Temperature

Are all heating systems the same? My heating system is running constantly and it can only maintain a temperature of 67 F in my home. It's very cold outdoors, actually below zero. But still, I would expect the house to be comfortable even if the temperature got bitterly cold. Why is my home heating system not able to keep up? What can be done to keep me warm when it gets really cold? Bitter cold temperatures are straining hundreds of thousands of heating systems all over the nation. I think you may be a victim of an undersized furnace or heating system.

Astronomers at the University of Central Florida have spied what may be the hottest planet ever observed. Physicist Joseph Harrington, using NASA's orbiting Spitzer Space Telescope, measured the amount of reflected light that disappears as the planet ducks behind its star. From that, he calculated its temperature. Called HD 149026b, the Saturn-sized orb registers a steel-melting 3,700 degrees Fahrenheit. "It would look like an ember in space, absorbing all incoming light but glowing a dull red," he said.

Looking for a handy, one-stop online shop for temperature and precipitation readings across Maryland or northern Virginia? Try the National Weather Service's Cooperative Observer Page at www.erh.noaa.gov/er/lwx/coop/ It provides the latest 24-hour readings for high and low temperatures, rain and snow accumulations. They're taken by trained volunteers - 11,000 of them nationwide -- and filed with the weather service to post online. Looks like they could use more help in metro Baltimore.

Dennis Mangold has a NOAA Weather Radio up in Ten Hills. "I hear them use the terms `heating degree days,' and `cooling degree days.' What are they and how are they computed?" Degree days are a proxy measure of demand for heating or cooling energy. Got a pencil? Take the day's average temperature. Subtract to find the difference from 65 degrees. If today averages 50 degrees, that's 15 heating degree days. A 75-degree average yields 10 cooling degree days. Tallied by month or season, they provide useful comparisons.

Hot weather somehow feels hotter in October than it does in August. Sunday's 93-degree temperature and oppressive humidity were more tolerable in the summer than at a time when the imminent arrival of Halloween signals that the air should be crisp, dry and way cooler. This dissonance throws life patterns into chaos. Is it too soon for wool? Too late for flip-flops? Can curly summer hair still be worn wet to work? It's just so hard to be seasonably correct when the temperature isn't. As ill-fated runners in the Chicago Marathon and Pentagon-based Army 10-Miler were reminded too late, coping with extreme weather requires training for those conditions.

Listen up, hip young Baltimoreans. Looking for a place with the pizazz of, say, a Spike & Charlie's but with modestly priced food? Well, look no further than the spunky new Vespa in Federal Hill.The Italian cafe and wine bar has connections with Spike & Charlie's through restaurateur Spike Gjerde, who's a partner, although Vespa is very much its own place. The dining room is striking, its high-tech minimalism softened by the mix of warm, earthy colors on the walls and touches like sueded banquettes and fresh flowers.

Anne Arundel County Department of Health workers inspected 153 restaurants and other food service establishments between June 16 and June 30 and found 19 with critical food safety violations that were immediately corrected. They found multiple violations at three places:Roy Rogers of Glen Burnie No. 4, 7379 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd., was cited for not properly cooling food, workers not properly washing their hands or being free of illness, and not adequately cooking and reheating food.Buddy's Crabs & Ribs, 100 Main St., Annapolis, was cited for not holding food at the proper temperature and for adulterated or spoiled food.

Anne Arundel County Department of Health workers inspected 134 food service establishments between Jan. 16 and Jan. 31 and found 21 critical food safety violations that were immediately corrected.They did not find violations at any of the establishments that would have warranted closing them.They found multiple violations at one place.Piezano Pizza and Restaurant, 2019 West St., Annapolis, was cited for cross-contaminating ready-to-serve foods and for not keeping food at its proper temperature.

Brownies for Mom's day or any celebrationIf you're searching for a delicious Mother's Day gift or a treat for a special occasion, look no farther than Ellicott City, where stay-at-home moms Joann Francavilla and Linda Lawrence have come up with the most delectable brownies I've ever seen. These chocolate squares feature a truffle-like base topped with a creamy layer of raspberry, espresso or creme de menthe. A dozen of the brownies cost $12 and are prettily arranged on a gold-scalloped platter wrapped in festive cellophane and colorful ribbon.

You say you're ready to step up your fitness program? Well, strike while the iron -- or, more accurately, the temperature -- is hot. Summer is the ideal time to take your walking to a higher level.Walking remains one of the best aerobic activities around. Inexpensive, easily accessible and low impact, walking can provide a terrific cardiovascular workout for individuals of all ages and fitness levels.To add a little more oomph to your workouts, try the following tips:* Shave a few seconds off your per-mile pace.

Name: : Brugo thermal travel cup What it is: : A 16-ounce plastic travel cup that maker Jolex says significantly reduces the temperature of hot coffee one sip at a time while the rest stays piping hot. How it works: : When the cup is tilted back, about 2 ounces are transferred to a shallow "temperature control chamber" just below the rim. The chamber functions as a heat sink, which absorbs heat. When your drink gets to a reasonable temperature, you can change the setting on your lid from "tip and cool" to "sip" and use it like a regular cup. There also is a "lock" setting.

The first Code Red heat alert of the summer on Monday proved no match for the record books - or for anybody who could find a little shade. The temperature rose to 94 degrees at BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport at 3:16 in the afternoon, well short of the record of 100 degrees set in 1900. In the city, the temperature reached 97 degrees at the Maryland Science Center at 3 p.m. Cooler weather is expected later today. City schools officials closed numerous buildings at 11 a.m. Monday. Senior centers promoted their air-conditioning, but directors said they noticed little, if any, additional foot traffic.

Statistically speaking, this is the hottest week of the year in Baltimore. The 30-year-average high temperature at BWI-Marshall is 88 degrees, while the average low is a balmy 66. Our hottest days lag behind peak solar heating, around the solstice, thanks to the slow warming and cooling of the air and ocean. We've been lucky with heat so far this summer. But now that I've said it, we're surely in for some scorchers.

Donald Gansauer in Canton hears "a lot of static on WBJC on occasional evenings. What is it about the atmosphere that causes AM/FM radio reception to go bad?" AM signals are vulnerable to electrical discharge (lightning) in thunderstorms. On FM, temperature inversions (warm air trapped above cold) can bend radio waves, causing interference. It's more common in cities, or near large bodies of water.

L ou Borowicz of Baltimore dialed the weather line April 26 and heard that the downtown temperature was 101. A friend in Hamilton had 99.7, but the next day's Baltimore Sun reported just 91. "Can you explain these differences?" Lou asks. Sure: location. We reported BWI's high. The Science Center reached 93. Here on Calvert Street, it was 95. The phone company's rooftop thermometer often records the highest temperature of all. Up-to-the-minute local weather data and radar at MarylandWeather.

This week's sizzle had us thinking more about air conditioning than heating. But a look back at the heating season finds that it's ending precisely on BWI's long-term average for heating degree days - a temperature-based measure of demand for heating energy. Cool months were separated by mild, and a chilly April moderated with a hot finale. Soon, the cooling degree-days begin.

Hank Walter in Phoenix asks why the temperature in Salisbury is often 10 degrees lower than the surrounding areas: "In the mornings, the temperature there is usually as cold as it is in York, Pa." I've heard that before. Best guess: Salisbury, at the center of the Delmarva Peninsula, cools more at night because it's farther than nearby towns from the moderating influences of the bay and ocean.

Achy head? It could be the weather A variety of headache triggers are relatively well-known: red wine, chocolate, soft cheese and the beginning of the menstrual cycle. But although weather, especially changes in air pressure, is frequently cited as a headache trigger, the connection has not been shown in a large, well-designed study. Now researchers have found that high temperatures and low air pressure can indeed trigger migraines, but say there doesn't seem to be a clear association between such severe headaches and air pollution.

How far can Baltimore's temperature swing in five days? BWI went from 8 degrees on March 4 this year to 76 degrees on the 8th - a 68-degree leap. Steve Zubrick, science officer at the National Weather Service's Sterling, Va., office, says that ties the widest such leap on record here, set March 8-12, 1990, when the temperature rose from 18 to 86 degrees. The largest five-day drop was 62 degrees, from 87 to 25 degrees, Oct. 20-24, 1969.

Are all heating systems the same? My heating system is running constantly and it can only maintain a temperature of 67 F in my home. It's very cold outdoors, actually below zero. But still, I would expect the house to be comfortable even if the temperature got bitterly cold. Why is my home heating system not able to keep up? What can be done to keep me warm when it gets really cold? Bitter cold temperatures are straining hundreds of thousands of heating systems all over the nation. I think you may be a victim of an undersized furnace or heating system.