2. Meteorology Meteorology is the study of the atmosphere and it's interaction with earth's surface. Ever since there have been people on earth, it has been someone's job to figure out the weather. In 340 B.C., Aristotle began studying the phenomena of clouds, rain, snow, wind, thunder, hail, and hurricanes. Simple weather instruments began being used in the 1600's. Now, weather forecasting is very sophisticated. Nearly every TV station has weather stations that include traditional weather instruments, as well as computers and satellites.
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4. 1920's - Concept of air masses and fronts was formulated in by Norwegian meteorologists They developed a theory for the evolution of mid-latitude cyclones - still used today!! After WWII - meteorological radars were implemented 1950's - computers ran first models of the atmosphere 1960's - first meteorological satellites were launched (TriosI) 1990's - National Weather Service was modernized
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6. Meteorology is useful in a number of fields, like the military, transport, production of energy, construction and agriculture. The word 'meteorology' has been derived from two Greek words -- metéōros(which literally means high in the sky) and logia. Aristotle had penned the book Meteorology, and one of the finest achievements mentioned in his book is the hydrologic cycle.
11. This weather instrument is called a Minimum-Maximum thermometer.It is used to record the highest and lowest temperatures observed over a 24-hour period. There are many uses for a minimum-maximum thermometer; one example would be to measure how low the temperature dropped in a greenhouse overnight to figure out exactly when it gets too cold for the plants or flowers to survive. This particular thermometer was made by W.H. Kessler Co., Inc.
12. Aneroid Barometers are instruments used for measuring the pressure of the air in the atmosphere. They weren't invented until the 1840s—years after Franklin's time. High or rising pressure means that clear, sunny weather is expected, while falling or low pressure is a sign of rain or an approaching storm. As air pressure increases, it pushes down on a metal diaphragm, which in turn causes the indicating needle to move. This aneroid barometer was made in Germany and sits on an octagonal wooden base.
13. Dry and Wet Bulbs; Handle and thermometers; Psychrometer A Sling Psychrometer, the simplest type of hygrometer, measures the relative humidity of the surrounding air by comparing the temperatures of one dry and one wet bulb thermometer. A small chain on the end of the wooden handle attaches the thermometers to each other. The psychrometer is spun around rapidly for a few minutes and readings are taken from the dry and wet bulbs. After these readings are taken, there is a scale that is used to correlate the readings. The relative humidity is read at the intersection of the RH scale and the wet bulb temperature.
14. Anemometer The anemometer pictured above is a modern version of Robert Hooke's 1667 anemometer, a device Benjamin Franklin was probably familiar with. An anemometer is a device used for measuring wind speed. The pressure of the wind moves the aluminum ball pendulum and the velocity of the wind is read from the scale. This instrument is 14.5 inches tall and was a part of The Franklin Institute's weather center for many years.
15. National Weather Service field instruments at Columbia Airport include present weather sensors for temperature, dewpoint, rain, freezing rain, snow and fog, wind speed and direction, visibility and ceiling.
16. Radar Radar, used in aircraft positioning, was discovered just before the Second World War to additionally display weather phenomena. A network of radar sites was established throughout the United States in the 1950’s to provide timely observations and public weather warnings. The more complex Doppler weather radar in use today was developed in the1960’s before being perfected by electrical circuit advancements in the 1970’s. Probably the most significant achievement in monitoring weather by instrumentation is satellite imagery.
