SCIENCE FACTS

                                                             SCIENCE FACTS

  

CLOUD

  A cloud is a large group of tiny water droplets that we can see in the air.

Clouds are formed when water on Earth evaporates into the sky and condenses high up in the cooler air. Learn more about the water cycle.

.Clouds can contain millions of tons of water.

Clouds can also be made of other chemicals.

Other planets in our Solar System have clouds. Venus has thick clouds of sulfur-dioxide

while Jupiter and Saturn have clouds of ammonia.

THUNDER

·  hunder is the sound caused by lightning.

·  The intense heat from lightning causes the surrounding air to rapidly expand and create a sonic wave that you hear as thunder.
·  The average temperature of lightning is around 20000 °C (36000 °F).
·  The sound of thunder can be anything from a loud crack to a low rumble.
·  Light travels faster than sound so we see lightning before we hear thunder.
·  The speed of sound is around 767 miles per hour (1,230 kilometres per hour).
·  The speed of light is around 669600000 miles per hour (1080000000 kilometres per hour).
·  Thunder is difficult to hear at distances over 12 miles (20 kilometres).
·  Thousands of years ago philosophers such as Aristotle believed that thunder was caused by the collision of clouds.
·  Astraphobia is the fear of thunder and lightning.

·  The Oklahoma basketball team that play in the National Basketball Association (NBA)are called the Thunder.

LIGHTNING

·         Lightning is a powerful burst of electricity that happens very quickly during a thunderstorm.

·         Lightning is caused by an electrical charge in the atmosphere that is unbalanced.

·         The movement of rain and ice inside a thundercloud creates an electrical charge, with the negative charge (electrons) forming at the bottom of the cloud and the positive charge (protons) forming at the top.

·         Opposites attract so the negative charge at the bottom of the cloud seeks out a positive charge to connect with.

·         Lightning can occur inside clouds, between clouds and from clouds to the ground.

·         Direct lightning strikes are usually fatal.

·         Lightning rods (also called conductors) are metal rods or similar objects that divert lightning safely to the ground, they can often be seen at the top of tall buildings.

·         Most lightning occurs over land rather than oceans, with around 70% of it occurring in the Tropics.

·         Lightning strikes usually last around 1 or 2 microseconds.

·         Lightning contains millions of volts of electricity.

·         Thunder is the sound caused by lightning. Read our thunder facts for more.

·         The average temperature of lightning is around 20000 °C (36000 °F).

·         The study of lightning is known as fulminology.

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HURRICANE

·         A hurricane is an intense tropical storm with powerful winds and heavy rain.

·         Other names for a hurricane include cyclone, typhoon and tropical storm.

·         Hurricanes usually form in tropical areas of the world.

·         Hurricanes develop over warm water and use it as an energy source.

·         Hurricanes lose strength as they move over land.

·         Coastal regions are most at danger from hurricanes.

·         As well as violent winds and heavy rain, hurricanes can also create tornadoes, high waves and widespread flooding.

·         Weather in the eye of a hurricane is usually calm.

·         Hurricanes can be tracked by weather satellites and weather radar closer to land.

·         Hurricanes have led to the death of around 2 million people over the last 200 years.

·         The 1970 Bhola Cyclone that struck Bangladesh killed over 300000 people.

·         In 2005 Hurricane Katrina killed over 1800 people in the United States and caused around $80 billion dollars worth of property damage. The city of New Orleans was hit particularly hard with levee breaches leading to around 80% of the city being flooded.

       

       WIND

·         Wind is the flow of gases, here on Earth it refers to the movement of air.

·         It is caused by differences in air pressure. Air rushes from high pressure areas to lower ones.

·         Short bursts of wind moving at high speeds are known as gusts.

·         Depending on their strength, winds can be known as a breeze, gale, storm or hurricane.

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RAIN

·         Rain falls from clouds in the sky in the form of water droplets, this is called precipitation.

·         Water can also fall from the sky in the form of hail, sleet or snow.

·         Rain is an important part of the water cycle. Learn how it works with our page explaining the water cycle for kids.

·         Rain occurs on other planets in our Solar System but it is different to the rain we experience here on Earth. For example, rain on Venus is made of sulfuric acid and due to the intense heat it evaporates before it even reaches the surface!

FLOOD                                                       A flood is the submerging of normally dry land by an overflow  of water. Depending on their type, floods can develop very slowly over time after extensive rains or in just a few minutes, very quickly, without any sign of rain. Floods can be a localised event affecting a small area of land or a very large disaster that can have an impact on entire islands or river basins.            There are many types and ways floods can occur, including, due to overflowing rivers, due to extreme coastal events, by natural or artificial ground saturation from excess rainfall, or by catastrophic failure in infrastructure.