First Alert Weather Insider

As of just before 5 PM (Pacific Time), many parts of the northern plains and intermountain west are already seeing sub-zero temperatures. Parts of Montana are more than 20 degrees below zero! The Dakotas are not far behind with temperatures more than 10 degrees below zero. Keep in mind that these temperatures are BEFORE we

Fronts are a meteorologist’s bread and butter. Essentially, a front is the boundary between two air masses. Remember that winds flow counterclockwise around low pressure. As a low pressure system forms, cold, dry air is brought in from the north, and warm, moist air moves in from the south. Ahead of a warm front, there

A large winter storm is impacting just about every state east of the Rocky Mountains. The map below highlights active watches, warnings and advisories for the nation. The bright red in the plains represents a blizzard warning, the yellow hugging the Gulf Coast represents a tornado watch, and the tan color from Texas to Massachusetts

Shortly before midnight our time (about 4:00pm in Japan), an extremely powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck the northern tip of the Noto Peninsula in the Ishikawa Prefecture. This, combined with the dozens of aftershocks, prompted the Japanese Meteorological Agency to issue Tsunami Warnings across the country. This was the first time a Major Tsunami Warning

We’re all taught that there are 365 days in a year. But, once every four years we add one extra day. This is because we use a solar calendar. One year is technically the time it takes for the sun to orbit the sun. One orbit comes out to 365.25 days. As a result, we

2023 was a big year for climate legislation in the state of California! Governor Gavin Newsom signed two landmark climate bills into law back in October. The first, titled California’s Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act (or SB 253) will require companies with an annual revenue of at least $1,000,000,000 (one billion dollars) to disclose emissions

We’ve all heard that no two snowflakes are alike, and that’s not wrong. But there are a multitude of types of snowflakes. Just like how there are pine trees, palm trees, and oak trees, there are plate snowflakes, column snowflakes, cup snowflakes, and more. Credit: NOAA The process begins when very cold water droplets interact

This year saw a total of 20 named storms in the Atlantic basin. Of which, 7 became hurricanes and 3 became major hurricanes. The total number of storms is slightly above average, however, the number of hurricanes and major hurricanes exactly matched the 30-year average. Three Atlantic storms made landfall in the United States. These were

Across the United States, winter is by far the fastest warming season for the majority of the nation. More than 220 locations have seen overall warmer temperatures throughout the winter season. The vast majority of the locations analyzed have seen more warmer winter days. Palm Springs was one of the very few cities which has

As Carbon levels in the atmosphere continue to rise, so will global temperatures. Below, you can see a graph of how much Carbon is in the atmosphere and how much the planet has warmed on average since pre-industrial times. These will lead to changes all over the world, including here in the Coachella Valley. Agriculture

The atmosphere wants to be in equilibrium and will do everything it can to equalize. To accomplish this, air will always flow from high pressure to low pressure. Air flows clockwise around high pressure systems and counterclockwise around low pressure systems. Credit: NOAA Air flows into low pressure centers. As the air rises, the water

November 2022 through October 2023 came in as the hottest 12-month streak on record, according to Climate Central. Here, you can see how many days various areas around the globe experienced a CSI of 3 or higher. This means that climate change has made warmer temperatures at least 3x more likely. Click HERE to learn

Renewable energy is fascinating. Wind turbines convert the kinetic energy (energy of motion) of the wind into electrical energy as the turbines spin. Solar panels work by converting photons (particles of light energy) into electrons, creating electrical energy. In this graphic from Climate Central, they estimate how much energy will be generated over the next

Rainbows are just one of a wide variety of optical effects caused by the interactions between sunlight and various atmospheric conditions. Sunlight is actually a mix of every wavelength, or color, of the visible light portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. Credit: https://hubblesite.org/contents/articles/the-electromagnetic-spectrum As sunlight enters a raindrop, it slows down since water is more dense

Snow here on the valley floor is a pretty rare sight. Thankfully, we have a bunch of towering mountains in our backyard. Based on the average of the last 10 years, the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway sees its first inch (or more) of snow on November 23rd. The reason our mountains see more snow than