Examples of common weather instruments and their uses in meteorology

📚 Quick Study Guide

• 🌡️ Thermometer: Measures air temperature (Celsius or Fahrenheit).
• 💧 Hygrometer: Measures humidity (percentage of water vapor in the air).
• 💨 Anemometer: Measures wind speed (miles per hour, kilometers per hour, or knots).
• 🧭 Wind Vane: Indicates wind direction (North, South, East, West).
• 🌧️ Rain Gauge: Measures the amount of liquid precipitation over a set period of time (inches or millimeters).
• barometer: Measures atmospheric pressure (Pascals, mmHg). High pressure usually indicates fair weather; low pressure indicates stormy weather.
• 🎈 Radiosonde: A package of weather sensors attached to a weather balloon, measuring temperature, humidity, wind speed, and wind direction as it ascends through the atmosphere. Data is transmitted back to ground stations.

Practice Quiz

1. Which instrument is used to measure air temperature?
   1. Anemometer
   2. Hygrometer
   3. Thermometer
   4. Barometer
2. What does a hygrometer measure?
   1. Wind speed
   2. Humidity
   3. Air pressure
   4. Rainfall
3. Which instrument measures wind speed?
   1. Wind vane
   2. Rain gauge
   3. Anemometer
   4. Thermometer
4. What is the function of a wind vane?
   1. Measure air pressure
   2. Indicate wind direction
   3. Measure rainfall
   4. Measure humidity
5. Which instrument measures the amount of rainfall?
   1. Hygrometer
   2. Anemometer
   3. Rain gauge
   4. Barometer
6. What does a barometer measure?
   1. Temperature
   2. Humidity
   3. Atmospheric pressure
   4. Wind speed
7. What is a radiosonde?
   1. An instrument to measure ocean temperature.
   2. A type of advanced radar system.
   3. A package of weather sensors attached to a weather balloon.
   4. An instrument used to measure solar radiation.