Let's visit on the Porch II (Bozeman, Helena: how much, house, live)

[Reziac]

I figured out what's wrong with your cabin. It's pointing the wrong direction, that's why you get that drift by the front door. Next time instead of moving the snow, rotate the cabin.

Fun things to do with temperature extremes:

Watch what happens when you use a SuperSoaker on a -42°F day

What lava looks like when poured over ice

[Reziac]

A little something for our sungazers:

NOAA / NWS Space Weather Prediction Center
Space Weather Update - Strong Solar Radiation Storm In Progress

The ongoing Moderate Solar Radiation Storm has intensified to a Strong event. Activity should stay at this level for the next few hours, then likely take another jump ahead of a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) that is expected to occur overnight. This increase is not expected to exceed the S3 level. The CME is forecast to set off Strong Geomagnetic Storm activity through Friday. Watch for Auroras!

[jasper12]

Beautiful sunrise today! Could not attach photo from phone, but it was why we live here.

[ElkHunter]

Originally Posted by Reziac

A little something for our sungazers:

NOAA / NWS Space Weather Prediction Center
Space Weather Update - Strong Solar Radiation Storm In Progress

The ongoing Moderate Solar Radiation Storm has intensified to a Strong event. Activity should stay at this level for the next few hours, then likely take another jump ahead of a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) that is expected to occur overnight. This increase is not expected to exceed the S3 level. The CME is forecast to set off Strong Geomagnetic Storm activity through Friday. Watch for Auroras!

When I was hauling Railroaders, I used to make runs to Foresythe a couple times per week. That run was always at night, usually 1am or so. We were supposed to stay on Interstate as much as possible, but I would run up I-90 to Hardin, then take 47 over to Custer, then I-94 to Foresythe. That stretch of 47 is a dark lonely road, but that made it perfect for seeing the Northern lights. Many times, they would be so bright, I could also see them while on I-94 too. But 47 was perfect for viewing. A couple times I stopped and sat and watched for an hour or so.

[Reziac]

I remember the aurora borealis lightshow when I was a tot in Bismarck. Don't recall ever seeing 'em in MT. Maybe I should move back to ND.

[ElkHunter]

Strange weather.

All day yesterday, we had high winds, sometimes hitting 70+ mph. About 8pm last night, the wind stopped like you shut off a water spigot. I put Timber out about 9 and it was calm and because of the warm temps (45 degrees) and the high wind, almost all the snow was gone, leaving big puddles all over.

At 10:30, I put Timber out for the last time and there was 4 inches of snow on the ground and the wind had started in again. I checked the local repeater and we were getting 30 mph winds with gusts to 45 mph. I figured it would be a real chore busting drifts in the morning.

I got up about 5, made a pot of coffee, dreading going out to bust drifts. The wind was still howling. This cabin is well insulated, so well insulated that I can't even hear a car pull up and people slamming doors. However, this morning I could sure hear the wind.

Finally, after a couple eggs and toast and copious amounts of coffee, I bundle up and headed out to warm up the 4 wheeler. I was shocked. Absolutely NO DRIFTING. A little over 5 inches of snow. I plowed the full length of the driveway, about 400 feet, and I'll bet the depth of snow didn't vary by more than an inch. I stopped to check my guage (4 inches around) and the wind had blown so much that there NO snow in the guage, but no drifting. Never seen anything like it.

[Reziac]

Weird weather here too:

While back it blizzarded for two solid days (the kind where you can't see your hand in front of your face for the blowing snow), and the total snow accumulation was -- one inch, with drifts up to four inches. INCHES.

Couple days ago it was 51 degrees (with a low of 42, only about 100 degrees warmer than normal). Nice day. Suddenly the wind comes up and blows 40-50mph. It's a warm wind, tho. And a little later it snowed. The snow that came down was so cold that it froze to everything and coated the whole world in half an inch of frosty stuff, yet the air temp was still in the mid-40s.

And it poured rain. In early January. Raining sheets one direction, snowing like mad half a mile away.

Am I in Australia by mistake??

[ElkHunter]

Haha I don't think Austrailia even gets that goofy of weather.

As we say in Wyoming, The now never melts. The wind just blows it around until it wears it out.

It never snows in Wyoming. It snows in Montana, and then blows across to Colorado.

Two hours and I am not half done plowing snow. This crap balls up and even though I have my plow set at an angle, it collects in front and I'm pushing this huge pile of snow. I'm only cutting about 1 ft wide with the blade and it still collects and plugs me up. I tried going really fast, thinking it would blade better and shoot to the side. But when I go really fast, Timbers eyes get really big and she acts like she's going to bite me. Of course, the drawback of going really fast is every now and then you catch the old, frozen snow left over from last weeks plowing and you go from 25 to 0 in about 3 feet. Timber doesn't like that much. I think I've actually heard her growling at me while I'm going fast and she's setting up on the box.

[MTSilvertip]

In Helena we got a few inches of fresh wet snow, and now have pretty good winds going.

If we had some hardsurface snow underneath I would really look for snow rollers.



I have only seen them once in the 70's, but the conditions were nearly identical to today except for more snow on the ground underneath the fresh.

[jasper12]

Montana veterans can now get a "veteran" designation on their Drivers License. Contact Montana Veterans Affairs.

This way you can get the vet discount at Home Depot...I think it is 10%? Not sure...or 5%...