Meteorology (source code)

= Meteorology

<Meteorology> studies atmospheric structure, motion and the processes producing weather. Uneven heating generates <pressure gradients>, air motion transports heat and <water vapor>, and condensation or freezing releases <latent heat>. Rotation and surface <friction> help determine how that motion develops.

A <weather station> measures local conditions, while comparing observations over space reveals evolving atmospheric systems. <Wind>, <temperature>, <relative humidity> and <pressure> constrain different parts of the physical state; no one sensor completely describes it. Forecasts combine these observations with equations for fluid motion, energy and moisture. <Climatology> instead emphasizes statistics over longer periods, using many of the same physical mechanisms and observing systems.