There’s a lot of interest in these maps, and also a lot of questions. I promised that I’d write an article sometime to explain these, and here it is!

Until the end of September, earthday.org is encouraging people around the world register or participate in cleanup projects.

Youve likely heard the terms El Nio and La Nia, but in case you dont know, heres a quick breakdown of what they are:El Nio and La Nia are the warm and cool phases of a recurring climate pattern across the tropical Pacificthe El Nio-Southern Oscillation, or ENSO for short. El Nio & La Nia (El Nio-Southern Oscillation) (NOAA)The pattern can shift back and forth irregularly every two to seven years, and each phase triggers predictable disruptions of temperature, precipitation, and winds. This year, we could have a La Nia: A cooling of the ocean surface, or below-average sea surface temperatures (SST), in the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean. During a La Nia winter, the arctic jet moves south and typically brings above-average precipitation to our region. La Nia watch continues.

The weather criteria that must be satisfied for a go to launch is insane, and is constantly updated. Here is the current list of criteria:WindDo not launch if the sustained wind at the 162-foot level of the launch pad exceeds 30 mph. Downrange weatherDo not launch if downrange weather indicates a violation of limits at splashdown in case of Dragon launch escape. Do not launch if downrange weather shows a high probability of violating limits at splashdown in case of Dragon launch escape. Notice that the forecast is for much more than at and near the launch pad itself.