Well, I'm back from the pilgrimage/cruise now and am semi-recovered. (It was very rewarding but also very exhausting!)
I thought I'd pass along something that I discovered during my preparations for the trip in case it would benefit others.
It turns out that there is a web site that forecasts airplane turbulence. It's name, unsurprisingly, is TurbulenceForecast.Com.
On our flights back we encountered enough turbulence that they kept the Fasten Seatbelts sign lit for most of the two flights, making it really hard to sit in the airline seat for hour after hour--which was frankly more annoying than the turbulence was!
In any event, you might want to check out the turbulence forecast site if you have an upcoming plane trip and would like to know what kind of turbulence you may encounter on your flight.
Above is a screencap of a forecast from last night (when I was blogging) that shows color gradations on where the most intense turbulence is likely to be.
They also have a bunch of other turblence maps, including international ones and live pilot reports of where they're hitting the turbulence, as well as information about the phenomenon in general.
CHECK IT OUT.
Yay, Jimmy's back!
Posted by: Mary Kay | May 24, 2007 at 02:40 AM
Yay, Jimmy's front!
Posted by: Tim J. | May 24, 2007 at 05:47 AM
Yay, Jimmy's....side?
Posted by: JD | May 24, 2007 at 05:54 AM
Reading these comments is like listening to the play by play on Jimmy's square dancing.
Posted by: Brian | May 24, 2007 at 06:04 AM
Thanks Jimmy! Since I travel almost every week, this will come in handy. The only questions I have is why there's not a permanent red spot over Pittsburgh. That place seems to have speed bumps installed all around the airport!
Posted by: Marc | May 24, 2007 at 07:08 AM
don't you wish your legs were retractable?
Posted by: Monica | May 24, 2007 at 07:28 AM
Is it just me or does "Turbulation Forecast" sound like the title of a Left Behind novel?
Posted by: HokiePundit | May 24, 2007 at 11:35 AM
everybody talks about turbulence, but nobody does anything about it
Posted by: Ed Peters | May 24, 2007 at 01:42 PM
HokiePundit,
I think you've confused it with "Flatulence Forecast."
Posted by: Esquire | May 24, 2007 at 02:02 PM
Ed Peters, I got a good chuckle out of that one.
Posted by: Brian | May 24, 2007 at 02:06 PM
There is also a site that lets you track a plane if you have a friend who is a pilot. www.flightaware.com allows you to enter in the number of the plane and see where it is currently.
My brother flies and his wife uses it to track his progress home.
Posted by: Matt | May 25, 2007 at 08:50 AM
Well, Jimmy I would give that leg of your's some rest. For your next trip you might want to think of another way to make your photos unique---like sticking out your finger instead?
Posted by: PBXVI | May 26, 2007 at 11:41 PM