With the summer solstice quickly approaching, the sun’s elevation angle in the sky increases daily. Higher sun angle means more luminosity per square meter. Low sun angle produces fewer rays per square meter. More intensity means more heat and, therefore, higher temperatures. 

A common question one may ask is, “If the sun reaches its highest elevation in our sky on June 21st, why then is that not the hottest time of the year?” The answer is the oceans. The oceans store heat (high specific heat capacity), therefore actual changes in mean Earth temperature are delayed by several weeks, i.e. the hottest days of summer are usually in late July or early August, over a month from the summer solstice.

Below, a graphic which represents the sun’s zenith angle/elevation angle for a latitude of 50 degrees North at the winter and summer solitices and equinox. Hartford’s latitude is roughly 41 degrees North. This means you would have to subract 9 degrees from the zenith angle or add 9 degrees to the elevation angle to calculate how far above the horizon the sun would be in the sky at these times.

UV Index

The Ultraviolet (UV) Index is an international standard measurement of how strong the UV radiation from the sun is at a particular time on a particular day. To read the American Meteorological Society’s definition of ultraviolet radiation, click here. The UV index is a scale primarily used in daily forecasts aimed at the general public.
 

UV index is dependent on many variables, including stratospheric ozone, sun’s elevation angle, latitude, time of day, altitude, weather conditions, air pollution, and surface reflection. UV rays can be further broken down into UVA, UVB, and UVC.

UVA (long wave) – The aging rays are equally intense year round at any time of the day. UVA damage is linked to premature aging, weakened immunity and a predisposition to skin cancer.

UVB (medium wave) – The burning rays are strongest at midday. UVB rays are associated with premature again, weakened immunity and the development of skin cancer. About 10% reach the Earth’s surface.

UVC (short wave) – The strongest and most dangerous, are filtered out by the ozone layer.

When conditions are right, UV indices can make it into the very high (dangerous) range in Connecticut. To help reduce the sun’s harmful effects, try reducing sun exposure between 10 am - 4 pm, applying sunscreen with SPF 15 or higher every 2 hours when outside, wearing sunglasses with UV–A and UV–B protection, wearing a wide-brimmed hat, and using lip balm with SPF 15 or higher.

SPF

What is SPF? SPF refers to Sun Protection Factor and applies only to UVB radiation. It is a multiple of how much time you can stay in the sun without burning your skin. For example, if you normally burn without any sunscreen in 10 minutes, a sunscreen with an SPF 20 would allow you to stay in the sun for 200 minutes without burning.

Tanning

The skin’s first defense against UV rays is melanin, a chemical present in a variety of colors and concentrations in most people’s skin that helps with defense from the sun. UV rays act upon melanin, causing the melanin to spread out or grow, increasing its presence in response to the sun’s exposure. The result is a “sun tan”. The darker the skin color, the more melanin the skin has for protection. Hence, fair skinned people are most susceptible to burning.

Questions people frequently ask are, “When is the best time of day to tan?” “How do I get the best tan?” The sun’s rays are most intense from 10 am – 2pm when it is highest in the sky. Obviously, the absence of clouds during this time frame would be the ideal time to tan. As mentioned earlier, surface reflection plays an important role in what happens to the UV rays once they reach Earth’s surface. Wading waist deep in water would be far more conducive to receiving a tan over playing wiffle ball on a grass field. The green grass would absorb but not reflect the sunlight the way in which water does. Essentially, the rays from the incoming UV rays and the reflected rays from the ground are “tanning” you at the same time. Please keep in mind that too much sun exposure could lead to sunburns, eye damage such as cataracts, skin aging, and skin cancer.

Research also suggests that being physically active, which increases blood circulation, increases the amount of melanin that will be pulled to the surface of your skin. One of the papers may be viewed here.

Common Myths

“Tanning beds and sun lamps are a safe way to get a tan.” False. UVA is emitted from tanning beds and sun lamps at rates of up to 5 times as much as the sun!

“After years of being out in the sun and not taking sun safety precautions, would starting now make any difference?” Definitely. Research has shown that being “sun safe” regardless of what age, you can reverse some of the damage that has been done while also slowing the appearance of further sun–related skin damage.

“There is no need for protection on a cloudy day.” False. Up to 80% of the sun’s damaging rays go through light clouds, haze and fog.

“People with medium to dark skin never burn.” False. Although people with medium to darker skin tend to tan more easily than others, they can still get sunburns. They can also suffer from overexposure to UV-light. It is still important for these skin types to use sunscreens and avoid being in the sun longer than they need to be.

“I heard that in order to get a suntan you have to burn first.” False. Sunburn does not fade into a tan. Sunburn indicates over exposure to UV-light and actually damages the skin, leaving it inflamed (as indicated by the skin’s red coloring and sensitivity), dry, chapped and visibly unappealing. In fact, sunburn can lead to premature aging and potentially skin cancer. Always practice moderation when tanning and use the proper sunscreen protection when tanning outdoors.

The day has come that every meteorologist lives for. Accuweather has finally issued its yearly 2009 hurricane forecast. Now it gives us something to talk about until the end of hurricane season.

This years’ forecast looks strikingly similar to last years’. Joe Bastardi, Accuweather’s leading hurricane expert, predicted an increase of tropical storm presence from the Carolinas to New England. He was correct in that count - Hurricane Hanna and TS Cristobal.

I think it’s pretty funny that they say “probably more random activity” for the East Coast. Could you get any less specific?

He also predicted a normal year for the Gulf of Mexico. Texas seemed to be the punching bag for Mother Nature last year with three hurricane landfalls. Hurricanes Edouard, Dolly, and Ike (with Gustav in the neighborhood) did extreme damage to the Texas coast. I think he was a little off there.

Bastardi does know his stuff though. In 2007, he was found to have the most accurate hurricane forecast.

This year he is forecasting thirteen tropical storms to form, four hurricanes hitting the US, and one hitting the US as a major hurricane. This is a considerably less than previous years.

Stay tuned for the official 4cast4you Hurricane Forecast! Coming soon!

Anyone who lives in the Baltimore metro area watches them every day. Today we’ll face chief meteorologists from each local station off against each other. We’ll rank Vytas Reid from WBFF, Tom Tasselmyer from WBAL, Marty Bass from WJZ, and Norm Lewis from WMAR. You like them when they’re right, you hate them when they’re wrong… now lets see where they rank.

The meteorologists were ranked in three categories: delivery, credibility, and personality. An overall score was calculated by averaging the three scores. The scores are on a scale from 1-10, 10 being the best score possible. Without wasting anymore time…

Credibility
I think this is one of the most important categories. It is of great importance for a meteorologist to know what they are talking about when they are delivering their weathercast. Without a weather background, a weather anchor is nothing more than a news anchor doing the weather.

Marty Bass has been at WJZ for a long time, however he doesn’t have a weather degree. Vytas received his certification from Mississippi State after getting his Broadcast Communication degree from Indiana University. Tom is a graduated from North Carolina State with a B.S. in meteorology.

The nod has to go to Norm Lewis though. He got his training through the US Navy and was part of the Hurricane Hunter Squadron. He then went on to work at the National Hurricane Center.

Delivery
Enthusiasm for the weather is important when delivering a weathercast. Nothing is worse than a boring weather report. I don’t care if it’s sunny for the next five days, spruce it up and make it exciting.

Vytas adds some excitement to weathercasts with his personality, however holding back on the 7-day forecast loses some points. It’s probably not even his fault, but ‘teasing’ the 7-day is outdated (at least I think).

Tom Tasselmyer relays a very informative and interesting forecast each night. No matter what the weather, Tom is calm and collected and gives me exactly what I want: a good forecast.

Personality
Being comfortable in front of the camera will let you personality shine through. The audience is able to relate and get to know you even more. It is important for meteorologists to not talk down to their audience. That is something that would be hard to recover from.

Marty is able to show more personality since he is a morning guy. However, his “here, there, and everywhere” personality makes me watch him rather than his forecast.

Vytas shows off his smile each and every time he does a forecast. He allows the audience to step into his life by mentioning his family and friends. You can tell he is a fun guy simply how he acts on camera.

Overall
This was a tough decision. I tried to rate each meteorologist as fair as possible. Norm Lewis barely squeaked past Tom Tasselmyer as Baltimore’s Best Meteorologist.

Now we want to hear what you think.