The village that is now called Stormstown was located on one of the area’s earliest roads. Laid out in 1791-92, the road served as a main route for the shipment of Centre County iron west to Pittsburgh. First settler Abraham Elder’s tavern, on the east end of the village, was a stopping place for iron haulers. In 1812 David Storm recorded a plat of 30 lots, plus a school lot, that he named Walkerville, on the west side of present-day Municipal Lane in the middle of Stormstown. The origin of the Walker connection has not yet been tracked down. Some twenty years after Walkerville was established, Caleb Way slowly started selling off lots between Walkerville and the former site of Elder’ tavern, in an area that was briefly called Wayville. Eventually, by the time of the Civil War, the whole area was called Stormstown. The enterprises of the village included a gristmill, sawmill, distillery, tannery, wagon maker, and several craftsmen’s shops – blacksmith, weaver, potter, and chairmaker. An Easter fire in 1867 destroyed twenty-six buildings, many of which were never rebuilt.
January 2023 Weather Summary
January was 9.5 deg F above normal for temperature. The high for the month was 58.0 deg. F, recorded on January 4. The low for the month was 20.4 deg F, recorded on January 16. There was day when the maximum was at or below 32 F, 20 days when the minimum temperature was at or below 32 F, and 0 days when the minimum temperature was at or below 0 F. There were 878 heating degree days and 0 cooling degree days.
January was an above-normal month for precipitation with 3.35 inches of liquid precipitation recorded, which was 0.43 inches above normal. The maximum liquid precipitation in a single day was 1.03 inches recorded on January 19. There were 16 days of rain >.01 in, 6 >.10 in and 1 > 1 in.
There were 5.2 inches of snow for the month, with a maximum daily total of 3.2 inches on January 26.
High wind speed of 36 mph on January 23.
2022 Stormstown Weather Summary
Overall, the year’s temperatures were slightly above normal. The annual mean of 50.5 F was 0.2 F above normal. The annual precipitation of 39.66 inches was 1.87 inches below normal.
2022 Weather Data
January
January was the coldest month of 2022 and was colder than normal with a monthly mean of 24.3 F, which was -2.9 F below normal, with a high of 53.8 F and a low for the month of -6.2 F, which was also the low for the year.. Precipitation was 1.63 inches below normal with 1.29 inches of liquid precipitation. There were 13.8 inches of snow this month.
February
February was an above-normal month for temperature, with a mean of 30.8 F, which was 1.7 F above normal. The high was 11.8 F and the low was 5.7 F. Precipitation was 1.88 inches above normal at 4.34 inches. There were 3.4 inches of snow for the month, with a maximum daily total of 1.7 inches on February 25.
March
March temperatures were also mild at 4.1 F above normal with a high of 71.5 F and a low of 12.5 F. Precipitation was 0.13 inches below normal with 3.25 inches of liquid precipitation. The high wind speed for the month and year was 42 mph. There was also 11.1 inches of snow. There was pea-sized hail observed during a severe thunderstorm on March 31.
April
Temperatures were 1.7 F below normal in April. The high was 83.2 F and the low was 26.8 F. Rainfall was 0.67 inches below normal at 2.84 inches. It snowed about 5 inches on April 18. The last day of temperatures below freezing was April 28.
May
Temperatures were 1.8 F above normal with a high of 89.2 F and a low of 34.3 F. Precipitation was 5.22 inches, 1.58 inches above normal. May was the rainiest month of 2022.
June
Temperatures for the month were near normal at 0.1 F above normal. The high for the month, as well as the year, was 92.6 F and the low was 46.9 F. Precipitation was 0.69 inches below normal with 3.40 inches of rainfall. Potential dry conditions were becoming a concern this month.
July
July was the warmest month of 2022. The temperatures were 0.8 F above normal. The high for the month was 91.2 F and the low was 50 F. Rainfall was 1.77 inches below normal with 2.02 inches of precipitation.
Drought conditions worsened in July:
August
August temperatures were 0.6 F above normal. The high was 89.7 F and the low was 44.99 F. Precipitation was 0.96 inches below normal at 3.20 inches.
Most of Centre County became abnormally dry:
September
Temperatures were 0.2 F below normal. The high was 87.0 F and the low was 37.3 F. There were 3.72 inches of rainfall, which was 0.21 inches below normal. Dry conditions persisted:
October
October was chilly with temperatures at 2.7 F below normal. The high was 74.2 F and the low was 27.6 F. Rainfall was near normal at 2.05 inches, which was 1.41 inches below normal. The first freeze of the season occurred on October 20.
November
Temperatures in November were mild at 2.5 F above normal. The high was 77 F and the low was 11 F. Precipitation was 4.99 inches, 2.00 inches above normal. The remnants from Hurricane Nicole caused over 3″ of rainfall during November 11-12. There were 5 inches of snow recorded on November 15.
December
December was 1.4 deg F below normal for temperature. The high for the month was 59.3 deg. F, recorded on December 7. The low for the month was -2.3 deg F, recorded on December 23. The temperature plunged over 35 F in 12 hours on December 23:
The hard freeze damaged one polycarbonate measuring tube:
December was an above-normal month for precipitation with 3.32 inches of liquid precipitation recorded, which was 0.14 inches above normal. There were 4.5 inches of snow.
2022 Insolation
December 2022 Weather Summary
December was 1.4 deg F below normal for temperature. The high for the month was 59.3 deg. F, recorded on December 7. The low for the month was -2.3 deg F, recorded on December 23. There were 24 days when the minimum temperature was at or below 32 F, 6 days when the maximum temperature was at or below 32 F, and 2 days when the minimum temperature was below 0. There were 1061 heating degree days and 0 cooling degree days.
On December 23, the temperature plunged over 35 F in 12 hours.
The subzero temperatures caused the precipitation in the polycarbonate measurement tube of a rain gauge to expand and crack the tube.
December was an above-normal month for precipitation with 3.32 inches of liquid precipitation recorded, which was 0.14 inches above normal. The maximum rainfall in a single day was 0.89 inches recorded on December 22. There were 13 days of rain >.01 in, 9 >.10 in and 0 > 1 in.
High wind speed of 43 mph on December 23.
Snowfall for December: 4.5 inches
Summary of Autumn 2022
Meteorological Autumn is officially over. Here is a brief summary of September 1-November 30 in Stormstown, PA:
Number of days Max T >= 90 F: 0
Number of Days Max T <= 32 F: 1
Number of Days Min T <= 32 F: 18
Max T: 83.0 F – September 4, 2022
Min T: 11.1 F – November 21, 2022
Sep Dep from Normal: -0.2 F
Oct Dep from Normal: -2.7 F
Nov Dep from Normal: 2.5 F
Heating Degree Days: 1284
Cooling Degree Days: 97
Sep Precip: 3.74″, 0.27″ below normal
Oct Precip: 2.05″, 1.41″ below normal
Nov Precip: 4.99″, 2.00″ above normal
November 2022 Weather Summary
November was 2.5 deg F above normal for temperature. The high for the month was 77.0 deg. F, recorded on November 6. The low for the month was 11.1 deg F, recorded on November 21. There were 12 days at or below 32 F and 1 day when the maximum temperature was at or below 32 F. There were 647 heating degree days and 9 cooling degree days.
November was an above-normal month for precipitation with 4.99 inches of rainfall recorded, which was 2.00 inches above normal. The maximum rainfall in a single day was 2.97 inches recorded on November 11. There were 7 days of rain >.01 in, 6 >.10 in and 1 > 1 in.
High wind speed of 39 mph on November 30.
The highlights for the month:
The remnants from Hurricane Nicole caused over 3″ of rainfall during November 11-12.
Five inches of snowfall on November 15.
October 2022 Weather Summary
October was 2.7 deg F below normal for temperature. The high for the month was 74.2.4 deg. F recorded on October 6. The low for the month was 27.6 deg F, recorded on Oct 30. There were 0 days at or above 90 deg F and 6 days at or below 32 deg F. There were 495 heating degree days and 5 cooling degree days.
October was below average for precipitation with 2.05 inches of rainfall recorded, which was 1.41 inches below normal. The maximum rainfall in a single day was 1.06 inches recorded on October 1. There were 6 days of rain >.01 in, 3 >.10 in and 1 > 1 inch.
High wind speed of 32 mph on October 17.
Carl Sagan’s Baloney Detection Kit
Sagan’s Kit contains invaluable tools of healthy skepticism that are applicable to not just science, but to everyday life. By adopting the kit, we can all shield ourselves against clueless guile and deliberate manipulation. Sagan shared nine of these tools:
- Wherever possible there must be independent confirmation of the “facts.”
- Encourage substantive debate on the evidence by knowledgeable proponents of all points of view.
- Arguments from authority carry little weight — “authorities” have made mistakes in the past. They will do so again in the future. Perhaps a better way to say it is that in science there are no authorities; at most, there are experts.
- Spin more than one hypothesis. If there’s something to be explained, think of all the different ways in which it could be explained. Then think of tests by which you might systematically disprove each of the alternatives. What survives, the hypothesis that resists disproof in this Darwinian selection among “multiple working hypotheses,” has a much better chance of being the right answer than if you had simply run with the first idea that caught your fancy.
- Try not to get overly attached to a hypothesis just because it’s yours. It’s only a way station in the pursuit of knowledge. Ask yourself why you like the idea. Compare it fairly with the alternatives. See if you can find reasons for rejecting it. If you don’t, others will.
- Quantify. If whatever it is you’re explaining has some measure, some numerical quantity attached to it, you’ll be much better able to discriminate among competing hypotheses. What is vague and qualitative is open to many explanations. Of course there are truths to be sought in the many qualitative issues we are obliged to confront, but finding them is more challenging.
- If there’s a chain of argument, every link in the chain must work (including the premise) — not just most of them.
- Occam’s Razor. This convenient rule-of-thumb urges us when faced with two hypotheses that explain the data equally well to choose the simpler.
- Always ask whether the hypothesis can be, at least in principle, falsified. Propositions that are untestable, and unfalsifiable are not worth much. Consider the grand idea that our Universe and everything in it is just an elementary particle — an electron, say — in a much bigger Cosmos. But if we can never acquire information from outside our Universe, is not the idea incapable of disproof? You must be able to check assertions out. Inveterate skeptics must be given the chance to follow your reasoning, to duplicate your experiments, and see if they get the same result.
Contrails
There is much confusion and misinformation about a common phenomenon in the sky known as contrails (condensation trails). They have been common ever since aircraft were able to fly at high altitudes. Some conspiracy theorists are saying they are chemtrails; part of a government plot. This is not the case at all
There are two byproducts that result from the burning of aviation fuel, a mixture of hydrocarbons: carbon dioxide and dihydrogen monoxide (water vapor). Water vapor is what comprises a contrail.
The red line is the temperature and the green line is the dew point.
Stormstown is near a busy airway for east-west as well as north-south traffic. The aircraft that expelled the water vapor were at roughly 30000′ ASL or roughly at the 300 millibars (hPa) level. From the sounding (above) made at the same time as the photograph, the temperature at that height is less than -40 deg C or -40 deg F. Under those conditions, any moisture would condense as ice particles which form the contrails. The contrails persisted and became cirrostratus clouds due to the fact that the air temperature was close to the dew point, close to saturation, at that level.
September 2022 Weather Summary
September was 0.2 deg F below normal for temperature. The high for the month was 83.0 deg. F recorded on September 4. The low for the month was 37.3 deg F, recorded on September 30. There were 0 days at or above 90 deg F and 0 days at or below 32 deg F. There were 142 heating degree days and 83 cooling degree days.
September had 3.74 inches of rainfall recorded, which was 0.21 inches below normal. The maximum rainfall in a single day was 0.77 inches recorded on September 5. There were 12 days of rain >.01 in, 8 >.10 in and 0 > 1 in. There was enough rainfall to end the moderate drought conditions in Pennsylvania except for a small area in the southeast part of the commonwealth.
High wind speed of 14 mph on September 1.
Dog Ear Protection
Some dogs do not react well to the sounds of thunder and fireworks. This is true of our male terriers: Toby a Scottish Terrier, and Tripper, a West Highland Terrier. Tripper also doesn’t like the sounds from the TV during football games. We think it’s the official’s whistles and the crowd noises.
My wife, Marla, decided to try baby ear protectors. She put them on Tripper before a football game (see below), and he napped through some of the game.
Marla got another pair of ear protectors and put them them on Toby and Tripper during a thunderstorm. That seemed to work as well. They both napped during the thunderstorm.
Stormstown Dispatch 