Grumpy has become a storm watcher. We have had some fantastic Monsoon storms so far this season. 


He watches the weather every day... Beginning early in the morning. 
Telling us when the next storm is expected, right down to the time it will get to our area. 


He becomes very disappointed when the storm passes right by us or blows over us. 
Which happens all too often! 




 MONSOON
According to Wikipedia:
The North American Monsoon (NAM) occurs from late June or early July into September, originating over Mexico and spreading into the southwest United States by mid-July. 
The word "monsoon" is derived from the Arabic word "mausim" which means season. Ancient traders sailing in the Indian Ocean and adjoining Arabian Sea used it to describe a system of alternating winds which blow persistently from the northeast during the northern winter and from the opposite direction, the southwest, during the northern summer. Thus, the term monsoon actually refers solely to a seasonal wind shift, and not to precipitation. 



The Arizona Monsoon Season is upon us once again.
Generally in late June or early July a shift happens in the wind patterns. During Monsoon season, the winds shift to a primarily easterly rotation and it sucks moisture from the Sea of Cortez bringing needed rains to the desert.


This change in wind direction is the result of two meteorological changes:
"The movement northward from winter to summer of the huge upper level subtropical high pressure system, specifically known as the Bermuda High, and
the intense heating of the Mohave Desert creates rising air and surface low pressure, called a thermal low." The national Weather Service. 


Every afternoon you can see gigantic cloud formations just south east of us. Then, the skies will get very dark and foreboding and the clouds might dump massive amounts of water on various parts of the valley.


The unusual part of this is that the storm cells are very isolated. They might get three inches of rain in an hour in north Scottsdale yet here in Buckeye it is just blowing dust/sand no moisture at all.


The dust storms we get are incredible!


These Monsoons also generate tremendous lightening shows for us to watch and behold.


The Monsoon season is a marvel to behold and the visuals are a constant reminder of God's great creation.




The recent "HABOOB"  



This is a picture of just the kind of damage the high winds can do.




P1010009