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Local and StateNews
National News Roundup
COVID-19 News and Updates
Science and Technology
On This Day
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OUTLOOK
A winter storm will impact the higher elevations today, while heavy rain continues elsewhere. High pressure builds in with cooler and drier conditions Tuesday and Wednesday. The next system to bring active weather will be late Thursday and Friday. A lull in the activity is expected late Friday into Saturday before active weather returns Sunday.
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Local Weather
National Weather Map for Today
General forecast through Wednesday Night
Franklin Area Forecast
Today
A 30 percent chance of snow showers, mainly before 7am. Areas of fog before 7am. Otherwise, cloudy through midmorning, then gradual clearing, with highs in the lower 40s. Winds out of the northwest 10 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph. Little or no snow accumulation expected.
Monday Night
Clear, with lows in the mid-teens. Winds out of the northwest around 5 mph becoming calm before midnight.
Tuesday
Sunny, with highs near 45. Calm winds becoming south southeast around 5 mph in the afternoon.
Tuesday Night
Partly cloudy, with lows in the mid 20s. Calm winds.
Wednesday
Mostly cloudy, with highs near 50.
Wednesday Night
Mostly cloudy, with lows in the mid-to-upper 20s.
Highlands Area Forecast
Today
Snow showers likely, mainly before 9am. Areas of fog before 7am. Otherwise, cloudy through midmorning, then gradual clearing, with highs in the upper 30s. Winds out of the northwest 25 to 30 mph in the morning decreasing to 10 to 15 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 55 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.
Monday Night
Clear, with lows around 20. Winds out of the north 5 to 10 mph in the early evening becoming light and variable after midnight.
Tuesday
Sunny, with highs in the mid 30s. Winds out of the southeast 3 to 6 mph.
Tuesday Night
Partly cloudy, with lows in the mid 20s. Winds out of the southeast around 5 mph becoming south southwest after midnight.
Wednesday
Mostly cloudy, with highs in the low-to-mid 40s.
Wednesday Night
Mostly cloudy, with lows around 30.
Otto Area Forecast
Today
A 30 percent chance of snow showers, mainly before 8am. Cloudy through midmorning, then gradual clearing, with highs in the lower 40s. Winds out of the northwest 10 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 40 mph. Little or no snow accumulation expected.
Monday Night
Clear, with lows around 20. WInds out of the northwest 5 to 10 mph in the early evening becoming calm before midnight.
Tuesday
Sunny, with highs in the low-to-mid 40s. Calm winds in the morning increasing to come out of the southeast around 5 mph in the afternoon.
Tuesday Night
Partly cloudy, with lows in the mid 20s. Winds out of the southeast around 5 mph becoming calm before midnight.
Wednesday
Mostly cloudy, with highs near 50.
Wednesday Night
Mostly cloudy, with lows around 30.
Nantahala Area Forecast
Today
A 30 percent chance of snow showers, mainly before 8am. Areas of fog before 7am. Otherwise, cloudy through midmorning, then gradual clearing, with highs in the upper 30s. Winds out of the northwest 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 35 mph. Little or no snow accumulation expected.
Monday Night
Mostly clear, with lows around 20. Winds out of the northwest around 5 mph becoming calm before midnight.
Tuesday
Sunny, with highs near 40. Calm winds in the morning increasing to come out of the southeast around 5 mph in the afternoon.
Tuesday Night
Partly cloudy, with lows in the mid-to-upper 20s. Winds out of the southeast 3 to 5 mph.
Wednesday
Partly sunny, with highs in the mid 40s.
Wednesday Night
Mostly cloudy, with lows around 30.
Hazardous Weather Outlook
...Winter storm warning in effect until noon est today above 3500 feet...
...Winter weather advisory in effect until noon est today below 3500 feet...
Be careful on area roadways this morning, especially at higher elevations on mountain passes.
Details of the Winter Weather Advisory and the Winter Storm Warning are posted below.
Winter Weather Advisory
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Greenville-Spartanburg SC
1012 PM EST Sun Jan 2 2022
...WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL NOON EST MONDAY ABOVE 3500 FEET...
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL NOON EST MONDAY BELOW 3500 FEET...
* WHAT...For the Winter Storm Warning, heavy snow expected. Total snow accumulations of 6 to 12 inches. Winds gusting as high as 50 mph at times. For the Winter Weather Advisory, snow expected. Total snow accumulations of 1 to 5 inches. Winds gusting as high as 45 mph at times.
* WHERE...Swain, Graham and Northern Jackson Counties.
* WHEN...From 10 PM this evening to noon EST Monday.
* IMPACTS...Travel could be very difficult to impossible. The hazardous conditions could impact the morning commute. The winds may blow down tree limbs and produce scattered power outages.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Rain is expected to change over to snow at high elevations late this evening, and then down to the valleys after midnight. A few pockets of brief freezing rain or sleet are possible during the transition, but all the precipitation should change to snow quickly overnight. Although the ground is relatively warm because of the recent warm temperatures, the snow is expected to fall at high rates and accumulate even on roads. The snow should taper off from the west Monday morning. Slippery roads and black ice conditions could persist or redevelop well into Tuesday morning.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
A Winter Storm Warning for heavy snow means severe winter weather conditions are expected or occurring. Significant amounts of snow are forecast that will make travel dangerous. Only travel in an emergency. If you must travel, keep a flashlight, food, water, and a warm blanket in your vehicle in case of an emergency.
A Winter Weather Advisory for snow means that periods of snow will cause primarily travel difficulties. Be prepared for snow covered roads and limited visibilities, and use caution while driving.
Please report snow and ice accumulations by calling the National Weather Service toll free at...1...800...2 6 7...8 1 0 1. Leave a message with your observation and the specific location where it occurred. You can also post your report to National Weather Service Greenville Spartanburg Facebook or tweet your report using hashtag nwsgsp.
Stay tuned to NOAA Weather Radio or your favorite source of weather information for the latest updates. Additional details can be found at www.weather.gov/gsp. The latest state road conditions can be obtained by calling 5 1 1.
Winter Storm Warning
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Greenville-Spartanburg SC
1012 PM EST Sun Jan 2 2022
...WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL NOON EST MONDAY ABOVE 3500 FEET...
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL NOON EST MONDAY BELOW 3500 FEET...
* WHAT...For the Winter Storm Warning, heavy snow expected. Total snow accumulations of 6 to 12 inches. Winds gusting as high as 50 mph at times. For the Winter Weather Advisory, snow expected. Total snow accumulations of 1 to 5 inches. Winds gusting as high as 45 mph at times.
* WHERE...Swain, Graham and Northern Jackson Counties. (This includes Nantahala)
* WHEN...From 10 PM this evening to noon EST Monday.
* IMPACTS...Travel could be very difficult to impossible. The hazardous conditions could impact the morning commute. The winds may blow down tree limbs and produce scattered power outages.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Rain is expected to change over to snow at high elevations late this evening, and then down to the valleys after midnight. A few pockets of brief freezing rain or sleet are possible during the transition, but all the precipitation should change to snow quickly overnight. Although the ground is relatively warm because of the recent warm temperatures, the snow is expected to fall at high rates and accumulate even on roads. The snow should taper off from the west Monday morning. Slippery roads and black ice conditions could persist or redevelop well into Tuesday morning.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
A Winter Storm Warning for heavy snow means severe winter weather conditions are expected or occurring. Significant amounts of snow are forecast that will make travel dangerous. Only travel in an emergency. If you must travel, keep a flashlight, food, water, and a warm blanket in your vehicle in case of an emergency.
A Winter Weather Advisory for snow means that periods of snow will cause primarily travel difficulties. Be prepared for snow covered roads and limited visibilities, and use caution while driving.
Please report snow and ice accumulations by calling the National Weather Service toll free at...1...800...2 6 7...8 1 0 1. Leave a message with your observation and the specific location where it occurred. You can also post your report to National Weather Service Greenville Spartanburg Facebook or tweet your report using hashtag nwsgsp.
Stay tuned to NOAA Weather Radio or your favorite source of weather information for the latest updates. Additional details can be found at www.weather.gov/gsp. The latest state road conditions can be obtained by calling 5 1 1.
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Hazards and Tropical Weather
Hazardous weather is not expected for today.
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Almanac
Air quality is in the extreme upper range of green for most of the county, with the ridges and other higher elevations today being in the extreme upper range of green.
Fire and Smoke Map
Pollen
Pollen levels are expected to be in the low-medium range (0.3 out of 12) today with Juniper being the main culprit. Tomorrow is expected to be in the low range (0.3 out of 12).
Record Weather Events for January 3nd
Record weather events for this date in Macon County
(1872-2016)
Highest Temperature 69°F in Franklin in 2004
lowest Temperature -9°F in Highlands in 1979
Greatest One-Day Rainfall 2.53 inches at the Coweeta Experimental Station in 1944
Greatest One-Day Snowfall 5.5 inches in Highlands in 1914
Record weather events for December in Macon County
Highest Temperature 78°F in Franklin on Dec 31, 1951
Lowest Temperature -12°F in Highlands on Dec 30, 1917
Greatest Rainfall 6.00 inches in Highlands on Dec 14, 1901
Greatest One-Day Snowfall 12.0 inches in Franklin on Dec 21, 1876
All-time record weather events for Macon County
Highest Temperature 101°F in Franklin on Jul 29, 1952
Lowest Temperature -19°F in Highlands on Jan 21, 1985
Greatest Rainfall 21.15 inches in Highlands on Jul 29, 1879
Greatest One-Day Snowfall 25.5 inches at the Coweeta Experimental Station on Mar 13, 1993
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Macon Calendar
(send your event to calendar@maconmedia.com)
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Local and State News
COVID-19 Numbers for Macon County: [November 15, 2021]
• 8th Annual Ruby Drop in Franklin, NC [Facebook]
• UPDATE: Lost Cove, NC wildfire now 80% contained at 1,000 acres burned [WLOS-TV Asheville]
• Entire Blue Ridge Parkway, including Asheville, closed Sunday ahead of winter snowstorm [Asheville Citizen-Times]
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National and World News Roundup
Vienna Philharmonic New Year's Concert 2022 (New Year Concert) - Barenboim
• 'This Week' Transcript 1-2-22: Dr. Anthony Fauci, Rep. Liz Cheney, Rep. Bennie Thompson & Mayor Eric Adams [ABC News]
• Cheney: January 6 committee has 'firsthand testimony' that Ivanka asked Trump to intervene during insurrection [CNN]
• Child Tax Credit’s Extra Help Ends, Just as Covid Surges Anew [New York Times]
• Dutch police disperse thousands protesting in Amsterdam against Covid lockdown [France 24]
• Effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines against Omicron or Delta infection [MedRxiv (PDF)]
• Republicans and Democrats divided over Jan. 6 insurrection and Trump’s culpability, Post-UMD poll finds [Washington Post]
Cheney says House January 6 panel "will not be deterred"
Meet The Press Broadcast (Full) - Jan. 2
NBC Nightly News Full Broadcast - January 2nd, 2021
PBS NewsHour Full Episode January 2nd, 2021
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COVID-19 News and Updates
Since it looks like we may be in for a new wave of infections, here is a section on COVID-19. It will include local, regional, state, national, and global items.
COVID-19 Numbers for Macon County: [November 18, 2021]
• WHO Coronavirus (COVID-19) Dashboard [World Health Organization]
Globally, as of 4:14pm CET, 29 December 2021, there have been 281,808,270 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 5,411,759 deaths, reported to WHO. As of 28 December 2021, a total of 8,687,201,202 vaccine doses have been administered.
In United States of America, from 3 January 2020 to 4:14pm CET, 29 December 2021, there have been 52,543,602 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with 812,577 deaths, reported to WHO. As of 23 December 2021, a total of 485,274,895 vaccine doses have been administered.
Dr John Campbell: Omicron is displacing Delta
• Israel's PM warns of coming COVID-19 'storm' [WTVR-TV Richmond]
• Twitter permanently suspends Marjorie Taylor Greene's account for spreading COVID-19 misinformation [Microsoft News]
• Monitoring COVID-19 Variants
[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]
[Outbreak.info]
• CDC Releases Emergency Guidance for Healthcare Facilities to Prepare for Potential Omicron Surge [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]
• COVID-19 case rates by county in 2021 [AXIOS]
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Science and Technology News Roundup
A Year of Historic Storms - 2021 Radar Time Lapse [FULL-YEAR]
• title [SOURCE]
• AT&T, Verizon Refuse FAA Request to Delay 5G Launch [Wall Street Journal]
• title [SOURCE]
• title [SOURCE]
• title [SOURCE]
• In Defense of Memorization [City Journal]
• 2021 News Rewound; Live Stream come and hangout [Level1 Techs on Youtube]
Tech Podcasts SpaceX Starship Booster Removed, Starship Static Fire, JWST Update, Angara A5 & OneWeb Launch
title
title
Challenges & Predictions for the Next 100 Years
The Biggest Science Stories Of 2021 | Answers With Joe
JWST Launches, Angara Fails, Octograbber Gets Into A Fight - Deep Space Update December 29th
• Million-Dollar Predictions [Linux Unplugged #438]
• Xcode X [Accidental Tech Podcast #462]
• Best and Worst of 2021 [Rocket #365]
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On This Day
January 3rd in the 3rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 362 days remain until the end of the year (363 in leap years).
Historical Events
(Please note that the Wikipedia articles often contain a bibliography and links to where you can learn more about a historical event)
69 – The Roman legions on the Rhine refuse to declare their allegiance to Galba, instead proclaiming their legate, Aulus Vitellius, as emperor.
250 – Emperor Decius orders everyone in the Roman Empire (except Jews) to make sacrifices to the Roman gods.
1521 – Pope Leo X excommunicates Martin Luther in the papal bull Decet Romanum Pontificem.
1653 – By the Coonan Cross Oath, the Eastern Church in India cuts itself off from colonial Portuguese tutelage.
1749 – Benning Wentworth issues the first of the New Hampshire Grants, leading to the establishment of Vermont.
1749 – The first issue of Berlingske, Denmark's oldest continually operating newspaper, is published.
1777 – American General George Washington defeats British General Lord Cornwallis at the Battle of Princeton.
1815 – Austria, the United Kingdom, and France form a secret defensive alliance against Prussia and Russia.
1833 – Captain James Onslow, in the Clio, reasserts British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands.
1848 – Joseph Jenkins Roberts is sworn in as the first president of Liberia.
1861 – American Civil War: Delaware votes not to secede from the United States.
1868 – Meiji Restoration in Japan: The Tokugawa shogunate is abolished; agents of Satsuma and Chōshū seize power.
1870 – Construction work begins on the Brooklyn Bridge in New York, United States.
1871 – In the Battle of Bapaume, an engagement in the Franco-Prussian War, General Louis Faidherbe's forces bring about a Prussian retreat.
1885 – Sino-French War: Beginning of the Battle of Núi Bop.
1900 - Giuseppe Verdi's opera Aida makes U.S. debut.
1911 – A magnitude 7.7 earthquake destroys the city of Almaty in Russian Turkestan.
1911 – A gun battle in the East End of London leaves two dead. It sparked a political row over the involvement of then-Home Secretary Winston Churchill.
1913 – An Atlantic coast storm sets the lowest confirmed barometric pressure reading for a non-tropical system in the continental United States.
1920 – Over 640 are killed after a magnitude 6.4 earthquake strikes the Mexican states Puebla and Veracruz.
1933 – Minnie D. Craig becomes the first woman elected as Speaker of the North Dakota House of Representatives, the first woman to hold a Speaker position anywhere in the United States.
1944 – World War II: US flying ace Major Greg "Pappy" Boyington is shot down in his Vought F4U Corsair by Captain Masajiro Kawato flying a Mitsubishi A6M Zero.
1946 – Popular Canadian American jockey George Woolf dies in a freak accident during a race; the annual George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award is created to honor him.
1947 – Proceedings of the U.S. Congress are televised for the first time.
1949 – The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the central bank of the Philippines, is established.
1953 – Frances P. Bolton and her son, Oliver from Ohio, become the first mother and son to serve simultaneously in the U.S. Congress.
1956 – A fire damages the top part of the Eiffel Tower.
1957 – The Hamilton Watch Company introduces the first electric watch.
1958 – The West Indies Federation is formed.
1959 – Alaska is admitted as the 49th U.S. state.
1961 – Cold War: After a series of economic retaliations against one another, the United States severs diplomatic relations with Cuba.
1961 – The SL-1 nuclear reactor is destroyed by a steam explosion in the only reactor incident in the United States to cause immediate fatalities.
1961 – A protest by agricultural workers in Baixa de Cassanje, Portuguese Angola, turns into a revolt, opening the Angolan War of Independence, the first of the Portuguese Colonial Wars.
1962 – Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro.
1976 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly, comes into force.
1977 – Apple Computer is incorporated.
1990 – United States invasion of Panama: Manuel Noriega, former leader of Panama, surrenders to American forces.
1992 – CommutAir Flight 4281 crashes on approach to Adirondack Regional Airport, in Saranac Lake, New York, killing two people.
1993 – In Moscow, Russia, George H. W. Bush and Boris Yeltsin sign the second Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START).
1994 – Baikal Airlines Flight 130 crashes near Mamoney, Irkutsk, Russia, resulting in 125 deaths.
1999 – The Mars Polar Lander is launched by NASA.
2002 – Israeli–Palestinian conflict: Israeli forces seize the Palestinian freighter Karine A in the Red Sea, finding 50 tons of weapons.
2004 – Flash Airlines Flight 604 crashes into the Red Sea, resulting in 148 deaths, making it one of the deadliest aviation accidents in Egyptian history.
2009 – The first block of the blockchain of the decentralized payment system Bitcoin, called the Genesis block, is established by the creator of the system, Satoshi Nakamoto.
2015 – Boko Haram militants destroy the entire town of Baga in north-east Nigeria, starting the Baga massacre and killing as many as 2,000 people.
2016 – In response to the execution of Nimr al-Nimr, Iran ends its diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia.
2018 – For the first time in history all five major storm surge gates in the Netherlands are closed simultaneously in the wake of a storm.
2019 – Chang'e 4 makes the first soft landing on the far side of the Moon, deploying the Yutu-2 lunar rover.
2020 – Iranian General Qasem Soleimani is killed by an American airstrike near Baghdad International Airport, igniting global concerns of a potential armed conflict.
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Published at 5:00am on Monday, January 3, 2021
Author: Bobby Coggins
Resources used to compile the information in this article include, but are not limited to the following websites or books: MaconMedia.com, youtube.com, weather.gov, airnow.gov, wikipedia.com, onthisday.com, ncdcr.gov, ncsu.edu, utah.edu, https://www.microbe.tv/twiv/, wolfram.com, biorxiv.org, aps.org, nejm.org, plos.org, cell.com, researchsquare.com, cureus.com, spc.noaa.gov, nhc.noaa.gov, ncdenr.org, medrxiv.org, archive.org, ncpedia.org, nasa.gov, https://ww2days.com, nih.gov, carolinapublicpress.org, microbe.tv, smokymountainnews.com, psypost.org, blogspot.com, pollen.com, franklinnc.com, maconnc.org, spaceweather.com, solarham.com, loc.gov, ncleg.net, senate.gov, house.gov, whitehouse.gov, drudgereport.com, politico.com, realclearpolitics.com, ushmm.org, This Day in North Carolina History, World War II Day By Day, The Holocaust Encyclopedia, The Timetables of History, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, The World History and Book of Facts (multiple years), On This Day In History: Over 4,000 facts, The NASA Archives. 60 Years in Space, This Day in North Carolina History, The Smithsonian History of Space Exploration: From the Ancient World to the Extraterrestrial Future, Spaceflight, 2nd Edition: The Complete Story from Sputnik to Curiousity, The Story of Civilization (11 volumes), The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, American History, Volume 1: 1492-1877, American History, Volume 2: 1877 - Present, A Complete Chronolgy of the Second World War. Weather and Almanac 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, National Hurricane Center, Penn State University Electronic Wall Map, The State Climate Office of North Carolina, Storm Prediction Center, U.S. Naval Observatory, University of Utah Department of Atmospheric Sciences, and the Weather Prediction Center. Back to Top
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