 houses/street, 3 streets per town. In Morris County it could be hundreds of houses on dozens of streets. Is the Parsipany Power Station OK with that? And as you say, the 65,000V lines have to be re-jiggered at 1/3rd MegaVolts. (This whole state has two lines over 110KV, despite some long distances.)
We pull 40A for an hour every laundry day.
If we had an EV we wouldn't drive it every day cuz we don't work.
I think an everyday EV is possible on most residences. The question is a WHOLE STREET of EV chargers. Here that would be 20 houses/street, 3 streets per town. In Morris County it could be hundreds of houses on dozens of streets. Is the Parsipany Power Station OK with that? And as you say, the 65,000V lines have to be re-jiggered at 1/3rd MegaVolts. (This whole state has two lines over 110KV, despite some long distances.)
What kind of washing machine do you have that draws 40 amps? Do you have electric hot water?
My washing machine draws 10 amps @ 120 volts. I have the old fashioned gas powered hot water heater. The dryer (gas heated) and sump pump all operate on the same 20 amp circuit.
My washing machine draws 10 amps @ 120 volts. I have the old fashioned gas powered hot water heater. The dryer (gas heated) and sump pump all operate on the same 20 amp circuit.
I have ideas for mitigating the ever increasing peak demand on the grid. These ideas would require expensive infrastructure but would relieve peak demand. Homeowners could get tax credits and money back for electricity delivered to the grid.
But I'm retired, haven't worked at a "real" engineering job since the 1980s, and becoming more disabled by the day, so....
Pretty much every idea for this has been banded around in the last decade in 'smart grid' discussions. Some sensible, some daft, some just almost impossible to implement.
Not too far from here, it’s called Canada and it gets cold in the winter. One time when staying on a mountain as a child, a woman had forgotten her laundry on the line overnight.
Ya, I know you know where this is going. After punching the bedsheet and watching a section fall out, I had to go back to my parents and explain. No allowance that week as I remember. 🙂
Ya, I know you know where this is going. After punching the bedsheet and watching a section fall out, I had to go back to my parents and explain. No allowance that week as I remember. 🙂
Indeed. Meanwhile the problem continues to get closer every day. Something must be done.
Already people are getting solar power along with their Teslas. My neighbor has two Teslas and had an elaborate solar power system installed along with his upgraded electrical system and twin Tesla chargers 🙂 in his garage. I see a whole lot of solar installations in my neck of the woods, and a lot of Teslas.
People are spending the money. They get tax breaks when they do. You have to update the electrical system on a 70 year old house anyway. Electric cars can be programmed to give back power to the grid at peak hours and charge in off hours. I envision residential battery backups that charge in off hours and give back in the peak demand hours. Keeping the peak currents local greatly relieves the strain on the overall transmission grid.
Low tech stuff like pumping the water back up a hydroelectric dam during off peak hours, using excess generated electricity, makes a difference.
We don't have to reinvent the wheel to do this. We already have all the technology required to pull it off. The problem is already starting to solve itself, as people take matters into their own hands and upgrade their utilities. The biggest barriers by far are political, and economic.
Like I said been discussed to death over the last decade. The biggest problem, at least in the UK market, is that the whole supply demand system is build around large suppliers delivering to the grid at 400kV levels. Trying to balance the grid where, instead of ordering 100MW off a pumped storage system you drained a bit of 100,00 EVs distributed everywhere would required a total rethink.
The usual case quoted for peak demand is everyone turning on their kettles after a popular TV program has finished. If you have a smart house your EV could supply that peak flattening your demand but centrally controlling that would be a nighmare, not least that the whole grid is not setup for moving power from place to place at the low voltage end.
Peak demand in UK for electricity is 6pm. How many of these Teslas are still on the road at that point and unable to do anything useful anyway?
It'll get more fun as we are weaned off gas central heating in UK as well. Interesting problems and no simple way to get there.
The usual case quoted for peak demand is everyone turning on their kettles after a popular TV program has finished. If you have a smart house your EV could supply that peak flattening your demand but centrally controlling that would be a nighmare, not least that the whole grid is not setup for moving power from place to place at the low voltage end.
Peak demand in UK for electricity is 6pm. How many of these Teslas are still on the road at that point and unable to do anything useful anyway?
It'll get more fun as we are weaned off gas central heating in UK as well. Interesting problems and no simple way to get there.
Uncommonly mild and dry for the time of year and decamped to my Mum's house in Norfolk. Been chopping wood so Mum and Sister at least have some for the winter before the rains make things wet again. I think I was sawing up branches that had been sitting for 5 years as I kept forgetting to deal with them. Well seasoned and should burn nicely in her stove.
Now need to find an affordable hydraulic splitter for the eucalyptus logs. They are tough batsrads.
Now need to find an affordable hydraulic splitter for the eucalyptus logs. They are tough batsrads.
Talking of weather, we're having some. A Nor'Easter hit last night and is winding down at this point.
Today we experienced peak wind speeds of 80mph/130kmh and more than 442,000 households currently without power here in Massachusetts.
We've lucky today, power and internet are both working here, even here in Quincy there are a significant number of people without power.
My work laptop self-destructed today, no idea why. Replacement/repair tomorrow hopefully. Black screens and no boot on or off the dock
Today we experienced peak wind speeds of 80mph/130kmh and more than 442,000 households currently without power here in Massachusetts.
We've lucky today, power and internet are both working here, even here in Quincy there are a significant number of people without power.
My work laptop self-destructed today, no idea why. Replacement/repair tomorrow hopefully. Black screens and no boot on or off the dock
Sorry to hear about the laptop Kevin, but hey, you didn't lose power or take a lightning strike! We had the rain portion of that storm but not a lot of wind, an hour and a half north of you!
We are getting good rain and alternate calm and gusty winds. Some of the yardart blew around. A little worried about a maple RIGHT by the house which suddenly shed major branches this summer, it's got rot. I was going to take it out "soon" and have a 5/8 hi-strength rope on it.
Today we were expecting very high winds, yet Aeolus was totally absent. The forecast for tomorrow is for sun and calm late autumn weather.
Me and mamselle going on vacation tomorrow, we skipped last year. Forecast for our destination is 10 days of rain!!!!
Me and mamselle going on vacation tomorrow, we skipped last year. Forecast for our destination is 10 days of rain!!!!