How can weather be measured?

Targets

At the end of this Unit you should be able to answer the following questions 

1. What are the elements of weather?

1.1 Why do temperature differences cause air movement?

1.2 What causes rain, hail, sleet, and snow?

1.3 How can weather be measured?

1.4 What weather clues do the clouds and the Sun give us?

1.5 How can we predict and prepare ourselves for bad weather?

2. How do human actions affect climate?

2.1 How does climate vary throughout the world?

2.2 How are human actions linked to climate change?

targets

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Humans have been recording and tracking the weather for centuries. By learning more about weather conditions, we can make the quality of our lives much better by growing better crops, providing severe weather warnings, and making it easier to go outside prepared for the conditions.

To track the weather, we need to make accurate measurements. Technology has a big role in this. During the last 40 years, we have learned to place satellites in orbit that can record water vapour, clouds, and temperature. A satellite is an object in space and is associated with a planet, especially Earth. (The moon is a natural satellite.) Certain weather satellites stay above the same spot on the globe and send beautiful and useful images back to Earth.


  Video

Watch this video: NASA sends the GOES-14 weather satellite successfully into space.

What is weather, and how do we measure it? Weather is the state of the atmosphere. (Is it hot or cold, wet or dry, stormy or calm?) Atmosphere is the name for the layer of air above Earth. For most of the elements of weather, you do not need satellites because measuring weather can be done with simple instruments, many that you can make yourself.