Portal:Weather

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Weather is the state of the atmosphere, describing for example the degree to which it is hot or cold, wet or dry, calm or stormy, clear or cloudy. On Earth, most weather phenomena occur in the lowest layer of the planet's atmosphere, the troposphere, just below the stratosphere. Weather refers to day-to-day temperature, precipitation, and other atmospheric conditions, whereas climate is the term for the averaging of atmospheric conditions over longer periods of time. When used without qualification, "weather" is generally understood to mean the weather of Earth.

Weather is driven by air pressure, temperature, and moisture differences between one place and another. These differences can occur due to the Sun's angle at any particular spot, which varies with latitude. The strong temperature contrast between polar and tropical air gives rise to the largest scale atmospheric circulations: the Hadley cell, the Ferrel cell, the polar cell, and the jet stream. Weather systems in the middle latitudes, such as extratropical cyclones, are caused by instabilities of the jet streamflow. Because Earth's axis is tilted relative to its orbital plane (called the ecliptic), sunlight is incident at different angles at different times of the year. On Earth's surface, temperatures usually range ±40 °C (−40 °F to 104 °F) annually. Over thousands of years, changes in Earth's orbit can affect the amount and distribution of solar energy received by Earth, thus influencing long-term climate and global climate change.

Surface temperature differences in turn cause pressure differences. Higher altitudes are cooler than lower altitudes, as most atmospheric heating is due to contact with the Earth's surface while radiative losses to space are mostly constant. Weather forecasting is the application of science and technology to predict the state of the atmosphere for a future time and a given location. Earth's weather system is a chaotic system; as a result, small changes to one part of the system can grow to have large effects on the system as a whole. Human attempts to control the weather have occurred throughout history, and there is evidence that human activities such as agriculture and industry have modified weather patterns.

Studying how the weather works on other planets has been helpful in understanding how weather works on Earth. A famous landmark in the Solar System, Jupiter's Great Red Spot, is an anticyclonic storm known to have existed for at least 300 years. However, the weather is not limited to planetary bodies. A star's corona is constantly being lost to space, creating what is essentially a very thin atmosphere throughout the Solar System. The movement of mass ejected from the Sun is known as the solar wind. (Full article...)

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The 2008 Super Tuesday tornado outbreak was a deadly tornado outbreak which affected the Southern United States and the lower Ohio Valley on February 5–6, 2008. In total, 87 tornadoes were confirmed in the outbreak's 15 hour span. Several destructive tornadoes struck heavily populated areas, most notably in the Memphis metropolitan area, in Jackson, Tennessee, and the northeastern end of the Nashville metropolitan area. Fifty-seven people were killed in the outbreak by tornadoes across four states and 18 counties, with hundreds injured and property damage totaling more than $500 million (USD).

The outbreak was the deadliest in the U.S. since the May 31, 1985 outbreak that killed 76 across Ohio and Pennsylvania (and also killed 12 in Ontario, Canada). It also was the deadliest tornado outbreak in both Tennessee and Kentucky since the 1974 Super Outbreak. In addition to the tornadoes, the same system produced significant straight-line wind damage, hail as large as softballs, or 4.50 inches (11 cm) in diameter, major flooding, significant freezing rain, and heavy snow across many areas of eastern North America.

Map of deadly tornadoes (in red) and other severe weather reports.

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Did you know (auto-generated) - show different entries

... that weather whiplash is the phenomenon of rapid swings between extremes of weather conditions?
... that Japanese actor Kouhei Higuchi prepared for his role on the television drama adaptation of My Personal Weatherman by learning from a weather forecaster?
... that in the 1980s, "Sherman Bonner, The Human Thermometer" presented the weather on an Arkansas TV station?
... that Eric Berger wrote about weather for the Houston Chronicle even before he became a certified meteorologist?
... that extreme event attribution estimates how much climate change causes weather events, such as the 2021 Western North America heat wave?
... that the weather forecast for HD 189733 b is "Westerly winds at 2000 m/s, with molten glass showers"?

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A variety of cirrus and cirrostratus clouds over a field.

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...that the Flying river is the name given to the transport of water vapor from the Amazon rainforest to southern Brazil?

...that hurricane shutters are required for all homes in Florida unless impact-resistant glass is used?

...that the Joint Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research is a combined weather and ocean research institute with the cooperation of the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research and the University of Hawaiʻi?

...that the SS Central America was sunk by a hurricane while carrying more than 30,000 pounds (13,600 kg) of gold, contributing to the Panic of 1857?

...that a hurricane force wind warning is issued by the United States National Weather Service for storms that are not tropical cyclones but are expected to produce hurricane-force winds (65 knots (75 mph; 120 km/h) or higher)?

...that the Automated Tropical Cyclone Forecasting System is a software package for tropical cyclone forecasting developed in 1988 that is still used today by meteorologists in various branches of the US Government?

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Recent and ongoing weather

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This week in weather history...

July 6

2013: Hurricane Erick reached peak intensity as it passed 100 miles (160 km) offshore of Lázaro Cárdenas, Michoacán, Mexico. Though the storm did not make landfall, flooding rains lead to the deaths of at least two people.

July 7

1991: A major derecho raced from South Dakota to New York, killing one person and causing over $100 million in damage.

July 8

1980: Aeroflot Flight 4225 crashed shortly after takeoff from Almaty International Airport in Soviet Kazakhstan due to turbulence caused by thermals during a heat wave, killing all 166 people on board.

July 9

1986: Typhoon Peggy made landfall in northern Luzon, Philippines, killing more than 300 people.

July 10

2005: Hurricane Dennis reached peak intensity with a central pressure of 930 millibars (27.46 inHg), making it the strongest Atlantic hurricane to form prior to August. This record was broken by Hurricane Emily only 6 days later.

July 11

1892: The Tête Rousse Glacier on the Mont Blanc massif unleashed an outburst flood of meltwater, killing at least 200 people in the valley near Saint-Gervais-les-Bains, France.

July 12

1961: The TIROS-3 weather satellite was launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

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Robert Allen "Bob" Case (December 16, 1939 – June 19, 2008) was a meteorologist who worked for the National Weather Service (NWS) for 28 years. Over the course of his career, he worked in NWS various offices, developing a diverse background in various types of weather forecasting, including a lengthy stint as a hurricane forecaster. He is best known for inspiring the naming of the 1991 Perfect Storm as The Perfect Storm. (Full article...)

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Tropical Storm Ileana (2018) (Discussion)

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Featured Article Review: 2005 Atlantic hurricane season (Discussion)
Featured List Removal Candidate: List of storms in the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season (Discussion)

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WikiProjects

The scope of WikiProject Weather is to have a single location for all weather-related articles on Wikipedia.

WikiProject Meteorology is a collaborative effort by dozens of Wikipedians to improve the quality of meteorology- and weather-related articles. If you would like to help, visit the project talk page, and see what needs doing.

WikiProject Severe weather is a similar project specific to articles about severe weather. Their talk page is located here.

WikiProject Tropical cyclones is a daughter project of WikiProject meteorology. The dozens of semi-active members and several full-time members focus on improving Wikipedia's coverage of tropical cyclones.

WikiProject Non-tropical storms is a collaborative project to improve articles related to winter storms, wind storms, and extratropical cyclones.

Wikipedia is a fully collaborative effort by volunteers. So if you see something you think you can improve, be bold and get to editing! We appreciate any help you can provide!