Internet Activity

Cold and Warm Fronts

Warm Front    Cold Front

When air masses meet at a front, the collision often results in changeable weather, or storms. Look at the illustrations of cold and warm fronts. Describe how cold and warm fronts form. Can either kind of front bring rainy weather?


Predicting the Weather

Do you sometimes think you can predict the weather as accurately as weather forecasters? What type of information do they use to make their predictions? Here's your chance to collect data and try to predict the weather.

In this activity you will gather information for three days from any location at least 1,000 kilometers from where you live. Then you'll try to predict the weather for the fourth day. To begin, print the Weather Table. Then, follow steps 1–5 below.

  1. On the Weather Table, fill in the name of the location, the date you are beginning, and the time you plan to record information. Try to record data from the same time each day.
  2. Now you'll need some tools of the trade. Visit the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to find current weather conditions. Select a state and press GO. Then select a location and press GO. If there are no data for this location, then choose another.
  3. Record information for today's weather, Day 1, in your chart. Include wind speed and direction, sky conditions, temperature range, and precipitation. Scroll down the page and notice the barometer readings for the last 24 hours. Are the readings rising, falling, or steady? Record your results in the column marked Barometer.
  4. Repeat Steps 2 and 3 tomorrow and the next day. On the third day write in your weather prediction for Day 4.
  5. On Day 4, check the current weather conditions for your chosen location. Record the actual weather for the location.

How did your prediction compare to the actual weather? What other information would help you make better weather predictions?


Further Exploration

Extreme weather can be devastating. Over the past twenty years, the United States has been hit by 40 weather-related disasters that have each caused at least $1 billion in damages. Visit NOAA's Billion Dollar Weather Disasters page to find out more about these events.