Weather Is Not Climate

Article by Sean Fears (5,991 pts )
Edited & published by Niki Fears (6,635 pts ) on Jul 31, 2009

Many misconceptions exist around the subject of climate and the change thereof, and perhaps none is more persistent than the confusion between weather and climate. Read on to have these two concepts untangled.

Wind, rain, sleet , snow, drought, heat wave... many varieties of weather have affected humans for our entire existence, eliciting fervent prayers, more than the occasional curse, and puzzled contemplation. Though we now understand weather far better than we ever have (though that's questionable at times, based on weather forecasts), we still do not understand climate, nor appreciate the difference between the two.

Weather is a local environmental phenomenon centered on a specific point in time; we ask each other what the weather is doing, or sometimes, what it's going to do, and, while one weather event may, and oftentimes is, affected by previous weather events, it is assumed that, in most cases, there is no change in the underlying mechanisms of energy and mass transport that serve as the driver for the weather. Today may be much hotter (or colder) than yesterday, but that doesn't mean that the system itself has changed- individual variables have.

Contrast this with climate; unlike weather, the term "climate" has no meaning in the short-term. It specifically and only refers to a long-term pattern in the environmental factors connected with a particular place. A heat wave or cold snap no more signals a change in the system than flipping ten heads in a row inherently signals an unfair coin... only in the long run and through the use of statistical tools can we ascertain whether any actual changes in the system have occurred, and that tends to be a much chancier affair than any scientist would like.

Having said that, however, changing a variable in the system, especially one whose effect is at least somewhat well understood, like carbon dioxide, WILL have an effect on the system- that's a matter of science, not opinion. Ascertaining precisely what that effect happens to be is then the responsibility of scientists to determine.

So, the next time you get in a discussion about weather versus climate, don't fall into the trap of concluding that there is no adverse change in climate because a short-term weather trend happens to oppose it; do the math, or find someone who can, but don't assume based on a statistically insignificant sample of insufficient temporal length.

Comments

Aug 10, 2009 2:17 PM
weather man
RE: Weather Is Not Climate
While weather defines the conditions of the atmosphere over a short period of time for example, a day or week, it is climate that defines the conditions of the atmosphere over longer periods like an entire year or decade.


Source : Difference Between Weather and Climate
Aug 1, 2009 12:53 AM
conclusion
so global warming i can relate to climate
and

hurricanes and occasional raining are weather
is that correct?

Great article..!!
 
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