Weather Terms
- Atmosphere--The thin envelope of gases, water vapor, dust, and other airborne particles that surround the earth. Commonly referred to as the "air."
- Barometer--An instrument used to measure atmospheric pressure.
- Blizzard--Heavy snow or blowing snow accompanied by winds of at least 35 miles per hour.
- Climate--The average daily or seasonal weather of a particular place or region.
- Cloud--A mass of small liquid water droplets or ice crystals suspended in the air.
- Dew--Moisture that has condensed on objects near the ground.
- Dew point--The temperature at which water vapor condenses to a liquid.
- Drizzle--Precipitation consisting of very small droplets of water.
- Fair--Weather condition in which clouds cover less than 40% of the sky, there are no extremes in temperature or wind, and there is no precipitation.
- Fog--A cloud hovering close to the Earth's surface.
- Front--The area in which two air masses come into contact.
- Frost--A thin layer of ice crystals that form on the ground and other surfaces when water vapor condenses below 32 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Gust--A sudden, brief increase in wind speed.
- Hail--Precipitation consisting of pellets of ice.
- High pressure--An air mass associated with fair weather.
- Humidity--The amount of water vapor in the air.
- Hurricane--An intense storm that generally forms over tropical regions. It brings heavy rain, strong winds, and powerful storm surges that can cause severe flooding.
- Lightning--The visible discharge of electricity associated with a thunderstorm.
- Low pressure--An air mass associated with storms.
- Meteorology--The science that studies the weather.
- Mostly cloudy--Condition when 70-30% of the sky is covered with clouds.
- Mostly sunny--Condition when 10-30% of the sky is covered with clouds.
- Overcast--Condition when 90% or more of the sky is covered with clouds.
- Partly cloudy (or partly sunny) --Condition when 30-70% of the sky is covered with clouds.
- Precipitation--Any form of water, including rain, drizzle, sleet, hail, or snow, that falls to the ground.
- Rain--Precipitation consisting of droplets of water.
- Sleet--Precipitation consisting of ice particles.
- Smog--Fog mixed with particles of pollution.
- Snow--Precipitation consisting of small ice crystals.
- Sunny (or clear)--Condition when less than 10% of the sky is covered with clouds.
- Temperature--Degree of hotness or coldness of the air.
- Thunder--The sound caused by lightning heating air and causing it to rapidly expand.
- Tornado--A violent whirlwind often accompanied by heavy rain, hail, thunder, and lightning.
- Variably cloudy--Condition when cloudiness of the sky varies between 20-90%.
- Weather--The condition of the atmosphere at a given time.
- Wind--Moving air.