As the holidays approach and 2020 begins to wind down, many people have become accustomed to working from home. Even big businesses are realizing that it doesn’t make sense to pay for a large office space that must be comfortable for employees when the employees are working successfully at home. Thus, the burden of providing a temperate environment to work in has shifted from employer to employee. With cold weather on the horizon for much of the world, the remote worker has made home heating (and heating expenses) take on even greater importance.

Smart homes are gaining in popularity, with 32% of households in the U.S. using smart home technology and that number expected to jump to 57% by 2025.  However, the term is often used to mean that instead of having to walk across the room to flip a switch to turn on a light,  you replace that task with a voice command.  

Today in Tempest News: Meteorologist and hurricane specialist Bryan Norcross talks about the scariest hurricane moment he's ever had, evacuating during a pandemic, and the danger of assuming anyone knows how a hurricane will behave.  Plus a look at the raging wildfires in the West and Hurricane Laura's path of destruction.

Lights are on, tablets and smartphones are charging, online school is in session for most kids, and in the US, work from home has become the new norm for many of us. We're home more, which means we're using more energy than usual, and have probably seen that reflected in our energy bill. Now, more than ever, people are looking for better ways to regulate their energy consumption.

Today in Tempest News: A talk with PG&E spokesperson Deanna Contreras about the utility company's wildfire risk mitigation efforts, which includes new grid technology, enhanced vegetation management and the installation of high definition fire cameras to mountain tops, in addition to a growing network of weather stations. PLUS a look at two lightning bolts that have broken world records, and what tree rings are telling researchers about climate change.