weatherは特定の時・場所の気象状態、climateは一地方の年間を通じての平均的気象状態を指します。本書では大気やオゾン層、温室ガス効果などの基本的特徴や性質を解説した上で、私たちが地上で受ける影響や、weatherとclimateの関係性についても説明します。私たちが毎日参考にしている天候予測の進化や、異常な竜巻、熱帯低気圧、雷雨の事例などにも触れながら天候について解き明かします。(cf. Climate, #358; Weather Prediction: What Everyone Needs to Know)
 

• Describes how weather observations are made, and the development of weather forecasting
• Covers the basic features and properties of the atmosphere, such as the ozone layer and greenhouse effect, and explains how they affect the weather experienced on the ground
• Explores the global patterns of temperature and pressure which give rise to the major wind systems and oceanic currents, and the significance of these for global weather
• Looks at examples of extreme weather and the threat tornadoes, tropical cyclones, and violent thunderstorm systems pose

 
From deciding the best day for a picnic, to the devastating effects of hurricanes and typhoons, the weather impacts our lives on a daily basis. Although new techniques allow us to forecast the weather with increasing accuracy, most people do not realize the vast global movements and forces which result in their day-to-day weather.

In this Very Short Introduction, Storm Dunlop explains what weather is and how it differs from climate, discussing what causes weather, and how we measure it. Analyzing the basic features and properties of the atmosphere, he shows how these are directly related to the weather experienced on the ground, and to specific weather phenomena and extreme weather events. He describes how the global patterns of temperature and pressure give rise to the overall circulation within the atmosphere, the major wind systems, and the major oceanic currents, and how features such as mountains and the sea affect local weather. He also looks at examples of extreme and dangerous weather, such as of tropical cyclones (otherwise known as hurricanes and typhoons), describing how "Hurricane Hunters" undertake the dangerous task of flying through them.

We measure weather in a number of ways: observations taken on the land and sea; observations within the atmosphere; and measurements from orbiting satellites. Dunlop concludes by looking at how these observations have been used to develop increasingly sophisticated long and short-range weather forecasting, including ensemble forecasting.