Weather station

A weather station is a facility, either on land or sea with instruments and equipment for measuring
atmospheric conditions to provide for weather forecast and to study weather and climate.

Important points about weather station

 Most instruments used in measuring weather elements are found in a weather station
 A weather station is a place where weather events are recorded.

Important factors to consider when selecting a site for the school weather station

 Should be in an open area, away from buildings that may block wind movement.
 Should be away from tall trees that may cover the instruments with their shade and may also
intercept rainfall.
 Should be on short grass that allow water to soak or flow without splashing into instruments.
 Should not be on hard ground/ concrete surfaces because the hard surfaces will cause water to
splash into rain gauge and may also radiate heat to instruments .
 The station should be in a fenced and gated place so as to protect the instruments from theft,
vandalism and destruction by people and animal.

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 State two advantages of the modern digital weather station compared to the traditional weather station

 Modern digital weather station is small and compact such that it does not require large area as done by
the traditional weather station.
 Modern digital weather station records data automatically which eliminates human errors experienced
when using traditional weather station
 Modern digital weather station can be installed in remote places and recordings are sent automatically
to faraway places by means of GIS and satellites.

The Stevenson screen

Is used to house instruments such as Maximum thermometer, Minimum thermometer, Six’s thermometer
and hygrometer-wet bulb and dry bulb thermometer.

Importance
(i) Provide shade conditions for accurate temperature recording.
(ii) Ensure safety of thermometers because they are delicate.

Describe the characteristics of the Stevenson screen

(iii)

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 Features of a Stevenson screen

It is made up of wood: i.e. to prevent absorption and conduction of heat.

Panted white or silver grey; - in order to reflect sunshine.
Stands are 1,2 metre high: - to avoid the influence of ground conditions.
The sides and floor are made of louvers or slats to allow free circulation of air and to keep off direct
sun rays.
 It has an insulated roof to create a bad conductor of heat. This is done by creating an air space
between the layers of the roof.
 The roof is slanting to avoid the accumulation and stagnation of rain water.
 It stands on grass covered ground.
 It is fixed or placed far from buildings or obstacles to avoid any interference.
 The ideal location is one where it is away from trees and buildings. This means that the trees or
buildings will not act as a shield, making the measurements unrepresentative
 The stand of the Stevenson screen should be set in the ground so that the bulbs of the thermometers
are at approximately 1, 2.m above the ground. The ground on which the Stevenson screen is placed
should not be concrete or bare rock because these surfaces may absorb heat and reflect it onto
instruments.
 In the southern hemisphere, the door of the screen should face north so that when it opens, the sun
does not shine directly on instruments
Home work
1. Distinguish between weather and climate (3)
2. List any four elements of weather (4)
3. Describe in using diagrams any 2 instruments used to measure weather elements (4)
4. Describe the characteristics of the Stevenson screen (4)

Weather symbols and synoptic charts

- A synoptic chart is any map that

summaries atmospheric
conditions or a chart that makes
use of shorthand showing
weather conditions of a place at
a given time

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 Rainfall types and patterns

 Precipitation occurs when warm moist air rises.

 Water vapour cools and condenses to form clouds.
 Condensation produces small droplets which join together and grow to fall of their own weight.
 Types include relief, cyclonic and convectional rainfall.

Forms include sleet, hail, frost, fog, snow and others.

a. Sleet – a mixture of snow and rain formed by snow melting as it falls.

b. Hail – a solid form of precipitation comprising chunks of ice falling from the sky.
c. Dew – is snow droplets of water that appear on grass in the morning and evening due to condensation.
This result when temperature of a surface cools down to a point below the dew point of air next to it.
d. Frost – is the deposit of ice that may form in humid air during the night or in winter especially in
mountainous areas.
e. Fog – is a visible mass of cloud water droplets or ice crystals suspended in the air near the earth`s
surface.
f. Rime – is a white ice due to water droplets in fog freezes to the outer surfaces of objects such as trees.
g. Snow – flakes of ice particles that fall from the clouds and does not occur in Zimbabwe but UK in
winter.
h. Drizzle – very fine rain falling from stratus clouds.

Types of rainfall

Relief or orographic
 Results when warm moist air
rises over a barrier e.g.
mountain.
 SE trade winds are forced over
a barrier and rises, cools and
condense and rain occurs on
the windward side e.g.
Chimanimani or Inyanga.
 Leeward side or rain shadow
area is dry with little or no
rainfall e.g the Save valley and
Marange area.

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 Convectional  Ground surface is overheated
and air gets hot to generate
convectional currents.
 Air is heated by conduction,
absorbing more moisture,
expands and rises.
 The ascending air remains
warmer and hence become
unstable.
 It cools and produces
cumulonimbus clouds.
 Due to heat released by latent
heat at condensation and
freezing, thunderstorms are
generated.
 Rainfall in West and Central Africa is convectional.

Hazards due convectional rainfall

 Lightning, fires, death, flooding, strong winds, landslides, destruction of homes, crops, and property.

Measures

 Lighting conductors, early warning systems, education, cloud dissipation, afforestation/reforestation,

resettlement, evacuation, settling on high ground and storm drains.

Frontal or cyclonic

 Two or more winds with different temperatures

meet for example in Southern Africa.
 The two air masses don’t mix but form a front.
 The cold air mass is heavier than warmer air
mass therefore, the light rises over the denser
one.
 Warm air cools,
 Condensation and clouds form.
 Rain occurs along the front.

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Weather Focasting  First appearance of sparrows; flock of
swallows preceding dark clouds
 Is a prediction of weather phenomena, trend indicates rain is at hand and farmers
and events. should prepare for above normal rains.
 Migration of butterflies also indicates it
 Is made through data collection on
will rain.
temperature, rainfall and humidity and use  Croaking of frogs during dry season
of complicated modelling and simulations to indicate it’s going to rain.
predict future weather.  The singing, nesting and chirping of
Importance of weather forecasting certain birds appears to be a useful
indicator for the onset of the rains.
 Helps us to be aware of natural calamities  Appearance of cicadas (nyenze), day
related to weather before they occur so as to flying chafers (mandere), dragon flies
take precautionary measures. (mikonikoni) signifies imminent
 Guiding tourists on when to visit national rainfall.
parks.  Frequent appearance of tortoises
 Helps farmers to plan their activities such as indicates good rain season.
planting, harvesting, etc.  Appearance of certain insects e.g.
 Ensures air and water transport is carried out millipedes, spiders Indicates coming of
safely. heavy rains.
 Helps sporting people to plan their training  If the goat intestines are empty at
and competition schedules. slaughter it indicates drought or famine
 Helps people to plan many other activities ahead, and vice versa.
such as mining, electricity generation,  Changes in the intensity of sunshine
holiday events, etc. indicate it’s going to rain.
 Helps fishing communities to plan their  Moon crescent facing upwards indicates
activities. upholding water and when facing
downwards is releasing water in the next
Methods of weather forecasting few days.
 Mist-covered mountains is a signal of
Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS) good rains.
 Are those forms of knowledge that the  Appearance of fog/haze in the morning
people survived on before the advent of is an indicator for no rain.
modern technology.  Frequent appearance of wind swirls is a
 Prediction of weather based on traditional sign of good rains.
beliefs and facts.
 Plants shedding leaves or dropping off Modern methods
of young avocado fruits indicates period
of drought.  Prediction of weather using modern
 Flowering of certain plants e.g the peach instruments and new technology of
tree and budding of acacia species collecting, transmitting, processing and
indicates the onset of rainfall. analysing weather data.
 Abundance of wild fruits such as hacha,
gan’acha and mashuku during the Instruments used
months of December to February signify
an imminent challenging farming 1. Satellites-electronic devices which orbit the
season, earth which collect and transmit weather data
 Heavy flowering of the mango trees which is interpreted by computers.
indicate a potential drought season. 2. Radar-an instrument used to see cloud
 Safari ants (termites) indicate it will formation.
rain.

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3. Sensors/radiosodes-instrument fixed on a 4. Computers-electronic device used to store,
balloon used to measure atmospheric pressure, analyse and display weather information.
temperature and humidity.

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