Weather Vocabulary Flashcards
Air pressure
the force that air puts on an area
Tropical
describing a climate that is very hot and humid; describing an area of Earth that is near the equator
Celsius
The metric temperature scale: Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius, and it freezes at 0 degrees Celsius
Cumulus cloud
large, fluffy, white clouds, often seen in fair skies; can develop into cumulonimbus clouds
Cirrus Cloud
thin, wispy-looking clouds; commonly found at heights greater than 6 km
Thermometer
a device used to measure temperature
Tropical depression
a region of low pressure with counter-clockwise wind rotation that develops into a hurricane or tropical storm
Ocean current
large-scale movement of water within the oceans in a certain direction
Dew point
the temperature at which water vapor in the air condenses into water
Hurricane
a storm with strong winds and rain that forms over tropical waters (related term: typhoon, tropical cyclone)
Desert
an area that gets little precipitation and has very little vegetation
Typhoon
A hurricane or tropical storm originating in the Pacific Ocean
Humidity
The measure of how much water vapor is in the air
Forecast
to analyze weather data and make an educated guess about weather in the future; (n) a prediction about what the weather will be like in the future based on weather data
Atmosphere
layers of gas that surround a planet (related word: atmospheric)
Hail
small, icy balls that fall from the sky
Thunderstorm
a weather system that produces heavy precipitation, winds, lightning, and thunder
Cloud
a collection of water droplets or ice crystals in the atmosphere
Precipitation
water that is released from clouds in the sky; includes rain, snow, sleet, hail, and freezing rain
Drought
a prolonged shortage of rainfall
Front
in weather, the boundary between two masses of air with different properties
Meteorology
The study of weather patterns
Freezing point
the temperature at which a liquid turns into a solid
Tornado
a funnel-shaped cloud or column of air that rotates at high speeds and extends downward from a cloud to the ground
Cumulonimbus cloud
anvil-shaped cloud that is often involved in heavy or violent storms: Cumulonimbus clouds are also called thunderheads.
Thunder
a loud noise that happens when lightning heats the air and causes it to expand and contract quickly
Weather
the properties of the atmosphere at a given time and location, including temperature, air movement and precipitation
Waterspout
a funnel-shaped cloud that forms over water and pulls water upward
Barometer
a tool used to measure air pressure (related word: barometric)
Global warming
the slow warming of Earth’s atmosphere due to climatic change
Temperature
a measure of the average kinetic energy of the atoms in a system, used to express thermal energy in degrees
Barometric pressure
the pressure (force per unit area) of the atmosphere against a surface
Funnel clouds
a rotating, funnel-shaped cloud: Funnel clouds do not touch the ground.
Climate
the current or past long-term weather conditions characteristic of a region or the entire Earth.
