EDLYN power point

1. The History of Meteorology The word 'meteorology' was coined from a research book called 'Meteorologica' which was written by Aristotle, a Greek scientist and philosopher. This early work described the science of earth like its geology, elements, hydrology, seas, wind and weather. In the modern term, the term meteorology explains a complete science. It is for understanding the dynamics of atmosphere and forecasting weather phenomena like hurricanes and thunderstorms. Weather forecasting was practiced since the beginning of time with more or less accuracy. Historical records show several examples of weather predicting methods based on observing surrounding elements.

2. There are also other methods which have been evolved. Meteorology is a lot related with cycles and their analysis which was what Fernando II de Medici wanted to prove. He carried out a very determined program in 1654 for recording weather patterns in different European cities with a view to compile data and make their analysis. Other breakthroughs were followed in the 18th century and science was taken to a new level. A modern mercury based thermometer was invented by Gabriel Fahrenheit. Theories about hydrodynamics were devised by Daniel Bernoulli and those theories had helped greatly in understanding the atmospheric changes. When the theory of thermodynamics and atmospheric pressures were adapted, no real changes were important for understanding meteorology. In recent times, focus has been given on meteorological tools for its improvement and attaining better accuracy results. A tremendous boost was given to meteorology because of the technology in two ways. The first is the ability to communicate results and analysis with timing, it was made possible due to the invention of telegraph. The second is the ability of probing skies with using balloons, satellites and radars.

3. Meteorology is the scientific study of the atmosphere that focuses on weather processeinterdisciplinary s and short term forecasting (in contrast with climatology). Studies in the field stretch back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not occur until the eighteenth century. The nineteenth century saw breakthroughs occur after observing networks developed across several countries. Breakthroughs in weather forecasting were achieved in the latter half of the twentieth century, after the development of the computer. Meteorological phenomena are observable weather events which illuminate and are explained by the science of meteorology. Those events are bound by the variables that exist in Earth's atmosphere: They are temperature, air pressure, water vapor, and the gradients and interactions of each variable, and how they change in time. The majority of Earth's observed weather is located in the troposphere. Different spatial scales are studied to determine how systems on local, region, and global levels impact weather and climatology. Meteorology, climatology, atmospheric physics, and atmospheric chemistry are sub-disciplines of the atmospheric sciences. Meteorology and hydrology compose the interdisciplinary field of hydrometeorology. Interactions between Earth's atmosphere and the oceans are part of coupled ocean-atmosphere studies. Meteorology has application in many diverse fields such as the military, energy production, transport, agriculture and construction.

5. The History of Weather Instruments

6. Weather instruments, have a long, rich history that may be charted against the growth of science itself. The advent of weather instruments was a time when inventors could be experts in many scientific fields Galileo, for example, helped lay down the framework for modern astronomy but also found the time to experiment with thermometers. Starting with a mere idea, the design of these specialized instruments graduated to robust theory, experimental application and progressive refinement over time.

7. For most of human history, weather predictions had to be made using pure observation. Babylonians attempted to predict short-term weather changes based on the appearance of clouds and optical halos, and Aristotle wrote a philosophical treatise called "Meteorologica" that included detailed theories on the formation of rain, clouds, lightning and many other weather-related phenomena. It was not until the Renaissance that weather instruments were finally invented through the gains of technological advancements and the formulation of accurate theories about the weather. In the 20th century, more refined technology like weather balloons and Doppler instruments helped to make weather measurement quicker and more accurate.

8. Anemometers Anemometers, which measure wind speed, were first described by Leon Battista Alberti in 1450, but the most familiar kind, the cup anemometer, was invented in 1846 by Dr. John Thomas Romney Robinson. The design was refined up until the 20th century: In the 1960s and 1970s, anemometers that used lasers or sonar to measure wind speed were developed.

9. Measuring the Weather In the early days of the Weather Bureau numerous clever mechanical devices were invented to measure and record any and every meteorological (weather) parameter conceivable: ombroscope or rainfall recorder, mechanical anemometer or wind speed indicator, remote readout wind vane, pole star recorder. Anemometer Wind velocity or speed is measured by a cup anemometer, an instrument with three or four small hollow metal hemispheres set so that they catch the wind and revolve about a vertical rod. An electrical device records the revolutions of the cups and calculates the wind velocity. The word anemometer comes from the Greek word for wind, "anemos."

10. Hygrometers One of the first known designs of the hygrometer was written down in approximately 1450 AD by Nicholas of Cues, who desribed how to measure the humidity of air. An early hygrometer was built by Leonardo da Vinci and later in 1663 by Robert Hooke, using a piece of hair that contracted or expanded depending on the degree of humidity present. Inventions in 1783 by Horace-Bénédict de Saussure (who used human hair) and in 1820 (when J. F. Daniell used ether in glass tubes) refined the hygrometer.

11. Thermometers Thermometers were progressively developed over time by inventors such as Cornelius Drebbel, Robert Fludd, Santorio Santorio and, most notably, Galileo Galilei, who in 1592 invented a thermoscope that reacted to changes in temperatures. In 1612, Santorio put a scale on the thermometer so that it began to resemble its more modern permutations, but it wasn't until 1714 that Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit replaced the alcohol in thermometers with mercury and developed a more accurate measurement, later to be followed by Anders Celsius and Sir William Thomson (who invented the Kelvin scale) with their own measurements of temperature. Barometers Evangelista Torricelli is credited with inventing the barometer in 1643 to measure air pressure, but both Giovanni Battista Baliani in 1630 and René Descartes in 1631 had postulated a version of the barometer even earlier than that. GasperoBerti, who had heard from Galileo about the design written down by Baliani, attempted to experiment with water in a vacuum between 1639 and 1641 to explain why pumps would not draw water above a certain height. Torricelli, however, approached it from a different angle and recognized that air had weight; he also recognized that mercury in a barometer was a suitable replacement for water. Years later, Blaise Pascal and Florin Périer refined the design.

12. Barometer Barometer - Pronunciation: [b u rom´ u t u r] - a barometer is an instrument for measuring atmospheric pressure. The barometer was invented by Evangelista Torricelli in 1643. Hygrometer A hygrometer is an instrument used to measure the moisture content or the humidity of air or any gas. Rain Gauge A rain gauge measures how much rain has fallen. Thermometer Thermometers measure temperature by using materials that change in some way when they are heated or cooled. The first thermometers were called thermoscopes, and while several inventors invented a version of the thermoscope at the same time, Italian inventor Santorio Santorio was the first inventor to put a numerical scale on the instrument. In 1724, Gabriel Fahrenheit invented the first mercury thermometer.