Introduction: Introduction:

What is Weather?What is Weather?

What is Climate?What is Climate?

Ka Hana ‘Imi Na‘auao – A Science Careers Curriculum Resource Go to: www.cds.hawaii.edu/kahana

• What is climate?

• How is climate different from weather?

• Are they related?

• What controls the climate?

• Does climate change?

• Can climate be predicted?

• What is the climate in Hawai’i?

Questions to think aboutQuestions to think about

Climatology considers the past and can help predict future climate change.

Energy In = Energy Out

“Climate is what you expect … weather is what you get!”

Measuring Weather and ClimateMeasuring Weather and Climate

1. Temperature– Hi– Lo– Range

2. Wind– Direction– Speed

3. Rainfall– Daily– Cumulative

4. Air Pressure

5. Humidity

Thermometers measure temperature.

Types of thermometers:

- liquid-in glass

- bimetallic

- infrared

- thermoelectric

1.Temperature1.Temperature

Liquid in Glass ThermometerLiquid in Glass Thermometer

• Most common for everyday use (medicine, cooking, etc.)

• Liquid is either mercury or alcohol

• Difficult to automate

1.Temperature1.Temperature

Bimetallic ThermometerBimetallic Thermometer

• Uses a coil of two different metals attached to one another– Different metals expand at

different rates

• Used in:– round outdoor thermometers – thermostats

• Difficult to automate

1.Temperature1.Temperature

Infrared ThermometerInfrared Thermometer

• Measures the infrared radiation emitted by an object (like night-vision)

• Used to take an instant temp reading of the air.

• Easily automated – but other aspects such as

ground color can affect temp readings

1.Temperature1.Temperature

• Measures wind direction

• Points parallel with the wind

• Has a “fatter” tail than head so it won’t point 180º in the wrong direction.

Wind VaneWind Vane

2.Wind2.Wind

AnemometerAnemometer(say “an-uh-MOM-e-(say “an-uh-MOM-e-

ter”)ter”)

• Measures wind speed

• Common type = cup anemometer

• When the wind is gusty, it overestimates the avg. wind speed because of momentum

• Must be placed far away from obstacles to be accurate (Distance = 10x the height of tallest object)

2.Wind2.Wind

Rain GaugeRain Gauge

• Tipping bucket rain gauge

• How it works:

- Rain falls into one of two buckets

- When it’s fills up with .01” of rain,

gravity causes it to tip

- Other bucket fills and tips

- Number of tips counted electronically

3. Rainfall3. Rainfall

BarometerBarometer

• Measures atmospheric pressure• Works like a weight scale for

the air above it• Mercury barometer has a bowl

with liquid in it and a tube sealed at the top and open at the bottom immersed in the liquid. When pressure rises, the mercury in the tube rises.

4.Air Pressure4.Air Pressure

Mercury Barometer

BarometerBarometer

Aneroid Barometer

4.Air Pressure4.Air Pressure

• Measures atmospheric pressure• Aneroid barometer uses gears

attached to a sealed air container that expands or contracts with decreasing or increasing pressure

HygrometerHygrometer

• Measures humidity• Consists of two thermometers, one

of which includes a dry bulb and the other a wet bulb. Comparisons of the temperatures on a chart tell us the relative humidity

• Dewpoint- temperature at which water vapor condenses

5. Humidity5. Humidity

PredictabilityPredictability

“If they can’t predict the weather, how can they possibly hope to predict the climate?”

• Weather forecasts are only useful for a few days, maybe a week at best.

Boundary-layer eddy: 10 minutesCumulonimbus clouds: 1 hourMid-latitude cyclone: 3 daysBig standing waves: 10 daysEl Niño: 100 daysDeep ocean circulation: 50 years(?)

Sate

llite

s &

Radar

Activity: Fast Facts Memory Games

Memory Game rules are:a. Only 3 people to a team & everyone keeps

scoreb. Only 5 minutes to planc. Only 30 seconds to show your memory gamed. Only 3 tries for another team to successfully

imitate your game (and only 2 teams can try any one game)

e. Points awarded to each team for: 1 point – trying out another team’s game

2 points – getting another team’s game correct in 3 tries

3 points – getting another team’s game correct in 2 tries

4 points – getting another team’s game correct in 1 try

Activity: Fast Facts Memory Games

Memory Game options are:1. Lots of instrument names rhyme … create a song, poem

or chant using rhyming words to memorize the new vocabulary

2. Each instrument measures something different … create a clap & match game to memorize instrument names & what they measure (e.g. thermometer – temperature)

3. Each kind of thermometer looks different … draw thermometer pictures on flashcards or the chalkboard & match their names & uses to them

4. Predictions can be made for short term (weather) or long term (climate) … create a mini-play, with or without words, to memorize which different meteorological signs predict weather or climate & how far into the future they do so (e.g. cumulonimbus clouds predict 1 hour of cloud activity)

Sources Cited