“The who-what?�?nbsp; I asked looking a little confused, mostly because I was.
“You know, Bellis�?the weatherman?�?He said. I shook my head so he continued. “Well, no matter. He’s going to have a special on TV about the causes and dangers of our monsoons here in Arizona.�?
“Aw, c’mon Mike.�?nbsp; I scoffed. “You don’t need some meteorologist to explain monsoons to you, I can tell you that�?and without commercial interruptions.�?
“Oh?�?Mike grinned waiting for the inevitable. “And what, pray tell, would that be?�?/FONT>
So, I launched into the explanation of the causes of a monsoon. (It seems to me that the dangers are obvious and don’t need explanation.)
You see, what happens here in Southern Arizona, from July to September, we will get several days of triple digit temperatures, and, sometimes, the temperature will actually exceed 110 degrees. Now, if we have�?oh, say�?three days in a row of excessive heat, (110 or higher), the ground itself will superheat; by the afternoon of the third day the ground is sooooo hot that it starts to super-heat the air above it. Well, obviously, what happens next is just pure science. Still with me on this?
After a while the surface air starts roiling, (you know, sort of like a pot of water just before it starts to boil), anyhow, after it gets really super-heated, it launches itself into the upper atmosphere, and, if you listen real close, you can hear a resonant “WHOOSH�?as it rockets straight up, disrupting birds, planes and Superman on its way up in hopes of finding a cooler place to hide; leaving behind a near vacuum as it continues its exodus.
Now, if you remember your science at all, you know nature abhors a vacuum; so, what happens next is the monsoon as we see it.
All of the air to the south of us is affected by this phenomenon. Because the Sonoran desert is so flat and arid, the air there is more easily sucked in. (As opposed to the heavier air to the north). The air all across the desert starts moving, picking up speed as it rushes to fill the void. As it races across the dry, dusty landscape it sucks up all the dust and sand as it moves north, shoving all this natural debris in front of it. Behind this, the air over the Gulf of Mexico is jolted into action; the sudden aerial movement over the Gulf waters creates a disturbance in the normally calm water and moisture is hurtled into the moving air and is immediately turned into massive clouds that, of course, join in the race to the north.
By the time all of this reaches us, in Phoenix, what we see is a 2,000 foot high wall of sand and dust that is about 40 miles across and traveling at, about, 30 to 40 MPH; when it hits us it blocks out the Sun and visibility is zero. If you’re unlucky enough to be outside, three epidermal layers are sandblasted off your hide and your clothes, hat and anything else not affixed to your skeletal frame, end up in the next county. But, never fear, right behind that comes a torrential downpour, (remember the water from the Gulf?), that last about 15 minutes and floods, and slicks, the streets causing 6 accidents per square mile. And, if you’re really lucky, the downpour arrives before dust storm has a chance to leave and you get, what we fondly refer to as, flying mud.
“Now,�?I ended, “Doesn’t that make more sense than what some over paid newscaster would say?�?/FONT>
Mike broke out in uproarious laughter and turned to go to his house, leaving me a little hurt, I must say. I mean, really, think about it, it makes sense.
“Mike!�?nbsp; I called after him.
He turned; tears of laughter were streaming down his cheeks. “Yeah.�?He managed to croak out.
I was devastated, “What’r’ya doing after the game?�?/FONT>
“I’m gonna watch Bellis.�?/FONT>
Free Forum Hosting
Important Announcement
