Saildrone releases dramatic video from inside Hurricane Sam

Earlier this year, San Francisco’s Saildrone joined forces with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to launch five sensor-packed unmanned surface vehicles into paths of hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean to gather data. Now one of … Continue reading Saildrone releases dramatic video from inside Hurricane Sam

Atmospheric CO2 levels defy the pandemic to hit record high

Scientists measuring concentrations of CO2 in the atmosphere at the Mauna Loa Atmospheric Baseline Observatory have reported the highest levels on record, and ones not seen on Earth in more than four million years. The average atmospheric CO2 levels of… Continue reading Atmospheric CO2 levels defy the pandemic to hit record high

Saildrone goes chasing hurricanes in the Caribbean

Though some folks chase storms for the thrill, and others out of curiosity, there are also those who pursue severe weather events for scientific purposes. And it’s the lattermost pursuit that will see a small fleet of unmanned surface vehicles delibera… Continue reading Saildrone goes chasing hurricanes in the Caribbean

Decoding NOAA Satellite Images in Python

You’d be forgiven for thinking that receiving data transmissions from orbiting satellites requires a complex array of hardware and software, because for a long time it did. These days we have the benefit of cheap software defined radios (SDRs) that …read more

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Solar Flares and Radio Communications — How Precarious are Our Electronics?

On November 8th, 2020 the Sun exploded. Well, that’s a bit dramatic (it explodes a lot) — but a particularly large sunspot named AR2781 produced a C5-class solar flare which is a medium-sized explosion even for the Sun. Flares range from A, B, C, M, and X with a zero …read more

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Sun’s activity flares up as NASA confirms start of new solar cycle

NASA and NOAA have confirmed that the Sun has entered a new solar cycle, with activity beginning to ramp back up from its minimum in December 2019. This next cycle is forecast to be rather quiet, continuing a long-term trend of reduced activity from ou… Continue reading Sun’s activity flares up as NASA confirms start of new solar cycle

Get Your Weather Images Straight from the Satellite

[Josh] has a series called Ham Radio Crash Course and a recent installment covers how you can grab satellite images directly from weather satellites. This used to be more of a production than it is now thanks to software defined radio (SDR). Josh also has another project using a 3D …read more

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July 2019 was the hottest month on record, says new report

July 2019 has been found to be the hottest month ever recorded, which is news that won’t surprise anybody who sweated through the heat wave that gripped Europe, North America and indeed much of the Northern Hemisphere this summer. This contin… Continue reading July 2019 was the hottest month on record, says new report