holy crap, how can we land a rover on a moving comet, but not predict the wather?

[NoTine42]

You made the mistake of believing a weather forecast made over the weekend. No competent meteorologist works a weekend shift.

The worst forecast is always the Sunday PM forecast.

 

[DrPizza]

It would be hilarious to have the Buffalo area weather hit Dallas. 24-30" of snow in parts of the region.

 

[zinfamous]

You would think the greater prevalence of the internet in our daily lives, now hitting that 2 decade mark, would have long ago seen the end of such old and stupid questions....but alas, I fear it has only created a greater number of even dumber questions.

:'(

 

[Baasha]

I think Physics is has more constant variables than Meteorology.

That's a very perspicacious statement.

The comet landing was an incredible feat and a milestone for human achievement. Yet, the physics involved is mostly linear - they used the earth's gravity (orbited thrice) AND that of Mars to slingshot the probe to achieve the relative velocity of the comet - it has to match the speed of the comet which was traveling incredibly fast - to land on it.

The Physics can be calculated EXACTLY to do such a thing.

With weather systems - the entire thing is highly non-linear and extremely complex even for the most advanced supercomputers that exist.

That is why predicting the weather accurately is very very hard.

Fluid Dynamics FTL. D:

 

[NikolaeVarius]

That's a very perspicacious statement.

The comet landing was an incredible feat and a milestone for human achievement. Yet, the physics involved is mostly linear - they used the earth's gravity (orbited thrice) AND that of Mars to slingshot the probe to achieve the relative velocity of the comet - it has to match the speed of the comet which was traveling incredibly fast - to land on it.

The Physics can be calculated EXACTLY to do such a thing.

With weather systems - the entire thing is highly non-linear and extremely complex even for the most advanced supercomputers that exist.

That is why predicting the weather accurately is very very hard.

Fluid Dynamics FTL. D:

True that. Spaceflight mechanics was a damn easy class. A monkey with a graphing calculator could have aced it.

Thermals and fluids kicked my ass so hard that I still taste the leather from the boot.

 

[BoomerD]

I know I always hated having to shovel 6 inches of "partly cloudy" from my driveway...

 

[BurnItDwn]

You would think the greater prevalence of the internet in our daily lives, now hitting that 2 decade mark, would have long ago seen the end of such old and stupid questions....but alas, I fear it has only created a greater number of even dumber questions.

:'(

Over the last 10 years or so, this line has been said many times by many people in many ways.

Ignorance is epidemic.

 

[zinfamous]

Over the last 10 years or so, this line has been said many times by many people in many ways.

Ignorance is epidemic.

Well, it goes back even further than that. Long before the internet was a mere kernel of a thought, television was purported to be the revolutionary information aggregation tool for the masses--basically the next printing press.

Well, then we let 3 networks have unfettered broadcasting control once this medium finally hit mainstream, and they used it to sell us Skin Bracer and howdy Doody. 🙁


(OK, radio came before that, and while we still got Ovaltine ads, I think there was a greater variety of information available in that medium)

 

[WhoBeDaPlaya]

It would be hilarious to have the Buffalo area weather hit Dallas. 24-30" of snow in parts of the region.

I don't mind, I miss midwest winters 🙁
That and I put on my Xi2s during lunch - bring on winter b*tches!

 

[MongGrel]

That, and the lander on the comet isn't roving much 🙂

 

[Matthiasa]

Additionally, chaotic systems are fun...

 

[John Connor]

You do know it was Europe that landed a probe on a comet not the U.S.?

 

[doubledeluxe]

Are there consequences for predicting the weather wrong for a TV station?

Probably the best gig out there.

 

[zanejohnson]

You do know it was Europe that landed a probe on a comet not the U.S.?

yes yes, but limiting shit to "owned/controlled" areas is soooooo dated century.;


we're just humans, on a planet hurling through space and time 😱

 

[John Connor]

Then I own your house, car and computer.

 

[disappoint]

Are there consequences for predicting the weather wrong for a TV station?

Probably the best gig out there.

Their biggest concern is that some basement dweller will fire up a computer, which by the way has more processing power than the one used to land on the moon, and post a rant about it.

Their concern is of course warranted because this is a huge waste of time compared to what that computer could be used for.