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Category Archives: Meteorology
Does lightning add nitrogen to the soil?
Our bodies need nitrogen to make proteins. The atmosphere’s composition is 78% nitrogen, but the nitrogen in the air is not available to our bodies.
The two atoms in the airborne nitrogen molecule are held together very tightly. For our bodies to process that nitrogen, the two atoms must separate. Continue reading
Category: Meteorology, Phenomena, Severe Weather
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What is energy’s relationship with rain?
Many locations across the country (and the world) have been experiencing unusually heavy rainfalls this summer.
Though in Madison we have had a relatively benign month of August in terms of temperature and humidity, we have still managed to find ourselves 2.09 inches above normal for rainfall for the month prior to Sunday’s rain. Continue reading
When does fog mostly occur in Madison?
Fog can occur anytime of the year, depending on the type of fog. In southern Wisconsin, fog is most frequent in the morning, between about 6 and 8 a.m. Fog is a cloud in contact with the ground, and it … Continue reading
Can dust from Africa reach the United States?
Yes. Soil-derived aerosols, or dust, are abundant in our atmosphere. One source of dust is sandstorms over the Sahara. These storms whip small pieces of mineral dust from the desert into the atmosphere. Easterly winds then carry large plumes of Saharan dust away from the desert and over the Atlantic Ocean.
This weather system is referred to as a Saharan air layer, or SAL, and at times dust in the SAL has traveled to the Caribbean, Texas and Florida. Desert dust from the Sahara and Gobi deserts has been observed on the ice sheet of Greenland. Ice cores in Greenland provide a history of the dust deposition as it appears as layers in the ice. Continue reading
Category: Climate, Meteorology, Seasons
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Are heat waves increasing?
A heat wave is a period of abnormally and uncomfortably hot and usually humid weather.
The World Meteorological Organization is specific in its definition by stating that a heat wave is when the daily maximum temperature for more than five consecutive days exceeds the average maximum temperature by 9 degrees. Continue reading
