Damage from the storm

[Jax-Nole]

The city and the local TV sure scared the hell out of the citizens. It must be nice to be a weather person, who can read what the computers are telling them and then get paid to be wrong, more than half the time.

Stop that. I am going to school for meteorology. Meteorologists are right 95% of the time. The issue is that people either only notice when we are wrong, or don't understand what the forecast means (ex: do you actually know what the chance of rain given means). Oh, and by the way, meteorology is one of the most difficult fields of study. It is all upper level math and physics. Very little watching the weather. If you don't believe me, I'll post the first PowerPoint slide of the semester from one of my classes I am currently taking.

I'd be shocked to learn that British meteorologists are right 95% of the time.

They should be. They have the world's most accurate weather model there being run out of Reading. I guess my comment was meant more specifically about American meteorologists though.

[Adam White]

The city and the local TV sure scared the hell out of the citizens. It must be nice to be a weather person, who can read what the computers are telling them and then get paid to be wrong, more than half the time.

Stop that. I am going to school for meteorology. Meteorologists are right 95% of the time. The issue is that people either only notice when we are wrong, or don't understand what the forecast means (ex: do you actually know what the chance of rain given means). Oh, and by the way, meteorology is one of the most difficult fields of study. It is all upper level math and physics. Very little watching the weather. If you don't believe me, I'll post the first PowerPoint slide of the semester from one of my classes I am currently taking.

I'd be shocked to learn that British meteorologists are right 95% of the time.

They should be. They have the world's most accurate weather model there being run out of Reading. I guess my comment was meant more specifically about American meteorologists though.

I only say that because when I lived in Florida, the weather was almost always right - you'd get a week's forecast and it would pretty much play out as advertised. In the UK, it seems our weather rarely goes to plan and it changes all the time. It seems they sometimes can't predict the weather an hour or two in advance, much less a day or week.

[Jax-Nole]

The city and the local TV sure scared the hell out of the citizens. It must be nice to be a weather person, who can read what the computers are telling them and then get paid to be wrong, more than half the time.

Stop that. I am going to school for meteorology. Meteorologists are right 95% of the time. The issue is that people either only notice when we are wrong, or don't understand what the forecast means (ex: do you actually know what the chance of rain given means). Oh, and by the way, meteorology is one of the most difficult fields of study. It is all upper level math and physics. Very little watching the weather. If you don't believe me, I'll post the first PowerPoint slide of the semester from one of my classes I am currently taking.

I'd be shocked to learn that British meteorologists are right 95% of the time.

They should be. They have the world's most accurate weather model there being run out of Reading. I guess my comment was meant more specifically about American meteorologists though.

I only say that because when I lived in Florida, the weather was almost always right - you'd get a week's forecast and it would pretty much play out as advertised. In the UK, it seems our weather rarely goes to plan and it changes all the time. It seems they sometimes can't predict the weather an hour or two in advance, much less a day or week.

I understand that. If I had to guess why that is the case, it's because both England is quite small (roughly the size of Louisiana in total area), and it is at a much higher latitude than Florida. Due to the country's small size, a minor shift, either in track or intensity of a weather system could lead to very different effects. Weather systems at that latitude tend to be significantly larger, and as a result are more difficult to predict because they can impact other weather systems and change their paths a bit more easily. These are only guesses, but if they are right, I'm sure they make forecasting over there a nightmare.

[Adam White]

The city and the local TV sure scared the hell out of the citizens. It must be nice to be a weather person, who can read what the computers are telling them and then get paid to be wrong, more than half the time.

Stop that. I am going to school for meteorology. Meteorologists are right 95% of the time. The issue is that people either only notice when we are wrong, or don't understand what the forecast means (ex: do you actually know what the chance of rain given means). Oh, and by the way, meteorology is one of the most difficult fields of study. It is all upper level math and physics. Very little watching the weather. If you don't believe me, I'll post the first PowerPoint slide of the semester from one of my classes I am currently taking.

I'd be shocked to learn that British meteorologists are right 95% of the time.

They should be. They have the world's most accurate weather model there being run out of Reading. I guess my comment was meant more specifically about American meteorologists though.

I only say that because when I lived in Florida, the weather was almost always right - you'd get a week's forecast and it would pretty much play out as advertised. In the UK, it seems our weather rarely goes to plan and it changes all the time. It seems they sometimes can't predict the weather an hour or two in advance, much less a day or week.

I understand that. If I had to guess why that is the case, it's because both England is quite small (roughly the size of Louisiana in total area), and it is at a much higher latitude than Florida. Due to the country's small size, a minor shift, either in track or intensity of a weather system could lead to very different effects. Weather systems at that latitude tend to be significantly larger, and as a result are more difficult to predict because they can impact other weather systems and change their paths a bit more easily. These are only guesses, but if they are right, I'm sure they make forecasting over there a nightmare.

It came as a surprise to me, really. I always assumed that weather forecasting was very straightforward!

[Jax-Nole]

The city and the local TV sure scared the hell out of the citizens. It must be nice to be a weather person, who can read what the computers are telling them and then get paid to be wrong, more than half the time.

Stop that. I am going to school for meteorology. Meteorologists are right 95% of the time. The issue is that people either only notice when we are wrong, or don't understand what the forecast means (ex: do you actually know what the chance of rain given means). Oh, and by the way, meteorology is one of the most difficult fields of study. It is all upper level math and physics. Very little watching the weather. If you don't believe me, I'll post the first PowerPoint slide of the semester from one of my classes I am currently taking.

I'd be shocked to learn that British meteorologists are right 95% of the time.

They should be. They have the world's most accurate weather model there being run out of Reading. I guess my comment was meant more specifically about American meteorologists though.

I only say that because when I lived in Florida, the weather was almost always right - you'd get a week's forecast and it would pretty much play out as advertised. In the UK, it seems our weather rarely goes to plan and it changes all the time. It seems they sometimes can't predict the weather an hour or two in advance, much less a day or week.

I understand that. If I had to guess why that is the case, it's because both England is quite small (roughly the size of Louisiana in total area), and it is at a much higher latitude than Florida. Due to the country's small size, a minor shift, either in track or intensity of a weather system could lead to very different effects. Weather systems at that latitude tend to be significantly larger, and as a result are more difficult to predict because they can impact other weather systems and change their paths a bit more easily. These are only guesses, but if they are right, I'm sure they make forecasting over there a nightmare.

It came as a surprise to me, really. I always assumed that weather forecasting was very straightforward!

There's times I wish it was straightforward, but I enjoy it nonetheless. Every single day there is something different about the weather pattern, and that difference presents challenges, but that is what makes studying weather fun for me.

[Adam White]

The city and the local TV sure scared the hell out of the citizens. It must be nice to be a weather person, who can read what the computers are telling them and then get paid to be wrong, more than half the time.

Stop that. I am going to school for meteorology. Meteorologists are right 95% of the time. The issue is that people either only notice when we are wrong, or don't understand what the forecast means (ex: do you actually know what the chance of rain given means). Oh, and by the way, meteorology is one of the most difficult fields of study. It is all upper level math and physics. Very little watching the weather. If you don't believe me, I'll post the first PowerPoint slide of the semester from one of my classes I am currently taking.

I'd be shocked to learn that British meteorologists are right 95% of the time.

They should be. They have the world's most accurate weather model there being run out of Reading. I guess my comment was meant more specifically about American meteorologists though.

I only say that because when I lived in Florida, the weather was almost always right - you'd get a week's forecast and it would pretty much play out as advertised. In the UK, it seems our weather rarely goes to plan and it changes all the time. It seems they sometimes can't predict the weather an hour or two in advance, much less a day or week.

I understand that. If I had to guess why that is the case, it's because both England is quite small (roughly the size of Louisiana in total area), and it is at a much higher latitude than Florida. Due to the country's small size, a minor shift, either in track or intensity of a weather system could lead to very different effects. Weather systems at that latitude tend to be significantly larger, and as a result are more difficult to predict because they can impact other weather systems and change their paths a bit more easily. These are only guesses, but if they are right, I'm sure they make forecasting over there a nightmare.

It came as a surprise to me, really. I always assumed that weather forecasting was very straightforward!

There's times I wish it was straightforward, but I enjoy it nonetheless. Every single day there is something different about the weather pattern, and that difference presents challenges, but that is what makes studying weather fun for me.

I think it seems like a facinating area of study. I dabbled very slightly in weather when I took physcial geography many years ago when I was a freshman at UF. Good luck - glad you enjoy it.