Weather Facts for Kids
Wild facts about weather
Benjamin Franklin invented the lightning rod in 1752 after his famous kite experiment proved that lightning is electricity. Lightning rods protect buildings by giving the electrical charge a safe path to travel into the ground rather than through the structure.
The idea that no two snowflakes are ever exactly alike is almost certainly true. Because a snowflake can have an almost infinite number of possible shapes determined by the exact path it takes through different temperatures and humidity levels, the odds of two being identical are essentially zero.
The most rain ever recorded in a single minute fell in Unionville, Maryland, on July 4, 1956: 1.23 inches in just 60 seconds. That is about the same as hitting the ground with a powerful garden hose for an entire minute.
Air pressure drops as you go higher in altitude because there is less air pushing down from above. At the top of Mount Everest, the air pressure is only about one-third of what it is at sea level, which is why climbers need extra oxygen to breathe.
A rain gauge is a simple tube or container used to measure how much rain has fallen. Even a homemade rain gauge — just a straight-sided jar with ruler markings — can give surprisingly accurate measurements of rainfall at your own home.
Ice storms coat every surface — roads, trees, power lines, and buildings — in a heavy glaze of ice that can be several inches thick. The weight of this ice causes tree branches and power lines to snap, sometimes leaving millions of people without electricity for weeks.
Mount Everest is so tall that it creates its own weather. Strong winds called the jet stream blast the summit constantly, and temperatures can drop to -76°F (-60°C). The mountain generates its own violent snowstorms called lenticular clouds that wrap around its peak.
Wind turbines convert the kinetic energy of moving air into electricity. The wind speed needs to be at least about 7 mph to start generating power, and the turbines automatically shut down in very high winds above 55 mph to prevent damage.
Typhoon Tip, which struck the Pacific in 1979, was the largest tropical cyclone ever recorded. It spanned about 1,380 miles (2,220 km) in diameter — roughly half the width of the contiguous United States — and its winds extended outward for hundreds of miles from the center.
Fresh snow is very good at absorbing sound waves, which is why the world seems unusually quiet after a heavy snowfall. The air pockets trapped between snowflake crystals act like foam padding, muffling sounds and creating an eerie silence.