When the Earth begins to get too hot, the water increases in temperature. As the water continues to get hotter, it begins to undergo a phase change in which water turns to gas. The water droplets turn into water vapor because the temperature has caused the individual water molecules to speed up considerably. This process …
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 …
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 …
Lightning can be described as a massive discharge of electrical energy that can reach the speed of 130,000 mph and can exceed temperatures of 30,000 degrees Celsius. Although we know a lot about this phenomenon, it is still unclear how and why lightning forms. We will mention some of the theories on how lightning is …
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 …
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 …
The Coriolis effect is the tendency for a moving body that is on or above the Earth’s surface to drift sideways from its intended course due to the Earth’s rotation. The direction of drift is to the right in the Northern Hemisphere and to the left in the Southern Hemisphere. This is because the Earth’s …
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, …