What is "meteorology"

Meteorology \Me`te*or*ol"o*gy\, n. [Gr. ?; ? + lo`gos discourse: cf. F. m['e]t['e]orologie. See Meteor.] The science which treats of the atmosphere and its phenomena, particularly of its variations of heat and moisture, of its winds, storms, etc.

"science of the atmosphere, weather forecasting," 1610s, from French météorologie and directly from Greek meteorologia "treatise on celestial phenomena, discussion of high things," from meteoron, literally "thing high up" (see meteor), + -logia "treatment of" (see -logy).

n. 1 The science that deals with the study of the atmosphere and its phenomena, especially with weather and weather forecasting. 2 The atmospheric phenomena in a specific region or period.

1. n. predicting what the weather will be [syn: weather forecasting]

2. the earth science dealing with phenomena of the atmosphere (especially weather)

Meteorology is the interdisciplinary scientific study of the atmosphere. The study of meteorology dates back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not occur until the 18th century. The 19th century saw modest progress in the field after weather observation networks were formed across broad regions. Prior attempts at prediction of weather depended on historical data. It wasn't until after the elucidation of the laws of physics and, more particularly, the development of the computer, allowing for the automated solution of the great many equations that model the weather, in the latter half of the 20th century that significant breakthroughs in weather forecasting were achieved.

Meteorological phenomena are observable weather events that are explained by the science of meteorology. Meteorological phenomena are described and quantified by the variables of Earth's atmosphere: temperature, air pressure, water vapor, mass flow, and the variations and interactions of those variables, and how they change over time. Different spatial scales are used to describe and predict weather on local, regional, and global levels.

Meteorology, climatology, atmospheric physics, and atmospheric chemistry are sub-disciplines of the atmospheric sciences. Meteorology and hydrology compose the interdisciplinary field of hydrometeorology. The interactions between Earth's atmosphere and its oceans are part of a coupled ocean-atmosphere system. Meteorology has application in many diverse fields such as the military, energy production, transport, agriculture, and construction.

The word "meteorology" is from Greek metéōros "lofty; high (in the sky)" (from meta- "above" and aeiro "I lift up") and -logia "-(o)logy", i.e. "the study of things in the air".

Meteorology ( Greek: ; Latin: Meteorologica or Meteora) is a treatise by Aristotle. The text discusses what Aristotle believed to have been all the affections common to air and water, and the kinds and parts of the earth and the affections of its parts. It includes early accounts of water evaporation, earthquakes, and other weather phenomena.

An Arabic compendium of Meteorology, called and produced by the Antiochene scholar Yahya ibn al-Bitriq, was widely circulated among Muslim scholars over the following centuries. This was translated into Latin by Gerard of Cremona in the 12th century – and by this means, during the Twelfth-century Renaissance, entered the Western European world of medieval scholasticism. Gerard's "old translation" (vetus translatio) was superseded by an improved text by William of Moerbeke, the nova translatio, which was widely read, as it survives in numerous manuscripts; it received commentary by Thomas Aquinas and was often printed during the Renaissance.