Weather
What is the weather today? Is it windy and raining? Is it warm and sunny? Are there dark clouds in the sky? Knowing what the weather is each morning may help you decide what to wear to school or whether you will play outside or inside. Sometimes we even have dangerous weather such as hurricanes and tornadoes!
We have weather here on planet earth because the air, water and energy in our atmosphere interact in many ways. Energy from the sun is linked to all the many pieces of weather. You probably know that the sun heats the earth. But did you know that it is differences in the temperature of air that causes wind to form? And the sun fuels the water cycle too bringing us rain and snow. Heat from the sun is needed for water to evaporate, and the air must cool for water to condense. These are just a few examples of how the sun fuels our weather!
Today in Greentimes JR we will take a closer look at what our weather is. And next time it rains or snows, you will know what is happening in the atmosphere!
-- Araña Pequeña
Components of Weather
By Rafael Suazo
Have you ever wondered what makes up weather? Some components, or parts, of weather are temperature, precipitation and wind. These elements work together to make the weather happen.
Temperature is one of the components of weather. The temperature
of your climate depends on where you are on Earth. It’s always warmer at the equator than
at the North or South Pole because the sun’s rays hit the equator more directly. Similarly,
the temperature is always cooler at dawn than in the afternoon. The reason for this is
because the sun is right over you in the afternoon and is hitting you more directly than
at dawn when it is just rising.
Differences in temperatures cause wind to form. Wind is another major part of the weather. The wind moves other components of weather, such as clouds and precipitation. Cities that are near the ocean are often very windy because the temperature of the air above the ocean is colder than the air over the land. These cities experience sea breezes everyday because there are always differences in temperature between the land and sea. This is because land heats and cools much faster than the water in the ocean does.
Another component of weather is precipitation. Precipitation is the water that falls from the clouds. Rain is a form of precipitation. Others forms of precipitation are snow, hail and sleet. The temperature affects what type of precipitation will fall.
Now you know some important components of the weather. Next time you watch the weather on the news you will know what the weatherman is talking about when he mentions temperature, wind and precipitation.
The Precipitation Family
By Emily Tran
Hello there! We are the Precipitation family, and we are all
forms of water that fall from the sky. Just like you and your brothers and sisters, we are
similar in some ways and different in others. Let us introduce ourselves.
Hi, I’m Rain! I’m sure you’ve met me on some gloomy and wet days. You may think that I magically fall from the sky but here’s the real story. Because I am way up in the atmosphere where the weather is extremely cold, I don’t form until ice particles falling from the clouds meet warmer air. The warmer air makes the ice melt, creating wonderful me! Therefore, all rain starts as ice.
I’m Snow. I, like Rain, also form from ice. Ice crystals are water particles that have frozen around dust particles that have been carried up into the atmosphere by the wind. I’m made up of many ice crystals stuck together to form snow crystals.
Now that you know how Rain and Snow form, you’ll find out all about me!
I’m Sleet. Remember when Rain talked about ice particles falling and meeting warmer air?
I form if the temperature higher up in the atmosphere is warm enough to melt ice but the
air temperature near the ground is at or below freezing. This means that I am made up
of lots of frozen raindrops.
Hail is my name. I start out as rain. Sometimes upward blowing winds, called updrafts, blow rain up into the atmosphere instead of down towards the ground. When I move up, I meet colder air causing me to freeze into ice. More drops of water hit and stick to me. When I start to fall down, more updrafts may cause me to go through the process several times until I become too heavy. I can be very large by the time that I hit the ground. In fact, I can be as big as softballs!
So now that you’ve met our family and have an understanding of how we’re formed, can you tell the difference between the four types of precipitation? We hope to see you outside soon!
The Difference Between Weather and Climate
Snow storms, daily high and low temperatures, rain showers and sunshine are all examples of weather. Everyday weathermen predict what the weather will be like for the next week or so. Sometimes their forecasts change from day to day because the weather is always changing and is hard to predict.
Weather is not only predicted, it is also measured, felt and observed everyday. Some days it is stormy, some days it is unusually hot or cold and some days the weather is calm. Weather happens all over the world in many, many different ways.
Although it is difficult to predict what the exact weather will be on a particular day, weathermen, and even you, always know the climate of where you live. The climate of an area is what its general weather is like over long, long periods of time.
Here’s an example of what climate is. Boston has four seasons. The summer is hot, the fall is cool, the winter is cold and snowy and the spring is warm. If a tourist was wondering what the weather might be like in January they could expect the weather to be cold and snowy. This means that in Boston in January we can expect it to be cold and possibly snowy, but in July we can expect it to be hot and sunny.
In Hawaii, however, it is hot year round because it is near the equator. We know that the weather will probably be hot in January. What we don’t know is what the exact temperature will be on a random day or how much it will snow or rain. These daily measurements are the weather.
Now you know the difference between climate and weather. Can you describe the weather today? Can you describe the climate of your city?