Belfort Instrument Weather Devices

Author: John Pawlak

Sometimes I feel sorry for the local weatherman. He or she has to get in front of the television camera every day and give forecasts up to a week in advance knowing full well that those forecasts are apt to be wrong. Here’s why.

Weather forecasting is based on computer modeling and these computer models are based on two things; the physics and the data. Each model that the forecaster can choose from is based on different physics assumptions, sometimes very different.

For example, will a storm just entering the west coast of the United States travel across the continent without any intensification and exit the east coast three days later? Or, will it slowly intensify as the days go on and exit the east coast as a major noreaster? Each computer model handles the situation differently and the forecaster must choose which one to use.

Quite often the atmosphere is in a state which is a combination of several different physical models, not just one. In this case, it is not at all unusual for the computer models to predict wildly differing forecasts for three to seven days into the future. When this happens, the best the forecaster can do is to put all the options out on the table. Of course, this is not what the public wants to hear and a single forecast must be made. When the inevitable happens and the forecast is wrong the weatherman must indeed have a thick skin if he is to withstand the barrage of jokes and insults which will surely come his way.

As if that is not enough, here is the real problem. These forecasting models are based, of course, on the data that is input into the computer program. This data is a compilation of current weather observations and this data is VERY incomplete. As an example, suppose two observations are fifty miles apart. The observers diligently compile the relevant weather statistics and send them off to the national weather service where the data is then input into each computer model.

Here is the problem. In the fifty miles seperating the observers, there might be some weather phenomena that is going, through no fault of anyone, unreported. This may be something very small but as the program extrapolates out days and weeks ahead, that little something may, and usually does, have a huge effect on the weather that will be seen in the forecast area.

It is known as the “butterfly effect”( a butterfly flapping his wings halfway aroung the world will eventually have an effect on the weather seen locally), and it is the dirty little secret of weather forecasting. Until we are able to collect data in a close to continuous fashion between observation points there is very little chance that our weather forecast a week ahead will be correct and nobody sees this possibility occuring in the near future.

So the next time you see or hear your local weather forecaster speaking confidently about next week’s forecast, know that deep inside he or she is grimacing and taking that forecast with a whole bushel full of salt. And please, hold all those weather jokes!

Author: Julien Raynal

Wind gadgets can be used in your garden décor to bring the dimension of motion. Some like weather vanes serve a practical purpose of predicting the wind direction. Others like the whirligigs add fun and festivity to your garden space. Whirligigs can be used in a child’s garden.

Weather vanes

A weather vane also known as wind vane has been used to check wind direction. It is one of the oldest weather predicting tools. Many different types of weather vanes exist but most are made up of basically the same parts. There is the wide and flat part which catches the breeze. This type is normally shaped as a rooster. Then, the arrow weather vane, which is connected to the wide catcher and always point into the direction the wind is blowing. The arrow is what tells you the direction the wind is blowing from. Some weather vanes are equipped with a compass that allows you to tell the precise direction of the wind.

Weather vanes are usually found on top of buildings like barns, weather stations, stores, schools, churches, and anywhere they may serve a purpose as a weather predictor or just for simple décor. The animal that usually perches on top as the wind catcher is a rooster or any other farm animal. Weather vanes are usually made of metal. The part that catches the wind (wind catcher) is wide and flat and usually has an arrow on the other side.

How does a weather vane predict the weather? If the wind is blowing from the south, it is normally warm. A wind from the north is probably cooler. If a breeze comes through, it catches both side of the weather vane causing it to spin until the wind is equal on both side This happens when the vane is pointing in the direction the wind comes from. A weather vane is usually mounted high to catch the breeze unobstructed and also for easier viewing.

Whirligigs

Whirligigs have been around since the colonial times. They are considered on of the oldest garden ornaments. They were crafted from wood and attached to a metal or wooden stake placed into the ground. They could be mounted to a deck or porch. They are painted in fun colors that add to their visibility and bring fun to your back yard.

Whirligigs can be used in your garden to give the dimension of motion. The name whirligig is derived from the words whirl which mean to spin and the word gig or a top. Whirligigs were probably invented to help people judge wind speed for possible weather prediction. These days however they are used as garden décor items. Whirligigs were sometimes attached to weather vanes to make them more aesthetic or to aid in judging the wind speed. Whirligigs which are wind powered could also have developed by using the mechanism of a wind mills. Whirligigs are available in many styles; different birds, bugs, or people shapes.

Author: Reed Langdon
Environment is a very broad subject, and something during my life, I have always been at least aware of what is going on around me . Just over the past year though, one topic really got my attention in todays environment, things are in fact physically changing on a global basis, that will affect everyone in some way.

I know you have heard this, and it is standard stuff, but on the contrary, it is happening right now, and this my friends is Global Warming. You may hear it in the daily news, but I have never been more sensitive to this before, since I have personally encountered some events that got my attention.

Global Warming : Another broad topic one might say, just listen to the environmentalists talk about all the theory, etc. Well I have news for you, I live in a foreign country, worked all around many countries world wide, including most of Asia, and all areas of Japan.

Todays Environment: Sometime within the last year, the automakers in Japan announced facts about global warming by an increase of 1 degree. Now, at that point I listened, but later just kind off pass it off as standard news. Well, traveling through Japan, I have many professional friends, who I have a lot of respect for, running major factories, and they are very sensitive to environmental conditions.

I know the culture and basic way of living probably better than the average person just from travel experience, friends, working with many factories.
So, when this announcement was made, it triggered a prior agreement , basically requiring reducing emission control in automobiles.

Now, you have to understand, its like turning yourself into the local police station, a confession. I was very impressed with the automakers, and Japan, actually taking initiative, which will probably be very costly. Lets call this a mild wake up call, which got my attention.

More Global Warming: I was watching discovery channel, and noticed a brief segment I recall on the cook islands, and how tidal flooding had occurred across the entire island. Villagers had never experienced this every before. I thought this was very unusual circumstance.

I live in the tropics, and have been in a drought over the past 4 years, until this year, and now, way to much water, tropical down pours, and here in Thailand, they call it the 60 year storm, mudslides, the works. Well, coming from California, this is quiet common, along the ocean, and we call it the 100 year storm.

Changing Environment: Well, living in Thailand I was here during the Tsunami. Just over a year or so ago. Now this was very unfortunate act of nature, but from California, I am use to earthquakes, and went through some big ones. Time has passed, people move on in life, but last month, I came across a situation that I will call my real wakeup call, and I wanted to share with readers everywhere.

I was traveling south to a large industrial area called Rayong. Many factories, ocean on one side, Cambodia on the other. This was just a get away weekend. I was driving along the Oceanside by a city near Rayong I have passed many times over the years, but this was a very unique situation, which I have seen on Thai news reports many times .

Some of the area is very low to sea level. Miles out,
I could see telephone poles in the ocean, following the streets, all under water now, six feet deep and more in some areas, and this wasnt just a rare high tide.

The locals I spoke with were just bewildered as best described, dont know why, and a bit scared . It had been this way for quiet some time, approximately 1 year or so, and many homes were either under water, dismantled and moved miles inland on higher ground. Just to understand the magnitude of the situation, and area, the Thais say over 11,000 Rai, which is about 5,000 thousand acres, now underwater, did that get your attention ? It certainly got mine.

Side note, telephone poles are made from cement/steel rebar, so they stand like statues in the ocean. This was quiet a wake up call. Now, this probably didnt show on BBC, or CNN, but when you phsically experience something like this, it leaves you with a very empty feeling, and the reality hits hard.

Changing Environment/ Global Warming: I dont have all the answers, but in general wanted to share some of my experiences, as the indicators noted. I am very proud of the Thais for making major changes from oil, to NGV on all taxis, city buses.

You could say this is cost driven, but Bangkok is the most crowded traffic in the world, with many improvements in the works, you can probably imagine the emissions as a result, and now cleaner air is in fact happening rapidly. A very strong effort by all to improve these conditions. Now my concern is Bangkok, and how close to sea level the entire city of 12 million is. How many years until all is under water?

Last, I believe the environment is a responsibility for all to some level. These are changing times, and I think we should all take a second look, and see if there might be something we can all contribute. I decided to reduce using my vehicle by 50%, and to my surprise, using public transit, I am probably at 70% plus have added time to read the paper, since not driving. More amazing is the cost savings as a result.

What can you do to help, and take just a bit of this responsibility to help others, its not that difficult to pitch in, dont foget the future, and what the next generation will be faced with. Possibly there is something each can do to help towards a solution.

Author: Peter I. Wilson

Weather is the result of reaction between the Earth’s atmosphere to the Sun coupled with encounters with other random and limiting factors like the friction with land and the earth’s gravitational force.

The average of the variable weather conditions for over a long period of time is referred to as the Climate. How can the possible weather conditions of a geographical area be predicted? Average conditions of a place considered for a period of more than 30 years along with the prevalent extremities describe the climate of that area.

The description of climate of a particular place should consist of the information related to the rainfall, cloud cover, moisture, direction and speed of wind, prevalent temperatures, time of sunshine and several other factors.

Our desire is to learn the ways of predicting the possible climatic variations in the similar fashion like we wish to predict about the oncoming weather conditions. However, the time periods for climatic changes are much more compared to the time of weather changes.

Climate Zones

It has been a constant endeavor of the mankind to explore and know the world. This is no exception for climate and weather as well. With the increase in our understanding about the different patterns of weather and climate for longer time periods, we have created our unique ways of classifying and summarizing the different zones of global climate.

These climate zones are differentiated based on the Antarctic and Arctic circles, whose latitudes are 66.5 degrees south and north respectively and the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn at 23.5 degrees north and south respectively.

This area in between the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn is known as low latitudes. The climate along this area is characterized by high humidity, heavy rains and minimal temperature variation and is known as tropical climate.

The areas within the tropics and Antarctic and Arctic circles are referred to as the middle latitudes. These areas usually experience moderate climates with four distinct seasons. This type of climate is referred to as the temperate climates that have cold winters and warm summers with a uniform rainfall.

The region between the Antarctic and Arctic circles and the poles is called the high latitudes that experience polar climates. The winters are very long and cold while the summers are a little warmer here. Snowfall is very common in the Polar climate zones.

Though the climate zones provide with a broad overview of the global weather, each zone experience some variations in the local weathers. These climate zones are further sub-classified based on maritime and continental places. The maritime places are the areas along the coasts that have a very different climate from the continental or inland places. However the sub-classifications cannot justify the variations due to the ocean currents and mountain ranges.

It is obvious that the global zones of climate vary locally to some extent. In some cases, these variations may persist for a long time and result in anomalies in the climatic conditions. Still the classifications of global zones of climate are useful in providing with an idea of the weather patterns across the globe and the expected weather for an area. So next time you are taking a flight from Benidorm you will know what type of weather to expect at your destination.

Author: Clinton N. Maxwell

Over the centuries, as man has observed and studied climate conditions so critical to life, a number of weather effects have been observed, isolated and classified. All of these effects have their foundation on such basics as the sun’s heat, moving air masses in the atmosphere and the level of water vapor in certain areas at a particular time. In most cases, the uneven or inconsistent heating of air creates a very complex series of wind strengths and direction.

Meteorologists and observers have established some classifications for certain aspects of the changing weather we experience. At present the list includes three significant types of air circulation that are based on the heat of the sun. One of these categories is the Hadley cell, so named because scientist George Hadley was instrumental in isolating and classifying them. This term is applied to air circulation in or very near the tropical regions of the Earth.

Simply stated, a Hadley cell occurs when tropical air (23.5 degrees north and south of the equator) is heated by the sun and begins to rise. This warm air mass spreads, encounters a barrier often called the tropopause, and sinks back to the ground. Generally, the falling air mass touches the Earth at about 30 degrees of latitude, north and south of the equator. As it sinks to the ground, the moving air mass displaces air at the surface. The air mass that moves out flows toward the equator, completing a cycle that can cause weather changes over a large region of the globe. When the same type of circulation occurs at latitudes farther north (30 to 60 degrees) they are known as Ferrel cells. Similar movement of air masses at the poles are called polar Hadley cells.

One of the interesting features of cells such as these is that they do not move in straight lines, north and south. Because the Earth is a planet rotating around the sun and rotating on its axis at the same time, moving air masses experience the Coriolis effect. This is not limited to air movement, however. All free-moving objects and fluids have a “right turn” motion north of the equator and a “left turn” motion south of the equator. Gustave-Gaspard de Coriolis is credited with first identifying this trait nearly 200 years ago.

What does this mean for air movement? The Coriolis effect deflects an air mass, creating what some have called a cyclonic flow. This circular movement applies to air around areas of low pressure, causing large air masses to turn clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere and counter-clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere. But that’s not all. When the air is flowing around a high pressure system, the circular movement is just the opposite! Without the rotation of the earth, air masses would move quickly in a straight line, rapidly equalizing pressure.

There is one place on Earth where the Coriolis effect does not impact air movement - the equator. Because of this cyclones are not part of the regular experience in life at the equator. Conversely, the Coriolis effect is strongest at the Earth’s poles.

Author: Peter S. Mason

When two people meet on the street, or in a shop, weather is usually the first topic of conversation. Sometimes, weather is the only thing spoken about! Why is it such a widespread topic, discussed and dissected in every language around the globe from Alaska to Murcia, Spain?

The bottom line is that weather affects every living thing, plant and animal, every day and every night. The effects vary, from determining what clothes to wear to the construction of the homes we live in. Consider as well that most of our work and leisure activity is altered, suspended or at least influenced by weather.

At a more basic level, weather has shaped the soil of the Earth, significantly affecting the growth of all plant life and animal life. The components of “weather” such as the sun, rain and wind, cause living things to adapt in order to survive the everyday conditions and the extremes of weather in whatever habitat they occupy. Human beings have food to sustain them because of and sometimes in spite of weather conditions. In fact, a great deal of time and money is used to construct an adequate weather forecast, so that that humans can prepare for conditions that will affect agricultural crops.

While men and women may not be able to actually “do” something about the weather (at least on a large scale) the study of weather and global climate conditions has allowed scientists and other weather observers to more accurately predict conditions for the near future. This small step can help farmers and other food producers adjust their work to take advantage of “good” weather conditions and avoid damages during “bad” weather conditions.

For centuries, only priests, shamans and other spiritually guided individuals engaged in predicting and forecasting weather and human events. Many of the religious practices and rites of today have some base in the efforts at influencing or changing weather. While most of these efforts were unsuccessful, the practices continue to the present.

Why are humans so consistently unable to influence the Earth’s climate and its regular weather patterns? Why do struggles continue, as men and women try to “do” something about temperature, precipitation and wind? The simplest answer would be that the atmosphere surrounding our planet is massive and complex. But there is more. The natural tendency of any such large system is to maintain equilibrium on its own. Air masses of one temperature move, naturally, toward an area where the temperature is different (warm to cold, cold to warm). These movements are influenced by the larger features of the planet, such as mountains and oceans. The entire atmospheric system operates within the confines of gravity, another force that is difficult for humans to overcome.

When considered together, the variations in heating by the sun, the natural movement of large air masses, the effects of natural structures such as mountains, and the forces of gravity make up a system too complex for any one species to influence in a significant way. For the most part, human beings are still observers when it comes to the changing and unpredictable weather.