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What is Climate?
Climate is the average of all the different types of weather in any particular place over a long period of time. Climate is something that we often use to describe a place or area. The Sahara desert has a dry climate, the rain-forest has a humid climate, and the UK has a temperate climate.
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Sunshine gauge...cropped background out: by Witia, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
How do we check it?
By keeping daily records over long periods of time. Weather scientists called meteorologists, can work out the average rainfall, sunlight, and temperature etc. for different points in time, for example each day in May. Different measuring devices include sunshine recorders, rainfall gauges, wind socks, thermometers and barometers.
How long do they need to study the data?
The longer the better! Some records go back to the 1700's when many of the measuring equipment was invented and first used. At the very least, scientists need to look at the weather for years to get a good idea of the averages.
What do they do with all the information?
They plot this information on graphs or in data tables to show us a snapshot of what the weather is like in the particular place they are studying. Scientists now share all of this data with each other across the world so we have a better idea of the planet's widely varying climate conditions.
Quick Quiz
(Click to see answer)
(Click to see answer)
What instrument do scientists use to measure wind direction?
A wind vane, which is sometimes called a weather vane or a wind sock.
CAn you tell what the climate of a place is by studying it for one day?
No, climate is determined over long periods of time.
What do you call a weAther scientst?
A meteorologist
