Hey, Answer Girl --

How does a statewide newspaper create a weather report that means anything? Are the predicted temperatures an average of many, or what?

--Mary K.

Don Day with Day Weather, Inc., based in Cheyenne, creates all of the Star-Tribune's weather reports.

The predicted temperatures aren't an average -- they're broken down and forecasted for individual places. The five-day forecast at the top of the page is Casper-specific.

According to Day, the process for coming up with a newspaper weather report goes like this: The previous day, meteorologists with Day Weather look at computer models, which are basically a bunch of numbers about what may happen with the weather. That's where the process begins.

Based on where the meteorologists think they need to make changes, some of the numbers are tweaked.

Day said it's very difficult to predict what the weather will be like over an entire state -- especially one as big as Wyoming -- from corner to corner. The weather in Jackson, for example, could be completely different from the weather in Riverton, which could in turn be different from Casper's weather or Laramie's weather or -- well, you get the point.

"With newspapers, the data we use that ends up on [the reader's] doorstep the following morning is not quite a day old," Day said. "That's a significant handicap ... that it's not instant."

Because of deadlines, if something big changes in some part of the state at, say, 3 a.m., it's too late to change it for that day's paper. Deadlines make it almost impossible for the forecast to be perfect each day.

"The thing that is most important is the trend -- warmer, colder, dryer, wetter," Day said.

Rest assured -- we try our best to give the most updated information possible.

For even more updated weather, check out or Web site at trib.com. Not only can you search for weather in a specific part of Wyoming -- you can find out what the weather is like anywhere in the world! Also, you'll find a link to live Webcams that will let you know whether driving is a good idea during inclement weather.

Answer Addition

Do you know anything about the potential Spanish influence on Casper architecture? I don't, and I haven't been able to find anyone who does. So, if you have some architectural insight, please, contact me.

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Answer Girl tackles questions about Casper, the universe and everything else. Submit your questions by e-mail to megan.lee@trib.com, or call Megan Lee at (307) 266-0616. Write to Answer Girl, Box 80, Casper, 82602. Visit the AnswerLabs Blog Place at tribtown.trib.com.