Weather

NASA launched five rockets in five minutes early on Tuesday morning, as part of its ongoing ATREX mission to study the winds of the upper level jet stream. The rockets carry an onboard chemical which, when released, form clouds revealing wind patterns at outer reaches of Earth's atmosphere. And as you can see from the resulting photography, some striking cloud formations occurred.  Read More

Today's weather on HD 189733 b: It will be hazy with high wispy clouds. The wind will be steady from the east at speeds approaching 6000 miles per hour. Daytime temperatures will average a balmy 800 degrees C (1,472 degrees F), while the equatorial hot spot at 30 degrees longitude is expected to top 900 degrees C (1,652 degrees F). But, there is a high chance of silicate snow showers, with accumulations expected except in the vicinity of the hot spot.  Read More

Given that touch is generally the best way to determine how hot or cold something is - as long as it's not too hot or cold - Rob Godshaw has come up with a device that could provide a more immediately understandable representation of tomorrow's weather than the traditional abstract number coupled with simplified symbols seen on the nightly news. His invention is an aluminum cube called the Cryoscope that adds some haptic feedback to the daily weather forecast by letting users physically feel tomorrow's temperature - at least in their fingertips.  Read More

You have to admire the people who commute by bike – regardless of the weather – although riding in the rain seems to involve a choice between getting soaked, or wearing a lot of rain gear and still getting a wet face. Perhaps what such dedicated cyclists really need is a roof, side windows, and a windshield for their bikes. While that may sound like a joke, such a product does actually exist, in the form of the Veltop.  Read More

Hey, you wanna drive into a tornado? You could, if you've got somewhere over US$75,000 to spend on the right vehicle. That's the reserve price on the Tornado Attack Vehicle, which has just been put up for auction on eBay. The armored vehicle was made famous by storm chaser Steve Green, who used it in 2004 to become the first person to intentionally drive into – and survive – a tornado. If you're not the competitive type, you could even just "Buy it Now" for a cool $100,000.  Read More

We usually accept it as a given that we can't change the weather. When it comes to extreme situations like hurricanes or earthquakes, such disasters are labeled "acts of god" because we generally feel helpless to in the face of nature's wrath. But recently an ambitious Japanese manufacturing firm Ise Kogyo has boldly claimed that they can help weaken the impact of typhoons. And even more surprising, the company's weapon of choice is the submarine.  Read More

According to a study recently conducted at the University of Missouri, more and more people are paying for the chance to see tornados up close and personal. Mostly within the months of April through June, up to 1,200 tornadoes occur in the US every year. A large percentage of those storms occur in an area known as Tornado Alley, which is centered around the states of Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas – although it does extend east as far as Ohio, and north as far as North Dakota. Storm chasing tour outfits, many of which are run by or employ experienced meteorologists, will drive groups of paying “tornado tourists” across this region, in the hopes of witnessing severe weather firsthand.  Read More

AeroVironment has passed a critical milestone in the development of its Global Observer unmanned aircraft system (UAS). The company reports that the High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) aircraft has completed a series of Wing Load Tests at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center – proving that the aircraft's all-composite 175-foot wing can withstand the level of dynamic stress it will be subjected to at altitudes of between 55,000 and 65,000 feet.  Read More

Global Hawk, Northrop Grumman’s sophisticated unmanned high altitude surveillance aircraft is finding its niche in unexpected areas. In April, 2010, in consort with NASA, a Global Hawk fitted with scientific instruments completed 82.5 flight hours cruising at latitudes ranging from the Arctic Circle to just near the equator as part of an ongoing civilian research program known as GloPac, or Global Hawk Pacific Program, which aims to study atmospheric conditions over the Pacific and Arctic oceans.  Read More