WHEATHER Flashcards
Barometer
Weather man uses this to measure air pressure
Barometric pressure
Layers of gases pushed down
Cirrus clouds
The clouds that are highest in the sky
Climate
The average weather for a long periods of time
Cloud
Formed by tiny drops of water
Drought
A period of time when no water
Dew point
Tiny dew drops on blades of grass
Air pressure
What causes hot air balloons to fly
Cumulonimbus
These are the clouds that storms come from
Cumulus cloud
Cumulus clouds are large clouds with a puffy appearance and distinct edges. They’re usually white, and often gray on the base. These low clouds are typical during fair weather, but may be the precursor to more severe weather.
Forecast
How does your teacher pick the best day for a field trip? She listens to the weather forecast. A forecast tells you what kind of weather you will have. Forecasts are made by studying things like temperature and wind direction.
Front
You are enjoying a sunny afternoon at the beach. Suddenly, you see thunderclouds forming in the sky. How did this happen? The clouds formed when a mass of cool air runs into a mass of warm air. The area where these air masses meet is called a front. The weather can change very quickly at fronts.
Funnel cloud
Thunderstorms can make a funnel-shaped column of clouds. This column stretches down from the sky but does not reach the ground. When funnel clouds touch the ground, they are called tornadoes.
Hail
Sometimes, water droplets in clouds freeze. The frozen drops move up into the cloud, carried by strong winds. More ice begins to form on them. When they become too heavy, they fall as hail. Some hailstones can be as large as baseballs.
Humidity
On a rainy day, wet clothes take longer to dry. Why does this happen? This is because air has a lot of water vapor in it. It cannot take water from the clothes as easily as on a sunny day. The amount of water vapor in the air is called humidity.
Hurricane
Hurricanes are storms that begin over the oceans. They bring heavy rain and strong winds. These winds can have speeds over 100 miles per hour! Hurricanes often destroy houses and pull out trees.
Meteorology
Air masses form over large areas that have similar weather. A front is the boundary along which two air masses meet or collide. Different types of fronts bring different characteristic weather conditions. Recording and studying weather patterns makes it possible for meteorologists to forecast the weather.
Thunder
Sometimes, when it rains, you see big flashes of light in the sky. Lightning superheats the air. Superheating the air causes a loud noise called thunder.
Thunderstorm
Sometimes hot and cold air meet in the atmosphere. The hot air rises above the cold air very quickly. Dark clouds form. Lightning flashes across the skies. These are followed by loud booms of thunder and rain. This is a thunderstorm.
Tornado
When a mass of cold air meets a mass of warm air, the cold air pushes the warm air up at great speeds. Sometimes this creates a twisting column of air, called a tornado. Tornadoes travel very fast. They can destroy anything in their path. Tornadoes are also called twisters.
Tropical
Tropical climates typically have very warm temperatures throughout the year. Temperatures vary from day to day but remain fairly constant from month to month. During the rainy season, which lasts an average of six months, rainfall is more or less constant. Central Africa and the part of Eastern Africa that lies south of the Sahara Desert has a mostly tropical climate. Regions near the equator, such as Gabon, Republic of Congo, and the northern third of the Democratic Republic of Congo, have the longest rainy seasons. The remainder of the year is dry.
Typhoon
A typhoon is a severe tropical storm that originates in the Pacific Ocean, west of the International Dateline.
Weather
Is it raining outside? Or is it bright and sunny? The weather is what gives you an idea of how things are outside. It is a way to describe the outdoors at a given time and place.
