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. – See more at: http://www.centrehistory.org/abcs-of-centre-county/#sthash.RLS2TFw7.dpuf
July 2018 Weather Summary
July was a normal month for temperature. The monthly mean was 0.7 deg. F below normal. There were only three daily maximums at or above 90 deg F. The high for the month was 91.3 deg. F recorded on July 3. The low for the month was 49.1 deg F, recorded on July 8. There were 37.9 heating degree days.
July was very rainy with over 9 inches of rainfall recorded. This was over 5.5 inches above normal for July and has contributed to an 8 inch surplus for 2018. There were 15 days of rain >.01 in, 13 >.1 in and 3 >1 in. Highest single day’s rainfall was 1.23 inches.
Rainy July
During the past 5 days, it has rained 4.27 inches in Stormstown, PA. That is 0.81 inches above normal for the month of July. So far, it has rained 7.53 inches this month. That’s 4.07 inches above normal. More rain is forecast before the end of July.
Digital Amateur Radio
There is more to amateur radio than exchanging callsigns, signal reports, and the weather. One popular segment of amateur radio is the digital modes.
Besides the high frequency (HF) radio, and a PC with a soundcard (most have them), the main piece of hardware is a sound card interface. I currently use The Rigblaster Blue (shown at the top right in the image below).
It uses Bluetooth rather than audio cables to connect to the sound card on a PC. The Rigblaster Blue has a through microphone cable so the regular microphone may be used when not using the digital modes. An audio cable is then connected between the line out of the radio to the line in on the Rigblaster Blue. The final connection is made by pairing Bluetooth on the PC to The Rigblaster Blue. Then changing the sound card settings to the Rigblaster for input and output audio. There are other sound card interfaces available such as the Signalink.
I first started with PSK31, which is a highly-efficient data mode that lets you work long distances, even when you can barely hear the signal. PSK31 stands for Phase Shift Keying 31 baud (or 31 bits per second/bps). The characters are formed by changing the phase of the sound wave, not by using different tones. Once I got my hardware setup, as well as configured one of the available software programs (I use DigiPan), I was making regular contacts with Asia and Australia.
I recently set up my station to us WinLink 2000 with the RMS Express software. As many of my friends know, I can send and receive e-mails and National Traffic System (NTS) radiogram messages over the air, rather than use The Internet.
During disasters or other emergencies, radiograms are used to communicate information critical to saving lives or property or to inquire about the health or welfare of a disaster victim. Routine messages are regularly sent to test the system and for operator practice.
Toby’s Firework Anxiety
Our Scotty, Toby Two, has had a rough few weeks. From June 24 until July 6, fireworks were launched almost every night. During the first few times, he would run to an enclosed space such as the laundry room, his crate, our dog’s toy box, or under a chair in my office. Now he looks for me and lies down in a dog bed next to me in my office or in the living room. Toby Two doesn’t like thunder either, and he exhibits the same behavior when a storm passes through.
Last October, The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania rewrote the 80-year-old fireworks law, making them easier to purchase. That is what made it worse this year as far as Toby Two is concerned.
Penn State Concerts
One of the many advantages of living near Penn State are the concerts and performances available at Bryce Jordan Center and The Eisenhower Auditorium.
Tonight I attended a performance by Gordon Lightfoot at The Eisenhower Auditorium. Last year, my wife and I attended a night of illusions at Bryce Jordon Center. Years ago, when I was a graduate student at Penn State, I attended a lecture by Carl Sagan at Eisenhower.
Bryce Jordon was built to be a basketball venue. However, it also serves as the venue for Penn State’s commencement ceremonies, as well as for State College High School. Other events include rock concerts, monster truck rallies and trade shows.
The Eisenhower Auditorium is better suited for events such as the aforementioned Gordon Lightfoot concert, orchestras, lectures, stand-up comedians, plays etc.
As far as tonight’s concert goes, Mr. Lightfoot still has it, despite him showing his age. Some of his songs we’re abridged, but he performed The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald in its entirety.
Scotia Rifle Range
Today I exercised my Second Amendment rights by going to the local rifle range. The Scotia Range is just a few miles away from my home. Scotia is a public range that is maintained by The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Game Commission.
The range provides targets and push-pins but I brought my own. I, of course, brought my .22 semi-automatic rifle, range permit, ear plugs, safety glasses, and ammunition. A range permit costs $30 annually.
The range rules allow no more than three rounds in the magazine at a time. Therefore, I fired 18 rounds in groups of three: nine at 100 yards and nine at 50 yards.
It was my first time out since I was a teenager and, as you can see, I’m no marksman; especially at 100 yards.
At least I put two rounds in the black area and two rounds near the edges of the target. I did significantly better at 50 yards. Eight out of nine is not bad.
I need to work on my grouping.
After I was finished shooting I policed my brass. However, I noticed that not everyone did that courtesy. The ground just in front of the firing stations was littered with spent shells.
Summer 2018 Outlook
Warm, moist summer for Pennsylvania.
Summary of Spring 2018
Meteorological Spring is officially over. Here is a brief summary of Mar 1-May 31 in Stormstown, PA:
Number of days Max T <=32 F: 1
Number of Days Min T <= 32 F: 40
Number of Days Min T <= 0 F: 0
Max T: 88.1 – May 26, 2018
Min T: 17.0 – March 11, 2018
Mar Dep from Normal: -3.0
Apr Dep from Normal: -5.4
May Dep from Normal: 6.1
Heating Degree Days: 758
Cooling Degree Days: 141
Mar Precip: 2.05″, 1.5″ below normal
Apr Precip: 3.57″, 0.18″ above normal
May Precip: 3.85″, 0.62″ above normal
New UV Sensor Installed
This week, I installed a new UV sensor to my automated weather station. The plot from the first few days of operation appears below.
As you can see the UV intensity was significant. Sunscreen is recommended for indices of 3 or above.
Dobsonian Telescope: First Light
Tonight was my first night out with my new 10-inch Dobsonian telescope. My first target was The Moon. The scope produced a very sharp image with a 24 mm wide field eyepiece.
My second target was Jupiter. I was able to resolve the four Galilean moons: Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto. Also, I could resolve two bands on Jupiter. I switched to a 17 mm eyepiece for a slightly closer look, and the bands were clearer. The view was similar to this image.
The tracking function worked well and kept Jupiter in the field of view. Jupiter was also low in the sky from 9 to 10 PM, and there was some thin cirrus clouds, which would account for the fuzzy periods. Jupiter will be higher later this year.
For my next viewing opportunity I will need for clearer, darker skies to align the Go-To function. Also, I need to try using my reading glasses. Also, I will try my camera attachment, connected to my laptop. I am looking forward to viewing Saturn and Mars.
