Howard Bernstein's Blog

Ida Downgraded To A Tropical Depression, But Her Rains Will Linger For A Couple Of Days

HowardBernstein — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:48:00 GMT

Ida won't be remembered for her Tropical-ness(I just made that word up), but her rains may be another story. The remnants of Ida will spin across the Southeast into the mid-Atlantic. For DC, it'll be a close call, but the heaviest rainfall should stay south of the Metro with lighter amounts as you go North. There could be quite a difference in rainfall with Frederick, MD getting perhaps 1/4" or less over the next 2 days with Fredericksburg, VA getting 1"-2" over that same period. Rainfall totals will be even higher in Richmond and Norfolk.

It will also be kind of raw with temps only in the mid 50s and a stiff Northeast wind between 10 and 20 mph. The good news is that the weekend still looks good with highs back into the 60s.

Finally, Happy Birthday to the U.S. Marine Corps....234 years ago today.

A Beautiful Monday...Will Ida's Remnants Hit Us Midweek?

HowardBernstein — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 12:45:00 GMT

We're in for another great day today with sunshine and highs in the 70s. But, today will be the last nice day for a while. Clouds will be around on Tuesday and a cold front will slide across as well. Temps on Tuesday will be about 10 degrees cooler than today. By Wednesday, the remnants of Ida may affect us. There are 2 scenarios here. 1) Ida's remnants turn into a strong area of low pressure that rides up the coast as a Nor'easter and we have a miserable Wed-Thu with rain, wind and temps only in the low 50s. 2) Low pressure forms but stays south and then east of us, so that we miss the Nor'easter.....either way, cooler days are ahead and I'll have a much clearer picture of midweek by tomorrow.

Click the image for wusa9.com's Tropical Pages

Freeze Warning Tonight, But A Great Weekend Ahead

HowardBernstein — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 10:56:00 GMT

It'll be a chilly and breezy Friday. Even though we'll have a good deal of sun, temps will only top off in the lower 50s. Tonight, as winds die down, temps will drop quickly. Lows will drop into the 20s and 30s tonight and those areas east of I-95, where there has yet to be a killing frost, are under a FREEZE Warning through 8 AM Saturday. After the chilly start on Saturday, we'll warm to around 60. Sunday will be even warmer and an absolutely beautiful day with highs in the upper 60s.

The chat room is open though the Noon broadcast this Friday at http://www.wusa9.com/weather/howards_chatroom.aspx.

Clouds To Start The Week....

HowardBernstein — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 10:25:00 GMT

After a mostly cloudy weekend, we have more clouds lingering for this Monday. The better chance for sunshine will be west of DC, with more clouds East. The upper level winds have flattened out across the US so we don't have any big storms. This zonal flow will also bring a couple of fronts through us this week, but moisture will be limited. So, after today, expect more sunshine and a cool week with highs in the 50s (60s Tue) until the weekend which actually looks dry and mild with highs in the 60s.

The chat room is open weekdays from 4 AM at http://www.wusa9.com/weather/howards_chatroom.aspx .

I'm Fighting Back and Boycotting Dan Snyder....

HowardBernstein — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 09:26:00 GMT

The latest action by Dan Snyder and that alleged football team that plays in Maryland but claims to be from DC has me fuming. After the "Sign Nazis" confiscation of anything not positive (including a woman's sign saying 'HI' to her husband who is in stationed in Afghanistan), the owner has now forbid the media from interviewing fans at the stadium. Are you kidding me? This is a case study in what not to do. A case study in how to further alienate your customers and possibly a case study in how to do long term damage to your business.

So, I now REFUSE to include any logos or helmets that would include the alleged football team that plays in Maryland but claims to be from DC...I REFUSE to promote that indirectly or be a party to such insanity.

I think that the fans need a release for their frustration and that the signs are one of them. What about a Dan Snyder Doll in Effigy that could be bashed for a fee? The team could charge 5 or 10 bucks and then donate the money to charity. Snyder could have fun at his own expense and raise funds for charity, but instead he chooses the wrong path. Pathetic!

More Rain & Redksins Thoughts...

HowardBernstein — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 10:01:00 GMT

One area of low pressure brought us rain overnight into this morning. As that Low pulls away, we'll see a lessening in the shower activity, but more rain will arrive later today into tonight as another area of low pressure comes at us from the Gulf Coast. The rain should diminish early Thursday morning. Temperatures will also struggle to be near 60 for highs the next couple of days.

Like our weather, the Redskins are another gloomy subject. It is sad to see what they have been diminished to. I have "managed my expectations" by expecting a loss. That way, when they lose, I'm not too disappointed. On a separate note, the 'Skins have been confiscating signs from fans. I sort of get where there may be some sensitivity by ownership to negative signs, but one of the signs was from a woman who was saying 'HI' to her husband stationed in Afghanistan. That one, I just don't understand. Seemingly another bad call in a string of questionable decisions by ownership.

Finally, I ask 'Skins fans, why are you still going to FedEx Field, given the onwership's treatment of the fans and the "on field" product? I really would love some serious explanations so that I can better understand this.

Thanks,
Howard

P.S. The chat room is open daily in the morning at http://www.wusa9.com/weather/howards_chatroom.aspx

One More Nice Day, Then We Head Downhill Late Friday Into Saturday....

HowardBernstein — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 08:58:00 GMT

Hello Again! I've been off for a week. I was out of town for the cold and wet weather of this past weekend, but what a beauty we had on Wednesday. National topped out at 75, Dulles hit 77.

Today will be another nice Fall day with highs in the mid to upper 70s. Friday will feature more clouds and the threat of showers by late afternoon that will be on and off through Saturday night.

The chat room is open through the Noon Broadcast at http://www.wusa9.com/weather/howards_chatroom.aspx.

Nice Today, Then Clouds and Rain Move In For The Rest Of The Week

HowardBernstein — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 09:08:00 GMT

Today will be the nicest day of the week, by far! With some sunshine and milder temps, it will be, as Topper Shutt says "golf-able". But our weather will go steadily downhill after today. Clouds increase tomorrow and we could see a few showers by late afternoon, mainly south and west of DC. Thursday will be another cool day with showers and then steadier rains are likely Friday-Sunday. It will also be cool through the period with highs running in the upper 40s to low 50s. Keep in mind that the average highs now are still in the upper 60s.

On the plus side, we need the rain. Final thought, if you plan to use some "winterizing" fertilizer, today would be a good day to put it down.

The chat room is open thru 10 AM at http://www.wusa9.com/weather/howards_chatroom.aspx .

This Week Starts Dry, Finishes Wet

HowardBernstein — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 08:54:00 GMT

The week, like the month so far, will start dry. Through midnight on the 11th, Reagan National recorded only 0.03" of rainfall. That's 1.19" below average. Well, that's all going to change as we'll get into what looks like a long duration rain event. We're in for rain on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. It's a little early to say how much rain we see. Temperatures will also be chilly with highs only around 50 Thursday and Friday. (Some of our models are keeping temps in the mid 40s.) I know we need the rain, but chilly rain is my absolute least favorite kind of weather and we may have 3 days of it...uggghhhh.

I'm in the chat room through mid-morning at http://www.wusa9.com/weather/howards_chatroom.aspx .

Wednesday Wind Reports

HowardBernstein — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 08:35:00 GMT

Things have quieted down considerably from yesterday where many gusts were in the mid 40 mph range and a few spots hit 50 mph.

The NWS report is below:

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
SPOTTER REPORTS
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE MD/WASHINGTON DC
404 PM EDT WED OCT 7 2009

THE FOLLOWING ARE UNOFFICIAL OBSERVATIONS TAKEN DURING THE PAST 12 HOURS
FOR THE STORM THAT HAS BEEN AFFECTING OUR REGION. APPRECIATION IS EXTENDED
TO HIGHWAY DEPARTMENTS...COOPERATIVE OBSERVERS...SKYWARN SPOTTERS
AND MEDIA FOR THESE REPORTS. THIS SUMMARY IS ALSO AVAILABLE ON OUR
HOME PAGE AT WEATHER.GOV/BALTIMORE

***********************PEAK WIND GUST***********************

LOCATION            PEAK WIND    TIME/DATE    COMMENTS
                         GUST       OF
                        (MPH)   MEASUREMENT

MARYLAND

..ALLEGANY COUNTY

   WESTERNPORT             47 1014 AM 10/7   WESTERNPORT ES

..ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY

   BALTO/WASH INTL         50 1152 AM 10/7   KBWI ASOS
   ANNAPOLIS               46 1259 PM 10/7   US NAVAL ACADEMY

..CARROLL COUNTY

   WESTMINSTER             47 1014 AM 10/7   WINTERS MILL HS

..FREDERICK COUNTY

   IJAMSVILLE              50 1014 AM 10/7   URBANA HS
   FREDERICK               45 1013 AM 10/7   KFDK
   FREDERICK               45 1259 PM 10/7   CRESTWOOD MS
   MIDDLETOWN              45   114 PM 10/7   MIDDLETOWN PS

..HOWARD COUNTY

   SAVAGE                  47   129 PM 10/7   PATUXENT VALLEY MS

..MONTGOMERY COUNTY

   CLARKSBURG              45 1259 PM 10/7   ROCKY HILL MS

..PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY

   UPPER MARLBORO          50 1259 PM 10/7   CHARLES FLOWERS HS
   BELTSVILLE              45 1144 AM 10/7   BELTSVILLE ES

..WASHINGTON COUNTY

   WILLIAMSPORT            48 1005 PM 10/7   SPOTTER
   HAGERSTOWN              47 1130 AM 10/7   MESONET
   HAGERSTOWN              47   214 PM 10/7   ANTIETAM TV

VIRGINIA

..LOUDOUN COUNTY

   STERLING                50 1029 AM 10/7   NOVA LOUDOUN CAMPUS

WEST VIRGINIA

..BERKELEY COUNTY

   MARTINSBURG             48 1010 AM 10/7   KMRB ASOS

..MINERAL COUNTY

   CUMBERLAND REG          50   804 AM 10/7   KCBE ASOS