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Blog

Weather forecasting and analysis, space and historic events, climate information

Filtering by Category: Historic Events

7:15 AM | *The Great Blizzard of March 18-21, 1958…one of the worst snowstorms ever in eastern Pennsylvania*

Paul Dorian

March is known to feature some crazy and surprising weather and the 1958 blizzard that occurred in the Mid-Atlantic region between March 18th and 23rd was indeed rather unexpected. In general, forecasts on the morning of March 18th had no mention of snow. This was in an era before computer forecast models were being utilized by weather forecasters on a daily basis and it was even before satellite imagery existed which could aid in the forecast. By afternoon on that particular day, the light rain had changed into huge, wet snowflakes and - for the next few days - history was being made.

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7:15 AM | *It was called the “Storm of the Century”...March 12-14, 1993*

Paul Dorian

The winter of 1992-1993 was not bad at all in the Mid-Atlantic region in terms of cold and snow, but one storm at the end of the season will put that particular winter in the history books forever.  One of the most intense storms ever observed in the eastern US took place from March 12-14, 1993 and it will be forever known as the “Storm of the Century”.  This intense storm generated tremendous snowfall totals from Alabama through Maine, high winds all along the east coast, extreme coastal flooding along the Florida west coast and incredibly low barometric pressures across the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions.  The aftermath of the “Storm of the Century” was unseasonably cold and broke records in many spots for the middle of March.  To this day, the storm also known as the “Superstorm of 1993” ranks among the deadliest and most costly weather events in US history.

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***The 30-day countdown has begun...the next great total solar eclipse on US soil...April 8th, 2024***

Paul Dorian

In August of 2017 America went crazy for the first coast-to-coast total solar eclipse on US soil since 1918 and it provided a great opportunity for scientists and all sky watchers. What was referred to as “The Great American Solar Eclipse” took place on August 21st, 2017 when the moon passed between the sun and earth. Total solar eclipses occur somewhere on Earth every year or so, but generally cast their shadows over oceans or remote land masses.  If you missed the 2017 total solar eclipse or it turned out to be cloudy in your particular area then there will be another opportunity in less than thirty days on Monday, April 8th, 2024. This time the Moon's dark shadow, about 115 miles wide, will cross Mexico, sweep northeast from Texas to Maine, and then darken the Canadian Maritimes. 

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10:15 AM | *Remembering the Tuskegee Weathermen...the Army created a program in 1941 to induct and train what would eventually amount to more than 14,000 airmen...some of whom became weathermen*

Paul Dorian

Running for his third presidential term, Franklin Roosevelt made a 1940 campaign promise to allow for the training of African American military pilots. In cooperation with the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama which was founded by Booker T. Washington in 1881, the Army created a program in 1941 to induct and train what would eventually amount to more than 14,000 airmen, of whom about 1,000 would become pilots; the others became navigators, bombardiers, radio operators, administrators, support personnel - and some became weathermen.

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11:30 AM | *Saturday marked the 65th anniversary of “The Day the Music Died” and the weather played a major role...February 3rd, 1959*

Paul Dorian

It was a little past 1 AM on February 3rd, 1959 when American musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson were killed in a plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa along with pilot Roger Peterson.  Weather conditions were certainly contributing factors in the plane crash as there was poor visibility on that cold night with snow blowing across the runway. Hours before, Holly and his tour mates were on the eleventh night of their “Winter Dance Party” tour through the snow-covered Midwest.  It was a Monday and a school night, but 1,100 teenagers crammed into the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa for two sold out shows with the second one ending around midnight.  The event later became known as “The Day the Music Died” after singer-songwriter Don McLean referred to it as such in his 1971 song “American Pie”. 

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7:15 AM | *Weather and the pivotal “Battle of Trenton” on December 25-26, 1776*

Paul Dorian

December 1776 was a desperate time for George Washington and the American Revolution.  Morale was low, hope for winning the war was diminishing, and the Continental Army led by George Washington was thinning in numbers after many battles lost to the British.  December began with lots of rain and muddy travel conditions for the men which did not help with their spirits.  After retreating through New Jersey, they set up camp on the Pennsylvania side of the Delaware River where the army was met with very cold weather that led to plenty of ice on the water.  All in all, things were not looking good for Washington's army.  However, George Washington devised a plan that would change the course of the war and the history of our nation.  

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7:15 AM | *The role of the weather on December 7th, 1941 - "a date which will live in infamy” - and a little known important indirect benefit from the weather*

Paul Dorian

The weather on Oahu, Hawaii in the early morning hours of Sunday, December 7th, 1941 was not at all unusual for the time of year with mild temperatures and mainly clear skies.  Unfortunately, the weather conditions on that particular day would play a role in the bombing of the U.S. naval base by Japanese fighter planes at Pearl Harbor near Honolulu, Hawaii.  As Japanese fighters crossed the Pacific Ocean, they were given hope that their mission would succeed when the announcement was made of “clouds mostly over the mounts…visibility good”.  It is believed that the decision to attack on that particular day had plenty to do with the projected favorable weather conditions.

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7:15 AM | *The role of the weather in the assassination of President Kennedy on November 22nd, 1963*

Paul Dorian

The weather in Dallas, Texas had been rainy and the weather forecast was for more rain on November 22nd, 1963. If the forecast had turned out to be correct with more rain on that fateful day then that would have likely meant that a plexiglass bubble top would have been used on President John F. Kennedy’s 1961 Lincoln Convertible on a planned motorcade through the Dallas metro region. But the weather cleared unexpectedly, the protective top was removed from the car, and shots rang out in the early afternoon hours at Dealey Plaza killing the 35th President and seriously wounding Texas Governor John Connally.

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7:00 AM | *It hits the airwaves this time of year and the "Wizard of Oz" tornado scene is still a classic 84 years after its release*

Paul Dorian

In a movie filled with memorable quotes, one of the shortest and simplest might have been “It’s a Twister!”, but it was part of a tornado scene that is still considered to be a classic more than eight decades later.  August 25, 1939 was the official release date of the “Wizard of Oz" which was the first movie to depict an authentic looking tornado using improbable “1930’s style” special effects. Through the decades, this all-time classic has inspired movie-goers and “weather weenies” alike with the scene of a twister lifting Dorothy’s home into the sky over rural Kansas farm land. This has become the time of the year in which many cable TV stations air this classic movie for new viewers who have never enjoyed it and for all of the old-timers out there who can watch it year after year after year (TBS, Saturday evening, November 18th, 6:30PM and again at 8:30PM).

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6:45 AM | *The role of the weather in “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” on November 10th, 1975*

Paul Dorian

Forty-eight years have passed since a major storm over the Great Lakes helped to sink the SS Edmund Fitzgerald on Lake Superior taking the lives of all 29 crew members on November 10th, 1975. When launched on June 7, 1958, it was the largest ship on North America's Great Lakes, and to this day she remains the largest to have sunk there. The Edmund Fitzgerald was in the worst possible location during the worst weather of the ferocious storm. The wind and waves from the west hit the freighter broadside as it tried to flee south to safety in Whitefish Bay. The Edmund Fitzgerald was loaded with about 26,000 tons of taconite pellets on November 9th, 1975, at Superior, Wisconsin and was bound for Detroit, Michigan when the storm hit.

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