The answer to the question posed in the title of this blog posting might seem obvious, but grasping the scientific principles that govern the atmosphere are more than most people might think. Meteorologists take many classes in math, chemistry, and physics during college.
Once I became a TV meteorologist, it really dawned on me how many subject areas we cover in our area of science. It’s one of the reasons TV meteorologists often get to wear the hat of “station scientist”. I answer questions about space weather, volcanoes, pollen counts, corn yields, monarch butterfly migrations, and headaches causes by changes in barometric pressure! If I actually sat down and thought more about it, I could give you a long list of ways meteorology plays a hand in so many wonderful fields of science.
Here are just SOME of the subject areas covered in Weather 101.
- Kinetic Energy
- Conduction
- Convection
- Evaporation
- Latent Heat
- Phase Change of Water
- Features on a Weather Map
- Solar Radiation
- Gravity
- Density
- Albedo
- Friction
- Forces
- Velocity
- Coriolis Effect
- Ideal Gas Law
- Properties of Molecules
Whoa….I know that’s a big list, but you can tie all of it into a daily weather forecast. You just have to unpack it and look a little closer! Science can be and should be fun. Weather is something we can all relate to, but much of it passes us by without looking at details. I loved weather as a child and I’ve never stopped wondering how the weather works. In fact, getting these workshops together has sharpened my thinking about how my forecasts work in the real world.
If you want to take your knowledge of science a new direction, these workshops can offer a unique way to learn about physics, chemistry, and whole lot more! My goal is to find fun and new ways to explain these subject. Our new email address is weatherworkshops@gmail.com and I’d be happy to answer any questions you may have!
Weather Workshops and More! 
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