Verna and Bob's Weblog

Climate

Sun Rays Among the Clouds

Sun Rays

Last evening, we were bringing the dogs back from walking when I noticed the sun rays among the cloud build ups over the house. I call this effect a “glory,” but it does have a technical name, crepuscular rays.

Wikipedia has this about crepuscular rays:

Crepuscular rays (also known as God rays) in atmospheric optics, are rays of sunlight that appear to radiate from the point in the sky where the sun is located. These rays, which stream through gaps in clouds (particularly stratocumulus) or between other objects, are columns of sunlit air separated by darker cloud-shadowed regions. Despite seeming to converge at a point, the rays are in fact near-parallel shafts of sunlight and their apparent convergence is a perspective effect (similar, for example, to the way that parallel railway lines seem to converge at a point in the distance).

The name comes from their frequent occurrences during crepuscular hours (those around dawn and dusk), when the contrasts between light and dark are the most obvious. Crepuscular comes from the Latin word “crepusculum”, meaning twilight

July 8, 2014 by Arizona Climate Photography

Casandro Wash Flowing Water

Flowing Water

This is an image of lower Casandro wash just before it flows into the aqueduct under Mariposa Drive. If it were not for Casandro Dam located 1000 feet upstream, the entire property zone where we built our house would be flooded rather than just this trickle.

The dam’s catch basin stores most of the water flowing down upper Casandro wash when the monsoons come. There is a regulated pipeline that originates in the basin and ends with the pipe that slowly releases the trapped water at a point below the dam.

Just last Friday, Verna and I were down in this part of the wash picking up bottles, cans and other unsightly debris to be recycled rather than be an eyesore to us and anyone else that likes to see our desert clean from debris like that. Click on Verna’s image to enlarge.

July 7, 2014 by Arizona Climate Photography

Whitewater On The Road

Whitewater

One hell of a gully-washer this afternoon. The skies opened up, the thunder and lightning came and after the sheets of rain let up a bit, we went out to see the road flowing like a little river. Click on the image to enlarge.

We had been grilling hamburgers earlier and managed to get our trailer awning retracted and the gear put away before the monsoon showers came. Putting the stuff away in time was a combination of luck and intuition.

July 6, 2014 by Arizona Climate Photography

Shorts Weather Again

Shorts WeatherExcept for a few days when the weather involved a chance of rain and it was overcast, we have had a delightful January and February (thus far). The forecast calls for more warm days (in the 70’s) for the next week. Tuesday, prior to heading to the doctor down in Litchfield Park, Bob put on his shorts and T-shirt to cope with the few degrees warmer it gets down in the valley.

I took this photo of Bob and Cabela on the road that day. We were taking the dogs for their last run before leaving them “home alone” for the few hours it would take to get down to the valley, have the appointment with the doctor and the drive back home. Fortunately, one of the doctor’s staff told us about the opening of the new SR 303 Loop all the way to the road near the medical plaza. We made good time having avoided the traffic and all the signals on Grand Avenue and Litchfield Road. Click on the image to enlarge.

The best part of the trip to the doctor was having him give Bob a clean bill of health and, after from one more minor procedure on Friday, will relieve us of the constraints that have limited our ability to doing some recreational travel. YAY!

February 19, 2014 by Apparel Arizona Climate Family Retirement

Winter Sundown

Winter Sundown

This was the view from the RV drive just after sunset this evening. Today marks the halfway point between winter solstice and spring equinox and that means that we are in the “dead” of winter. Thankfully, that is still quite a mild condition here in our beautiful Arizona home. Click on the image to enlarge.

February 3, 2014 by Arizona Climate Photography Retirement

Early Spring Cholla Buds

Buds

For most of January, we have enjoyed warmer daytime temperatures, like in the high 60’s and low 70’s. It is still quite possible for winter to hit here again, but we’re enjoying “faux spring” in the meantime. Some of the cacti on the lot also seem to be responding to the warm trend.

I was up on the hill behind the RV drive hanging the bird feeders that Verna refilled this afternoon. I walked over to inspect some of the buckhorn cholla cacti because I saw some cactus wrens and a couple of curve billed thrashers hanging around them. I thought I might see evidence of a nest or two being built, but all I saw was some new buds starting to appear on the cholla. Verna reminded me later that the cholla on the hill always seem to get flowers sooner than the ones down on the front of the lot. Click on the image to enlarge.

January 27, 2014 by Arizona Climate Home & Garden Photography

Avalon 1998

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