BSc meteorologist Janice Davila tells Bored Panda that one of the most unknown facts from her field of expertise is that weather radars are slightly tilted upward in a half-degree (1/2°) angle.
“This means that when you or someone else opens a weather app only to see that it says it's raining, it actually means the radar is detecting the rain at 1/2 degree up rather than looking at the surface. If you're not seeing any rain, it's because it's evaporated by the time it passed the radar, reaching the surface,” she explains.
Meteorologist, atmospheric scientist and owner of Makens Weather, Matt Makens, believes that most people might not be aware of just how much moisture there is in the air. “Especially within thunderstorms that are miles high and carry large hail...the tremendous amount of upward wind to enable all of that water and ice to stay in the air is mind-blowing to us as observers when we watch those thunderstorms pass through.”
Another phenomenon he finds interesting in the field of meteorology is banded snowfall. “Whether it be lake effect snow or upslope against mountains, the total amount of snow that can fall within just hours can be staggering,” Makens says.
Both meteorologists believe that the average person should have more knowledge about the atmosphere and weather, mostly for their safety. “I highly recommend people knowing the basics about the weather, especially hazard safety when it comes to storms,” says Davila. “Due to climate change, storms are getting more aggressive, therefore people should be more aware of how to react during nocturnal tornadoes, floods, hurricanes, and anything else that may not be typical for their region.”
“The lower atmosphere in particular has so many different conditions based on altitude yet the general public assumes its all relatively the same behavior no matter how high into the sky,” says Makens.
“Much like a river flowing through the mountains, there's extreme turbulence, calmness, variable speeds and variable temperatures throughout that river and the atmosphere is the same way. This knowledge can better help people understand why they see certain clouds at certain levels, or how wildfire smoke is transported to their areas, or even give them some forecast sense of what weather is headed their way by what they are observing in the sky around them,” he stresses.
However, it’s not just the average person who might find some weather phenomena puzzling or surprising. These experts also admit being bewildered by some things that their scientific community hasn’t figured out yet.
Davila for example, is trying to find out how migraines could be connected with the rise and fall in barometric pressure. While Makens is fascinated by El Niño and La Niña, whose driving forces can’t be exactly pinpointed thus far.
