These cool links are not housed on the Illinois State Water Survey web site, nor are they directly related to any project or activity at the Water Survey. The Illinois State Water Survey does not endorse these links or web sites, but hopes you will find them interesting and entertaining.
Tornado preparation, priorities, damage and loss (tornadodamage.org) - Tornadoes leave a path of destruction in their wake, and can arrive with little or no warning. A tornado can completely annihilate a house or an office building in less than a second. ...
Aerial photos of tornado damage (CBS News) - Photo where several homes lie demolished, Saturday, March 3, 2012, in Marysville, Ind., after a tornado swept through the town Friday.
Hail photos (hail.org) - Photos of hail submitted by users from diferent locations.
Lightning Facts (factmonster.com) - Zeus, park rangers, and the probability of being struck by lightning.
Interactive site on what affects smog (smogcity.com) - Smog City is an interactive air pollution simulator that shows how your choices, environmental factors, and land use contribute to air pollution.
Air quality status and forecast (airnow.gov) - The Air Quality Index (AQI) is an index for reporting daily air quality. It tells you how clean or polluted your outdoor air is, and what associated health effects might be a concern for you.
Global warming effects map (National Geographic) - Likely Worldwide Environmental Scenarios if Climate Change Continues.
Abandoned Vehicles (Chicago Tribune) -
Incredible photo of Lake Shore Drive after the snow. Abandoned vehicles litter northbound Lake Shore Drive on Wednesday morning.
Midwest Haze Cam - Chicago (IEPA) - Updated every 15 minutes, the live cam shows haze, air quality, and visibility in downtown Chicago, IL. Besides the visual aspect of the camera itself, measurements of ozone and fine particles in the air are provided. Also check out the IEPA Midwest Haze Cam Gallery, with live cams of nine Midwest cities/areas.
Air Quality Index (IEPA) -
The IEPA Air Quality Index page ranks air quality on a scale of 0 to 500 - 0 being Good and 500 being Hazardous.
Today’s National Air Quality Forecast (airnow.gov) -
Today's Forecast Guidance Maps are a joint NOAA-EPA air quality tool developed for state and local forecasters.
Flooding in the Midwest, June 2008 (USGS - Featured Topic) -
Press releases, Imagery, and Multimedia along with real time water monitoring of the affected states (Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Mississippi, Missouri, & Wisconsin).
Flooding Soaks Seven States (USGS - Featured Topic) -
Among many other things, video footage from a cell phone and video camera of a house colliding with a bridge during a March 2008 flood on the White River in Calico Rock, Arkansas...
Weather news on Science Daily (Science Daily) -
ScienceDaily is one of the Internet's leading online magazines and Web portals devoted to science, technology, and medicine. This page handles their news items along with a large amount of other material.
Real-time water monitoring (USGS WaterWatch) -
The "Flood and high flow" map shows the location of streamgages where the water level is currently at or above flood stage (depicted as a black triangle) or at high flow (depicted as blue circles) ...
Heavy Snow in U.S. Midwest (NASA's Earth Observatory) - A severe winter storm hammered the Midwestern United States on December 1, 2006. According to news reports, the storm iced roads, canceled flights, broke tree branches, left more than two million homes and businesses without electricity, and temporarily shut down part of Interstate 40 in central Oklahoma.
Contrails Over the Midwest (NASA's Earth Observatory) - When the hot, humid air from a jet engine mixes with colder, drier air in the surrounding environment, condensation trails, or "contrails", streak the sky. If the air through which the airplane is flying is already close to being saturated with water vapor, the condensation trail will last longer than it will if the air is dry.