Weather Projects for Young Scientists: Experiments and Science Fair Ideas
Acknowledgments his book would not exist without the encourage ment of editor Jerome Pohlen Thanks also to Lisa Reardon for her work polishing the manuscript Photographer Tom Uhlman deserves special thanks for contributing his always amazing photographs And much appreciation goes to the photo libraries of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra tion NOAA and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Introduction hat is weather Weather is the condition of the air in a particular place at a specific time The heat pressure and moisture in the air mix and churn to make the weather sunny cloudy windy stormy or clear Weather is often confused with climate But they’re not the same thing Climate is a region's reg ular pattern of weather over a long period of time The climate in Hawaii may be tropical but today’s weather in Honolulu might be cool and dry While weather often changes from day to day a region's cli mate changes little over the centuries The weather activities this information and in book will help you discover all about wind and sea sons clouds and snow storms of all sorts and even weather related careers You'll learn about weather measuring instruments and how to make your own in activities labeled Build a Weather Station Look for the special activities and information sections marked Storm Science to find out more about hurri canes tornadoes lightning snowstorms and mon soons There are also activities and information related to current environmental problems connected to weather Just look for the Weather and the Envi ronment label Find out about Cool Weather Careers by reading these profiles of people working in weath er related jobs You can take the activities in this
book further designing and doing your own experi ments for fun or as school projects Look for the Science Fair Spin label for ideas to get you started Key terms are in bold upon their first appearance and are defined in the glossary at the end of the book Lastly make sure to check out the weather Web sites on page
The Air Around Us he earth is surrounded by a blanket of air called the atmosphere Earth's air is mostly nitrogen and oxygen gas with small amounts of water vapor carbon dioxide and a few other trace gases See the pie chart at right The earth's gravitational pull anchors the atmosphere to the planet Gravity keeps air from drifting off into outer space What s in Air nitrogen 76 4 Oxygen 20 6 water vapor 2 carbon dioxide argon and other gases less than
