Daily Weather Briefing for Thursday, April 20, 2017

LOCAL OUTLOOK

More seasonable conditions return today in the form of a warm and moist southerly flow of air, with showers and storms breaking out in the afternoon. A cold front will make a run at the region on Friday, leading to still higher chances of showers and storms. The front is expected to stall over the area this weekend, with unsettled weather continuing as a result.

Weather Almanac for April 20th (1872-2016)

Record weather events for this date in Macon County

Highest Temperature 87°F at the Coweeta Experimental Station in 2002
Lowest Temperature 17°F in Franklin in 1983
Greatest Rainfall 3.09 inches in Highlands in 1893
Greatest Snowfall 1.5 inches in Highlands in 1901

The record snowfall event on this date in North Carolina is 18 inches in Waynesville in 1901



THREE DAY OUTLOOK




TODAY Chance of strong storms in the late afternoon

Areas of dense fog in the morning. Partly sunny with highs in the mid to upper 70s. Calm winds in the morning rising to come from the southeast in the afternoon. 30% chance of scattered showers and thunderstorms, some of them could be strong with frequent lightning, damaging winds and small hail.

TONIGHT

Partly cloudy with lows in the mid 50s and variable light winds. 30% chance of scattered showers and thunderstorms with rainfall amounts less than a tenth of an inch expected.



FRIDAY

Partly sunny with highs near 80. Calm winds in the morning and winds 5 to 10 mph from the southeast in the afternoon. 50% chance of showers and thunderstorms.

FRIDAY NIGHT

Mostly cloudy with lows in the mid 50s and calm winds. 40% chance of showers and thunderstorms.



SATURDAY

Partly sunny with highs in the mid to upper 70s. 40% chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 11 am.

SATURDAY NIGHT

Mostly cloudy with lows in the mid 50s. 70% chance of showers and thunderstorms, with the greatest chance after midnight.


HAZARDS

Strong thunderstorms are possible late this afternoon. The main concern is frequent lightning, damaging winds and small hail.

The National Weather Service will be taking the regional weather radar offline for a few days around April 17th to install upgrades.

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


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
There is no charge for civic, educational or non profit groups.



APRIL 21 & 22

Franklin High School FFA Benefit Rodeo
Macon County Fairgrounds – 1436 Georgia Rd

Tickets available at the gate
$12 Adults
$6 Kids ages 5-10
Under 5 Free

Gates open at 6PM each night
Event starts at 8PM each night
Concessions available on site

Get there early for the best seating!

Saddle Bronc Riding
Bareback Riding
Calf Roping
Steer Wrestling
Ladies Breakaway Roping
Team Roping
Ladies Barrel Racing
Bull Riding

For more information, please visit the Facebook event page at https://www.facebook.com/events/1248793605202655/


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 effecting 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.



Astronomy


A meteor shower known as the Lyrids are active from April 16th to April 25th this year. The peak night is expected to be the nights of April 21st and 22nd.

The Lyrids are a medium strength shower that usually produces good rates for three nights centered on the maximum. These meteors also usually lack persistent trains but can produce fireballs. These meteors are best seen from the northern hemisphere where the radiant is high in the sky at dawn. Activity from this shower can be seen from the southern hemisphere, but at a lower rate.

Radiant: 18:04 +34° - ZHR: 18 - Velocity: 30 miles/sec (medium - 48.4km/sec) - Parent Object: C/1861 G1 (Thatcher)





Twilight Begins: 6:28 am
Sunrise: 6:55 am
Sunset 8:10 pm
Twilight Ends: 8:37 pm




Moon Phase: Waning Crescent with 38% of the Moon's visible disk illuminated.
Moonrise 3:16 am
Moonset 2:07 pm



Evening Events and Planets

Chart shows sky at 10:30 pm tonight




Morning Events and Planets

Chart shows sky at 4 am tomorrow morning



PLANET POSITION SUMMARY



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

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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.

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 4:10 am on April 20, 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.