Foehn

Posted on November 25, 2002 in Weather

According to my Field Guide to the Atmosphere, what is happening is this: a big pocket of air atop Mounts Santiago and Modjeska has begun to roll down slope. As it heads down the hill, it warms up and picks up speed. By the time it hits my front door, the foehn is rolling along at 70 mph or more.

The roar and whistle is so loud, I can barely hear the leaf blowers that the gardeners are using in a vain attempt to put back the leaves the clear storm had shorn off the trees. The rolling air hits the windows so hard that I fear they might break. My cats seem to have the right idea, which is to sleep through it. And that is what I shall do, aided in small part by a couple of tabs of benadryl to offset the effects of the dust and the pollen being thrown into the air.

Pious weathermen call these “Santa Ana Winds” after the mother of the Virgin Mary. I think them diabolical and prefer to name them “Satanas.” Unlike the mythical effects of the full moon, these winds have been scientifically shown to move men and women to murder.