Lightning - Sears the Eyeballs

Storms, fierce storms - are common across the Top End in the rainy season.



Having been away for a little while one can forget they occur.

First morning home, around 0400 it came........an eyesearing blast that was like fierce sunshine that penetrated the eyelids, definitely waking you up, followed immediately by a levitating thunderball. Yes, one thinks, we are home - welcome to the Top End!!

Quite a storm, even by local standards with about 35mm of rain in 20 minutes or so, and some very fierce lightning and thunder following the early blast, and all without much wind. And it only happened in a fairly narrow strip along the coast with only a few millimetres of rain at the airport which is about 3 kilometres from the ocean.

There have been a few storms around Darwin while away, but this was special it seems and made the front page of the local newspaper.

Thunderheads

This last weekend has provided some sunshine, at least for much of each day, followed by late afternoon storms.


With storms, come thunderheads. The light was still strong when this photo was taken, so little of the texture and shadows seen in some thunderheads, when the light is much less. Impressive still, though.


When out in rural areas with more open skies, these storm heads are very impressive, even without the shadows. This one continued to rise for some time after this photo too........10- 15000 metres is quite common for the top of these monstrous cumulo-nimbus clouds in the tropics.





And yes, it did rain later!

Is it a taxi or not?

Seen recently.......and I am unsure of the real intent.

Hecta's Thunderheads for Christmas

The wet season is awesome. Majestic displays of heavenly firepower, towering thunderheads late in the afternoons, deep grey skies layered in deepening shades with the dark grey of rain often at the bottom.

While the last few days have been relatively drier, with little rain, the thunderheads still build late each day. Hecta is alive and well!

Hecta - a derivative from hectapascal - is the name given, by the Met bureau, to the regular build up of heavy monsoonal storm clouds most days across to the north and west of Darwin on the Tiwi Islands.

Where would we be without rain? And at this time of the year, the rain brings cooler relief from the heat and stifling humidity of the day.

Rain and Thunder

Rain.........that is the wet stuff that comes out of the sky isn't it?

Has not been too much here lately. After a great start in mid October, it stopped raining. That is over three weeks ago!

Hot dry and then hot and dry some more. But tonight it sounds promising.........real thunder nearby.

Maybe we will get some decent rain overnight. Inland, a few places had a big storm around dusk tonight, with Batchelor [ 100km S] receiving over 30mm in about 30 minutes.

The thunder is tantalising close and, as usual, our "fierce" Ridgeback dog has decided that coming into the laundry inside the house is a good option. She loathes thunder and firecrackers [ the noisy bunger types], and is very happy to retire gracefully on a mat.
On the thunder and lightning scene, Darwin is one of the top locations world wide for lightning strikes [ and related thunder]. Neck and neck with some parts of Java, Indonesia for top spot. You can get some fantastic sky shows and spectacular photos are relatively common, both by amateurs and professional photographers.


It sounds promising.......and the weather radar sort of indicates we may have rain. You beauty!

For some fantastic storm photos, including quite a few in Darwin by Ern Mainka - go to www.redbubble.com/search/lightning%20thunderstorm

photo credits - No they are NOT mine. Top one - Joe Holmes. Typical of the view across Darwin Harbour in a good storm!

Lower one - unknown, but publicly available x Flickr.

The First Storm - Wet Season 2008

Had to do a job at Batchelor yesterday, and the sky was developing an ominous appearance late in the day. Storm clouds developing both to the south and north, and a sudden wind shift by about 120 degrees around 1800hrs as we were leaving.


Could there be some rain at last.


Batchelor did get some in the early evening, around 10mm. But that was minor.


By the time we had returned to Darwin [100kms north] the sky was developing that bright flashing amid the thunderheads......maybe, maybe a storm at last.


Around 2230hrs it started to blow.......the harbinger of a decent storm. Wind speeds around 50-60km/hr, a few broken tree limbs, and plenty of stuff blown around on the terrace and then it really rained. Exactly 40mm at home, in about 30 minutes. A great start to the rainy season.


And today, everything is bright.....dust washed off plants, roofs and just about everything else, streets clean, the light is bright and sharp and no doubt it will be hot and steamy as the day goes on.


A great storm, but not too much lightning. And our great guardian of the fortress.......snuck inside. Not a great lover of thunder is our fearsome warrior dog. Very happy to sit on the mat in the laundry though under storm conditions.


The green tree frogs were singing big time, so loud that it was hard to hear much else. I wonder what else they were getting up too??

Dogs that Escape

I have an expert escapologist dog.

A large, strong, nearly 3 year old Rhodesian Ridgeback bitch that is a very friendly animal, even maybe too friendly. She has been through obedience school and is generally very obedient. Her friendliness v guard dog qualities have been tested on a few occasions with animal intruders into the yard and she did her thing well. And she is very protective to the family. You say….a good dog!

But she is an expert at getting out of the largish fenced backyard. She has endured a few incidents including a large tree branch from a storm damaged fallen tree which I accidently chain sawed and dropped on her kennel in the clean up [while she was in it of course], and has developed a sensitisation to a few other odd sounds. Firecrackers, thunder and lightning are definitely not her friends, although loud truck and aircraft noise are irrelevant to her. When the former two strike, and we have regular fantastic thunderstorms in the wet season, she wants to bolt, to somewhere safe. And the local celebrations of Chinese New Year with the Lion Dance and firecrackers last weekend [delayed because of the rain] one block away sent her off again.

Destroying the fence, gates and associated infrastructure in her way are just fair game while getting out. Then she [so far] blithely returns a few hours later. Even had the RSPCA call the mobile - while in Kuala Lumpur - to inform me she had been "turned in", and that incident alone is another blog story.

There are plenty of options to treat the issue, but rarely are they totally successful.

Better fences are coming soon. Any suggested other options?