Download Unit B: Chapter 2 Vocabulary

Vocabulary
Observing Weather
Mrs. Tweedie
April 2006
The atmosphere
is the air that
surrounds Earth.
The atmosphere
contains water
vapor as well as
small pieces of
dust and
pollution.
Temperatures in the thermosphere can be
higher than 2,000° C. Air particles can be
miles apart in this part of the atmosphere.
Temperatures are lower in the
mesosphere and can go below -120° C.
The stratosphere contains the atmosphere’s
ozone. Temperatures here are usually below
freezing. Long distance jets sometimes fly low
in the stratosphere.
Ozone is a type
of oxygen. It
absorbs
harmful rays
from the sun.
The troposphere is the layer of the atmosphere
where you live. Air particles in this layer are
close enough for you to breathe easily. All our
weather takes place in the troposphere.
Weather is what is happening in the
atmosphere at a certain place. Temperature,
wind, and precipitation are all parts of weather.
Meteorologists are scientists who
study weather and the atmosphere.
Blizzards are
large
snowstorms.
Hurricanes are strong, dangerous storms
that form over warm ocean waters.
Hurricanes have winds of 75 miles per
hour or more.
Tornadoes are
violent
windstorms. The
winds are so
strong that they
can destroy homes
and lift trains from
their tracks.
Temperature is a measure of how hot
or cold something is.
An air mass is a large body of air with
the same temperature and moisture.
A front is a place where two air masses
of different temperatures meet. Most
weather changes happen at fronts.
Precipitation is measured by using a rain
gauge or a snowboard.
Thunderheads
are giant clouds
that form along
cold fronts.
Wind is the movement of air. Wind
happens because air pressure is different
in different places.
An anemometer (an/uh/mahm/ut/er)
measures wind speed.
A weather map is a map that shows weather
data for a large area. The maps show
temperatures, precipitation, warm and cold
fronts, and areas of high and low air pressure.