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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
Saturn's Mysterious Hexagon Emerges from Winter Darkness
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Dec 09, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- After waiting years for the sun to illuminate Saturn's north pole again, cameras aboard NASA's Cassini spacecraft have captured the most detailed images yet of the intriguing hexagon shape ...
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 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 ...
World's Largest Tornado Experiment Heads for Great Plains (w/Videos)
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
May 05, 2009 |
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The largest and most ambitious tornado study in history will begin next week, as dozens of scientists deploy radars and other ground-based instruments across the Great Plains to gain a better understanding ...
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 ...
Scientists find giant solar twists
Mar 19, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have, for the first time, detected giant twisting waves in the lower atmosphere of the Sun, shedding light on the mystery of the Sun's corona (the region around the Sun, extending ...
'Peking Man' older than thought; somehow adapted to cold
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Mar 11, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A new dating method has found that "Peking Man" is around 200,000 years older than previously thought, suggesting he somehow adapted to the cold of a mild glacial period.
Scientists trace the human role in Indonesian forest fires
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Feb 22, 2009 |
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Severe fires in Indonesia - responsible for some of the worst air quality conditions worldwide - are linked not only to drought, but also to changes in land use and population density, according to a new study ...
Cosmic rays detected deep underground reveal secrets of the upper atmosphere (Video)
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Jan 21, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Cosmic-rays detected half a mile underground in a disused U.S. iron-mine can be used to detect major weather events occurring 20 miles up in the Earth's upper atmosphere, a new study has revealed.
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 - ...
CU Students to Build Tiny Spacecraft to Observe 'Space Weather' Environment
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Dec 29, 2009 |
4.3 / 5 (4) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- The University of Colorado at Boulder has been awarded $840,000 from the National Science Foundation for students to build a tiny spacecraft to observe energetic particles in space that should ...
China to launch second lunar probe: state media
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Nov 27, 2009 |
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China will launch its second moon orbiter next October, state media reported Friday, as it powers ahead with a space programme that has sparked concerns abroad.
A lightning strike in Africa helps take the pulse of the sun
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Nov 11, 2009 |
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Sunspots, which rotate around the sun's surface, tell us a great deal about our own planet. Scientists rely on them, for instance, to measure the sun's rotation or to prepare long-range forecasts of the Earth's ...
Noise Evidence Could Expand Hurricane Record
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Nov 10, 2009 |
5 / 5 (3) |
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As sea-surface temperatures rise across the globe, some scientists believe that hurricane frequency and intensity may increase. A fresh technique offers promise to generate new data from long-dead storms, ...
Beijing's first snow of season 'artificially induced'
Nov 01, 2009 |
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Chinese meteorologists covered Beijing in snow Sunday after seeding clouds to bring winter weather to the capital in an effort to combat a lingering drought, state media reported.
