Calling down the gods

In spite of all the science, weather forecasting is still at the mercy of Fate

We’re playing Twister again this evening, and the spotters have been alerted. Supercells may develop, bringing damaging winds in excess of 60MPH, very large hail above 2’, and a growing possibility of tornadoes - some possibly strong, long track tornadoes. So it’s time to open the blinds and fire up the radars…

Science has been kind to us.

What we once had no way to see, we can now scry with radar; Doppler technology has been a Godsend. The National Weather Service has invested human lives to discern Monster Storms, men like Tim and Paul Samara and Carl Young who sacrificed all to cast precious instrumentation at the feet of these elemental spirits - and they learned much -

but despite the stunning advances, it will never be enough to completely cage the Beast known as ‘Weather’.

Weather is capricious, the fickle whim of energy, moisture, and heat; no matter how advanced the radar may be, nothing can completely predict the development of supercell storms. The imaging of explosive multi-dimensional system growth is still as much art as it is science; meteorologists become forecasting shamans, calling down the elemental gods through complex calculations. But it still is not enough;

Wind and rain demand our attention. Eyes to the skies, we wait, wondering if today will be the day we see the Finger of God press down upon our waiting world…

or perhaps just a little white cloud in a bright blue sky, floating beneath the yellow sun.

It seems so benign, in that moment, when all the world is beautiful. But the wind stirs, the sky turns green and once more the world becomes dangerous and fierce; technology reveals the ancient forces of the towering storm, drawing our awe and terror towards the darkening sky.