Subject: [Tweeters] Re: early spring
Date: Jan 18 17:07:39 2010
From: Kevin Purcell - kevinpurcell at pobox.com


On Jan 17, 2010, at 2:02 PM, Bill Anderson wrote:

> Anne Marie asked of me ---> By the way, did you create a new month
> (Junuary) or was that supposed to be June? <--
>
> A few years ago we had a very cold and wet June which resembled
> January more than June. My motorcycle group coined the term
> "Junuary" to describe the month and I have used it ever since.


I believe Cliff Mass and other meteo types were using Mayvember last
year too for the rather rainy patch in May.

http://blog.seattlepi.com/thebigblog/archives/168687.asp

Locally (if you believe Cliff -- it's in his book :-) in Seattle
really has two distinct climatic seasons: a dry one (the day after
July 4th to end of September) and a wet one (the rest of the year)
though we get most of the rain from November through January. In fact
the summer dry season in Seattle is much drier than almost all of the
Eastern US and quite distinct from the rest of the year though clearly
it's not perfect.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seattle

> Seattle's mild, rainy climate is usually classified as Oceanic
> (K?ppen climate classification Cfb). However, its wet-winter and dry-
> summer pattern shows some characteristics of a cool Mediterranean
> climate (Csb), and it is sometimes classified this way.

We're on the border between the two so people differ in their
assignment. Clearly, Wladimir K?ppen was not from around here. In fact
if you look at the map you see Europe is really easy to color in. And
so too is USA east of the Mississippi. Western North America? Not so
much. It looks like a tie-dye T-shirt.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K?ppen_climate_classification
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:World_Koppen_Map.png

This is the same problem of trying to put names in arbitrary divisions
of the year (or arbitrary climate zones) is another one of making
arbitrary distinctions on a continuum that aren't really grounded on
objective distinctions.

As opposed to some places in the Midwest and New England that have
four [or five] distinct seasons: snow, [mud], spring, hot, and fall.
Hence we should have them too :-)

In addition to the astronomical definitions and the climatic
definitions we also have "birding" definitions in which "spring" is
really synonymous with "the breeding season for passerines". You can't
just say breeding season for birds otherwise you have interesting
issues with owls and bald eagles having "spring" in February.

The same with fall. Is it when the deciduous trees change color? The
rain starts? Or is it migration time for birds? Well, migration time
for passerines as shorebirds are on the move even before we get to
summer.

It's all a convention. Pick one :-)
--
Kevin Purcell
kevinpurcell at pobox.com
twitter: at kevinpurcell