Weather Forecasting

Meteorologists (scientists who study weather) at the National Weather Service use information from ground stations and weather satellites to make these maps. Words like “rain” and “snow” are pretty obvious, but what exactly do the symbols on a weather map tell you about the weather?

Earth’s atmosphere is a jacket of gases that surrounds the planet. Although it seems like these gases could easily float away into space, gravity is constantly pulling the atmosphere toward Earth’s surface. The force with which our atmosphere pushes down on a specific location on Earth is called atmospheric pressure. The closer you are to the center of the Earth the more Atmospheric pressure you feel

A high pressure system is a dense air mass that is usually cooler and drier than the surrounding air. A low pressure system is a less dense air mass that is usually wetter and warmer than the surrounding air.

In general, areas that experience high atmospheric pressure also experience fair weather. Low pressure systems can cause the formation of clouds and storms. Air usually flows from areas of high pressure to areas of low pressure.