MatthewMaynard.net

The Monsoons

The winds have shifted and the humidity from the Sea of Cortez has reached the Old Pueblo. This results in a few noticable changes, some good, some bad.

• There are clouds in the sky. When astronomers refer to Arizona having 92% clear skies, its this month or two that constitutes the remaining 8%.
• There is a curious occurrence called virga, which is rain that falls towards the ground but evaporates before it lands. Its God’s way of teasing us.
• Given the temperature it takes quite a bit of rain to fall to actually make things wet. However, it is rarely enough to wash the dirt off anything, and instead only leaves behind lots and lots of dirt. For example:
  
• Though it comes in August, the Perseids become a crap-shoot, weather-wise.

I like the monsoon. When you have the same weather day in and day out it makes the extremes of weather painful to endure. Hot and dry gets very tiresome for 75 days in a row, if not more. Wet is good, because its different.