Have you ever heard someone refer to water as H2O? Why do you suppose someone might call water by this name? What is water? Water is a basic molecule made up of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. When these three atoms come together, they form a strong bond that is difficult to break. […]
What causes the air to blow from place to place? Is there a giant ogre hiding in a cave somewhere blowing out birthday candles, or is something else at work? As you probably guessed, it is the latter. Air movement is caused by differences in pressure from one location to another in the Earth’s […]
There is absolutely no difference between fog and clouds found high in the air. Fog is simply a cloud that has formed near the surface of the Earth. There are four main types of fog: Radiation fog, advection fog, upslope fog and evaporation fog. Radiation Fog As the ground becomes cooled by the night sky, […]
The process of water molecules escaping the surface of the Earth and entering the atmosphere is known as evaporation. Evaporation takes place as molecules of water escape from a collective body of water. This can be a puddle, a lake, a stream, or just a droplet of water. As water molecules evaporate, they take with […]
The amount of water gas or vapor in the air varies greatly from location to location. In some areas, such as deserts, the amount of water vapor in the air can be almost zero. In other locations, such as in rain forests and above the oceans, the amount of water vapor in the air can […]
Moisture in the air is something that almost all of us are familiar with. We see its effects practically on a daily basis. Moisture or water in the atmosphere causes clouds to form, fog to cover the landscape, and humidity to thicken the air. It also causes rain, snow, hail and sleet to form. Indeed, […]
During the day, land gets heated by the Sun much quicker than does water. As the land becomes warmer, it heats the air in the atmosphere above it. This causes the air to expand, becoming less dense, and thus creating a low pressure. Because water heats up much less quickly, air above the ocean also […]
While wind direction and speed change from one moment to the next, and from one location to the next, it is however possible to identify general patterns that affect the entire surface of the globe. This is especially true the higher one travels into the atmosphere. Subtropical Highs Each of the major oceans contains a […]
Like an unbalanced teeter-totter falling to one side or the other, the Earth is constantly trying to balance temperature differences. The cooler areas attract warm air, while the warmer areas push air outward in an attempt to cool itself down, until a perfect balance is reached everywhere. Due to the unequal heating of the Earth’s […]
The amount of energy absorbed by the Earth from the Sun, and the amount of energy radiated into space by the Earth is on average perfectly balanced on an annual or yearly basis. However, some locations are warmer or cooler than others. This is the principal cause of weather. As the gases in Earth’s atmosphere […]
