Weather
hideWeather is a set of all the phenomena occurring in a given atmosphere at a given time. Weather phenomena lie in the troposphere. Weather refers, generally, to day-to-day temperature and precipitation activity, whereas climate is the term for the average atmospheric conditions over longer periods of time. When used without qualification, "weather" is understood to be the weather of Earth.
Weather occurs due to density (temperature and moisture) differences between one place and another. These differences can occur due to the sun angle at any particular spot, which varies by latitude from the tropics. The strong temperature contrast between polar and tropical air gives rise to the jet stream. Weather systems in the mid-latitudes, such as extratropical cyclones, are caused by instabilities of the jet stream flow. Because the Earth's axis is tilted relative to its orbital plane, sunlight is incident at different angles at different times of the year. On Earth's surface, temperatures usually range ±40 °C (100 °F to −40 °F) annually. Over thousands to hundreds of thousands of years, changes in Earth's orbit affect the amount and distribution of solar energy received by the Earth and influence long-term climate
Surface temperature differences in turn cause pressure differences. Higher altitudes are cooler than lower altitudes due to differences in compressional heating. Weather forecasting is the application of science and technology to predict the state of the atmosphere for a future time and a given location. The atmosphere is a chaotic system, so small changes to one part of the system can grow to have large effects on the system as a whole. Human attempts to control the weather have occurred throughout human history, and there is evidence that human activity such as agriculture and industry has inadvertently modified weather patterns.
Studying how the weather works on other planets has been helpful in understanding how weather works on Earth. A famous landmark in the Solar System, Jupiter's Great Red Spot, is an anticyclonic storm known to have existed for at least 300 years. However, weather is not limited to planetary bodies. A star's corona is constantly being lost to space, creating what is essentially a very thin atmosphere throughout the Solar System. The movement of mass ejected from the Sun is known as the solar wind.
For more information about Weather, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
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News tagged with weather
Climate change is already having an impact across the US
Jun 16, 2009 |
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Extreme weather, drought, heavy rainfall and increasing temperatures are a fact of life in many parts of the U.S. as a result of human-induced climate change, researchers report today in a new assessment. These and other ...
Space-Based Solar Power Coming to California in 2016
Apr 15, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- In the near future, a solar power satellite may be supplying electricity to 250,000 homes around Fresno County, California. Unlike ground-based solar arrays, satellites would be unaffected ...
In hot water: World sets ocean temperature record (Update)
Aug 20, 2009 |
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(AP) -- Steve Kramer spent an hour and a half swimming in the ocean this week - in Maine.
U.S. Crop Yields Could Wilt in Heat
Aug 24, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Yields of three of the most important crops produced in the United States - corn, soybeans and cotton - are predicted to fall off a cliff if temperatures rise due to climate change.
Deadly heat waves are becoming more frequent in California
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Aug 25, 2009 |
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From mid July to early August 2006, a heat wave swept through the southwestern United States. Temperature records were broken at many locations and unusually high humidity levels for this typically arid region ...
Warning: Sunspot cycle beginning to rise
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
May 08, 2009 |
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(AP) -- When the sun sneezes it's Earth that gets sick. It's time for the sun to move into a busier period for sunspots, and while forecasters expect a relatively mild outbreak by historical standards, one ...
Blubbery 'researchers' lend fin to climate science
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Apr 06, 2009 |
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(AP) -- Into the Antarctic enigma, the puzzle of a place with too few researchers chasing too many climate mysteries, slowly waddles the elephant seal.
NASA's Ares I-X moon rocket makes first test flight
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Oct 28, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- NASA's Ares I-X test rocket lifted off at 11:30 a.m. EDT Wednesday from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida for a two-minute powered flight.
New data show much of Antarctica is warming more than previously thought
Jan 21, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists studying climate change have long believed that while most of the rest of the globe has been getting steadily warmer, a large part of Antarctica - the East Antarctic Ice Sheet - ...
New clues to air circulation in the atmosphere
Aug 21, 2008 |
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Air circulates above the Earth in four distinct cells, with two either side of the equator, says new research. The new observational study describes how air rises and falls in the atmosphere above the Earth's surface, creating ...
New Solar Cycle Prediction
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Jun 01, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- An international panel of experts led by NOAA and sponsored by NASA has released a new prediction for the next solar cycle. Solar Cycle 24 will peak, they say, in May 2013 with a below-average ...
MIT Student Takes Pictures from Space on Less Than $150 (w/ Video)
Oct 02, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- When we think of taking pictures of the earth from space, we assume that a great deal of money has to be spent on high-tech equipment and complex vehicles to get the camera up there. But, ...
Solar Shield Experiment Aims to Keep the Power On
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Jul 01, 2008 |
4.4 / 5 (16) |
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When you flip a light switch to illuminate the pages of your favorite book or reach into your refrigerator for that last piece of key lime pie, you expect the electric current coursing through the outlets ...
New Solar Cycle Prediction: Fewer Sunspots, But Not Necessarily Less Activity
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
May 27, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- An international panel of experts has released a new prediction for the next solar cycle, stating that Solar Cycle 24 will peak in May 2013 with a below-average number of sunspots. Led by ...
Geological landforms indicate 'recent' warm weather on Mars
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Jun 29, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- New research led by a UK scientist indicates that Mars had significantly warmer weather in its recent past than previously thought. The research, funded by the UK’s Science and Technology ...
