Scientists have developed a system to predict the timing and severity of seasonal influenza outbreaks that could one day help health officials and the general public better prepare for them. The system adapts techniques used ...
Nov 26, 2012
0
0
Techniques used in weather forecasting can be repurposed to provide individuals with a personalized assessment of their risk of exposure to COVID-19 or other viruses, according to new research published by Caltech scientists.
Jun 23, 2022
0
55
Scientists can use genetic 'weather forecasting' to predict how long it will take for bowel cancer to evolve resistance to a drug before a patient has even started treatment, a new study has shown.
May 21, 2021
0
24
An international team of researchers has developed a mathematical model for predicting how bad an upcoming hay fever season will be. In their paper published in the journal Science Advances, the group describes their model ...
Are influenza outbreaks and weather patterns connected? Researchers have long known that flu season occurs in the colder months, and that infection rates drop dramatically as the weather warms. But why? And could weather ...
Feb 19, 2020
1
45
We've all been warned not to "judge a book by its cover," but inevitably we do it anyway. It's difficult to resist the temptation of assuming that a person's outward appearance reflects something meaningful about his or her ...
Oct 15, 2012
4
0
For individuals who experience chronic pain, weather can be a significant factor in their day-to-day plans. In a recent study from the University of Georgia published in the International Journal of Biometeorology, about ...
Jan 11, 2024
0
1
As 2024 approaches, many people look to begin the year with resolutions to become more fit. Some people find it challenging to get enthusiastic about outdoor exercise during the winter. However, don't discount the joys of ...
Dec 30, 2023
0
1
We've been lucky with more rain and cooler weather this summer. My friend Terry in Arizona has not been as fortunate.
Jul 28, 2023
0
9
The combination of soaring heat and smothering fine particulate pollution may double the risk of heart attack death, according to a new study of more than 202,000 heart attack deaths in China. The study published today in ...
Jul 24, 2023
0
1
Weather forecasting is the application of science and technology to predict the state of the atmosphere for a future time and a given location. Human beings have attempted to predict the weather informally for millennia, and formally since at least the nineteenth century. Weather forecasts are made by collecting quantitative data about the current state of the atmosphere and using scientific understanding of atmospheric processes to project how the atmosphere will evolve.
Once an all human endeavor based mainly upon changes in barometric pressure, current weather conditions, and sky condition, forecast models are now used to determine future conditions. Human input is still required to pick the best possible forecast model to base the forecast upon, which involves pattern recognition skills, teleconnections, knowledge of model performance, and knowledge of model biases. The chaotic nature of the atmosphere, the massive computational power required to solve the equations that describe the atmosphere, error involved in measuring the initial conditions, and an incomplete understanding of atmospheric processes mean that forecasts become less accurate as the difference in current time and the time for which the forecast is being made (the range of the forecast) increases. The use of ensembles and model consensus help narrow the error and pick the most likely outcome.
There are a variety of end uses to weather forecasts. Weather warnings are important forecasts because they are used to protect life and property. Forecasts based on temperature and precipitation are important to agriculture, and therefore to traders within commodity markets. Temperature forecasts are used by utility companies to estimate demand over coming days. On an everyday basis, people use weather forecasts to determine what to wear on a given day. Since outdoor activities are severely curtailed by heavy rain, snow and the wind chill, forecasts can be used to plan activities around these events, and to plan ahead and survive them.
This text uses material from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA
