Tarantula Mating Season Means Fall Is On It's Way
By: Christina Loren
Friday, August 21, 2015
It is late August and tarantula mating season has started in the Bay Area. Male California Tarantulas are
looking for love and instead of waiting for the cloak of nightfall, these nocturnal critters are coming out earlier, in the twilight of dusk. I saw this one on a a hiking trail in the South Bay hills. Tarantula mating season typically takes place late summer into early fall and after 5-8 years of maturing in solitude,
males are on the prowl to reproduce with female mates. These large hairy spiders should be approached with caution although they are not looking to harm humans. They have one thing on their mind and that is reproduction. When I encountered this one it stopped in the middle of the trail and remained completely still until I moved along. Male tarantulas are searching for the females silk-lined burrows. Hopefully this guy was able to find one later in the night. What is interesting is that after male tarantulas find a mate they only live for an
additional 3-6 months whereas females can live for another 25 years. Tarantulas are most commonly seen by humans in the high elevation trails, roads, and even gardens of the Bay Area.
Labels: Christina Loren, christinaloren, Fall, Hills, mating season, South Bay, Summer, Tarantula
posted by Unknown @ 12:33 PM,
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A Simple Explanation of How Hurricanes are Named
By: Christina Loren
Thursday, August 20, 2015
Tropical storms and hurricanes are capable of devastating large populations and destroying wide swaths of property. Although the National Hurricane Center does the heavy lifting of forecasting and tracking tropical cyclones in the United States, they are not responsible for the names that these powerful storms receive. Instead, the World Meteorological Organization is in charge of naming tropical storms and hurricanes. Tropical depressions do not get names unless they strengthen and develop and meet certain criteria. Simply stated, a storm must have max wind speeds of 39 mph or more around a closed center of circulation in order to reach tropical storm strength and receive a name. If max winds reach 74 mph or more around a closed low, the storm is then upgraded to a hurricane.
During hurricane season it is not uncommon for multiple tropical cyclones to occur at the same time. Assigning names to these powerful systems helps to eliminate confusion and eases keeping tabs on the track and intensity of each storm. That is why the WMO creates a list of names in alphabetical order that can be repeated after a six year interval. However, when a storm is exceptionally destructive, such as Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Andrew, the name is retired.
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| Hurricane Irene August 20, 2011 - August 28, 2011 |
Labels: Andrew, Christina Loren, christinaloren, Hurricane Season, Hurricanes, Katrina, Named, NHC, Tropical Storms, Weather, WMO
posted by Unknown @ 1:28 PM,
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What is El Niño?
By: Christina Loren
Wednesday, August 12, 2015
An interesting meteorological phenomenon that dictates weather conditions for a given area is the influence of coastal winds on ocean currents. In the open ocean surface currents are directly impacted by global wind patterns. Simply stated, El Niño describes a change in trade wind patterns leading to unusually warm ocean currents in the Pacific Ocean. This alteration in surface ocean temperature has a tendency to create extreme weather changes, specifically between October through March, with peak conditions from December through February. Some of the impacts typically associated with El Niño are a lack of precipitation for parts of Indonesia and Australia and the development of strong storms packed with ample moisture that tend to aim at California and areas in the southwestern United States. Although these effects are characteristic of a strong El Niño pattern, there is no guarantee that this year's event will produce the flooding rain we saw in 1997-1998 in California. In the same way that no two storms are the same, no two El Niños are the same either. There are other atmospheric variables at play that will likely influence how this year's rain season will pan out. Nonetheless, I would be willing to bet that El Niño will at the very least provide the state of California with average rainfall for the 2015-2016 rainy season.
Labels: Christina Loren, christinaloren, Currents, Drought, El Nino, El Niño, Flash Flood, Flooding, Heavy Rain, Meteorology, Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Weather
posted by Unknown @ 12:27 PM,
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Wild Weather at 10,023 feet on the Haleakala Shield Volcano
By: Christina Loren
Friday, August 07, 2015
The summit of Haleakala is 10,023 feet above sea level and a stunning location to watch the sunrise. Haleakala is a shield volcano and formed over 75 percent of the island of Maui. The weather at the summit of Haleakala changes rapidly and on any given day the weather can vary dramatically from sunny and hot to rainy and cool in a matter of minutes. There is typically a 30º difference between temperatures at the summit of Haleakala vs. the temperature on the coast. Rain is common on the volcano so if you plan on visiting it is a good idea to prepare for a variety of differing weather conditions and rain gear as well as sun glasses will likely serve you well on the same trip.
Christina Loren on Vine:
https://vine.co/Christina.Loren
Sunrise from the summit of Halakeala at 10, 023 feet at 5:50 a.m.
The Shadow of the mountain paints a purple haze at sunrise on top of Haleakala.
Labels: Christina Loren, christinaloren, Haleakala maui, Haleakala National Park, Mauilife, Shield Volcano, Sunrise, volcano
posted by Unknown @ 12:50 PM,
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