Weather Journal began in late 2002 as something of an online blog … an occasional discussion of weather, updated intermittently on Roanoke.com. When it started in The Roanoke Times as a twice-weekly column in late 2003, the online version followed suit: Two regular postings a week, with some updates in between as conditions necessitated.

Today, we’re returning to our roots in a sense with the launch of the Weather Journal blog on Roanoke.com. I will continue to post the regular twice-weekly columns, but also plan frequent, mostly short updates here on a wide variety of weather topics — local, national, international, past, present and future.

I hope this becomes a place online where people with any inkling of an interest in weather can come to find some interesting topics, including links to other articles and Web sites. There will also be room for you to make your own comments on whatever is being discussed.

Bear with me, though, as I’m new to the blogging thing, and it might take some time to find my rhythm with it.