Skeptics Stack Exchange
Skeptics Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [weather]

The state of the atmosphere, to the degree that it is hot or cold, wet or dry, calm or stormy, clear or cloudy.

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Does the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission require weatherized pipelines and equipment (but Texas's doesn't)?

The Houston Chornicle writes: Texas has the only American electricity grid with no rules for resiliency. Instead, the GOP majority argued that a system that pays higher prices when demand goes up would incentivize generators to make sure their…
Fizz
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Is long-term weather prediction effective?

The Farmer's Almanac is used by many farmers to time plantings, harvesting, fertilizing, etc., based upon the results of "long-term weather prediction". Is there any evidence that such predictions have any accuracy (more-so than simple educated…
Beofett
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Does rain affect ADSL speed or reliability?

ADSL connections in Sydney, Australia seem to either not work, or work slower when it's been raining or after it's been raining. I tried googling for ADSL and rain, and I got a lot of user-generated content, but not many reliable sources. Does rain…
Andrew Grimm
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Can Dubai make it rain with drones that emit electric charges?

In this post from LinkedIn there is a video of a bunch of rain fall, the post says, Dubai is making it rain (artificially). Scientists in the United Arab Emirates are using electrical charges from drones to zap clouds and manipulate the weather to…
Evan Carroll
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Could 5G make weather satellites less effective?

I've seen a few articles pop up in sources stating that 5G signals will run too close to the 23.8 MHz signal that weather satellites need in order to accurately produce weather forecasts. National Geographic One of the crucial bands, says William…
NegativeFriction
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Do the majority of flood deaths happen in vehicles?

According to a radio broadcast of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)'s NOAA Weather Radio KHB36 162.550 MHz (Manassas, Virginia) on May 24, 2022, a few minutes before 00:00 UTC, Turn around, don't drown when encountering…
Robert Columbia
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Do many people die because of shovelling snow?

This is one of those "known truths" supported by what appears to be legitimate expert opinion on public media (see below). But I couldn't find a scientific study of the issue, after all it could be just a coincidence. “That is a perfect storm, in my…
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Is it harmful to sip a little alcohol in the cold?

I read a recent article on ABC News entitled Cold Weather Myths: What You Need to Know During a Snowstorm. In this article, they claim that: Experts say despite the warm feeling a shot of whiskey can bring, alcohol is actually more harmful than…
DCShannon
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Does low solar activity cause cold weather?

I'm in Ireland where a few papers have recently parrotted an independent body's assertion that we're heading for low solar activity and, accordingly, a very cold winter. The statement has been presented without criticism. Given that one of the main…
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Could lightning have struck the entire North Korean women's soccer team?

After the match between the United States and North Korea in the Women's World Cup in 2011 where the USA won the match 2-0, lightning was blamed by the North Korean manager. He is quoted as saying "During training [in North Korea] our players were…
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Can cows accurately predict when it is going to rain?

And do they show when they know it's going to rain by lying down, as the common saying suggests. Or is this just folklore? A quote on this Discovery Channel discussion board says this: Cows are quite large and heavy which could easily put a lot of…
MSpeed
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Do Föhn winds cause migraines and mental illness?

Föhn winds are dry, warm winds which occur in the lee of mountain ranges. According to Wikipedia föhn winds have been long associated with negative health impacts, especially in German-speaking Europe, where the term Föhnkrankheit (English:…
Siv
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Is 70% of the world economy weather-sensitive?

Several sources make varying claims that 70% of the global economy is sensitive/dependant on the weather: Frogcast: Participative fundraising 70% of the world economy is weather sensitive. JOM: Hedging weather risk and coordinating supply…
Tutuquinho
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Does closing a window reduce a serious risk of harm due to ball lightning?

In my country, there is a popular belief that during a thunderstorm, windows should be closed because of the risk of ball lightning. The answers to this other question explain that ball lightning “is a well-documented phenomenon”. Although, I can't…
Arseni Mourzenko
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Did Donnie Decker exist and could he make it rain at will?

According to this website: 10 Enigmas, there was a boy called "Donnie Decker" (number 1 on the list in the website), born in 1983, who could make it rain at will. Here is an extract from that story: Dubbed the Rain Boy in 1983, Donnie Decker .....…
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