Meanings of the most important weather news terms

Arab Weather - In 350 BC, the Greek philosopher Aristotle described weather patterns in his text known as "Meteorology", which is considered the foundation of what is known today as "meteorology." This was one of the first human attempts to monitor and document natural phenomena such as water evaporation and earthquakes, which marked the beginning of a long journey to understand and predict the weather.

In a report published by the American magazine "Newsweek", the writer Andrew Lisa stated that weather forecasting in the modern era has become a huge industry estimated at about 7 billion dollars annually. The writer added that the year 2019 witnessed more than 67 thousand weather cases in the United States, resulting in the death of 570 people and the injury of more than 1700 as a result of floods, tropical storms, extreme heat, hurricanes and ice storms.

When talking about weather forecasts, the author pointed out that 7-day forecasts are 80% accurate, while 5-day forecasts are 90% accurate.

The author explained that the terms "climate" and "weather" express different concepts; weather refers to the short-term state of the atmosphere such as temperature, rainfall and wind, while "climate" means measuring average weather patterns over several decades.

Stacker has drawn on a variety of scholarly sources to compile a list of the most important phrases and terms used in weather news broadcasts. Here are the most important terms and their definitions:

Meanings of the most important weather news terms

1. Polar Vortex: A term used to predict winter weather, occurring when cold air from the Northern Hemisphere rushes down the North American continent, reaching the Midwest and Northeastern United States.
2. Atmospheric pressure (barometer): High pressure is formed when descending pressure causes air to rotate clockwise, while low pressure causes air to rotate counterclockwise. Pressure is measured using an instrument called a barometer.
3. Inch of mercury: A unit of air pressure, representing the amount of pressure exerted by the atmosphere on a column of mercury one inch (2.54 cm) tall under standard gravity at 0 degrees Celsius.
4. Ball lightning: A natural phenomenon that forms as a colored ball of energy during thunderstorms, and can sometimes strike windows, causing damage.
5. Ridges and peaks: Ridges and peaks are represented in weather forecasts as a "U" shape, with troughs representing areas of precipitation, while peaks indicate dry weather conditions.
6. Tropical Storm: Occurs in the same places where hurricanes form, and is characterized by sustained winds ranging in speed from 39-73 miles per hour. When the winds exceed this speed, it becomes a hurricane.
7. Tropical Depression: Occurs before a tropical storm, with sustained winds less than 39 mph.
8. Dew Point - Dew Point: The temperature that air must reach to form moisture. When this temperature is reached, water droplets begin to form on solid objects such as grass and cars.
9. Humidity: Refers to the amount of water vapor in the air compared to the amount the air could hold if it were saturated.
10. Wind chill: Known as the effect of wind on the feeling of cold, it refers to the degree of coldness that a person feels when calculating the wind speed.
11. Heat Index: Similar to wind chill, but reflects how hot the temperature is when humidity is factored in. The higher the humidity, the less sweat evaporates, making us feel hotter.
12. Blizzard: Heavy snowfall accompanied by strong winds, which greatly reduces visibility.
13. Smog: A type of pollution resulting from the accumulation of smoke, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and carbon monoxide in the air, which poses a threat to human health.
14. Sleet: A type of winter precipitation that turns to ice when it comes into contact with cold surfaces, making roads and sidewalks slippery.
15. Freezing rain: Forms like sleet, but remains liquid until it hits cold surfaces and then freezes immediately.
16. Rain-snow mixture: Occurs when precipitation falls through a warm layer of air and then passes through a cold layer, causing snow, sleet, and freezing rain to fall together.
17. Doppler radar: Used to measure atmospheric data by emitting radio waves and analyzing the returned data. It is named after its discoverer, Christian Doppler.
18. Doldrums: An area in the convergence zone between the tropics where the waters are free of wind, causing ships to get stuck in them.
19. Dangerous Thunderstorm: Thunderstorms are classified as dangerous when they reach wind speeds of 58 mph or greater, with hailstones at least one inch in diameter.
20. Cloudy/Partly sunny: Indicates that there is opaque cloud cover covering 3-5 eighths of the sky.
21. La Niña: Part of the El Niño-Southern Oscillation phenomenon, it causes ocean temperatures in the Western Hemisphere to cool, resulting in heavy rainfall and increased low pressure.
22. El Niño: The "warm" half of the El Niño-Southern Oscillation phenomenon, which heats the oceans and causes adverse changes in atmospheric pressure.
23. Jet stream: A strong but thin wind that blows from west to east in the upper atmosphere, affecting aviation and fuel consumption.
24. Ice Fog: Very cold fog that freezes on contact, causing thick layers of ice to build up on surfaces.
25. Heat wave: prolonged periods of unusually hot weather, lasting at least two days and with temperatures above normal.
26. Storm surge: A phenomenon that occurs when large storms cause water levels to rise abnormally above astronomical limits, causing coastal flooding.
27. Fog: Occurs when fine particles are suspended in the air, scattering light and causing a cloudy appearance in the lower atmosphere.
28. Flood: is the flow of large amounts of water due to heavy rainfall or the collapse of dams, which leads to the submergence of low-lying areas.
29. Drought: A lack of rainfall and abnormally high temperatures, combined with population growth and overuse of land.
30. Breezy and Gusty: A breeze is a wind that blows at speeds between 12 and 22 miles per hour, while a gusty wind can reach speeds of 50 miles per hour.
31. Black ice: Very thin, hard-to-see ice that forms when a sudden increase in temperature causes snow to melt and then freeze on contact with cold roads.
32. Microburst: Dangerous, dense updrafts of air that carry large amounts of rain and snow. When the updraft weakens, these amounts fall.
33. Waterspout: A phenomenon that appears in the form of a water vortex, forming over bodies of water, but is less dense than hurricanes.
34. Hail: Formed when water inside thunderstorms is forced above freezing, where it freezes and turns into large hailstones.
35. Flood crest: The highest level reached by the water during a flood, and is an indicator that the flood is about to recede.
36. Cold front: The boundary between two air masses of different densities. Cold fronts form when cold air replaces warm air.
37. Westerlies - Westerly winds: These are winds that blow from the west, and are especially strong in winter due to low pressure at the poles.
38. East winds: They blow from the east, are relatively cold, and are caused by depressions or high temperatures in areas near the seas.
39. Polar vortex: A very cold storm with icy winds that add to the cold.

See also:

Al-Zaqaq: Rain is the source of water in the Arabian Peninsula, directly in the valleys and indirectly through wells.

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