2019 Head in the Clouds Amherst Wall Calendar Now Available!

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2019 Head in the Clouds Amherst Wall Calendar
Price: $17.80 per calendar and FREE Shipping  SOLD OUT

- 12 beautiful, seasonal photos by Amherst residents and visitors
- Over 100 daily entries highlighting astronomical, historical, weather, and 
   meteorological events in Amherst and New England from 1620-2018
- 17" X 11" (full size when open)
- Saddle stitch binding
- Coated gloss, heavyweight paper
- Shrink wrapped

"Hope" is a thing with feathers

Skies over Hadley, 10/5/2018 - Photo by S. Vardatira

"Hope" is the thing with feathers

- Emily Dickinson

Skies over Hadley, taken late Friday afternoon as I was driving home from work. Brought Emily's poem to mind.

Over and Under Miami Clouds

Cumulus clouds over Miami, Florida - Photo by Louann Krebs

Look carefully at the beach-level scenes (you will spot a rainbow in at least two shots). These photos, capturing the view above and below clouds over Miami, Florida, were taken by long-time Pioneer Valley resident and friend of Head in the Clouds Amherst, Louann Krebs. Thanks so much for bringing us a slice of wind, waves, surf, and awesome clouds, Louann!

Miami, Florida - Photo by Louann Krebs

Miami, Florida - Photo by Louann Krebs

Clouds over Miami, Florida - Photo by Louann Krebs

Clouds over Miami, Florida - Photo by Louann Krebs

Clouds over Miami, Florida - Photo by Louann Krebs

Row by Row

"Row by Row" - Russellville Road, North Amherst
Photo by S. Vardatira, 7/22/2018

Despite prognostications to the contrary, we had another exquisite summer afternoon in Amherst. I tend to think blue sky is highly overrated and usually pretty boring. I'll take this afternoon's skies any time.

Thanks for the photos!

This photo, entitled "The Path to Amherst," was featured in our 2015 calendar,
when the rules around where exactly a photo could be taken were still evolving.
Photo by S. Vardatira

Over the weekend, our calendar committee will be sorting through all the photos that have been submitted for possible inclusion in our 2019 calendar. It's still early days, but it's obvious that we have significantly more photos and more photographers than ever. And so many amazing shots! We've only done a first pass, but getting to the final twelve is going to be truly challenging.

Many thanks to our incredible, talented, and passionate community of photographers!

Seeking Photos for the 2019 Head in the Clouds Amherst Calendar!

Your photo could be featured (kind of like this) in our upcoming 2019 calendar!

CALLING ALL AMHERST-AREA (and AMHERST VISITING) PHOTOGRAPHERS:

Head in the Clouds Amherst is seeking photo submissions for our 2019 calendar. As in past years, the 2019 calendar will once again feature monthly photos taken by 12 different photographers. You can see last year’s calendar, here. 

The deadline to submit is July 6, 2018. Submissions can be emailed or uploaded via Google Drive to CloudsAmherst@gmail.com. Please enter "HITC 2019 Calendar Photo Submissions" in the subject line.

Along with your photo(s), please include: a caption or title; who is in the photo (unless it's a crowd scene or taken from a distance), where it was taken, the photographer's name, and your contact information.

All submissions must have been taken in Amherst or feature a scenic view of Amherst. And photos must also depict scenes that evoke the seasons and the intersection of life and weather. In addition to those qualities, if your photo also captures one or more of these themes it will get special consideration:

• Amherst landmarks (popular gathering sites, university/colleges, museums, etc.)
• Amherst annual events and happenings 
• Clouds formations and weather phenomena (over or around Amherst)

Click on this link for additional tips on submitting winning Head in the Clouds Amherst photos. Keep in mind that we cannot consider photos that are low resolution, low quality, or that contain inappropriate material. 

We welcome photos by professionals and amateurs, in color or black and white. And we’re also counting on friends of Head in the Clouds re-submitting photos you’ve already sent to us over the year. You can submit as many photos as you like.

If your photo is selected for the 2019 calendar, you will receive a free calendar and reduced rates on any additional calendars you opt to purchase.  This enterprise is a labor of love, break-even project - but what we don't make in money we make up for in enthusiastic community support/spirit and awesome photos.

So what are you waiting for??? Start flipping through your photo collection – or grab your camera and make some new memories. We can’t wait to see what you’ve got!

Saving Grace of Clouds

Sunrise on a flight out of Portland, Oregon
By Katelyn Nixon, Cloud Appreciation Society Member 19,485

Consider this a brief respite from social media's ongoing daily bad news barrage. The antidote being to reflect on nature (and by that we mean clouds, of course!).

Let us suppose for a moment that a being, whose eyes were so made that he could see gases as we see liquids, was looking down from a distance upon our earth. He would see an ocean of air, or aerial ocean, all round the globe, with birds floating about in it, and people walking along the bottom, just as we see fish gliding along the bottom of a river... So he would call us all deep-air creatures, just as we talk of deep-sea animals; and if we can imagine that he fished in this air-ocean, and could pull one of us out of it into space, he would find that we should gasp and die just as fishes do when pulled out of the water.

From ‘The Aerial Ocean in Which We Live’ from The Fairy-Land of Science (1883) by Arabella B. Buckley

The Great Greenland Icecap Ski Traverse

Dan and Elaine's tent (they camped overnight behind Kulusuk airport before
catching the helicopter to Tasiilaq). Multiple dog sled teams passed
by during their time there - it's just how folks get around.
Photo by Dan Vardamis - Kulusuk, Greenland, April 18, 2018

Those of you who were following Head in the Clouds Amherst last summer may recall my periodic postings about Dan and Elaine, my brother and sister-in-law, who live in the mountains of Colorado. Last summer, from around April through September, they did a thru-hike of the Continental Divide Trail from the border of Mexico to Canada. Their current mission is to ski across the Greenland ice cap. Yesterday marked the start of their ascent to the ice sheet, about 7,000 feet above sea level, pulling two sleds with a combined starting weight of over 300 lbs. It sounds torturous to me, but this is what they live for.

My brother's daily check-in last night after a very strenuous first day:

It’s not every day you get to do a polar bear watch on the edge of the Greenland icecap under the northern lights with a shotgun in hand.

Just to be clear, they are not hunters (plus, of course, polar bears are protected). Shotguns are on Greenland's strongly advised list of equipment that people should bring for self-defense when venturing out in this region. Dan and Elaine did not actually bring shotguns. They just fortuitously joined forces with two Polish women adventurers who happened to be armed.

It apparently takes a village to mount this kind of an expedition. In addition to teaming up with strangers from time to time (like the two Polish women), Dan and Elaine also have the voluntary support of a Dutch weatherman, who is sending them daily updates so they can make an informed decision about whether and when to proceed each day. One of the major concerns is running into a Greenland weather phenomenon known as “piteraq” winds - extremely strong hurricane-force winds that sweep across the icecap. They have to prepare and hunker down when piteraq are forecast or they could be in real trouble. So this individual is a critical part of their journey. So far (now day two), the weather has been improving, so fingers crossed.

If you’d like to follow their approximately 3-4 week traverse across Greenland, check out the link below. They will be trying to update it each day with a brief description of happenings on the ice. And if you want to message them, they’d love it! And, of course, I'll be adding periodic updates to Head in the Clouds as well.

Dan and Elaine’s Ski Across Greenland Map and Progress

To quote Captain Kirk, referring to his own crew, "May fortune favor the foolish" (albeit extremely well prepared in every way). But don't tell Dan and Elaine I said that! 

Amherst Fire and Ice, 130 Years Ago Today

Main Street, Northampton - March 13, 1888
Great Blizzard of 1888
National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
(Courtesy of Forbes Library, Northampton)

For everyone who is shocked and disheartened that more winter weather is headed our way Monday night and Tuesday, consider that it could be much worse. The Great Blizzard of 1888 started on this day that year (March 11th) and continued through March 14th. Across New England, snow drifts were reported to reach second floor windows.

Amherst Town Hall today

In Amherst, to make matters even worse, on the first day of that blizzard (130 years ago today), the Palmer Block in downtown Amherst burned down. Because town meetings had been held in the building, the town acquired the land and built a new Town Hall -- which still serves as our current Town Hall -- in 1889-1890.

Now don't you feel better about whatever disturbances come our way this week? You're welcome.

How much snow fell anyway?

Morning After Snowstorm, North Amherst MA
Photo by S. Vardatira, 3/8/2018

By the ruler, 5.75" of heavy, wet snow is currently on the ground here in North Amherst. So why are we hearing official totals in the 10" to 12" range for Amherst? National Weather Service guidelines for measuring snow take into account several special situations that require a different approach to gauging totals. And yesterday we had one of those special situations. The snow was so wet and heavy that as new snow was falling it was pressing down, condensing, and even melting the snow under it. In a more typical situation, the guideline is to measure snowfall totals using a uniform flat surface, clearing that surface no more than four times in a 24-hour period, measuring the amount of new snow that falls each time, and adding those amounts together. That would not have worked yesterday. For about 4 hours yesterday afternoon, while it was snowing hard (and I wasn't clearing my surface and re-measuring new snowfall), I kept getting the same total as the new, heavy wet snow condensed the snow under it. The only way to get a more accurate reading yesterday was to clear the surface and re-measure more frequently. I did not stick with it enough to offer up an official reading, but that's how this morning's official Amherst reading gets to 10"-12." And this also explains why clearing off your car this morning is so much harder than you would think 6 inches would be.

(Photo I took this morning is further proof this is not just a typical 6 inch snowfall. It's heavy and sticky.)

Bombogenesis Approaches

Winter Storm Riley to Undergo Bombogenesis, Becoming an Intense Nor'easter
With Coastal Flooding, High Winds, Heavy, Wet Snow in the East
The Weather Channel, 3/1/2018

As everyone must be aware by now, a truly classic nor'easter (bombogenesis is the popular term) is going to be impacting southern New England overnight tonight all the way into Saturday. The feed from the Taunton Skywarn office is on overdrive right now. Of course, where you are is going to make a big difference in how you experience this storm. What will happen around Amherst is still something of a close call, with increasing potential for some amount of heavy wet snow. And while two inches of heavy wet snow wouldn't incapacitate us, five inches or more (which currently does seem somewhat unlikely in the Valley) could be a whole different story. This an "expect the best, prepare for worst" situation. Meanwhile, here's an excerpted recap of the coming storm, sent from our local Skywarn office this morning:

"..Powerful and long duration coastal storm will bring the potential for multiple high tide cycles of significant coastal flooding to East Coastal Massachusetts along with the potential for strong to damaging winds, including hurricane force wind gusts, for Cape Cod and the Islands; heavy rainfall that could lead to river and stream flooding; and rain changing to snow with the potential now for significant snow accumulations in portions of interior Southern New England. The potential for heavy snow is a change since the last update...

..A High Wind Warning is now in effect from 10 AM Friday to 10 AM Saturday for Cape Cod and the Islands and Norfolk, Bristol and Plymouth Counties of Massachusetts for sustained winds of between 20-50 MPH with gusts to 75 MPH and isolated higher gusts possible. These winds will cause scattered to numerous pockets of tree and wire damage and scattered to numerous power outages..

..A Flood Watch remains in effect for Eastern Massachusetts through Saturday Morning for 1-3 inches of rainfall with isolated higher rainfall amounts of 4". Western portions of the region [including Amherst] were dropped from the Flood Watch as more heavy wet snow is expected in these areas...

..A Winter Storm Watch is now in effect from Late Tonight through Late Friday Night for Western Franklin, Western Hampshire and Western Hampden Counties of Massachusetts for 4-7" of snow.

...A Winter Storm Watch is now in effect from Friday Afternoon through Saturday Morning for Worcester and Northern Middlesex Counties of Massachusetts for 2-6" of snow with isolated higher amounts. The heavy wet snow combined with strong winds could cause pockets of tree and wire damage and power outages. These snow totals could be subject to significant revisions..."

Winterfest Luminaria on the Common

Amherst Winterfest opens with "Luminaria on the Common"
Photography by Amherst Winterfest (please identify!) - 2/3/2018

Love this extraordinary photo of yesterday's Amherst Winterfest opening, with "Luminaria on the Common." For the first time this year, Winterfest is happening for a full week, February 3-10, with events scheduled every day. Check out the schedule here.

Morning Musings on Groundhog Day

Groundhog Day Morning, North Amherst
Photo by S. Vardatira, 2/2/2018

Questions on my mind about our most famous weather forecaster:

• Does Punxsutawney Phil forecast for all of the northern hemisphere, just Pennsylvania, the East Coast, or some other geographic area? Seems to me that his forecast should just pertain to Punxsutawney and not anywhere else.
• Are groundhogs around here even coming out of hibernation yet? This does not strike me as a morning an Amherst groundhog would want to be yanked out of the ground.
• And as a friend just commented, isn't six more weeks until spring essentially an early spring here in the Northeast? Yes!

Finally, for those who have not yet heard the news, Punxsutawney Phil did indeed see his shadow this morning. And it also snowed and got colder. So take that however you wish. It's shocking, I know, but it turns out that Punxsutawney Phil is not that dependable a forecaster.

Happy Groundhog Day!

Morning Dusting of Snow

Featured photo for the month of February in the 2018 Head in the Clouds Amherst wall calendar was taken by friend of HITC and previous calendar contributor, Elisa Campbell. By sheer coincidence, this photo could have been taken this very morning - light snow overnight has turned our world into this exact scene.