NASA sees bitter cold cloud tops in newborn Tropical Storm Carlotta posted on: june 14, 2012 - 9:00pm

NASA sees bitter cold cloud tops in newborn Tropical Storm Carlotta

posted on: june 14, 2012 - 9:00pm

  

 

Bitter cold cloud tops tell forecasters that a storm has a lot of uplift, and the colder the cloud tops, the higher they are in the atmosphere, and the stronger the thunderstorms. NASA's Aqua satellite data showed that the cloud top temperatures in newborn Tropical Storm Carlotta became colder overnight and continue to grow colder as the low pressure area formely known as System 94E strengthened into a tropical storm. Carlotta is even expected to strengthen further and become a hurricane.

Because Carlotta is expected to continue strengthening, the government of Mexico has issued a hurricane warning for the Pacific coast of Mexico From Salina Cruz to Punta Maldonado. A hurricane watch is also in effect for the Pacific coast of Mexico west of Punta Maldonado to Acapulco and east of Salina Cruz to Barra De Tonala.

Forecasters look at data from the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) instrument that flies on NASA's Aqua satellite. When cloud temperatures get colder, it means that clouds are getting higher. The lowest temperatures in Carlotta were as cold as or colder than 220 degrees Kelvin or minus 63 degrees Fahrenheit (-52 Celsius). The data from AIRS is also used to create an accurate 3-D map of atmospheric temperature, water vapor and clouds, all of which are helpful to forecasters.

NASA's AIRS instrument data showed on June 14, at 0723 UTC (3:23 a.m. EDT/12:23 a.m. PDT) that Tropical Storm Carlotta's low-level circulation center had consolidated and shows improved convective banding (of thunderstorms).

(Photo Credit: : NASA/JPL, Ed Olsen)

At 11 a.m. EDT (8 a.m. PDT) Tropical Storm Carlotta's maximum sustained winds were near 45 mph (75 kph), and further strengthening is expected in the warm waters along the western coast of Mexico. Carlotta is expected to become a hurricane on June 15, according to the National Hurricane Center. Currently, Carlotta is located about 385 miles (620 km) south-southeast of Puerto Angel and 590 miles (950 km) southeast of Acapulco, Mexico. Carlotta is moving northwest near 9 mph (15 kph) and is expected to continue for the next couple of days. The storm should be near the Pacific coast of Mexico on Friday and move near the coast Friday night and Saturday, according to the National Hurricane Center.

That means that hurricane conditions are expected in the warning area by Friday night, June 15 and those conditions will continue on June 16, Saturday. Storm surge, heavy rainfall, flooding and mudslides are also possible. Isolated rainfall totals can reach 10-12 inches (250-300 mm) over the Mexican states of Guerrero, Oaxaca, Chiapas and southern Guatemala.

Source: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center

Friday, June 15, 2012 9:55:37 AM NEWS ALERT U.S. will stop deporting some younger illegal immigrants The Obama administration will stop deporting and begin giving work permits to younger illegal immigrants who came to the United States as children and have since led law-abiding lives, the AP reports. The election-year initiative addresses a top priority of a growing Latino electorate that has opposed administration deportation policies. The administration's decision will affect as many as 800,000 immigrants. Read more at: http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/administration-plan-could-spare-hundreds-of-thousands-of-illegal-immigrants-from-deportation/2012/06/15/gJQA4xlmeV_story.html

Huatulco, Oaxaca, Mexico - part 5

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inShare Huatulco, Oaxaca, Mexico - part 5 Trip to Huatulco, Oaxaca, Mexico - 5 After my leisurely lunch at the Beach club restaurant  I dropped off all my 'work gear' and prepared for my  afternoon sailing.  Great way to spend my birthday for sure!! Shaun picked me up from my hotel and off we went  to the Chahue Marina where the Cosmo yacht  is docked. It's a beautiful 47' Beneteau.  As soon  as we were parked the 'mate' ran up to Shaun's  car in the parking lot to bring down the cooler -  wonderful to have this kind of service. Cosmo employs a captain for the yacht and his job is to keep it in tip-top shape ready for the residents and their guests - this young man does an amazing job - the boat was immaculate. Without too much ado we climbed aboard and off we went - I was very impressed with the young Captains boat handling skills - this is a large boat and took some skilled manoeuvring to get out of the dock to the main channel. To read the rest of this blog & video click here

Acapulco area on hurricane watch as storm forms Carlotta now at 50 mph; up to foot of rain could trigger floods, mudslides

Acapulco area on hurricane watch as storm forms msnbc.com 6/14/2012 2:41:09 PM ET

MSNBC.msn.com

Tropical Storm Carlotta formed off Mexico's Pacific Coast overnight and is likely to make landfall Friday as a hurricane, the U.S. National Hurricane Center reported Thursday.

Hurricane alerts were issued for part of the country's Pacific coast, from Acapulco to Salina Cruz.

With sustained winds now at 50 mph, Carlotta was expected to continue building strength, the hurricane center stated.

Flash floods and mudslides were feared with the forecast of 3-5 inches of rain in Guerrero, Oaxaca and Chiapas -- and the possibility of up to 12 inches in some spots.

Carlotta is the third named storm of the Pacific hurricane season.

© 2012 msnbc.com Reprints

Tropical Storm carlotta

Tropical Storm Carlotta - Weekend Hurricane Landfall

Tropical Storm Carlotta forms in the Pacific Published June 14, 2012

Tropical Storm Carlotta forms in the Pacific

Published June 14, 2012

Associated Press

MIAMI –  Tropical Storm Carlotta has formed in the Pacific south of Mexico and is expected to become a hurricane.

Carlotta's maximum sustained winds increased Thursday morning to near 45 mph. The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami says additional strengthening is forecast and Carlotta is expected to become a hurricane by the time it reaches Mexico's southern coast on Friday.

A hurricane watch is in effect for Mexico's Pacific coast from Barra de Tonala to Punta Maldonado.

The tropical storm is centered about 405 miles south-southeast of Puerto Angel, Mexico, and 600 miles southeast of Acapulco, Mexico. The storm is moving northwest near 10 mph.

Tropical storm-force winds are extending outward up to 45 miles from the storm's center.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/weather/2012/06/14/tropical-storm-carlotta-forms-in-pacific/#ixzz1xm9aK8x2

Life on Death Beach Help me send my film about the lifeguards that saved my life to film festivals - Ayúdame a difundir mi documental sobre los salvavidas que me salvaron la vida.

Huatulco, Oaxaca, Mexico – 3

Posted in: Blog, Investing, Random, Retirement, Travel|June 5, 20121 Comment

Trip to Huatulco – Part 3

As I mentioned I was in Huatulco to visit Cosmo Residences a development in the Life Rich Real Estate Inc. property portfolio. So I thought it was time that I told you a little more about the development!

The Cosmo development is described as ‘Elegant Oceanfront living’ and I have to say that it met and exceeded my expectations.  This development sits on a fabulous piece of property that is just a little over 9 acres and features generous botanical gardens and lush tropical plants.

Access to Cosmo is on a very good, well maintained road. Entrance to the development is through a secure gated entry that is manned 24/7.

As you come down the driveway set on the hill to your left are 3 of the first buildings to be completed; offering stunning ocean views.  The hillside vegetation of lush ground cover and bright flowers – make the driveway ‘fresh’.

We head into the private parking area of the building where the sales office is located.  We enter through the private front entrance and a hallway that leads to an enclosed garden and then into the magnificent 3 bedroom, 3 bathroom villa + media room (256m2)  that is currently used as the sales office (it is also available for sale!).

Shaun and I spent a little bit of time taking advantage of the reliable internet connection at the sales office before grabbing a bottle of water and heading off to find the golf cart and to begin our tour of the property, suites and buildings.

The development offers 2 bedroom/2 bathroom condos and 3 bedrooms/3 bathrooms + media room options.  The suggested furnishing of the media room allows it to be very easily converted to a 4^thbedroom as necessary.

The price range on the condos is from US $275,000 to US $629,000.  There is a 10% discount offered on pre-construction.

As with all the developments in the Life Rich Real Estate property portfolio there is also an additional money saving exclusive offer available for our clients.  Please contact us for the details of the special offer available at Cosmo!

The buildings are all only 3 storey’s high (this is the maximum height for residential buildings allowed in Huatulco)  and 6 units per buildings.  The development has a couple of pools already completed – the plan is for a total of 4 along with a gym and a spa.

The quality of the cabinetry, flooring and everything throughout the suites is very impressive; from the custom made solid wooden doors & cabinetry, large Travertine marble tile throughout, marble shower enclosures, designer bathroom fixtures, kitchens that feature granite counter tops, double sinks with garbage disposal and top of the line stainless steel appliances that include double door fridge, built-in microwave/range hood, dishwasher, stove and even a wine fridge!  The units also offer in-suite laundry facilities.  Each room has separate air conditioning units with remote controls.

Each suite has its own storage room and a private parking space.  Each suite features floor to ceiling aluminum glass doors that open fully to provide maximum view and extend the living area out to the terrace.

Entry to the 3 bedroom suites has magnificent double wood doors – a really neat feature of these doors is that a couple of the panels unlock & tilt to allow a fabulous cross breeze whilst maintaining the privacy of the unit.  The arrangement  within the buildings of the front entrances of the individual condos means that most have ample space in front of them to allow for a private sitting area.

The developer completes the building & it’s infrastructure (i.e. elevators & common areas) ready for occupancy, however, the interiors of the individual condos are only completed once they are purchased allowing the buyer to choose their cabinets, counters, etc.

There are a number of units available for purchase at this time.  They would be ready for occupancy approximately 3 months after the buyer has chosen their finishings.

Construction is about to begin on several more buildings and the time to occupancy will be approximately 12 – 18 months depending on the building chosen.

The construction materials used are most definitely of a higher standard than generally found and the developer has a couple of ‘display boards’ that show the quality of the materials being used in the construction.

After reviewing the different buildings and locations we then took a walk down through the wonderful lush & colourful grounds working our way down past the Ocean Bar and down to the Arrocito beach.  The Ocean Bar has a wonderful reputation already as you can see by the reviews in Trip Advisor.  They location is stunning and a number of couples have held their weddings at the venue and I also understand that it has also been the location of some very successful parties.

The Arrocito beach is a wonderful family friendly beach with its gently sloping beach and calm water with only gently rolling waves coming onto the beach – unlike the adjacent Tongalunda bay where I noticed that the waves are very large and the beach steep..  The Cosmo beach club features private beach access, lounging chairs and some wonderful covered  ‘double beds’ that gently swung in the breeze under the canopies.  Certainly a very inviting location!

To be continued …

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Huatulco, Oaxaca, Mexico - part 4

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inShare Huatulco, Oaxaca, Mexico - part 4 Trip to Huatulco – Part 4 The final full day of my visit to Huatulco dawned as had each  day – bright,  sunny with just a hint of humidity! I headed down to the beach side restaurant  for breakfast –  and once again was greeted by a wonderful fresh spread of ; other hot selections plus the omelet station. After enjoying some fabulous fruit I decided to have an omelet.   I was assembling the items that I wanted in my omelet when  I came across something I most definitely did not want –  cooked grasshoppers! Yic! No thank you – I was assured  that they were quite good, full of protein & they’d add  some crunch however, I decided to pass on this delicacy  and stick with more familiar items – mushrooms & cheese with some tomato & peppers  thrown in to give me crunch! Shaun picked me up at 9.30 at the hotel and we headed over to the Cosmos office for a cup of tea  and to make use of the great internet access to get caught up on our e-mails.  We were also able  to pick up Shaun’s car that had been repaired and returned to him.  The A/C had started to behave erratically the day before so we had taken the Cosmo car & Shaun’s car at the office.  The  mechanic came out the previous afternoon to Cosmo to fix it – now that is what I call service!   Chatting to Shaun about the cost of repairs, etc. and he mentioned that they were a fraction  of the cost of repairs in the US – not only were they less expensive – the mechanic comes to you! After finishing up at the office we jumped in the car as Shaun wanted to show me the surrounding  areas & the investment that was taking place in Huatulco by the government, private and  corporate investors Huatulco has been designated as an Integrally Planned Resort (IPR) by FONATUR and the future is looking very bright as large amount of investment dollars are planned to be spent in the area.  I was struck by the cleanliness everywhere – the curbs of the roads are pristine white or yellow  all along the highway  – several times we passed men painting them!  The roads are in excellent  condition. As we drove along the road way away from Cosmo and the  town of Huatulco Shaun explained that a number of well  known hotel chains had bought large tracts of lands along  the various bays and over the next few years there would  be additional resorts being built along the road away from  town and Cosmo. We were on a ‘mission’ and that was to visit theSecrets resort to get a feel for the kind of investment that is being made in this area. There is only one away to describe this resort – stunning!  From the gated grand entry to the impressive, yet welcoming, lobby area – everything spoke of a luxury high end resort.  This particular resort is couples only, they have a ‘sister’ resort in near my hotel called Dreams – I didn’t have a chance to visit this resort however it was very impressive from what I could see driving by. Secrets, located on Canejos Bay, was truly magnificent from the impressive lobby with check-in  desks lining each side of the wide spacious lobby.  We strolled to the end of the lobby area to  have a look at the view – it really was very impressive.  The resort is massive offering many  themed a-la-carte restaurants, activities, quiet areas – everything a couple wanting to have  a 5 star vacation could wish for. The photo to the left is myself and the developer of Cosmo Residences, Shaun and to the  right you have an ‘unobstructed’ view from the lobby bar.  The photos below show the  beach & pool area of Secrets taken from the lobby bar. On the way back to the hotel we drove into town as Shaun wanted to pick up some fresh fruit and vegetables.  He prefers to buy them from the store in town rather than from the large supermarket  ‘Super Che’ (the store not only sells groceries, liquor and other daily necessities – it also sells  Motorcyles!!) The supermarket is great for the everyday items;  Shaun however, does prefer to  shop at the local butcher,  fruit and vegetable stores for his meat & veg. The price for the fruit and vegetables at the local store downtown were VERY reasonable and  everything looked so fresh and well presented – the store itself was impeccable as was the service. Shaun dropped me back to my hotel as we both had some work to catch up on.  I took my computer and headed to the Beach club for some lunch and catch up time and chose to enjoy the same lunch as I had the day before as it was so delicious – an avocado stuffed with shrimp on greens with tomatoes – and as it was my birthday I decided to enjoy a Margarita with my lunch! Shaun would be back at 2 p.m. to pick me up and take me sailing so that I could see everything from the ocean.  We would be going out on a 47′ Beneteau yacht with it’s own captain.  This yacht is available for the owners and residents of Cosmo to charter at an extremely reasonable price of less than US $200 for a morning or afternoon sail.  I’ll tell you about this in a separate blog! As I sit opening up my laptop to catch up on some work whilst I wait for my lunch I have a view of the beach, the ocean, the sparkling of the sun on the beach club pool, a soothing breeze blowing across my table … ahhh …  I must admit I do love my job!! Sue                                                                 Sue Coleman Direct: 1-800-209-3214Direct fax: 1-866-632-1297 E-mail: sue@liferichrealestate.com E-mail: sue@suecolemanrealtor.com Website: www.liferichrealestate.com Website: www.suecolemanrealtor.com Skype: suecolemaninternational This information has been taken from sources believed reliable but not guaranteed