Daylight savings time ended yesterday. This gives some benefits for the CCAG, but also some bad news. We also spotted a cloud that is made completely out of ice a few days ago. Read on to see what that is and why it occurs!
As you know Daylight savings adds extra time to our clock. It was originally in use because farmers needed to work. Just a week ago, the sunrise was at 7:15. Now the sunrise is at 6:15. That means when you're sleeping at 6:30, it is already bright out.
For the CCAG, this means that the desert TMAD gets an extra hour to heat up. From 8:00-11:00 on a normal day, the TMAD starts reaching high temps. But with an extra hour, the TMAD starts reaching 65º by 7:00 (while it's 46º outside) and about 85º at 10:00. As we know, cacti grow during the day but did you know they 'sleep' during the night? They will stop using photosynthesis because (duh) the sun is not out, and 'sleep' until morning.
Cacti actually go dormant during the winter. Cacti are basically full of water and can freeze like ice if the temps get too low. They spend their energy protecting themselves instead of using it to grow.
It also means the solar power 'filter' will get an early hour to run. On October 31 last year, we received a wavemaker. The wavemaker broke in August 2022. During that same month, we received a filter that made the water very clear. But the filter could not run without being connected to a power source. On October 31 2023, we got a solar powered air bubbler. The air bubblers only provide oxygen to the water, and does not clean the tank like a filter. However, the bubbler came with a small solar panel, which is mounted on top of the CCAG. The panel is sensitive to sun, and only runs when there are no clouds in the sky. Not that powerful, but we'll take it.
Have you ever seen a cirrus cloud? Chances are you have, but not known the name. They are thin wispy clouds that are made of ice. The higher the altitude, the colder it gets. When it's hot, cold air from the Pacific drifts in. Cold air over warm air creates a storm called a "cold front." In the Pacific where we are, it is the most common reason for rain. Cirrus clouds form during the beginning of a cold front. As the days go by, the cirrus clouds often cover the whole sky, and make it look cloudy, hot and sunny at the same time. Sometimes, the clouds darken and create fluffy cumulus clouds, which morph into thunderclouds. Usually, when the weather app says it's cloudy with a high of 67-80ºF, and then rain later on in the week, expect there to be cirrus clouds.
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