Capital Weather Gang

Forecast: Saturday and Sunday sunshine

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 05:00:00 -0500

Winds diminish, trending milder * Photo contest winners | El Niños and big snows * EXPRESS FORECAST Today: Mostly sunny. 50-55. | Tonight: Mostly clear. 28-34. | Tomorrow: Mostly sunny. 58-63. | A Look Ahead | Get Express Forecast by E-mail FORECAST IN DETAIL Our work week with incessant drizzle, clouds, and showers is mercifully over. On the menu for weekend is mostly sunshine. A chill will linger in the air today, but warmer temperatures arrive tomorrow. Unfortunately, the mild, sunny weather will be short-lived as unsettled weather returns early next week. Temperatures: Current area temperatures. Powered by Weather Bonk. Map by Google. Hover over and click icons for more info. Click and hold on map to pan. Refresh page to update. See map bigger on our Weather Wall. Today (Saturday): Dress warmly if you're headed out early this morning. Temperatures will only be in the 30s and factoring in

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Sat, 28 Nov 2009 05:00:00 -0500

Forecast: Blustery Black Friday; weekend sun

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 15:45:30 -0500

Cool with decreasing winds Saturday; warmer Sunday * Photo contest winners | El Niños and big snows * * Outside now? Radar, temps, clouds & more: Weather Wall * EXPRESS FORECAST Today: Windy. Partly to mostly cloudy. 20% chance of showers. Upper 40s. | Tonight: Breezy. Clearing skies. 30s. | Tomorrow: Partly to mostly sunny. Breezy a.m. Low-to-mid 50s. | Sunday: Mostly sunny. Upper 50s to near 60. | A Look Ahead | Get Express Forecast by E-mail FORECAST IN DETAIL Today's turbulent atmosphere will yield gusty winds and there's even a small chance of some flurries. The weekend weather looks much improved and, for a change, quite sunny. Though Monday could once again bring showers. So enjoy the chance to dry out while it lasts. Radar: Latest D.C. area radar loop shows movement of precipitation over past two hours. Powered by HAMweather. Refresh page to update. Click here or

Moderate El Niños often bring big snows

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 11:00:00 -0500

* Windy and chilly, but gradually drying out: Full Forecast * Our winter outlook, and several others that have been issued, are calling for better than average chances of a snowy winter because we're currently experience a weak to moderate El Niño event (an event characterized by warmer-than-normal sea-surface temperatures over the equatorial Pacific that can lead to shifts in weather worldwide). Our local National Weather Service Office in Sterling, Va. recently posted an article discussing the relationship between El Niño events and snow here. Here's an excerpt from the article along with a telling graphic: D.C. area snow during El Nino events compared to normal. Graphic courtesy National Weather Service. On average, the stronger the El Niño episode, the warmer and wetter the winters have been. These findings can largely be linked to a stronger than normal sub-tropical jet that typically occurs during moderate to strong El Niño winters,

Forecast: Continuing on the cloudy, damp side

Thu, 26 Nov 2009 09:25:00 -0500

But weekend will turn out to be sunny and dry * Photo contest winners | Reaction to hack of climate emails * EXPRESS FORECAST Today: AM fog. Mostly cloudy. Upper 50s. | Tonight: Cloudy. Showers possible. 38-42. | Tomorrow: Cloudy. Gusty breezes. A few showers possible. Upper 40s. | A Look Ahead | Get Express Forecast by E-mail FORECAST IN DETAIL Granted, "nice" weather is subjective, but here's the proverbial bad news: clouds will dominate over the next 48 hours, with occasional chances for showers -- though I don't expect all that much rain will fall. The good news? High pressure takes hold over the weekend, which will produce lots of sunshine and dry conditions. With the exception of our breezy chill tomorrow, temperatures will remain at generally above-average levels through early next week. Radar: Latest D.C. area radar loop shows movement of precipitation over past two hours. Powered by

PM Update: Drizzle dries up; Any Turkey Day sun?

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 21:20:30 -0500

A little warmer tomorrow with shower threat by evening * Dense Fog Advisory until 9 a.m. Thursday * * Photo contest winners | Reaction to hack of climate emails * * Outside now? Radar, temps & more: Weather Wall | Traffic * Morning drizzle -- in some places soaking at times -- dried up during the afternoon as highs made the mid-50s. Partly cloudy skies this evening, as opposed to the overcast that lasted much of the day, are a sign of better weather to come for Thanksgiving Day. Don't get too used to the dry weather, though, as rain threatens again by tomorrow evening into the first part of a wind-blown Black Friday. Webcam: Latest view of D.C. from the Netherlands Carillon at Arlington National Cemetery. Courtesy National Park Service. Refresh page to update. See this image bigger on our Weather Wall. Through Tonight: Clouds show some breaks as

Forecast: Drizzle hampers holiday getaway

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 10:00:30 -0500

Temporarily drier for Thanksgiving; A gusty Black Friday * See winning photo contest pics | Climate email scandal interviews * * Radar, temps, clouds & more: Weather Wall | Travel updates * EXPRESS FORECAST Today: Mostly cloudy. Periods of drizzle/occasional shower. Mid-to-upper 50s. | Tonight: Partly cloudy. Late-night fog/mist. Low-to-mid 40s. | Tomorrow: Partly to mostly cloudy. Chance of late-day showers. Upper 50s to near 60. | A Look Ahead | Get Express Forecast by E-mail FORECAST IN DETAIL With no major storm affecting the mid-Atlantic or Northeast, today won't be as bad as some getaway days have been for those heading toward or away from D.C., be it on I-95, I-270/I-70, I-66/I-81 or Rt. 50. That said, more of that pesky drizzle -- and some showers, especially along I-95 from Baltimore to New York -- could slow things down. The drizzle breaks for Thanksgiving Day, though showers may return

PM Update: Damp for Thanksgiving getaway

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 15:15:44 -0500

Periods of drizzle and a shower or two on Wednesday * Photo contest winners | Climate scientist criticizes skeptics, press * * Outside now? Radar, temps & more: Weather Wall | Traffic * Our cloudy and damp stretch is two days strong now and is not ready to let up quite yet. After rain continued into last night, today has been drier by comparison, but areas of drizzle have plagued much of the region throughout. Highs mainly in the low-to-mid 50s are right around average for this time of year. Winds from the north and east will help keep drizzle or light showers in the forecast at least into tomorrow afternoon. Webcam: Latest view of D.C. from the Netherlands Carillon at Arlington National Cemetery. Courtesy National Park Service. Refresh page to update. See this image bigger on our Weather Wall. Through Tonight: If you like clouds and periods of drizzle,

Climate scientist criticizes skeptics, press

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 12:15:30 -0500

* Thanksgiving weather? Full Forecast | See photo contest winners * The climate science email scandal known to some as "climategate" continues to reverberate throughout the climate science and policy communities. Since the story broke late last week that the University of East Anglia's servers had been hacked into, spilling hundreds of personal emails between prominent climate scientists onto the Web, scientists and political leaders have been weighing in on the significance of the information contained in the emails. Reporters and bloggers have been combing through the emails, which have motivated staunch climate skeptic Senator James Inhofe (R-Okla.) to call for an investigation of the Nobel Peace Prize-winning U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). In one of the messages, Phil Jones, who heads up Britain's government-run Hadley Centre for Climate Prediction and Research, alluded to a "trick" that a colleague performed to analyze historical temperature data. For more background

2009 CWG photo contest: Top 10 picks

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 10:00:30 -0500

Wx and the City * Drizzly for Thanksgiving getaway: Full Forecast | Climate scandal * One of this year's top 10 photo picks. Key Bridge in the fog. Taken by Bill Jonscher in December 2008. The results are in for Capital Weather Gang's 2009 annual photo contest. It was a tough decision. We received 59 submissions, which depicted four seasons and many types of weather from cities, the countryside and coasts throughout our region. Some were scientifically interesting; others were aesthetically pleasing; all showed an appreciation of the sky. Thanks to everyone who participated! Keep reading for rest of the Gang's top 10 picks. To view all submissions, visit our photo gallery.

Forecast: Cloudy & cool conditions continue

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 10:00:00 -0500

Drizzle chances thru tomorrow, Thanksgiving showers? * Science historian on climate scandal | Weather Wall * * Later: Another scientist on climate scandal * EXPRESS FORECAST Today: Morning drizzle/light rain. Mostly cloudy afternoon. 51-55. | Tonight: Mostly cloudy, some drizzle possible, especially late. 43-47 | Wednesday: More clouds, some drizzle. 55-59. | A Look Ahead | Get Express Forecast by E-mail FORECAST IN DETAIL November has been chock full of clouds and onshore (from the east) flow with plenty of moisture. In fact, 10 of the 23 days of November so far have seen onshore flow in the region. This week is offering us a lot more of that. Look for clouds and drizzle this morning, perhaps a break this afternoon and evening, and then more chances tonight and Wednesday. And Thanksgiving? Well, it should be our warmest day of the week, but showers are still possible (sorry). Radar: Latest

PM Update: Work week off to wet start

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 15:15:21 -0500

Rainy into evening; Patchy drizzle on Tuesday * Science historian on climate e-mails | Cruising the Atlantic * * Outside now? Radar, temps & more: Weather Wall | Traffic * As Jason Samenow mentioned this morning, we're back into a damp and dreary stretch, and it looks like it lasts most of the week. Cloudy skies of this morning eventually brought light rain to much of the area, which will continue at times into the evening. Highs near 50 occurred late morning most spots before rain knocked pretty much everyone back into the upper 40s. A wind from the north and east has added to the rawness by lowering wind chills near 40 at times. Radar: Latest regional radar shows movement of precipitation over past three hours. Powered by HAMweather. Refresh page to update. Click here or on image to enlarge. Or see radar bigger on our Weather Wall. Through

Science historian reacts to hacked climate e-mails

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 11:00:15 -0500

* Damp Thanksgiving week: Full Forecast | Cruising the Atlantic * A scandal erupted in the world of climate science late last week after anonymous hackers posted years worth of selected private email correspondence between a handful of prominent climate scientists. The emails were stolen from a server at the University of East Anglia's Climate Research Unit in Britain. Climate skeptics -- those who either doubt the mainstream consensus that Earth has warmed during the past century or who doubt human influence is the primary cause of any warming -- have seized upon the contents of the emails as evidence that mainstream climate scientists have been involved in a conspiracy to block those with alternative views from publishing papers in academic journals, in addition to other allegations. Although the personal emails do not provide any scientific evidence that would counter the scientific consensus that human emissions are altering the climate

Forecast: Cloudy, damp & raw Thanksgiving week

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 11:00:05 -0500

Sunshine possibly returns next weekend * Radar, temps, clouds & more: Weather Wall | E-mail this forecast * * Science historian on climate scandal | Sea & sky over the Atlantic * EXPRESS FORECAST Today: Periods of light rain/drizzle. 47-51. | Tonight: Chance of light rain/drizzle. 44-47. | Tomorrow: A.M. drizzle, then mostly cloudy. 50-54. | A Look Ahead | Get Express Forecast by E-mail FORECAST IN DETAIL We seem to be alternating between generally sunny and dry stretches and cloudy and damp stretches. The weekend brought an end to a sunny one so now we begin another which will be cloudy. Regrettably, this cloudy, cool, and damp stretch may extend right on through Thanksgiving. Early indications, however, are that a sunny period may come back for next weekend. Radar: Latest regional radar shows movement of precipitation over past three hours. Powered by HAMweather. Refresh page to update. Click here

Forecast: Sunday sun fades to work-week worry

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 14:45:00 -0500

* Outside now? Weather Wall | Friend CWG on Facebook * EXPRESS FORECAST Today: Partly to mostly sunny. 57-60. | Tonight: Cloudy, chance of light rain late. 40-44. | Tomorrow: Cloudy, chance of rain. 48-52. | A Look Ahead FORECAST IN DETAIL We may be able to salvage one more pleasant day before a combo of systems tries to put a damper on our shortened work week. Skies will be partly to mostly sunny and pleasant overall -- similar to yesterday. After another shot of rain on Monday, uncertainty builds in the forecast details through Thanksgiving. One thing is more certain though, and that's that the whole of it will incorporate the chance of light showers and a good amount of gray. Temperatures: Current area temperatures. Powered by Weather Bonk. Map by Google. Hover over and click icons for more info. Click and hold on map to pan. Refresh

Forecast: Some Saturday sun and sixty

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 13:00:00 -0500

Clouds slowly settle in Sunday * Sea & sky over the Atlantic | Under Pressure by Air Pressure? * EXPRESS FORECAST Today: Partly to mostly sunny. 59-63. | Tonight: Mostly clear. 38-45. | Tomorrow: Increasing clouds. 53-57. | A Look Ahead | Get Express Forecast by E-mail FORECAST IN DETAIL We're looking at a pretty nice late fall weekend. Sunshine will radiate through the skies today, and though clouds increase tomorrow, odds are increasing it will remain dry. The ugly, damp weather may wait to arrive until Sunday night and Monday. Temperatures: Current area temperatures. Powered by Weather Bonk. Map by Google. Hover over and click icons for more info. Click and hold on map to pan. Refresh page to update. See map bigger on our Weather Wall. Today (Saturday): No doubt the day will start off chilly, with 30s in many suburbs. But sunshine, filtered at times by clouds,