Table of Contents
Introduction 6
Chapter 1 Weather, Weather Everywhere? 7
What Is Weather? 8
How Earth Got Its Air 9
What Is Air? 12
A Meteorologist's Playground 13
Weather on Other Planets 16
Earth's Changing Weather and Global Warming 17
Chapter 2 Under Pressure 21
Air Has Weight 22
Air: Heavier Than an Elephant, Lighter Than a Feather 22
Air Moves, Just Watch the Wind 25
Measuring the Weight of the Air 26
The Highs and Lows of Weather Maps 29
Chapter 3 Water in the Air and Clouds in the Sky 35
How Water Changes Form 36
Dew, Frost, and Fog 38
The Making of Clouds 40
Clouds and More Clouds 42
Chapter 4 Earth's Weather, from the Equator to the Poles 47
What Goes Up Must Come Down 48
Rainforests, Deserts, and Earth's Weather Zones 50
Winds Across the Earth 52
Battle Zones over the United States 55
Jet Stream Dips and Dives 57
Chapter 5 You Can't Get Away from Them: Fronts 59
Why Fronts Are Important 60
The Cold Front 61
The Warm Front 62
Occluded and Stationary Fronts 64
The Perfect Storm 66
You Tilted What? 67
Chapter 6 Weather Maps and Forecasting: Do It Yourself 73
How a Meteorologist Predicts the Weather 74
Weather Stations and Observations 75
Weather Maps: What You See Is What You Get 78
Jet Stream Maps: What You Don't See Is What You Get 80
The Magic of the Green Screen 84
Chapter 7 Severe Weather 87
The Ingredients of Severe Weather 88
Hurricanes: Large and in Charge 90
Tornadoes: Small and Out of Control 92
Thunderstorms: The Electricity Is Out! 95
Snowstorms: School Is Out! 98
Chapter 8 Light Shows in the Sky 101
Why Is the Sky Blue and Red? 102
Rainbows and Snowbows? 105
There's a Ring Around the Sun! 108
What's a Puddle Doing on the Highway? Mirages 110
Northern Lights and Meteor Showers 113
Chapter 9 What Does a Meteorologist Do? 117
Weather Stations 118
Computers, Satellites, and Forecasting Tools 121
Careers in Meteorology 123
Behind the Scenes of a TV Meteorologist 127
From a Weather Hobby to a Meteorologist 131
Appendix A Resources 134
Appendix B Puzzle Answers 135
Index 141
