Meteorology Today: An Introduction to Weather, Climate, and the Environment

HIGH-IMPACT PHENOMENA: Thunderstorms, tornadoes and hurricanes are each thoroughly covered through in-depth chapters, engaging students with dramatic real-world examples and relevant concepts.

ONLINE APPENDICES: Quick-access online resources enable students to explore actual weather data -- such as world temperature and precipitation extremes over a 30-year period -- and apply them to assignments and projects that help sharpen their reasoning and quantitative skills.

END OF CHAPTER PROBLEMS AND EXERCISES: Co-author Robert Henson adapted problems from the text into multiple choice assignments that function as summative assessments at the end of each chapter -- enabling students to check their progress and maximize their study time.

CHAPTER VIGNETTES: Each chapter opens with compelling stories that draw students into the discussion naturally, raising their interest in meteorology and climate change.

INQUIRING FEATURES: In-text queries and four types of questions at the end of each chapter help students recall significant material, test their understanding and improve problem-solving skills.

FOCUSED DISCOVERY: "Focus On" boxes examine concepts at greater depth, adding real-world context and meaning to meteorological observation methods, environmental issues and a variety of more advanced topics.

CLIMATE FINDS: Helping students engage with chapter concepts, "Weather Watch" boxes highlight interesting weather facts and astonishing meteorological events that may not be commonly known.

CASE STUDIES: Helping readers further engage with key concepts, each chapter includes an article selected by co-author and meteorologist Robert Henson from sources such as NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration). Students directly access academic and newsworthy papers on modern developments and meteorological trends, allowing them to apply their knowledge from the classroom to real-world events and discoveries.

FOCUS SECTIONS: Helping students find a personal connection to chapter material, insightful Focus sections throughout illustrate how key concepts apply to everyday life. New Focus sections include "Weather and the Flu: It's Not the Cold, It's the Humidity" (Chapter 4), "North America's Own Monsoon" (Chapter 9), "When Winter Went AWOL: The Extreme Positive AO Winter of 2019-2020" (Chapter 10), and "Fire Tornadoes: The Unusual Spinoffs of Wildfires" (Chapter 15).

CONTEMPORARY EVENTS: Thorough updates to the readings include discussions of recent tropical cyclones in the Atlantic and elsewhere, catastrophic forest fires of the late 1990s and trends in global temperatures and greenhouse gases.

ATMOSPHERIC OBSERVATION AND ANALYSIS: New information highlights many of the technologies used to observe and analyze the atmosphere, including upper-air data from aircraft, the forthcoming NOAA Unified Forecast System and satellite-based lightning detectors.

INTEREST-GRABBING EXTREMES: A new graphic spotlights the all-time highest and lowest temperatures observed in each state. Many other standout events are also incorporated into the narrative, bringing chapter concepts to life.