The Delicate Balance, Part 1: The Human Imprint
The last half century or so has seen the impact of human enterprise on the environment escalate beyond the collective impact of humans over the previous four billion years. Human endeavors have changed the composition of the atmosphere, changed the...
Something in the Air: Atmospheric Circulation Patterns
While Hadley cells are generally considered to be the most basic of atmospheric cells, there are a number of other air circulation patterns, as well. These include the east-to-west moving Walker cells, and the circulation zone located near the equat...
The Water Planet: Early Earth
At one time, Earth was a very different planet than it is today. Its atmosphere, in particular, bore very little resemblance to the one that we depend on for the air we breathe. It probably consisted primarily of carbon dioxide and nitrogen gas.
Something in the Air: Climate System Power: Hurricane Mitch
Hurricane Mitch was the most lethal Atlantic hurricane of modern times. It left nine thousand dead, five hundred seventy thousand homeless, and is estimated to have set back the Honduran infrastructure fifty years. It is a prime example of the extra...
Something in the Air: Interplay Between Atmosphere and Ocean
The interplay between atmosphere and ocean plays a role in nearly all weather events. The two bodies are in continuous contact with one another, and each influences conditions in the other.
Something in the Air: Coriolis Force, The
The Coriolis Effect, named for 19th century French scientist Gaspard Gustave Coriolis, describes the apparent force that arises when an object that is moving is viewed in a reference frame that is rotating.
Something in the Air: Meteorological Research: Challenges for the Future
Although a great deal of progress has been made in the field of meteorological research, there is much that remains a mystery, at least in part because the climate system is so unpredictable.
Something in the Air: Heat, Pressure and Atmospheric Circulation Cells
The movement of heat around the globe is one of the most critical components of Earth's climate system. The circuits of air that move as part of the circulation process are known as cells.
Something in the Air: Storms
Often, a storm begins as the result of air masses that have collided. There remains a good deal of uncertainty as to why some storms are stronger than others.
Something in the Air: Meteorology and Hurricanes
Some of the most important research currently underway in the field of meteorology involves hurricanes.