Michael Fagin, Author at West Coast Weather

13 Oct

Certified Consulting Meteorologist (CCM)

Certified Consulting Meteorologist (CCM). Since 1957, the American Meteorological Society has been recognizing the world’s premier scientific minds in the field of meteorology by certifying consulting meteorologists as having high standards of technical competence, professional character and field-related experience. Those who’ve earned the Certified Consulting Meteorologist certification are recognized worldwide as experts and as possessing

27 Sep

El Nino & Snow Washington Cascades

General InfoWith 0 comments

Introduction- Old Farmers Almanac Says El Nino & Snow Washington Cascades is a phase that tends to frighten skiers since below normal snowfall usually occurs. However, do not despair (I think), according to the Old Farmers Almanac: “Winter (Northwest) will be cooler and rainier than normal, with above-normal snowfall. The stormiest periods will be throughout

24 Sep

Custom Weather Forecast

Weather ExpertWith 0 comments

Custom Weather Forecast: When weather is an important threat, there is often value in obtaining a customized weather forecast. National weather offices assemble thousands of regional and global weather forecasts but they’re often too general to be reliable for specific locales. When severe weather forms or accuracy particularly matters, the additional considerations included in a

21 Aug

Strong El Niño – Floods for California

Flooding, General InfoWith 0 comments

An atmospheric river flowing into California. Image courtesy of NOAA Strong El Niño – Floods for California: are they correlated? El Niño can impact California greatly but it does not promise flooding, nor rain. It instead promises a shifting of the region’s atmospheric currents. Strong El Niños (1.5°C or more of warming), however, are strong

14 Aug

Wildfires – Global Warming / Climate Change

Historical Weather Data, WildfiresWith 0 comments

Photo taken July 17, 2014 of wildfires in Washington. Image courtesy of NASA. Wildfires – Global Warming / Climate Change is a top topic during the summer of 2015. Wildfires from global warming and climate change are a microcosm of the Wild West. The age of horse-driven highway bandits may be over but wildfires still

18 Jul

Aircrafts: A Flying Weather Station

Weather Conditions, Weather for PilotsWith 0 comments

Aircrafts: flying weather stations, have been equipped to record atmospheric conditions along their flight paths. Another aircraft may not travel anywhere close to the same airspace again for a long time but the data gathered is still useful. Computers input this information, crunch the numbers and can usually forecast general threats. Weather advisories are separated

17 Jun

Property Damage and Weather

Historical Weather Data, Tornado Damage, Weather ExpertWith 0 comments

Property Damage and Weather hazards come in many forms. Hurricanes, tornadoes, hailstorms, floods, winter weather and wildfires are all common culprits that bear their own sets of potential threats. Hurricanes The least common of the six, hurricanes are good to begin with because they often encompass most of the ways that property damage and weather

13 May

Tornado Damage in Washington State

General Info, Tornado Damage, Weather ConditionsWith 0 comments

Tornado Damage in Washington State seldom makes national headlines but, on average, it is incurred every year. Normally damage is minimal but there have been several deaths and major devastation from a few tornadoes in recent decades. Washington’s deadliest outbreak struck on April 5, 1972 when an F3 spawned over Vancouver and tracked over a

07 Apr

Heavy lake-effect snowfalls

General Info, Poor Visibility, Weather for PilotsWith 0 comments

Heavy lake-effect snowfalls can shut down entire cities and drastically impede our ways of living. In particularly prone areas, feet of lake-effect snow can arrive within a day and pin people indoors. The mechanisms that manifest lake-effect snow can be thought of as components of a unified atmospheric machine. Its creation begins when wind meets

05 Apr

Weather & Airplane Crashes

Weather for PilotsWith 0 comments

Weather & Airplane Crashes has been an issue of late. First, let us give some perspective and these statistics were compiled from 1,015 fatal accidents, excluding those involving less than 19 passengers, military aircraft, private aircraft and helicopters. Airplane crashes, on average, claim the lives of a thousand passengers every year. Crashes happen for many

Author Archives: Michael Fagin