Weather 101
Nearly all of Earth’s weather (clouds, storms, and precipitation) takes place within this lowest atmospheric layer.
What is the troposphere?
Strong eastward blasts through terrain gaps—such as the Cascades—are known by this term in PNW meteorology.
What is gap wind or Cascadia Wind?
Towering and vertically developed, this cloud type is responsible for thunderstorms and heavy rain.
What is cumulonimbus?
UW Atmospheric Sciences is housed in this campus building nestled along Memorial Way.
What is ATG?
A magical snowstorm plunges a kingdom into eternal winter in this hit animated film from Disney.
What is Frozen?
Rising parcels of warm air give this name to a fundamental process behind thunderstorms and vertical cloud growth.
What is convection?
The infamous 1962 Columbus Day Storm was produced by the remnants of this type of storm.
What is a Typhoon?
Forming downwind of mountains, this distinctive, smooth, lens-shaped cloud is often mistaken for a UFO.
What is a lenticular cloud?
This student-run group delivers weather briefings and forecasts for UW and the Seattle community.
Who are Dawgcast?
Storm chasers race to deploy the device “Dorothy” in this 1996 tornado-driven blockbuster.
What is Twister?
When a tornado leaves no damage path to evaluate, it receives this classification on the Enhanced Fujita Scale.
What is EFU?
These extremely high tides occur when the Earth, Moon, and Sun align to maximize gravitational pull.
What are King Tides?
Thin and icy, this high cloud layer can create colorful rings or arcs around the sun or moon through refraction.
What is a Halo Cloud?
This freshwater lake borders the eastern edge of the UW campus.
What is Lake Washington?
Both AC/DC and Imagine Dragons are credited with iconic songs titled with this weather phenomenon.
What is thunder?
This apparent force, created by Earth’s rotation, causes winds to curve instead of traveling in straight line.
What is the Coriolis effect?
This month is historically the rainiest of the year in Seattle.
What is November?
When an air parcel is displaced and buoyancy repeatedly pushes it upward and downward, this oscillation forms.
What are gravity waves?
Acting as a barrier to Pacific storms, this mountain range is responsible for Seattle’s well-known rain shadow.
What are the Olympic Mountains?
Among video games, this genre features some of the most realistic real-time weather simulations.
What are flight simulators?
This term represents the strongest qualitative category on the Beaufort Wind Scale.
What is Hurricane Force?
This ocean current plays a major role in keeping the Pacific Northwest’s climate mild year-round.
What is the Pacific (California) Current?
Jupiter’s Great Red Spot, active for centuries, is an example of this extremely persistent atmospheric system.
What is a high-pressure system?
Washington State experienced its most extreme temperature swings on record during this remarkable year.
What is 2021?
A fierce November 1975 wind storm contributed to the sinking of this Great Lakes freighter.
What is the SS Edmund Fitzgerald?