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WEATHER: Weather is basically the way the atmosphere is behaving, mainly with respect to its effects upon life and human activities. Most people think of weather in terms of temperature, humidity, precipitation, cloudiness, brightness, visibility, wind, and atmospheric pressure, as in high and low pressure. In most places, weather can change from minute-to-minute, hour-to-hour, day-to-day, and season-to-season.

CLIMATE: Climate is the description of the long-term pattern of weather in a particular area.

Some scientists define climate as the average weather for a particular region and time period, usually taken over 30-years. When scientists talk about climate, they're looking at averages of precipitation, temperature, humidity, sunshine, wind velocity, phenomena such as fog, frost, and hail storms, and other measures of the weather that occur over a long period in a particular place.

For example, after looking at rain gauge data, lake and reservoir levels, and satellite data, scientists can tell if during a summer, an area was drier than average. If it continues to be drier than normal over the course of many summers, than it would likely indicate a change in the climate.

In the context of climate change: Weather varies all the time, but climate doesn't vary nearly as quickly.

The Earth's climate is changing relatively quickly (relative to its usual pace) now due to an enhanced greenhouse effect caused by humans emissions of greenhouse gases, and most locations are experiencing a net warming as a result. This doesn't mean it can't get cold anymore, or even that record cold temperatures will no longer occur. But it does mean that, in most areas, heat waves (or unusual warmth in the winter) will be warmer and cold snaps (or cool periods in summer) will not be as cold.

The time scale of climate is not nearly as intuitive as that of weather, so even people who understand this have a tendency to be influenced only by the most recent weather they experience. You can observe this effect by watching the news during both cold snaps and heat waves, which will be either given as evidence for or against the warming of the Earth. In reality, you cannot attribute either to a changing climate due to the small spatial and temporal scale of these events; weather variability will always be of greater magnitude than observed changes in climate.

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Related Questions

What is the difference between climate and climate change?

Weather refers to the atmospheric conditions in an area at any given time. Climate change is a shift in the long-term trends in the weather, over the course of decades or more.


Is there any difference between who is funding studies for and against climate change?

yes there is funding studies is someone that studies how to fund and climate change is the change in the atmosphere


How does the climate change in the sea?

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Does climate change less rapidly than weather?

Yes. Climate is an overall average of the weather over a very long time. Weather can change in an instant, but because there are so many data points that are combined to determine climate, you need a lot of change before the dataset has any measurable difference.


Does climate change earthquakes?

No. There is no primary cause-effect relationship between plate tectonics and weather patterns.


What is the difference between seasons and climate?

Seasons refer to the four divisions of the year based on weather patterns and daylight hours (spring, summer, fall, winter), while climate describes the long-term average weather conditions in a region. Seasons are temporary and change regularly, while climate is the overall pattern over a longer period of time.


What is the definition climate change?

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What Can change from day to day but climate does not?

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What is the difference between climate change and global warming?

Climate change refers to long-term changes in temperature, precipitation, and other weather patterns across the Earth. Global warming specifically refers to the increase in Earth's average surface temperature due to human activities like burning fossil fuels. In essence, global warming is a part of the broader phenomenon of climate change.


What does climate change frequently?

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What is the difference between global warming and climate change?

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Is there a connection between recent droughts and climate change?

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