Weather Forecasting

Weather forecasting is the application of science and technology to predict the state of the atmosphere for a future time and a given location. Human beings have attempted to predict the weather since time immemorial. Today, weather forecasts are made by collecting quantitative data about the current state of the atmosphere and using scientific understanding of atmospheric processes to project how the atmosphere will evolve. The chaotic nature of the atmosphere, the massive computational power required to solve the equations that describe the atmosphere, and incomplete understanding of atmospheric processes mean that forecasts become less accurate as the difference in time between the present moment and the time for which the forecast is being made (the range of the forecast) increases.

Surface weather observations of atmospheric pressure, temperature, wind speed, wind direction, humidity, precipitation are made near the earth's surface by trained observers, automatic weather stations or buoys. The World Meteorological Organization acts to standardize the instrumentation, observing practices and timing of these observations worldwide.

Increasingly, data from weather satellites are being used because of their almost global coverage. Polar orbiting satellites provide soundings of temperature and moisture throughout the depth of the atmosphere.Meteorological radar provide information on precipitation location and intensity. Additionally, if doppler radar is used then wind speed and direction can be determined.

Source Wikipedia.org