Section outline

  • Weather is the state of the atmosphere in a certain place at a certain time. Weather always changes and is different all around the world. It depends on many elements. It may be warm and sunny in one place but cold, windy and rainy somewhere else.

    Climate refers to the weather conditions in a certain area over a longer period of time.

    Weather is important to everyone. It affects our daily lives in many ways. What we wear depends on the weather. Weather affects the way plants and crops grow. Extreme weather may lead to dangerous situations. Hurricanes and storms may even kill people and destroy houses and roads.

    Our weather is made in the troposphere—the lower layer of the atmosphere. Our atmosphere consists of 78% nitrogen and about 21 % oxygen. Water vapour in the atmosphere produces clouds, rain, snow and fog.

    Image: Mario Hains, CC BY-SA 3.0,
    via Wikimedia Commons 



    Words

    • affect = to have an effect on; influence, change
    • atmosphere = the mixture of gases around a planet
    • consists of = is made up of
    • crops = plants, such as wheat or rice, which farmers grow and sell as food
    • depends on = is affected by other elements
    • destroy = damage completely
    • extreme = great, very unusual, not normal
    • fog = clouds that are near the ground; they are difficult to see through
    • layer = part, section
    • nitrogen = a gas that has no colour and no smell; it forms most of the Earth's atmosphere
    • oxygen = a gas that is in the air and which we need to breathe
    • refers to = is about
    • state = condition
    • vapour = very small drops