The USA Today Weather Book

by Williams, Jack

• ISBN13: 9780679776659
• ISBN10: 0679776656
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1997-07-14
• Publisher: Vintage

Summary

Featuring the full-color weather graphics of America's favorite newspaper, here is a newly revised edition of the most readable guide to our nation's weather. It also includes an updated state-by-state guide to weather patterns and scientifically accurate records. Online promo.

Author Biography

Jack Williams was born in Jacksonville, Florida, and served in the US Marine Corps after graduating from high school. After his military service, he attended Jacksonville (Fla.) University where he earned a bachelor’s degree in history and government in 1962. He began his journalism career at the Florida Times Union in Jacksonville while attending college and subsequently worked at the Jacksonville Journal, the Rochester Times Union, and Rochester’s Democrat & Chronicle. In September 1982, when USA Today began publication, Jack Williams served as the weather page editor.In 1992, as Hurricane Andrew battered Dade County, Williams was in the National Hurricane Center, which was on the fringe of the strongest winds. He has flown into three hurricanes and has chased tornadoes with researchers. In January 1999 Williams was one of the half dozen journalists selected by the National Science Foundation to report on research in Antarctica.He is the author of The USA Today Weather Book, which won The American Meteorological Society’s Louis J. Battan Author’s Award, and The USA Today Weather Almanac.

Table of Contents

Foreword	vii	(2)
Introduction	ix
1 USA's wild weather: Heat, cold, hurricanes, tornadoes, floods -- the world's wildest weather	1	(12)
2 How the sun causes weather: Where the sun shines starts all weather	13	(18)
3 Why the winds blow: Air pressure differences put our weather on the move	31	(16)
4 Storms, fronts: The battleground of weather	47	(16)
5 What makes rain? Clouds, fog, rain, snow and sleet occur as water changes its form	63	(20)
6 Floods, droughts: The extremes of the Earth's natural water cycle	83	(14)
7 Snow and ice: An ordinary winter storm can turn into rain or a monster blizzard	97	(18)
8 Thunderstorms and tornadoes: They are among nature's most destructive forces	115	(24)
9 Hurricanes: Winds can top 150 mph, but the big danger is the storm surge	139	(24)
10 Sky watching: Clouds, rainbows, halos and contrails	163	(18)
11 How to predict the weather: How forecasts are made and how accurate they are	181	(16)
12 The future of Earth: Greenhouse effect and loss of ozone could be bringing bigger changes	197	(22)
13 State-by-state records: Hottest, coldest, wettest and major weather events	219	(3)
Glossary	222	(4)
Index	226