Weather, Climate, Atmosphere

Weather consists of the day-by-day, and week-by-week changes in the atmosphere. We notice it as Sunshine, Cloud Cover, Temperature, Wind, Rain or lack of it, Frost, Snow and Ice. The weather is caused by Air, Sun and Water. Air is always on the move and makes the Wind. The Sun gives warmth, Water makes clouds, rain, snow and hail. In very cold regions ice and snow cover the land for most of the year. Fog and mist are clouds floating near the Earth's surface. It is very difficult to see things clearly, when it is foggy. Snowflakes are water drops that have frozen into ice crystals. This water cycle helps us to use the water on Earth over and over again. The Sun's heat turns the water in Sea and other water bodies into water vapors. As the air rises, it cools downs and turns the water vapors into tiny drops of water. Clouds are made from these drops of water. Water in the clouds falls as rain, hail, sleet or snow. Rivers carry the water back to the sea. Different instruments are used to measure the pressure and temperature of the air. If the pressure in the air changes, it usually means there will be a change in the weather too. A thermometre is used to measure temperatre of the air. Climate denotes the pattern of weather over a long time period of years, decades and centuries.
Climate determines the kind of plants and crops that can be grown in different regions. The Sun's heat warms up different parts of the land and sea in varying degrees. Warm air rises and cool air moves to take its place. This large-scale air movement in the atmosphere is called wind. Most regions are naturally adopted to the average rainfall they receive. When execssive rain occurs, the streams and rivers cannot cope and overflow their banks, causing floods. Some regions may also have extra rainfall because of GLOBAL WARMING. Life is less in the desert because of the scarcity of water in all its forms such as rain, mist, fog, hail, dew, snow and frost. A thin blanket of gases called the atmosphere is wrapped around our planet. Without the atmosphere our planet would be as lifeless as the Moon. It gives us air to breathe and water to drink.

Source : Pentagon Press - Earth