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The conference is focusing on climate change, but we have talked about hurricanes.  On tonight’s 5:30 newscast I will be interviewing Dr. Steve Lyons about the last hurricane season, and what he thinks about the upcoming 2008 season.  One things that he stressed, and always stresses is that Tampa is a vulnerable location, second behind New Orleans.  It’s our beautiful location on the Gulf of Mexico and Tampa Bay, the sloping shelf leaves us very open to a large storm surge. 
So plan now!  Think of who you can stay with.  It doesn’t have to be a place that is far away but out of the flood zones.  If you live outside of a flood zone, who could you invite to stay at your house in case of a hurricane?  I know it’s only January but having a plan in place is key to a great life in Florida.   

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Greenhouse gases keep our planet warm but the amount of Carbon Dioxide that is being released into the atmosphere, has tripled since the 1990s! That is a lot of greenhouse gas that we are adding to our planet's atmosphere. Carbon dioxide or CO2 is released when we do things like drive our cars, flip on the lights, cool/heat our houses. Major amounts of CO2 are released by coal burning plants. CO2 does get sucked up by parts of our planet, these devices are called 'sinks'. For instance, a major sink would be the rain forest in South America. The oceans are also a major sink, but in some studies, the southern ocean's ability to absorb carbon dioxide has decreased by 30% since the early 80s. In forests, it is found that large trees hold more CO2 than small trees, so the logging of old growth trees also reduces the amount of carbon dioxide that can be absorbed. Thankfully we have the ability to make some easy choices to reduce the amount of CO2; at Christmas buy LED lights, switch to incandescent bulbs, find a car that burns less fuel. As we cut back, developing nations are trying to live the same life we do, so they are building power plants. In China, right now, every 10 days a new coal burning power plant goes on line. The Chinese power plants are using very old technology and are therefore pumping huge amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. With all of this additional CO2 being emitted into the atmosphere and our sinks declining in absorption, global warming is a fear. In a warming planet scenario, that means a rising sea level, some estimates put a rise of a half a meter by 2100, already the sea level has risen by 7 inches this century. It was brought up at one of our sessions, that many of our power plants in Florida, will be directly affected by rising water, because many of our power plants sit near the water. Also a higher sea level means more damage by hurricanes and other storms. Reducing Carbon Dioxide in the US doesn't have to be hard, we can bring bags to the grocery store, adjust the thermostat, make the most of your car trips (knock all your errands out in one trip).

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Yesterday we got to head out on the slopes!  If you click on the “summit photos’ link it will lead you to my picture gallery.  I’ve posted pictures of us skiing, one picture is of Paul Goodloe and myself out skiing.  I didn’t fall!  The snow was great and it was so much fun! 
Another picture in the Gallery is Dr. Steve Lyons, a hurricane expert giving a talk (which I blogged about yesterday), but in the foreground you will notice quite a pair of pants, that would be a meteorologist Dave Sweeney, from Portland Oregon.  He is one of the founders of this conference, and always shows up in outrageous clothes!  I guess it wakes us up every morning, but it does hurt the eyes.

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We didn’t see many hurricanes and tropical storms here in the US, but there were 2 category 5 storms in the Atlantic Basin this year.  One of those giant storms, Hurricane Felix slammed into Nicaragua and Honduras as a category 5 storm! 
One of the questions that arose from the 2007 hurricane season is, does La Nina play a part in increasing hurricane season activity or not?  El Nino usually lessens the amount of storms that form in the Atlantic Basin, so it was thought that La Nina does the opposite, this may not be true.  Dr. Lyons put forward this morning, that La Nina may not be as large a factor as originally thought.  It now appears the La Nina may not be much different than a neutral, or non La Nina or non El Nino, season.  In fact, it may be a player in reducing the number of storms.  Just part of the puzzle of this giant global circulation that we are trying to understand.

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Nothing like getting on a plane and having the crew tell you that you may have to land at a different airport, because the weather is may be too bad to land. 
That’s what happened when we boarded the plane heading to Steamboat Springs.  Steamboat had received a foot of snow the night before and many flights had been diverted to Denver!  Where hapless folks had to board buses to try the 3 hour drive, or sit on the ground until the weather cleared.
Thankfully we landed in Steamboat Springs,
but unfortunately for a lot of people in the airport, multiple flights had been cancelled so everyone was trying to get back into town!
The snow is deep!  I’m attaching a picture with some giant icicles just outside the window.

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The longer I live in Florida the less cold weather gear I have. 
We get a lot of emails from people who ask about dressing for the cold, and I give them the same advice that I follow:  Women typically have weaker circulation, when I go out into temperatures in the 20s, I layer.  Also I get cold easily so I have to put a lot of gear on, you may not have to wear as much as I do.

For the bottom half:  1. Nylons, yes save those nylons who cares if they have a run, they are a great insulator.  2. wool or poly propylene long johns.  3. (if it’s really cold) a layer of running spandex 4.snow pants
For the top half:  1. a under-armour or similar tank top 2. wool or poly propylene long johns 3.  a tight fitting wool sweater or tight light fleece top.  4. A vest 5. an insulated water proof ski jacket. 

For the hands: I have to wear mittens, gloves do not keep my hands warm.  The great thing about some of the ski mittens is that they have built in gloves so when you pull you hand out of your mittens to blow your nose, put on chapstick, or answer the cell phone you still have a layer on.  I also stick those little heat packets in my gloves too.

For the feet:  some snow boots are rated to a particular cold temperature.  So you will know just how cold it can get before your tootsies get cold.
For walking in the snow, boots should be water proof and have a good sole.  For instance uggs are great for padding around the lodge in but are not great for walking in the snow. 
Rembember you already have panty hose on, so just wear a wool thin sock. (no bulky socks) You can always throw a heat packet in your boot. 
When wearing ski boots you can also purchase boot heaters, they are great to pop on while riding up the lift.

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While we were dealing with temperatures in the 20s here, the current temperature in Steamboat Springs is a COLD! 17 degrees!  The conference takes place in the great western town of Steamboat Springs. The town has a unique western flavor and, I am happy to say, great skiing.
It’s a small conference and feels more like camp!
This year we will be concentrating on the global climate and discussing next year’s hurricane season.  The speakers are always Great!  and I will pass along all the great info along with some pictures!!!

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It’s snow meets hurricanes for me next week.  I’m traveling to Steamboat Springs, Colorado to learn from some of the best minds in the meteorological world at the 18th annual Steamboat Springs Weather Summit.

A lot of the focus for this weather conference will be on hurricanes, including presentations by the director of the National Hurricane Center. 

Steamboat will be a change from our sunshine and palm trees.

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