Kids need to know all kinds of interesting wild weather facts. In this article, you will find all kinds of weather facts. You can print out weather worksheets and an infographic. Get ready to experience everything weather with these weather facts for kids!
You take a look outside your window. Large grey clouds are in the sky. Suddenly, you see a flash of light; you hear a loud rumble, heavy rains pouring down, you’re witnessing a thunderstorm. A minute later, the sky brightens up. The clouds disappear, the sun begins to shine, and you get a glimpse of a rainbow. What happened?
You just witnessed some wild weather. What is the weather exactly? Weather is what is happening in the air and sky all around you. Rain, snow, sunshine, blizzards, tornadoes, and other storms are types of wild weather. Find out important information on climate, temperature, and types of weather with these weather facts for kids.
Interesting Weather Facts for Kids
Sunshine, rain, snow, and storms are all types of weather. Changes in weather patterns are caused by the earth’s atmosphere. The atmosphere is layers of gases above the earth’s surface that surround the earth.
Weather can change daily, hourly, or sometimes by the minute. Weather is important to survival. It affects plants, animals, and people. Too much or too little rain can cause crop failure, affecting food sources.
Scientists who study weather are called meteorologists.
Temperature is measured in degrees using a thermometer. Temperatures below 32 degrees are considered freezing.
Air takes up space and has weight. The weight of the air presses against everything it touches. That force is called air pressure or atmospheric pressure. Click here for an air pressure science experiment for kids.
Weather Forecast
A weather forecast is a prediction of what the weather will be like over a period of time. You can see the weather forecast on the news or read it in the newspaper. Meteorologists use a scientific process called numerical weather prediction to make weather forecasts.
Tools for Measuring Weather
There are many tools for measuring weather.
Thermometer: Thermometers are used to measure how hot or cold it is outside.
Rain Gauge: A rain gauge measures how much precipitation fell in an area over a period of time.
Anemometer: Anemometers measure windspeed
Wind Vanes: Wind vanes measure which direction the wind is blowing
Barometer: A barometer is used to measure the amount of pressure in the atmosphere
Hygrometer: A hygrometer measures how humid it is.
Climate Facts
Climate is patterns of weather over a period of time. Places near the Equator have hot tropical climates. Areas near the North and South Pole have cold, polar climates. Other places have a temperate climate—a mix of both warm and cold weather.
Climate differs from place to place and can change in an instant
We hear the words climate change often, but what is climate change? Climate change refers to the prolonged changes in climate around the world.
Types of Climate
Desert Climates: Desert climates are hot, dry, with little rain, and cold at night. Deserts have the hottest temperatures on the planet. The highest temperature recorded was 134 degrees in California’s Death Valley Desert.
Tropical Climates: Tropical climates are hot all year round with a rainy season. Islands of the Caribbean have tropical climates. The highest recorded rainfall in 24 hours was 71.8 inches of rain on the French Island of Reunion.
Polar Climates: Places that are below freezing year-round are polar climates. The North Pole, South Pole, the Arctic, and Antarctica have a polar climate. Polar Bears, Orcas, and Penguins are animals that live in polar climates. The lowest temperature recorded was -89.2 degrees at the Soviet Vostok Station in Antarctica.
Rainforest: Rainforests are hot and rainy all year long. The Amazon Rainforest has a rainforest climate.
Mountainous Climates: Mountainous climates get colder as you up in elevation.
Temperate Climates: Temperate climates have four seasons Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter
The Four Seasons
The four seasons are Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall. Seasons are determined by the earth’s path around the sun.
It takes the earth 365 days to orbit the sun. When the earth tilt’s away from the sun, the climate is cold. When the earth’s tilt is towards the sun the climate is warm.
To learn more about the four seasons, check out winter facts for kids, summer facts for kids, fall facts for kids, and spring facts for kids.
Free Printable Weather Infographic for Kids
Clouds
There are many different types of clouds.
Cirrus: Cirrus clouds are the long thin clouds you see high up in the sky.
Stratus: Stratus clouds look like large thick blankets across the sky; Stratus clouds are a sign that rain or snow is on the way
Cumulus: Cumulus clouds are the white puffy clouds you see in the sky.
Nimbus Clouds: Nimbus clouds are the dark storm clouds in the sky.
Click here for more amazing cloud facts for kids.
Weather and Climate Facts for Kids
Droplets of water falling from clouds are called rain. Light rain is called a drizzle. When it is raining hard, it’s called heavy rain, or some people say it’s pouring—heavy rain. Heavy rain can lead to flooding.
Snow forms when the air temperature is below freezing (32 degrees). Click here for snow facts for kids. A storm that brings heavy snowfall with high wind speed is called a blizzard.
Sometimes snow melts as it falls from the clouds. When melting snow hits cold air and freezes again, it is turned into tiny pieces of ice, called sleet.
Storms
A storm is a disturbance in the earth’s atmosphere. Storms can cause severe weather. Severe weather can cause property damage and even kill people. Hurricanes, tropical depressions, cyclones, tornados, blizzards, thunderstorms, ice storms, and tropical storms are examples of storms.
Thunderstorm
Strong thunderstorm clouds produce tiny balls of ice called hail or hailstorms Where does hail come from Sometimes winds during storms will push water droplets high into the sky where the air is cold The water droplets freeze and fall back to the clouds, then to the earth as hail When this happens, the ice droplets or hailstones grow in size, usually about the size of a pea, before hitting the ground Hail the size of golf balls has been reported!
Monsoons
Monsoons are winds that carry heavy rains. They typically occur in Asia, places close to the equator, and places with a rainy season. Monsoons can cause flash flooding.
Tropical Depressions
A tropical depression is a cyclone with wind speeds under 38 mph They usually cause less damage than a hurricane.
Hurricane
A hurricane is a large circular storm with an “eye” in the middle They have windspeeds over 74 miles per hour Hurricanes form over the ocean and other warm tropical waters and move towards land.
Strong hurricanes can cause severe damage and loss of life.
Tornado
Tornadoes are large rotating air columns connecting from a cloud to the ground Tornadoes move quickly and are destructive They can destroy entire neighborhoods in minutes Tornado Alley is where the most tornadoes occur in the U.S., in the states of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, South Dakota, Louisiana, Iowa, and Nebraska.
Tornadoes that occur over the ocean are called tornadic waterspouts.
Interesting Weather Facts for kids
Wildfires have created tornadoes These tornadoes made of fire are called fire whirls.
It is recommended that you stay indoors during thunderstorms A tree is one of the most unsafe places during lightning They are the 2nd highest cause of lightning deaths.
Amazing Facts about Weather for Kids
The sunniest place on earth is the Sahara Desert in Northern Africa It has 4,300 hours of sunlight per year The sunniest place in the U.S. is Yuma, Arizona It has 4,015 hours of sunlight a year.
Meghalaya, India is the wettest place on earth It receives 467 inches of rain a year.
The windest place on earth is Commonwealth Bay, Antarctica They have reported wind speeds of 200 mph.
Too much sunshine is not always good Long periods without rain can cause droughts. During droughts, crops die. Crops provide food for people and animals. Dead crops lead to food shortages and people can go hungry.
Droughts can also cause devastating forest fires.
A drought in Oklahoma during the 1930s caused a dust bowl All the crops died, there were no roots to hold the soil together, and everything turned to dust Some farms blew away.
Funny Facts about the Weather for Kids
The term it’s raining cats and dogs means it’s raining heavily.
When Wind and dirt mix together, they produce storms are black blizzards.
Count cricket’s chirps to tell the temperature.
When Fall temperatures are mild, it usually means you will find larger spiders in your house!
In 2003 heat waves turned grapes into raisins before they were picked from the vine.
During one hurricane in Florida, 900 python snakes escaped captivity.
Frogs are louder right before it rains.
Cats and dogs have felt a tornado is coming.
Weather Facts Worksheets
Check out these free weather printables
