Frank and Ernest by Thaves for May 19, 2023

Weather satellites are mostly geostationary, in very high orbit, so they don’t “go by.” They cover one region continuously. Spy and research satellites are in low orbit and go by fast, like the ISS.

Doesn’t change the fact that weather reporting is almost as haphazard as the national budget.

Does any country bother to ‘hack’ weather satellites? Seems there’s a lot of strategic geo info that could be helpful in planning a surprise for another country.

Most weather satellites a in geosynchronous orbit. So they never “go by”.

And we have to weather those jokes.

It’s said that if you assume tomorrow will be similar to today, you’ll be correct 3 times out of 4. Not sure if that applies to the UK though. We have rain and cloud one day, the lovely weather, then cloudy again. Wash, rinse, repeat.

looks like Saturn has a hangover…?

Weather forecasting in the US has gotten much more accurate in modern times. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says “A seven-day forecast can accurately predict the weather about 80 percent of the time and a five-day forecast can accurately predict the weather approximately 90 percent of the time. However, a 10-day—or longer—forecast is only right about half the time.” That matches my experience.

Most weather satellites stay in one point in thee sky above a location. They don’t blink or “go by”.

What’s at play in many of the above comments is the “availability heuristic”, a type of cognitive bias that helps us make fast, but sometimes incorrect, assessments. It involves relying on information that comes to mind quickly or is most available to us. In this case, a missed forecast (rain when you were expecting sunshine or too windy to play pickleball when you were expecting calm) stands out in your mind far more clearly than the boring 3-week stretch where the forecast got it right every time.

Help, planetary physics is my weak area…

Anthropomorphism, the fact that the Roche limit of gravity is not tearing them both apart, are the people and astronomers in a panic or overwhelmed by the view? Do ships get sucked in when Earth opens it’s mouth?