Enjoy season 2 of Bill’s Vacation!
Bill’s Video Vacation Blog: Season 2
Last year it was Panama City Beach, FL. This year it’s Sunset Beach, NC. Join us on a daily basis through the Memorial Day weekend to see what Bill and the “rest of the crew” are up to!
Elevation And Temperature: Here in the southern Appalachians, elevation is key in the temperature department and, during the cold season months, resulting weather conditions. On average, for every 1k feet in elevation you gain, you lose 3 degrees off the old thermometer. Of course with radiational cooling events at night, valleys can feature colder conditions than the higher ridge tops, but on average, the higher in elevation one gets, the cooler the temperature!
Here in the southern Appalachian region, elevations range from as low as around 1k feet to close to 7k feet above sea level. More specifically, in Johnson County, lowest elevations are around the Butler community (Watauga Lake) with areas around 1700 feet above sea level, with highest elevations obviously directly along the divide, with Snake Mountain climbing close to 6,000 feet. You can do the math, but when forecasting in this area, various elevation differences certainly pose a challenge to the forecaster!
THAT SAID, if you think this area is tough forecasting, think about the Colorado Rockies! With elevations as low as 4k feet (I know, to most, 4,000 feet above sea level is considered quite high) in the high plains of the eastern part of the state, to as high as 14k feet in the southern and central Rockies, temperature and weather patterns are vastly different. During my stay in Breckenridge, typically there was a 20 degree temperature difference between Breckenridge and Denver- only 70 miles a part, but close to 5,000 feet difference in elevation, and a lot less “urban heat island” effects (more on that on another day).
Just thought I’d go into “professor mode” today for lunch, and educate those that might not understand the whole added challenge of temperature differences with elevation.�
Just wanted to use this time to quickly go over some of the new stuff you can find on www.mountaincityweathercenter.com.
Of course, several weather “geeks” have come together to keep this BLOG updated with all sorts of weather information, and other “stuff!” We keep this thing updated quite often with a wide variety of material, so definitely check this space out daily (if not more often)! This BLOG is one of two new multimedia features to the site.
Secondly, MCWC has debuted another feature that’s becoming quite popular. We’re talking about the new MCWC pod cast feature, again with the same brand…”Talkin’ WX And Stuff!” Several people have come together to produce the show, and topics include anything from sports to politics, and of course WEATHER! You can find a link from www.mountaincityweathercenter.com to both the BLOG and pod cast.
Finally, Aaron Sharp and Brandon Massey have joined Bill to discuss Global Warming and the words used by Al Gore, comparing those that don’t believe in manmade global warming to those that “still think the earth’s flat” and those that think the “walk on the moon was staged.” Of course, this heated Bill up, and these guys have come together to discuss this issue. Also, Bill goes over an interview he had an opportunity to get with James Spann, Chief Meteorologist at ABC 33/40 on the matter.
So, be sure to check www.mountaincityweathercenter.com for these latest NEW features, and of course you’re reliable Johnson County and Mountain City forecast!
Below is a press release from MCWC on the new features.
For Immediate Release: Mountain City Weather Center (www.mountaincityweathercenter.com) is pleased to announce the addition of a couple of new multi-media features to the site. Both features are viewer-interactive, and include a weather BLOG as well as a podcast feature. The two of these new additions are branded under the same theme, “Talkin’ Weather And Stuff!”
www.mountaincityweathercenter.com continues to be the go-to weather source for Mountain City and Johnson County residents, and through the detailed weather discussions (particularly, long range weather outlooks) has become very popular through the entire southeast region. In fact, the popular weather website delivered hits to every state in the nation during 2007.
The new BLOG and podcast features will give listeners a new and unique way to receive the latest and most accurate weather information for Mountain City and Johnson County. Audio weather forecasts, as well as a variety of other weather-related material can be found on the podcast link, while the BLOG discusses anything from weather to sports, and even dives into politics every now and then!
Bill McMillan, the websites’ chief weatherman, says both new features are intended to be very “viewer-interactive,” and he says, “MCWC welcomes and encourages folks to e-mail questions or topics they would like us to discuss!”
In addition to the new viewer-interactive features on the website, MCWC will also be publishing their annual Winter Rewind and Summer Outlook in the coming months. The popular Boating & Lake page will be available at www.mountaincityweathercenter.com beginning in June.
Below is from an article a viewer sent me out of the Tomahawk. In was written Jan. 14, 04 by Celia Pennington… Hope you enjoy!
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Bill McMillan never lets the rain, snow, and cold weather get him down. In fact, he prefers it. The 2003 graduate of JCHS, now a freshman at East Tennessee State University, is following his passion and on the career path towards being a meteorologist. He simply loves bad weather.
“Ever since the blizzard of 1993,” says McMillan of when his interest in weather began. “That storm amazed me and ever since then that’s all I’ve been interested in. The worst day for me is 70 degrees. I like bad weather.”
In 1993, McMillan and his family lived in Auburn, Ala. and only saw about 20 inches- a dusting compared to the several feet Johnson County recieved. When his family moved here in 1995, McMillan found his realm.
Since that time he has been compiling journals of weather records from highs to lows to precipitation to wind speed to snow accumulation- he has notebook upon notebook of weather.
“I love the weather up here. I am the biggest snow lover in the world. When we’re forecasting a good snow I don’t get any sleep for days,” he said. “I am constantly watching the weather (models). When we’re forecasting a big snow- that’s all I talk about!
With the help of Mark Reynolds, Rob Williams, and Bob Swanson of Stormteam 11 WJHL, McMillan has learned to read weather models from the internet- the same models the National Weather Service uses. While the models look like a bunch of dots, lines, and abstract art to most people, they enable McMillan to determine a seven day weather forecast for Johnson County even when he is at school in Johnson City.
For several years now he has been sending updates to the National Weather Service for this county, and for the past year he has sent pictures and other weather-related information to WJHL. He also updates his friends and family on a regular basis with his forecasts.
It was only fitting that he received a website as a Christmas present, which will enable him to provide weather information for everybody. “I’ve been wanting to set up a web site a couple years, and finally got to do it,” he said. “Mountain City needs this. The weather here is different from Johnson City and different from Boone.”
His website, which is www.mountaincityweathercenter.com, offers climate information each day, daily highs and lows, peak wind, daily snowfall, pictures, a short-term forecast discussion, which is not only a forecast, but also his thoughts behind why he made the forecast, long-term forecast discussion and weather pictures.
While he still has three years of undergraduate work ahead of him in broadcasting, and then his post graduate work in meteorology, he one day pictures himself as an on-camera meteorologist like Jim Cantore or Mark Reynolds, or working for the National Weather Service.
(In addition to McMillan’s website, www.mountaincityweathercenter.com, his five-day forecast can be found weekly in The Tomahawk, beginning with this edition. McMillan encourages folks to send him weather photos or reports at his e-mail address located on the website).
Those long time viewers of Mountain City Weather Center know that we don’t include chances of precipitation in our forecast. Instead of using “A 50 percent chance of rain,” you’ll see that we use words like “isolated, widely scattered, widespread, numerous, periodic” to describe the precipitation event.
I’ve never really been too big on the whole “probability of precipitation” forecasts, as most don’t fully understand what a “50% chance of rain means.” Most would think a 50% chance of rain would mean a given region stands as high of a chance of getting wet as they do remaining dry. This is simply not the case. Instead, a “50 % chance of rain” means 5 out of 10 communities in a given area will receive precipitation.
It’s due to this confusion that we don’t really like to use probabilities of precipitation in our forecast. That, and the fact, that using such words as “isolated, widely scattered, steady, numerous, etc.” seem to be much more easily understood than a certain percentage chance of precipitation.
Just thought I’d clear up why you never will see a certain percentage of precipitation in any of our forecasts! Make it a great day!
From all of us here at Mountain City Weather Center, we wish each and every one of you a very happy and special Easter this year!
Friday Late Morning: Be sure to check out our new features over on www.mountaincityweathercenter.com, with the BLOG and just added today, our NEW podcast! This will be a lot of fun in the future, and a different way for you to get your latest weather news! We promise to keep both updated pretty frequently! Hope you enjoy!
Here’s the podcast link- just copy and paste into your browser: http://mountaincityweathercenter.mypodcast.com/
I’m not a hard guy to please atall (that’s one word by the way). The point that I’ve been trying to make all along this week is the fact that the big time media sources out there need to use their weather deparments to at least get the word out about the POSSIBILITY of a winter storm situation Easter night and Monday (what with all of the folks traveling and what not). Today, those “bigger weather sources” have done just that, and I applaud them for it. That’s all I need to see!
It’s very, very important in my eyes to get the word out about major weather events well before they take place, or at least once you have time to sit down and study things for a bit (and ask whether or not you can see this or that solution play out). I have a really tough time with some weather sources out there, as they tend to be way too “conservative” when it comes to giving a forecast or a forecast discussion. In this business of predicting something that’ll take place in the future, everyone is going to be wrong, and for some, wrong quite a bit. One shouldn’t hold their thoughts (forecasts) back because they’re afraid of being wrong…just state what you feel will happen. When we here at MCWC have a forecast that goes wrong, we at least try to get on the site and state what happened to make the forecast not pan out as planned.
Forecasting the weather is a learning process each and every day, just like so many other things in life. Just as important as it is to study the models, it’s what you take and learn from your mistakes along the way that make a special weather forecaster. One thing I think everyone that logs onto www.mountaincityweathercenter.com knows is that we certainly don’t hold our thoughts back! You pretty much know what any of our forecasters are thinking on any given post, and we try to write down all of the potential (or most likely) scenarios that could take shape.
So…that brings me back to our Easter night and Monday storm. The GFS (as of 18z, though I’m currently awaiting the 0z runs) still says “I’ll have none of that!” The Ukmet, on the other hand, sees the storm off the EC, as does the Euro. The European model absolutely “bombs” the thing out off the mid Atlantic coast, though is too far east for much snow here. The NAM brings some light snow in here Monday morning. Tomorrow will be a very important day for this storm (or, as the GFS says, “no storm”). By tomorrow afternoon, I’ll have a much better idea of what’s going to take place. One thing that does have me a bit concerned is the trough that’s going to come crashing in Sunday night…it might just be so strong that it does collapse and crush anything trying to lift out of the Gulf. On the other hand, I see that SE ridge still sitting and if we could get something to develop down in the Gulf, I think that baby could help us snowlovers out, by directing the storm on a more westward track.
With many schools now taking their spring break, I thought I’d list what you would “normally” expect this time of year at two of the more popular beach destinations…Panama City Beach, FL and Myrtle Beach, SC.
When I lived in Auburn, our Spring Break was always spent down on the sugary white sand beaches of Panama City Beach. That said, I just got back from Myrtle Beach this past weekend. Bottom line is, anytime around this time of year, beach weather can be a bit “hairy” to say the least. Water temperatures are still usually too cold for much (if any) swimming, and northwest winds can still be a bit chilly. At the same time, average temperatures are on the “upswing” by the middle of March, so if you “plan it just right,” you can experience some really nice beach weather!
Mid March Panama City Beach, FL: Avg. High: 74; Avg. Low: 49
Mid March Myrtle Beach, SC: Avg. High: 63; Avg. Low: 44
www.mountaincityweathercenter.com is the place to go for the most up to date weather information for Mountain City, and Johnson County. That said, if you’re on the road, there are a few other sources to go to for your MCWC Forecast.
WMCT, AM 1390 is the official radio station for your Mountain City Weather Center forecast. Bill McMillan and John Stevens cut two forecasts daily Monday through Friday (more if severe weather is in the forecast) and these forecasts run roughly 4-5 times an hour on your radio dial, AM 1390. If severe thunderstorms or heavy snow is in the forecast, you can hear Bill McMillan live on the WMCT morning show, giving you the latest forecasts and reasoning “behind the scenes” as to why the weather will be so rough!
Weekly updates of your MCWC forecast can also be found in The Tomahawk and BIN.
So, if you find yourself away from the computer and unable to read the most up to date Mountain City and Johnson County weather forecast online, be sure to pick up a copy of BIN or the Tomahawk, or tune that radio dial to AM 1390!
The purpose of this BLOG is to give Johnson County (and surrounding areas) another place to go to for the latest weather information! A few guys have come together to post not only weather forecasts, but to ”talk weather and stuff!” We here at www.mountaincityweathercenter.com hope that you find this BLOG to be an informative and enjoyable read! If you have a suggestion or would like to comment on any story published, feel free! We love to hear your comments!
Bill McMillan created www.mountaincityweathercenter.com in December of 2003, and serves as the website’s Chief Weatherman. Bill’s love of weather began during the Superstorm of 1993. At the time, Bill lived in Auburn, AL when the storm roared up the East Coast, dumping snow from the beaches of Florida to Maine. In particularly, the Blizzard of 1993, dumped an impressive nine inches of the white stuff on this southeastern Alabama city. During the summer of 1995, Bill moved to Mountain City. Bill’s favorite weather is snow and any other type of winter weather, however, other extreme weather events fascinate him as well, some of which include: thunderstorms, tornadoes, hurricanes, and floods. Ever since the Blizzard of 1993, Bill began doing weather research and studying numerous forecast models. A 2007 graduate of East Tennessee State University, Bill majored in Mass Communications, with a broadcasting concentration. Bill interned at WCYB-TV from spring of 2005 until the spring of 2006, working with the sports and weather department.
Despite all of the hours spent in the office, studying different forecast models and preparing each day’s forecast, Bill enjoys working out, hanging with friends, and spending time with family. Growing up in Auburn, AL, Bill claims to be the World’s biggest Auburn Tiger fan. During football season, Bill’s week is filled with lost sleep, stomach medicine (for the more important games), and just an overall excitement for the upcoming football game. Bill’s and MCWC.com’s forecast can be heard Monday-Friday on WMCT AM 1390, and can be found weekly in The Tomahawk. When asked about future goals of MountainCityWeatherCenter.com, Bill says “We hope to continue to deliver a forecast people of Mountain City and Johnson County can depend on. None of our success thus far would be possible without our viewers and for that I’m truly thankful. We have plans on added services in the future, not only to Mountain City Weather Center, but also to a weather website for the Tri-Cities region.” That website is www.weatherteam.net.
