Weather Instruments

By Amanda, Virginia, and Caroline

Beep, Beep… I’m sensing Radar!

• Radar was originally designed for World War ll to detect Nazi airplanes.

• Radar works by sending out regular waves at high frequencies.

• The signal travels 350,000 kilometers a second.• Doppler Radar is an improvement from the old

radar machines.• Most radar machines send out 1,000 signals a

second.• Doppler radar can now detect weather such as

tornadoes, rain, wind, and sometimes even birds, bugs, and dust.

Windsocks, not for warming your feet

• A windsock tells the direction in which the wind is going.

• Windsocks are normally used at airports or places where planes or helicopters are landing, such as hospitals.

• Wind speed can be indicated by a windsock angle.

Mom explains to boy, weather balloons aren’t for parties.

• Weather balloons carry instrument packages into the atmosphere.

• Important data needed to forecast the weather is gathered by weather balloons.

• Weather balloons are launched twice a day at over 1000 sites around the world.

• They can measure temperature, humidity, and air pressure.

Breaking news! Wind Vanes don’t carry blood.

• Measuring wind has always been difficult to do.

• Buildings always get in the way of getting the correct wind speed.

• Wind directions are reported as the direction the wind is coming from.

• Wind vanes measure the direction that the wind is going.

Barometer won’t be found at the doctors.

• The barometer was invented in 1643.

• It was invented by the Italian scientist Evangelista Torricelli.

• He used a 34 foot tube that had a column of water inside it.

• The water was soon replaced by mercury.

• It measures the air pressure.

Weather maps don’t show how to get to Grandma’s

• Weather maps are national radar images.

• They have a surface map displaying the locations of high and low pressure.

• There are often legends or map keys on the map explaining the symbols.

Satellites, they don’t always provide Charter

• Satellites are more accurate now than they used to be.

• With them we can see the big picture all at once.

• Meteorologists can track weather systems with satellites.

• Not only can they tell us where clouds are, but they can measure the temperature of water, clouds, and the ground.

Thermometers good for weather and fevers.

• A thermometer measures the average kinetic energy of the air molecules around it.

• When the molecules hit the thermometer the kinetic energy is transferred from the molecules to the glass to the Mercury inside the thermometer.

• When the mercury molecules start to move faster, they push the mercury up in the thermometer.

A Rain Gauge won’t be found in a car.

• Rain gauges used today by officials were invented over 100 years ago.

• Special measuring sticks are often put in the measuring tube to account the vertical scale exaggeration.

• Standard rain gauges can measure up to 2 inches of rain.

Anemometers Can’t Take Your Temperature.

• An anemometer is a tool that tell how fast wind is blowing.

• It can’t give an exact wind speed.

• Professional ones can accurately measure how fast the wind is blowing.

Conclusion

• Weather instruments include windsocks, weather balloons, wind vanes, barometers, satellites, and anemometers. Meteorologists use these tools to gather data and predict the weather.

Bibliography

• http://www.wildwildweather.com/radar.htm

• http://www.wildwildweather.com/satellit.htm

• http://www.energyquest.ca.gov/projects/anemometer.html

• http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/sci/A0806263.html#axzz0zWOjVoxA

• http://www.usatoday.com/weather/wanemom.htm

• http://science.howstuffworks.com/physical-science-channel.htm

• http://web.up.ac.za/default.asp?ipkCategoryID=2049community/vane.htm

• http://www.usatoday.com/weather/wrngauge.htm