A pyranometer developed by M. Robitzsch. Its design utilizes three bimetallic strips which are exposed horizontally at the center of a hemispherical glass bowl. The outer strips are white reflectors and the center strip is a blackened absorber. The bimeta ...

A numbering system using a base number of 2 and having only two digits: 0 and 1. The fundamental system of representing information with electrical pulses.

A type of precipitation composed of unbranched crystals in the form of needles, columns, or plates. Usually has a very slight downward motion and may fall from a cloudless sky.

The combined processes by which water is transferred from the earth's surface to the atmosphere: evaporation of liquid or solid water plus transpiration from plants.

A radiosonde which transmits the indication of the meteorological sensing elements in the form of a code consisting of combinations of dots and dashes.

Anemometer which measures wind speed by measuring the degree of cooling of a metal film heated by an electric current. A type of cooling-power anemometer.

A clockwise change in wind direction. Veering winds with height are indicative of warm air advection (WAA).

A basic equation in daytime visual range theory, relating the apparent luminance of a distant black object, the apparent luminance of the background sky above the horizon, and the extinction coefficient of the atmosphere, or the air layer near the ground. ...

The amount of precipitation falling in one day, or other specified period, that is likely to be equalled or exceeded in any given place only once in a century. That is, a precipitation amount that has a return period of 100 years.

The temperature at which all three phases of a substance can exist in equilibrium. This temperature occurs at only one pressure. The triple-point of water is 273.16 K and is the basis of the Kelvin scale.

A unit of energy per unit area commonly employed in radiation theory. Equal to one gram-calorie per square centimeter.

A fixed-length group of bits representing the large data element handled as a unit by a computer. Word length is determined by the capacity of the CPU registers.

Wind with a speed between 34 and 40 knots (39 and 46 mph); Beaufort scale number 8.

A precipitation gauge consisting of a receiver in the shape of a funnel which empties into a bucket mounted upon a weighing mechanism. The weight of the catch is recorded as inches of precipitation.

The algebraic difference between the upper and lower limits of the measuring range of an instrument, i.e. a thermometer with a range of -35 to 50

The atmospheric pressure at mean sea level either directly measured by stations at sea level or empirically determined from the station pressure and temperature by stations not at sea level. Used as a common reference for analyses of surface pressure patt ...

A numbering system using a base number of 16 and including the ten decimal digits (0 to 9) along with six alpha digits (A to F). Thus. a digit is available to represent each of the possible values of a 4-bit binary digit.

A thermometer using transducing elements which deform with temperature. Examples are the bimetallic thermometer and the Bourdon tube type of thennometer.

A record obtained from a meteorograph. A chart in which meteorological variables are plotted against time.

Federal Aviation Administration.