History of Meteorology
Scientists who study meteorology are called meteorologists. Meteorology comes from the Greek word “meteoros” which means “high in the sky.” The history of meteorology stems from 340 BCE with Greek philosopher Aristotle who wrote the work “Meteorology,” in which he described what he had observed about weather and climate. Aristotle used intuition and simple qualitative observation to draw conclusions about the weather. Aristotle did not believe in the importance of real scientific experimentation, so as a result some of his findings were incorrect (Hayton, 2013).
However, this changed in the 17th and 18th century when other scientists began to look more in-depth about climate and weather. Italian physicist Evangelista Torricelli invented the barometer in 1643 which was used to measure air pressure. The barometer is still used today and is actually a very important component in the forecasting weather system (Golan 2006).
Daniel Fahrenheit’s Work and Today’s Science
By 1714 the thermometer was invented by Daniel Fahrenheit, who discovered a way to measure the temperature of weather by using mercury. Using both Evangelista Torricelli and Daniel Fahrenheit’s work, American inventor Samuel Morse created a way to quickly send the data of both air pressure and temperature using a weather map. These maps displayed information through isobars, lines that track air pressure, and isotherms, lines that track temperature. This invention allowed meteorologists to be able to study large-scale geographical weather and climate (Golan, 2006).
Today, meteorology is much more complex and is based on both qualitative and quantitative research. However, this modern-day meteorology took years to develop and was not until the 20th century that there was real-time numerical forecasting (Bally, 2004).
Predicting the weather today is a complicated process that requires different groups of scientists to work together. Research meteorologists examine many different aspects of meteorology that help in predicting weather including climate modeling, remote sensing, air quality, atmospheric physics, and climate change. Forecasters will then take the information that the research meteorologists have gathered and use it to assess the current state of the atmosphere and predict how it will change. Forecasters get the information from a variety of measuring tools such as ships, buoys, aircraft, weather stations, radar, weather balloons, and satellites (Bally, 2004). All of the data that is gathered using these devices are transported through computers to national and regional weather centers. This allows for easy communication between meteorologists and forecasters which in turn gives us accurate and constant weather updates (Golan, 2006).
Radars and Data Processing
One of the most important tools that forecasters use is the radar. Radars send out radio waves into the atmosphere in horizontal lines which bounce off of particles in the atmosphere and return to the dish. A computer then processes this data and it can interpret the dimensions of the clouds, amount of precipitation, and the speed and direction at which the clouds are moving (Gabella, 2017). Currently, the latest technology of radars is the dual-polarization radar which sends both horizontal and vertical lines into the atmosphere to get even more accurate results. While a normal radar can predict rainfall, the dual-polarization radar can predict rain, snow, sleet, and hail (Gabella, 2017). This technology is particularly helpful because it gives forecasters the information that they need to help keep the community safe.
While the weather is a complicated topic that requires a team of scientists to interpret data, there are also some very fun and fascinating facts that many people find enjoyable. While many people love warm weather and want to live in California to catch some rays, they actually would be mistaken on where they want to live. The city of Yuma, Arizona is actually the sunniest place in the world catching over 4,000 hours of sunshine per year! In contrast, Mawsyram, India is considered to be the wettest place on the planet because it receives an average of 11 meters of rainfall every year (National Geographic Kids, 2017).
Animals and Weather
Some of the craziest facts about weather come from the reactions that animals have towards it. For example, did you know you could tell the weather by counting cricket chirps? Simply count the number of chirps that happen in 14 seconds and then add 40. This will give you a very close approximation of the weather outside! It has also been recorded that frogs get louder just before it rains.
This is because frogs and toads need to stay moist, and storms bring about nice humid air for them to hang out and croak in for a while. Even crazier than predicting rainfall, dogs are able to predict tornados! Dogs are able to use their senses to detect changes in the barometric pressure which shifts just before a tornado. Dogs can also smell the presence of rain in the air the same way many humans can. Animals are amazing and natural forecasters (National Geographic Kids, 2017).
Overall weather is an amazing concept that requires multiple different scientists to work together. Weather is something that students should be educated about in school in order to help them become more aware of what is happening in our atmosphere. Students are the future of the country so it is important that they are keeping the planet safe and knowing when and how to keep themselves safe in harsh weather conditions.
