Daily Weather Briefing for Thursday, August 10, 2017

LOCAL NEWS

From the Macon County Board of Education:

the Board approved by a 5-0 vote for Monday, August 21, 2017, to become an optional workday for all faculty and staff at Macon Early College with no classes for students. (This day will be made up. Mr. Sutton will plan accordingly and a make-up day will be discussed, approved and announced at a later time.) Please remember, our Board previously approved for Monday, August 21, 2017, to be an optional workday for faculty and staff at all other schools.

**note** Due to mechanical problems with the news van, Macon MEdia was not able to be there, so no video of the August 2017 Board of Education meeting will be published.


LOCAL OUTLOOK

A frontal boundary will remain across the region the next couple of days, with deep moisture potentially bringing periods of heavy rainfall. A stronger front will approach the forecast area this weekend and stall as well, with showers and thunderstorms expected to persist through the middle of next week.


WEATHER SPONSOR



Adams Products, a Division of Oldcastle is underwriting the daily weather briefing and public safety updates for the month. They have all your masonry products (block, mortars, tools), plus feature Belgrade Pavers and Sakrete Products. Open 7:30 AM to 4:00 PM, M-F, located at 895 Hickory Knoll Road, Franklin, NC.

Visit their Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/Adams.Oldcastle.Franklin.NC/

Their phone number is 828.524.8545, all are welcome, let them help you with your next project.


Weather Almanac for August 10th (1872-2016)

Record weather events for this date in Macon County

Highest Temperature 95°F in Franklin in 1980
Lowest Temperature 44°F at the Coweeta Experimental Station in 1953
Greatest Rainfall 3.14 inches in Nantahala in 1973
Record weather events for August in Macon County

Highest Temperature 99°F in Franklin on Aug 9, 1980
Lowest Temperature 40°F at the Coweeta Experimental Station on Aug 29, 1968
Greatest Rainfall 9.68 inches in Highlands on Aug 13, 1940


THREE DAY OUTLOOK



TODAY

Mostly cloudy with highs in the 70s. Calm winds early, then from the south in the afternoon. Increasing chance of scattered showers peaking to 60% chance in the late afternoon, along with afternoon thunderstorms. Rainfall amounts between a tenth and a quarter of an inch are possible in locations that see rain. Not everyone will.


TONIGHT

Mostly cloudy with fog expected to develop after 11 pm and lows in the 60s. Calm winds and a 60% chance of rain with rainfall amounts between a tenth and a quarter of an inch possible.




FRIDAY

Mostly cloudy with highs near 80 and variable light winds. 60% chance of rain with rainfall amounts between a tenth and a quarter of an inch possible. Some locations may see more.

FRIDAY NIGHT

Mostly cloudy with lows in the 60s and calm winds. Showers and thunderstorms are likely, mainly before 4 am.



SATURDAY

Partly sunny with highs in the mid-80s. 40% chance of showers and thunderstorms.

SATURDAY NIGHT

Mostly cloudy with lows in the 60s. 40% chance of rain.

HAZARDS

Isolated thunderstorms are expected this afternoon and evening. Brief heavy rainfall, gusty winds, and cloud to ground lightning can occur with any thunderstorm.

As always, you can check to see what advisories, watches, and warnings are in effect for Macon County by visiting http://is.gd/MACONWARN



TROPICAL WEATHER OUTLOOK

We are now in the time frame of where storms that develop in the Caribbean Sea or Atlantic Basin could impact our view of the solar eclipse on August 21st.
HUrricane FRANKLIN has made land fall in Central Mexico and the remnants will be over the Pacisif in a day or so.

Tropical Weather Outlook
NWS National Hurricane Center Miami FL
200 AM EDT Thu Aug 10 2017

For the North Atlantic...The Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico:

The National Hurricane Center is issuing advisories on Hurricane Franklin, which has just made landfall in eastern Mexico.

1. Showers and thunderstorms associated with a trough of low pressure located about 250 miles northeast of the northern Leeward Islands remain limited in extent and organization. Some slow development of this system is possible by this weekend while the trough moves northwestward over the western Atlantic.

* Formation chance through 48 hours...low...20 percent.
* Formation chance through 5 days...medium...40 percent.

2. A trough of low pressure over the Bahamas and the Florida Straits is producing disorganized shower activity. Although development appears unlikely, this system could bring areas of heavy rain to portions of the Bahamas and Florida during the next day or two.

* Formation chance through 48 hours...low...10 percent.
* Formation chance through 5 days...low...10 percent.


ECLIPSE EVENTS (events listed here are paid sponsorships)

RABUN COUNTY

Rabun County, Georgia has a county-wide “Outasight” eclipse viewing party planned for August 21st at the Rabun Gap Nacoochee School. More information may be found at
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/georgias-total-solar-eclipse-outasight-viewing-party-at-rgns-tickets-36172624293

Other events happening in and near Rabun County the weekend of the eclipse can be found on the Explore Rabun website at http://explorerabun.com/events-happening-total-solar-eclipse-rabun-county-georgia/

BRYSON CITY ECLIPSE WEEKEND

Bryson City invites you to a weekend of celebrating the eclipse. To find out more information, visit their page at https://www.greatsmokies.com/2017eclipse.html

Bryson City is recommended by TravelChannel.com as the spot in North Carolina to watch the eclipse.


MACON CALENDAR

If you have an event you wish to be added to this calendar, please send the information, along with a flyer in pdf format or a high-quality photo, to editor@maconmedia.com. If you want text published, please include a paragraph with your photo, flyer or graphic. Please include date(s) and time(s).
There is no charge for civic, educational or nonprofit groups, except for groups or events that receive funding from the TDA, TDC, and EDC, where full rates apply.


September 27th, WEDNESDAY

HOSPICE HOUSE FOUNDATION OF WNC

PEACEFUL JOURNEY
3rd annual charity dining event
hosted by RISTORANTE PAOLETTI at 440 Main Street in Highlands

For information, visit http://hhfwnc.org/peaceful-journey/


National Alliance on Mental Illness
Appalachian South

Meets each Thursday at 7pm
The First Methodist Church Outreach Center
at the intersection of Harrison Ave. and West Main Street
(directly across from Lazy Hiker Brewery)

Come join our weekly support group for anyone suffering from mental illness and their family or friends. This includes Depression, Bipolar,8chizophrenia, PTSD, Substance Abuse, Etc.

Here you will find:
— others living with mental health challenges YOU ARE NOT ALONE
- learn coping skills and ?find hope in shared experience
- help learning how to break down stigma and guilt surrounding mental health
- how to live life with the expectation of a better a better future

Kay (706)970-9987 Denise (828)347-5000)

SYRINGE EXCHANGE PROGRAM

On January 1, 2017, the Syringe Exchange Program of Franklin began operating a comprehensive harm reduction program to address the opioid epidemic that is impacting western NC. Opioid overdose reversal kits including naloxone are available free of charge. If you have any questions about our services or if you know someone interested in volunteering, please contact Stephanie Almeida at 828-475-1920.



Sun and Moon

Sun

Begin civil twilight 6:22 a.m.
Sunrise 6:50 a.m.
Sun transit 1:39 p.m.
Sunset 8:27 p.m.
End civil twilight 8:55 p.m.

Moon

Moonrise 9:48 p.m. last night
Moon transit 3:37 a.m.
Moonset 9:32 a.m.
Moonrise 10:23 p.m.

Phase of the Moon on August 9, 2017: Waning Gibbous with 91% of the Moon's visible disk illuminated.
The next New Moon will occur during a total solar eclipse at 2:36:40 pm on August 21, 2017.


Sky Guides for this week

Sky and Telescope Magazine 
Astronomy Magazine


Earth Sky has an article on the eclipses of 2017. [LINK]

Heavens Above has an Android App that will assist you in observing the sky and even has a satellite tracker that will let you know when the International Space Station and dozens of other satellites are overhead. [LINK]

Stellarium is also an app that will assist you in observing the sky. It is available in both Android [LINK] and iOS versions. [LINK]

CROWD FUNDING OR DAY SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

I will be posting an August Update in the next few days on our patreon campaign, which has reached 25 people who have pledged $294. Payout is on August 6th.

If you receive value from what Macon Media provides to the community, please consider becoming a supporter and contribute at least a dollar a month.

If you have a business or event you are interested in sponsorship opportunities or underwriting coverage, send an email to editor@MaconMedia.com for more information. Serious inquiries only. Macon Media rewards early sponsors/underwriters with lifetime guaranteed low rates while newer sponsors/underwriters pay higher rates based on the date they first support Macon Media.

Thank You to the people who have been sending in donations and those businesses who are underwriting coverage of news and events. You have kept Macon Media online. You have made it possible for Macon Media to begin purchasing state of the art equipment and begin work on building a real website with features not employed by any local news outlets.

You can find out more information on how to do that and some of what I plan to accomplish if I reach certain levels of funding at https://www.patreon.com/MaconMedia

Published at 4:35 am on August 10, 2017

#WNCscan #MaconWx #MaconSafety

Data and information sources: Sources (except where otherwise credited): heavens-above.com, Ian Webster's Github, National Centers for Environmental Prediction, The National Weather Service, National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration, Penn State University Electronic Wall Map, The State Climate Office of North Carolina, Storm Prediction Center, U.S. Naval Observatory, and the Weather Prediction Center.