Courtesy of one of our alert readers, Canada is ending its weather radio network as of March 16. Canada's network has been patterned after NOAA Weather Radio network in the United States. After more than 60 years, the NOAA network has never achieved market penetration of more than 3% (percent of households actually using it). The reasons are many but the number one reason is that it triggers its loud tone in the middle of the night for storms the users don't care about. I know that's the reason we discontinued using it.  Grok agrees: The advantage of weather radios is that they will let you know (without you doing anything) when a dangerous condition approaches. But they are -- at best -- countywide and they cannot separate hazards (e.g., they alert for a severe thunderstorm warning regardless of whether it is one inch hail or whether it is 90 mph winds).  One would think that NOAA would be moving on to satellite or newer technology with more geographic precision but they s...

I was delighted to appear on Lisa Teachman's podcast yesterday. Please click on the link and  tune in when you have a chance.  Reader Comment:

The Amazing Forecast Harlem The National Weather Service and the larger meteorological community deserves a great deal of credit for the advance forecast of the blizzard. It undoubtedly saved lives, mitigated inconvenience (flights canceled in advance rather than stranding people at airports), and decreased property losses.  Still, the best forecast cannot make up for utter, tragic incompetence. Roughly, 1.5 million people  (not "customers") are without power at this time. Local media in the Northeast are estimating it will take up to six days to get all of the lights on. Hopefully, the advance forecast urging people to obtain prescription refills, fill gas tanks, et cetera, was helpful and mitigated the effects of the outages.  Global Warming On February 5, I ran this piece: And, this morning, -- more predictably than the weather -- some climate group sent this out: This isn't climate change. It is weather. But science quality doesn't matter when trying to raise fun...

The blizzard is finally moving northeast out of the region. This will be my last update on the snow. I'll have an update on the snow amounts this evening. 

Blizzard of 2026 7pm: Queens was already reporting a 6" accumulation. About 126,000 people are already without power from New Jersey and states south of there. That number will grow significantly during the night as the winds come up and accumulations increase. The wind is now gusting to 35 mph at LaGuardia.  The above map is the additional  snow forecast from 9pm to the end of the storm. For example, NYC had 4-6" as of that time with an additional 17" forecast to fall, bringing the storm total to 21 to 23 inches.  The photo below was taken at 7pm on Manhattan.  NWS Warning Map Above are National Weather Service warnings: Orange = blizzard warning Pink = winter storm warning Purple == winter weather advisory Dark blue (Buffalo) = winter storm watch for lake effect snows Note the blizzard warnings are extended into coastal Maine.  The storm has organized quickly the past three hours. Radar is from 9:32pm. This is about how the radar will look 7am Monday. My advic...

You might have seen the thing going around the internet recently where people list famous people who they have encountered during their lives.  I thought I would go ahead and post mine. I suspect I have been luckier than most. They are in no order.  Jessie Jackson Bob Newhart Drew Carey Rick Nelson President Reagan Buzz Aldrin Stevie Wonder   Willard Scott   Harry Hamlin (rescued him when his arm was stuck in an elevator door!) Hannah Jeter   Dr. Ted Fujita   Kristin Chenoweth   Ginger Zee Dave Barry   Barry Switzer   Barry Sanders   Vice President Humphrey John Lloyd Young Wayne Knight (Newman!) Tony Bennett Karen Carpenter Len Dawson  John Coleman  Mike Holmgren Roger Maris