An earthquake is caused when two blocks or plates of the Earth slip past each other in the lateral, vertical, or a combination of directions in a sudden manner. Due to the large pressures that develop between the Earth’s plates along fault lines at the Earth’s surface, one of the bodies will eventually give way. …
An ultrasonic fogger is a device that uses ultrasonic sound waves to break water into millions of individual water droplets that are then sprayed into the air as a thick fog. Ultrasonic foggers are most often used for Halloween decorations as a dry ice replacement. The fog that an ultrasonic fogger produces is not created …
Weather modification refers to willful manipulation of the climate or local weather. Research done in this field goes back to as far as the early 1940s when the US military experimented with cloud seeding to stimulate rain. Today, private corporations have joined the weather modification research effort to protect people, cities and assets from the …
A typhoon is nothing more than a hurricane that occurs in the North West Pacific Ocean. The same conditions that cause a hurricane in the Atlantic ocean that hit the United States every summer are the ones that cause a typhoon. However, a typhoon does have a series of specific “rules” to exist and therefore, …
A tsunami is formed when there is an earthquake, volcanic eruption or, more rarely, a landslide underwater. Typically, neither the earthquake, eruption or landslide are felt because they are so deep under water. However, the actions that have taken place are the first steps that lead to a massive tsunami that can cause tremendous damage …
A psychrometer is a type of hygrometer and is used exclusively to determine the relative humidity or moisture content in the air. Psychrometers represent an older humidity measurement form and electronic sensors that depend on changes in electrical resistance and capacitance rather than condensation temperature have widely replaced them. However, psychrometers are still found in …
There are three stages to a thunderstorm’s life cycle: the cumulus stage, the mature stage, and the dissipation stage. When a thunderstorm begins to form, it does so at the cumulus stage. From there, the storm advances in severity until it reaches its peak at the mature stage and then begins to gradually die out …
Hurricanes are caused by immense low pressured formed over the warm oceans in the summer and early fall months. With this low pressure, water vapor is evaporated off of the ocean surface. This water vapor releases the latent heat of condensation which causes all of the water to begin forming into clouds. This condensation forms …
Ocean currents are one of the main factors that affect climate. Other factors are proximity from the equator, distance from the sea, direction of prevailing winds and relief (mountains). But, for the most part, ocean currents act as one of the most important factors that influence the climate. And the reason why is because a …
A hot water circulator (circulator pump) is a device that circulates hot water through a house’s pipes so that hot water is always instantly available. In traditional one-way plumbing systems, water is run through a hot water heater and directed through the pipes towards the taps whenever a tap is turned on. When a tap …