WeatherCurrent state of the atmosphereClimateCollective state of the earth’s atmosphere over a long period of time30 year period of timeOne season doesn’t make climate change, but it can be influenced by itAlways changingMeteorologyStudy of the earth’s atmosphereAtmosphereThe gases that envelope all the planetsMeteorology Time Line340 BC Aristotle’s MeteorologicaPut down writings, Aristotle is the father of meteorology1593 Thermometer (Galileo)Technology started advancing1643 Barometer (Torricelli)Use of high and low pressure1664 Hygrometer (da Vinci/Folli)Measures the amount of moisture in the air1843 Telegraph (communication)Helped to communicate and advance technology for communicating weather, everything we need to talk and figure out weather is now on the internet thanks to the telegraph1846 4 cup Anemometer (Robinson)Measures wind speed1870 Signal Corp/Dept of WarFirst real weather service in the governmentWasn’t very elaborate, mainly observing for transportation purposes1891 Civilian US Weather Bureau1920 Air Mass Theory (fronts)Norwegians came up with frontal theoriesWe begin to look at Norwegian meteorology to see these fronts1936 Mississippi tornado1940 Weather Bureau (to commerce)1940s Upper Air Balloon (rawinsonde)Time of World War 2Technology and aviation is becoming a big deal65 places in the US and hundreds of places worldwide that release a balloon with a rawinsonde that checks temperature, happens twice a daythey are called upper air sights, allow us to have 3D insight of the atmosphere, goes into the troposphere1950s Computers1957 Weather RadarTells us precipitation1960 Weather SatelliteSatellite imagery1970 Weather Bureau/NWSWeather Bureau became the National weather service1974 Worst US tornado outbreakApril 3 and 4Mississippi and Ohio ValleyCold front was sweeping through a moist air massHundreds of tornados1980s Doppler weather radars1980s Wind ProfilersTell us about the wind speed at a given point1980s Lightening detection systemsWeather network that the private sector of the united states ownsWe can watch lightening strokes as they occurHigher than average number of people killed and injured every year by lightening1990s Weather Observation (ASOS)Gathering weather data1990s NWS ModernizationOriginally used to be considered an art, now a scienceIt is important to note how people take warnings and how they react to itElements of WeatherAir TemperatureHotness or coldness of the airHumidityAmount of moisture in the airCloudsCondensed moisture in the atmospherePrecipitationRain, snow, sleet, hail, ice pellets, drizzle, freezing rain, freezing drizzleWind DirectionThe direction from which the wind blowsWind Speed (gusts)2 minute averagePeaks in speed that is instantaneousAtmospheric PressureThe weight of the air above usVisibilityHow we can seeThings in weather can limit your visibility like fog, snow, smoke, haze, heavy rainWeather Observation Tools (ways that we sense the atmosphere)SatelliteRadarAtmospheric profilersDevices that we have in La GrangeLook and see what is going on with the wind above isYou can look at it constantlyRawinsondesWeather balloons released once every 12 hoursMeasures wind speed and directionSurface weather observationsWay we look at climate data, we can know what the high and low isAircraft observationsThere is automatic weather data on airplanesComputer equipment which reports it back to the groundProprietary system, developed and owned by the private sectorLightening detection networksPrivately owned and usedBuoys70-75% of the world is waterVery extensive base of buoy systems around the worldTells us water temperature, warning of tsunamisHuman observation network (SkyWarn, CoCoRaHS)People that own their own supplies to make weather observationsSkyWarn provides sever weather reports, voluntary people do thisCoCoRaHS are people that buy their own rain gage that go out and report it to people, becomes part of the national networkIsolines/IsoplethsLines of equal or constant values of a given property (with respect to time and place)Isobars—pressureIsotherm—temperatureIsohyet—lines of equal rainfall amount, precipitationIsallobar—equal pressure changeIsodrosotherm—equal dew point, how much moisture is in the airIsotach—equal wind speed, where the wind is blowing the strongestWeather MapsEvery 3 hours we get a surface map from the United States governmentOn TV there is a colorful surface mapSurface MapDepicting conditions at the surface, within 10 feet of the surface, telling us what is going on in the atmosphereIf there is low pressure, there are less air molecules and less air above your headProblem is that you can look at a surface map and say nothing is going on at where I am at today but tomorrow you can easily be affect by what is going on way far away from your locationThe problem is it takes a while to get it and analyze it and by the time we have done everything it is a snapshot in the past so it may not still hold trueUpper Air MapTaken from airplanesThe H and L on this map doesn’t necessarily mean the same thing as it means on the surface mapStation ModelsSurface Weather MapsTemperature = 76 FUpper left hand numberDew Point = 55 FLower left hand numberDew point will always be less than temperatureCurrent Weather = overcast with rain, there is a symbol between the two temperature and dew pointTwo dots is rainAstrict is snowCommas is drizzleSide ways S is freezing rainTriangle is sleetHourglass is a tornadoCircle is colored in based on cloud coverageWind Direction = NE/ 040 DegreesThe symbol coming out of the circle determines the direction and will protrude in the direction from where the wind is coming fromAnything at 0 or 360 degrees is a north windAnything at the bottom of the circle at 180 degrees is south90 degrees is east270 degrees is westWind Speed = 20 knotsThe symbol coming out of the circle determines wind speed by seeing a full length bar is equal to 10 knots of windIf there is just a 5 knot wind speed it will be half a bar that is indented in on the linePressure = 1013.8 millibarsNumber on the top rightMillibars can be about 4 or 5 numbers longOriginally it will read 138When you see it create a tenths place so its read 13.8 and either put a nine or a 10 before it and see whatever brings it closer to 1000Pressure change = a drop of .3 millibar/ last three hoursBottom right hand cornerUpper Air Weather Maps (ALWAYS IN CELSIUS)Temperature = -21 CDew Point Depression = 10 CNumber of degrees