climatology
Long-term weather study
Climatology is the scientific study of climate—the long-term patterns of weather in a region or across the globe.
Where meteorology focuses on short-term weather forecasting, climatology examines averages and trends over decades or centuries: Her climatology research tracks temperature changes in the Arctic.
The field has gained prominence amid debates over climate change.
Lowest atmospheric layer
- stratosphereSecond atmospheric layer up
- mesosphereAtmospheric layer, 50-85km up
- thermosphereHigh-temperature atmospheric zone
- exosphereAtmosphere's outermost region
ionosphere · ozone layer · jetstream · convection · albedo · insolation · Coriolis effect · barometric pressure
Periodic Pacific warming event
- La NiñaCool-phase climate pattern
- monsoonSeasonal tropical wind pattern
- droughtProlonged water scarcity
- heatwaveProlonged abnormally high temperatures
ice age · polar vortex · desertification · permafrost · glaciation · interglacial · oscillation · anomalies
Dating via growth rings
- ice coresCylindrical glacier samples
- carbon datingIsotope-based age measurement
- tree ringsAnnual wood layers
- glaciologyStudy of ice masses
Rising planetary temperatures
- greenhouse effectAtmospheric heat retention mechanism
- anthropogenicCaused by human activity
- carbon dioxideRespiration byproduct, photosynthesis fuel
- methaneSimplest alkane fuel
emissions · mitigation · adaptation · sea level rise · ocean acidification · carbon cycle · feedback loops · attribution
Artificial replicas of processes
- projectionsEstimates extending forward
- scenariosImagined sequences of events
- ensemblesCoordinated groups or attire
- downscalingDecreasing in magnitude
uncertainty · IPCC · reanalysis · resolution · validation · forcing · feedbacks · machine learning
Facilities measuring atmospheric conditions
- satellitesBodies circling larger ones
- buoysAnchored floating signals
- LIDARLight-based distance measurement
- Doppler radarMotion-sensing weather instrument
thermometers · hygrometers · anemometers · barometers · rain gauges · remote sensing · NOAA
troposphere
Lowest atmospheric layer
- stratosphereSecond atmospheric layer up
- mesosphereAtmospheric layer, 50-85km up
- thermosphereHigh-temperature atmospheric zone
exosphere · ionosphere · ozone layer · jetstream · convection · albedo · insolation · Coriolis effect · barometric pressure · humidity
El Niño
Periodic Pacific warming event
- La NiñaCool-phase climate pattern
- monsoonSeasonal tropical wind pattern
- droughtProlonged water scarcity
heatwave · ice age · polar vortex · desertification · permafrost · glaciation · interglacial · oscillation · anomalies · variability
dendrochronology
Dating via growth rings
- ice coresCylindrical glacier samples
- carbon datingIsotope-based age measurement
- tree ringsAnnual wood layers
global warming
Rising planetary temperatures
- greenhouse effectAtmospheric heat retention mechanism
- anthropogenicCaused by human activity
- carbon dioxideRespiration byproduct, photosynthesis fuel
methane · emissions · mitigation · adaptation · sea level rise · ocean acidification · carbon cycle · feedback loops · attribution · decarbonization
simulations
Artificial replicas of processes
- projectionsEstimates extending forward
- scenariosImagined sequences of events
- ensemblesCoordinated groups or attire
downscaling · uncertainty · IPCC · reanalysis · resolution · validation · forcing · feedbacks · machine learning · statistical methods
weather stations
Facilities measuring atmospheric conditions
- satellitesBodies circling larger ones
- buoysAnchored floating signals
- LIDARLight-based distance measurement
Doppler radar · thermometers · hygrometers · anemometers · barometers · rain gauges · remote sensing · NOAA
- sciencesbiology, chemistry, physics, astronomy, geology
- disciplinesbiology, chemistry, physics, mathematics, psychology
- meteorologyweather, rain, wind, snow, clouds
- natural sciencesbiology, ecology, botany, zoology, geology
- ologiesbiology, geology, psychology, sociology, ecology
- science termsbiology, chemistry, physics, math, experiment
climatologyclimate denial
Rejecting scientific consensus on warming
climatologygeology
Study of Earth's composition
oceanography · seismology · volcanology · hydrology · biology
climatologist, climatologists, climatological, paleoclimatology