Coldest air in years set to grip the Nation’s Capital: Protect yourself, pets, and home (Post article) (school districts, costs)

[124c41]

For me it's 10 degrees here right now. So I would say it's colder than a well diggers #ss.

[ICS67]

Originally Posted by car54

I don't think they are making up new weather terms....they are taking obscure meteorological terms and going mainstream with them.

I just looked up derecho and that term apparently goes back to the 1880s. But I sure never heard it before last year.

And they probably got tons more 'em!

Oh, indeed. Besides derecho and polar vortex, some of my favorite descriptors of impending meteorological and geophysical disasters include:

1. Coronal mass ejection. Refers not to the unfortunate after-effects of a college frat party where too much Mexican beer was consumed, but rather to a huge discharge of charged particles from the sun that, should it strike earth, will basically fry the electrical grid.

2. Yellowstone supervolcano caldera. A volcanic eruption from a fifty-mile diameter magma pool underneath northwest Wyoming that could coat half the continental U.S. in volcanic ash.

3. Canary Island mega-tsunami. What will happen if a large part of the Cumbre Vieja volcano on La Palma island in the Canary chain erupts, with part of its slope breaking off and sliding into the Atlantic. Resulting tsunami will wipe out most or all of the East Coast (and also much of the coastlines of Europe, Africa, and South America) with a wave estimated at 150 feet in height.

4. Cascadia subduction zone. The area where two tectonic plates meet off the Pacific Northwest coast and which one day will dump Seattle into Puget Sound. Kiss your Starbucks goodbye.

5. Ark (Atmospheric River 1000) Storm. A superstorm 2,000 miles or more in length that forms over the Pacific on average every 500 to 1,000 years, and which would basically flood out much of California. USGS has estimated damage could reach $700 billion.

But cheer up, everyone -- at least we in NoVa don't have to worry about #4 and #5! What, me worry?

[car54]

Originally Posted by ICS67

Oh, indeed. Besides derecho and polar vortex, some of my favorite descriptors of impending meteorological and geophysical disasters include:

1. Coronal mass ejection. Refers not to the unfortunate after-effects of a college frat party where too much Mexican beer was consumed, but rather to a huge discharge of charged particles from the sun that, should it strike earth, will basically fry the electrical grid.

2. Yellowstone supervolcano caldera. A volcanic eruption from a fifty-mile diameter magma pool underneath northwest Wyoming that could coat half the continental U.S. in volcanic ash.

3. Canary Island mega-tsunami. What will happen if a large part of the Cumbre Vieja volcano on La Palma island in the Canary chain erupts, with part of its slope breaking off and sliding into the Atlantic. Resulting tsunami will wipe out most or all of the East Coast (and also much of the coastlines of Europe, Africa, and South America) with a wave estimated at 150 feet in height.

4. Cascadia subduction zone. The area where two tectonic plates meet off the Pacific Northwest coast and which one day will dump Seattle into Puget Sound. Kiss your Starbucks goodbye.

5. Ark (Atmospheric River 1000) Storm. A superstorm 2,000 miles or more in length that forms over the Pacific on average every 500 to 1,000 years, and which would basically flood out much of California. USGS has estimated damage could reach $700 billion.

But cheer up, everyone -- at least we in NoVa don't have to worry about #4 and #5! What, me worry?

My favorite is the Siberian Express. Reminds me of a romantic train journey on which the wife and I should book a cozy compartment.

Well, on second thought...

[NC211]

Originally Posted by mikecart1

It was so cold this morning on my way to work that I nearly cried. I'm a man btw lol.

I know this feeling well. Had it for nearly 3 years while living in Chicago. So glad we're not there anymore, especially this week!

[FCNova]

I can't believe schools were delayed 2 hours today. Just close for the entire winter so the kids won't have to be cold at all.

[beatlecrazy]

I might be alone in this, but I like the cold weather. Winter and Spring are my favorite seasons.

[niuniu]

spring? pollen. summer? mosquitoes. Fall? leaf cleanup. Winder? perfect.

[spencgr]

Originally Posted by niuniu

spring? pollen. summer? mosquitoes. Fall? leaf cleanup. Winder? perfect.

Obviously a typo......but I wonder if this is what Chicago-ites call the cold season?

[mikecart1]

Originally Posted by FCNova

I can't believe schools were delayed 2 hours today. Just close for the entire winter so the kids won't have to be cold at all.

Some kids don't have jackets. I remember when I was younger a couple of guys would stand at the bus stop in tee shirts.

You gotta realize that not everyone can afford Gore Tex jackets like George Costanza.

[Nerf Herder]

hell, you can make a jacket out of old sheets of burlap and hair from the barber shop