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The Waxhaws Dispatch

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The continuing heat wave in the United States in July 2011 has broken temperature records in many locations, killed dozens and seen nearly half of all Americans under heat advisories at its peak. Four movies, created with data from NASA's Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) instrument on NASA's Aqua spacecraft for the period from July 16-24, show the movement of a dome of heat across the eastern two-thirds of the country. They highlight two familiar temperatures: surface air temperature and surface skin temperature, during both daytime and nighttime conditions. Surface air temperature is something we experience whenever we go outside. High surface air temperature makes even shady places feel hot. Surface skin temperature is what we feel when we touch the ground. During daytime, the surface skin temperature is generally much warmer than surface air temperature because dark surfaces are so effective at absorbing sunlight. The surface air and skin temperatures are related by something invisible but actually quite familiar: infrared -- or heat -- radiation. Our skin is very sensitive to infrared radiation, making a sun-heated wall feel warm even from a few feet away after sunset. Air absorbs very little sunlight, but easily absorbs infrared radiation emitted by the warm surface. It's the sun-warmed surface -- not sunlight -- that heats the air during daytime. The four movies illustrate the extraordinarily high temperatures in the US heat wave. Both types of temperature, for daytime and nighttime, are shown as a difference (anomaly) from the average over the previous eight years of AIRS data. Over the Northeast and northern Midwest, temperatures are 20 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than normal. During normal weather there, daytime surface air temperatures are around 85 degrees Fahrenheit, while nights cool to around 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Temperatures 20 degrees above average show daytime highs over 100 degrees Fahrenheit and nighttime lows in the mid-80s. These high temperatures, along with high humidity (also observed by AIRS but not shown here), make the central and eastern US one of the hottest regions on the planet in late July 2011. ______________________________________________________________________ About AIRS The Atmospheric Infrared Sounder, AIRS, in conjunction with the Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit, AMSU, sense emitted infrared and microwave radiation from the Earth to provide a three-dimensional look at Earth's weather and climate. Working in tandem, the two instruments make simultaneous observations all the way down to the Earth's surface, even in the presence of heavy clouds. With more than 2,000 channels sensing different regions of the atmosphere, the system creates a global, 3-dimensional map of atmospheric temperature and humidity, cloud amounts and heights, greenhouse gas concentrations, and many other atmospheric phenomena. The AIRS and AMSU fly onboard NASA's Aqua spacecraft and are managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, under contract to NASA. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. Credit NASA/JPL AIRS Project Download the image Various sizes of the image are available, and there are two ways to download: 1) Right-click on the image. Click on a size next to "View all sizes". 2) Click on the "Actions" menu located above the image. Select "View all sizes". Resources Atmospheric Infrared Sounder web site › How to get the AIRS data Data Products › Data Portals › Documentation ›

Public Safety

UCPS halts outdoor activities at 95°F amid heat advisory

Union County Public Schools activated heat protocols ending all outdoor activities by 11 a.m. at 95 degrees, as a heat advisory warns Union County's heat index could hit 108 on Thursday, Sept. 3.

Two people kayak down a flooded residential street past partially submerged parked cars.

Public Safety

Storms dump up to 4 inches on Union County overnight

Heavy storms dropped up to 4 inches of rain on parts of Union County Thursday night, prompting a flood advisory covering the Waxhaw and Marvin area, with more storms forecast for Friday afternoon and evening.

CDC infographic showing the life cycle stages of the Cyclospora cayetanensis parasite.

Public Safety

Union County reports 7 cases in statewide parasite outbreak

Seven Union County residents have been diagnosed with cyclosporiasis as part of a 940-case statewide outbreak, with state health officials linking North Carolina cases to parsley and cilantro while still working to confirm a specific source.

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