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Weather Map Facts

Weather Map Facts
A weather map is a map that displays a variety of meteorological features to be used in research and weather reporting and forecasting. Weather maps have been used since the mid-1800s. During the Crimean War of 1853 to 1856 it was shown by a French scientist that a weather map showing a terrible storm's chronological path would have potentially helped save a fleet at Balaklava. The world's first weather map was created in 1961 by an English scientist Francis Galton who plotted data on a map after studying information from weather stations country-wide. This led to newspapers publishing weather maps and the development of networks to help gather and report data in real time to enable the use of weather maps around the world.
Interesting Weather Map Facts:
A weather map is used to show weather facts about a specific place at a given time. It can show temperature, cloud coverage, rain or snow, wind, air pressure, humidity, and the direction a weather system is moving or expected to move.
Weather maps can use isotherms (a line connecting locations with like temperatures). Isotherms can help forecasters and researchers identify weather fronts.
Isotach weather maps show the jet stream's location.
One of the more popular weather maps is the surface weather analysis map. It includes isobars (line of constant or equal pressure) which show areas of low pressure or high pressure.
Most weather maps use symbols to represent specific weather phenomena. Weather maps use symbols such as specific colors, letters, lines, broken lines, and arrows and other images that represent specific data.
On a weather map a front occurs when two different air masses meet. A cold front is marked by the color blue and a warm front is marked by the color red. The meeting points of the warm and cold fronts are generally where major weather changes in the weather will take place.
A cold or warm front is represented on a weather map with a line of teeth pointing in the direction that it is moving.
The place on a weather map where warm and cold fronts meet indicate where some of the most dangerous weather phenomena can occur such as tornadoes and hurricanes. When these fronts meet, and other factors are combined such as strong winds, very large storms can occur. This makes weather maps extremely important in weather forecasting.
Weather maps make a meteorologist's job much easier because they provide real time data to keep weather patterns and changes accurately reported and observed.
Weather maps make it easier for weather reporters to alert the public of potentially dangerous weather in the forecast.
Weather maps are often used on television during weather reports to show the public what they can expect in the coming hours and days in regards to rain, snow, heat, cold, wind, and potentially big storms that may pose a threat.
Data used for weather maps can be derived from a variety of sources including weather satellites, radars, observing real weather, online data and real time reporting from weather stations.


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