I like this picture that the WashPost posted yesterday showing a really cool weather phenomenon off the coast of Baja California.
The absence of clouds over the islands is explained thusly:
The clouds form over the ocean because the chilly Pacific water creates a layer of cool air at low altitudes. When the air is heated just above the ocean surface, it cools and condenses into clouds and fog forming the so-called marine layer (which is held in place by a temperature inversion, in which the air – divorced from the cool sea surface – warms with altitude).
But over the islands, the layer of cool air required for these clouds to form is often absent since land masses and the air above them heat up quickly (thanks to the low heat capacity of land versus water). And so, unless there is wind to push the marine layer over the islands, they’re bastions of sunshine….
I’m enjoying my new Digital Premium subscription to The Washington Post…
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I wonder if that explains why Portland, Maine is the sunniest city on the northeastern seaboard.
I dunno. Could BE. Ayuh…
Geophysics — it’s AMAZING!