Monday, November 23, 2009 · 1:44:07 PM ET

Weather Terms

Wind Chill – The temperature your body feels when air temperature is combined with wind speed. The higher the wind speed, the faster an exposed body loses heat and the cooler you feel.

Solar Radiation – The amount of incoming radiation received from the sun. The amount of solar radiation received gives an indication of whether it is cloudy or not or whether it is nightfall or daytime. Peaks on the curve indicate little cloud cover and daytime hours while low points indicate cloud cover and/or nighttime.

Dew Point – the temperature to which the air has to be cooled to form tiny drops of water on objects (i.e., dew).

Lightning Counts – the amount of lightning discharges per minute. The BCC Weather Station can detect and record up to 9999 discharges per minute.

Pressure – a measure of the weight of air upon the earth’s surface. Pressure or Barometric Pressure as it is commonly referred to by Meteorologist gives an indication of the type of weather to be expected. A drop in pressure is an indication of possible adverse weather. Rising pressure on the other hand indicates clearing skies and generally pleasant weather.

Relative Humidity – is a measure of the amount of moisture in the air. The wetter or more the air feels, the higher the relative humidity. The drier the air feels, the lower the relative humidity.

Wind Direction – an indication of the direction the wind is coming from. For example, a northerly wind is coming from the north and blowing toward the south.