weathercatch

‘Unsettled’ weather – blah but not bad

By Nic Loyd, WSU meteorologist, and Linda Weiford, WSU News SPOKANE, Wash. – In January 1935, a New York Times story about aviator Amelia Earhart carried the headline “Unsettled weather on the Coast.” According to the article, Earhart was completing a solo flight from Hawaii when her small plane hit turbulence along the California coast, […]

The calendar’s most fickle month – October

By Nic Loyd, WSU meteorologist, and Linda Weiford, WSU News SPOKANE, Wash. – Remember the first two days of October? Brilliantly sunny and warm with fiery-colored leaves on trees. Suddenly a switch got flipped, bringing episodes of rain and a chilly wind that sent leaves skittering to the ground like an angry spirit.

La Nada: ‘Anything goes’ winter in store

By Nic Loyd, WSU meteorologist, and Linda Weiford, WSU News SPOKANE, Wash. – When the calendar flipped over to fall a week ago, we found ourselves bracing against strong breezes, gloomy skies and cooler than normal temperatures. Three days later, the winds stilled, a warm sun emerged and it felt like summer.

Lenticular clouds – the truth is out there

By Nic Loyd, WSU meteorologist, and Linda Weiford, WSU News SPOKANE, Wash. – A cloud type that spawns tall tales almost as much as Sasquatch is known to linger over peaks in the Cascade Range. Sometimes called “UFO clouds,” these saucer-shaped formations are likely to become more prominent as we enter autumn and winter.

Dust devils common in Washington – and on Mars

By Nic Loyd, WSU meteorologist, and Linda Weiford, WSU News SPOKANE, Wash. – This time of year, dust devils put on a good show in the flatter, drier parts of the Pacific Northwest. You’ve probably seen these plumes of swirling dust zipping across farmland, open fields, roadsides and even parking lots.

Pacific Northwest no ‘Tornado Alley,’ but twisters do occur

By Nic Loyd, WSU meteorologist, and Linda Weiford, WSU News SPOKANE, Wash. – On a single afternoon last month, eight twisters dropped down on southern Minnesota, earning that day the name “Tornado Tuesday” in media reports. Fortunately, the twisters touched down in mostly open areas and no one was injured. A month earlier, 24 tornadoes […]