Weather

Basics

And now ...

The Weather

The weather forecast is one of the most popular programmes in radio and television. Sometimes we are not really happy about the information it gives, but we will always watch it again. We would at least like to know if whether we need to use sun cream or take an umbrella and in winter know whether the streets are likely to be slippery. In the 'Basics' section of this topic we explain how weather forms, what high and low pressure zones are, what weather fronts are, and what the difference between weather and climate is.

Outside of Europe, other phenomena play a more important role in determining the weather than highs, lows and fronts. We will have a look at the global drivers for local weather and explain why it is so different around the world. Before there were climate predictions and forecasters on TV, the topic of weather was no less popular than today. Weather rules have been passed down from one generation to the next. But is there any truth in it?

1. The basics about the weather, climate, pressure systems and fronts

 - Weather and climate
 - High pressure systems, low pressure systems
 - Cold fronts, warm fronts and occluded fronts
 * Worksheet 1: Cold fronts
 * Worksheet 2: Satellite view of a cold front
 * Worksheet 3: Warm fronts
 * Worksheet 4: Wind in art education
 * Worksheet 5: Wind in music lessons

2. The basics about the main circulation systems and El Niño

 - Local circulation
 - Global circulation
 - El Niño
 * Worksheet 1: Circulation systems / Hadley Cells
 * Worksheet 2: El Niño (1)
 * Worksheet 3: El Niño (2)
 * Worksheet 4: El Niño (3)

3. Folklore weather forecasting

 - Sun, moon and rainbows
 - Plants and animals
 - Long range forecasting
 * Worksheet 1: Sunny tomorrow?
 * Worksheet 2: History of farmers rules

About this page:

Author: Elmar Uherek
English language review: Sally Taylor, University of Leeds
last update: 2005-07-07