Our friends at the UW-APL/PSSC Environmental & Marine Science Observatory at Seahurst Park have not only repaired their beach and underwater webcams, they’ve upgraded them to high definition.
This means that now you can watch HD footage not only of the beach, but from underwater as well!
Here are some pretty cool video clips ranging from time lapses that show the changing tides (fast-moving) passersby and sunsets, to clips of dogfish and more; as always, we feature these feeds on our Webcams page along with other local cams:
[display_podcast]
For video highlights from the Seahurst Beach Underwater camera, click here.
For an archive of Seahurst Beach HD clips, click here.
More info from their website:
The observatory is a collaboration between oceanographers and engineers at the University of Washington’s Applied Physics Laboratory and the Puget Sound Skills Center’s Environmental and Marine Science program. The Marine Science program has a wonderful shoreside facility located at the north end of Seahurst Park in Burien, Washington. To support the salmon hatchery located at the facility there are two saltwater intake pipes that run 850 feet from the building out to 25 feet of water. Those pipes provide an ideal means to run power and fiber optic ethernet cables for underwater instruments, providing a permanent, real-time, high bandwidth presence on the bottom of Puget Sound.
The observatory was installed through a combination of volunteer efforts and a science and engineering development project at APL-UW funded by the National Science Foundation. That project is working to install a cabled-to-shore profiling mooring at the MARS observatory in Monterey Bay, California. The installation at Seahurst provides a plug compatible observatory interface for testing that system in diver accessible depths right in our own backyard.
Data from the CTD is collected every 1.5 seconds. Time-lapse video frames are taken every 10 seconds. Daily time-lapse videos are archived. Full-rate video is captured and archived when motion is detected. For presentation on the front page of the web site a snapshot is taken once per minute and twenty seconds of full-rate (10 fps) video is taken every five minutes.
As of 6:02am Thursday Feb. 26th it’s snowing in the Burien area, and here are the latest weather-related updates:
- HIGHLINE SCHOOL DISTRICT: 2 HOURS LATE
Updated: 5:42 a.m. February 26, 2009
Highline Public Schools will operate two hours late today. Emergency bus transportation is in effect.
*There will be no breakfast, no morning classes for preschool, kindergarten, ECEAP, or PSSC. Afternoon classes for these programs will be on time.
*Schools will dismiss at regular times.
Snow and power failures can cause disruptions for schools and families. During these difficult times, HIghline Public Schools will do all it can to communicate vital information to parents and students.
Our top priority is student safety!
- SEATTLE PUBLIC SCHOOLS: 2 HOURS LATE:
2 Hours Late.
Buses Operate on Snow Routes.
No Door-to-Door Service.
No A.M. or P.M. Head Start.
No A.M. or P.M. Kindergarten.
Here’s the latest from the National Weather Service:
Statement as of 4:35 AM PST on February 26, 2009
… Additional snowfall of an inch or two and freezing temperatures will warrant caution this morning…
Hazardous driving conditions will be the rule across western Washington this morning due to snow that has already fallen… possible accumulations of another inch or two… and freezing temperatures.
Scattered snow showers will continue this morning as the upper level low pressure system over the area moves eastward. Local
additional accumulations of an inch or two are possible. In addition temperatures have fallen below freezing across most of western Washington this morning… so roads and sidewalks will be icy even if they are free of snow.These conditions will be relatively short lived. Temperatures will climb above freezing by noon today with highs around 40… and most of the area will have partly sunny skies.
If you’re going to be out driving, here are live webcam views – to get the latest view, be sure to refresh the page:
)
)
)
)
The white blanket is really covering up the Brrrien area today (including the B-Town Blogmobile above), with upwards of over a foot of snow, and here are some updates to keep in mind as you either continue to hunker down or dare to go out:
SEA-TAC AIRPORT UPDATE:
- Some flights are resuming, others remain canceled. Best bet is to check the Port of Seattle’s airport website here (note: their website appears to be overloaded so be patient). Here’s a statement from that site: Many airlines have suspended or canceled flights, while others are continuing to operate. Travelers should check with their specific airlines for schedule confirmations or changes. Inclement weather at several other major airports has caused delayed arrivals and departures, causing the airlines to have aircraft at the wrong airports for scheduled flights (i.e. if an expected flight from Denver didn’t arrive at Sea-Tac as scheduled in the evening, it cannot depart in the morning).
SCHOOL CLOSURES:
- We’re sure you’re aware of this, but just in case – ALL PUBLIC & PRIVATE CHILDREN’S SCHOOLS ARE CLOSED, as it’s now Winter Break.
- Highline School District’s Admin offices are also CLOSED.
- South Seattle Community College is CLOSED.
- Highline Community College is CLOSED.
CITY OF BURIEN:
- Burien City Hall will be open for limited hours, 10:00am – 2:00pm on Monday, Dec. 22 and Tuesday, Dec. 23. Please check http://www.burienwa.gov for weather related closures and information.
- All Burien Parks and Recreation scheduled programs have been canceled for Monday.
- Road crews continue to plow and sand streets as snow has continued to fall, starting with main arterials and moving to secondary streets when they are able. More details about priority routes can be found on our Snow & Ice Routes Map [PDF]. Please drive with extreme caution and only if necessary.
CITY OF NORMANDY PARK:
- Normandy Park’s City Hall is CLOSED today due to weather and travel conditions. City Hall will open late on Tuesday, December 23rd at 10:00AM and close at 2PM.
- Road crews reported most of the main routes have been plowed and sanded. Please drive with extreme caution and only if necessary.
LIBRARY UPDATES:
- Far as we can tell, both the Burien and White Center library branches are open today from 10am-9pm.
- More info on library closures available here.
OTHER CLOSURES:
- Garbage & recycling service has been CANCELED for today; Waste Management says: “Double volume next regular collection day for each missed container” when in fact it would be TRIPLE VOLUME!; more info here: http://www.wmnorthwest.com/weatherboard.html
- King County District Court will be CLOSED.
METRO BUS SERVICE:
- Once again due to the weather and dangerous driving conditions, King County Metro Transit will be operating approximately half of its normal bus service for Monday, Dec. 22. Information about bus status is available on Metro’s Ice & Snow page, which is updated frequently. You can also call the Metro Customer Information Office at (206) 553-3000, but call volumes are high and there may be a wait to talk to a CIO representative.
OTHER TIPS/COMMENTS:
- To see live road conditions via webcam feeds, go to our Webcams page.
- If you haven’t started your car since the snow first fell, you should start it up. Also, wipe off the windshield and do NOT turn on your wipers, unless your windshield is warmed up and there’s no ice around them – turning on frozen windshield wipers can strip the gears and thus ruin them.
- Make sure your pets are okay. BTB Reader Katie Hicks sends us this email: “Could you please remind people that it is FREEZING outside and they should let their pets that live outdoors IN! It is making me sick to my stomach that I have seen dogs sleeping outside!”
Live webcam view from Sea-Tac Airport
(refresh page to see latest image).
Cancellations and delays continue at Sea-Tac Airport, and here’s the latest bulletin from the Port of Seattle:
Airport is open – two runways are operational.
There are many airline-initiated cancellations.
Backlog of stranded passengers awaiting rebooking.
No local hotel rooms available, many passengers sleeping in airport.
Travelers are advised to contact their airline for flight status and to attempt to rebook from home.
Airport concessions are having trouble getting deliveries, anyone coming to the airport should come prepared.
If you’re planning on flying out anytime soon, be sure to check your flight status at the airport’s Web site: http://hosting.portseattle.org/fids.
To see live road conditions via webcam feeds, go to our Webcams page.
NOTE: THIS POSTING IS FROM 12/17/08:
We’re tired of waiting for the snow.
We’re tired of looking out the windows, squinting at street lights in hopes of seeing those oh-so-elusive white flakes fluttering by like lost, downward-spiraling moths.
So, we’re resorting to the lazy man’s snow watch – live webcam feeds!
Check the webcams below through the night and make sure you refresh the page for the latest images.
Also keep your eye on the Weather Button on the right sidebar for the current temp and any new weather “Advisory.”
If you see snow, be sure to turn off your alarm clock, since tomorrow will surely be a “real” snow day (yeah right):
“Venus de Burien” as photographed in January 2007 by Flickr Photog Crocidillicus.
Checking the roads and DOT webcams this morning shows that overall, most main Freeway roads are clear of snow and possibly passable – IF you have to get somewhere.
However, it looks like there’s plenty of black ice, so if you can, play it safe and stay home, make a snowman, and either email a photo to us or add it to our Flickr Group.
But, as usual, drive slowly, in low gears while on the slick stuff, and try to remember your Driver’s Ed lessons of how to steer into a slide when your car starts careening out of control.
Here are a few webcams worth checking out:
