WEATHER

A sign on the Hoover Dam warns of dangerous heat levels on September 16, 2022, in Boulder City, Nevada.

What Is a Heat Dome?

Heat domes are masses of hot air trapped within the atmosphere by high pressure. And they're becoming more common, thanks to climate change.

People have spent a long time coming up with interesting ways to beat the heat.

9 Creative Ways People Kept Cool Before Air Conditioning

People have come up with a range of ingenious, harebrained, and sometimes grim but often remarkable ways to stay cool during a summer scorcher.

Some Cool Tips to Cope With a Hot Car

It’s summer and cars have become ovens. But you don’t need to suffer.

Meteorological summer and astronomical summer are not the same.

Why Meteorological and Astronomical Seasons Don’t Line Up

Happy first day of (meteorological) summer!

AirNow’s Interactive Map Shows You the Air Quality Index in Your Area

If you’re in the red on AirNow’s air quality map, you should stay inside.

This beach is sending some mixed messages.

What 11 Beach Flags Mean (And What to Do When You See Them)

Maybe you know what to do when you see a yellow or red flag at the beach. But what about a purple one?

What Is a Red Flag Warning (And What Precautions Should You Take During One)?

High temperatures, low humidity, and lots of wind are prime red flag warning weather.

Three tornadoes on the ground at the same time near Dodge City, Kansas, on May 24, 2016.

12 Powerful Facts About Tornadoes

A 2011 tornado threw a 36-ton railcar 400 feet. Here's what you need to know about these super-powered storms.

Your state has probably seen some unbelievable weather.

Hot and Cold: The All-Time Highest (and Lowest) Recorded Temperatures in Each State

California once hit -45°F degrees.

6 Severe Weather Terms to Know Ahead of Spring Storms

Knowing the difference between these common terms can bolster your safety in severe weather.

Here's Why Snow Removal Is Such a Hard Problem to Solve

Nearly every snow removal method has its drawbacks.

You should always keep an ice scraper in your car during winter.

The Right Way to Use an Ice Scraper on Your Car

This winter, take advantage of a feature on your ice scraper you may be ignoring.

Snowfall vs. Snow Depth: What’s the Difference?

We dig into this winter puzzler.

32 Forgotten Weather Words

Whether you're enjoying a bout of sunshine, enduring a sudden downpour, or suffering through a drought, the obscure corners of English have the word for you.

Seventeen inches of lake-effect snow fell in Chicago in 2021.

What is Lake-Effect Snow?

Requiring a sufficiently large lake is only the first step in creating the monstrous blizzards known as lake-effect snow.

The gender binary looms large in this sphere.

The Sexist History of Naming Hurricanes After Women Only—And How 1970s Feminists Fought to End It

“I’m sick and tired of hearing that ‘Cheryl was no lady as she devastated such and such a town,’” Roxcy Bolton said. She wasn't alone in her exasperation.

You know things are bad if Waffle House starts closing.

How Waffle House Helps Measure the Severity of a Natural Disaster

Waffle House can help first responders assess conditions in areas battered by storms—and serve them breakfast.

Category 4 Hurricane Harvey decimated Houston in 2017.

How Are Hurricane Categories Determined?

In order to assign a numeric category value to a hurricane, meteorologists look to the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.

An electricity-less San Juan, Puerto Rico, post–Hurricane Fiona.

5 Organizations Helping Victims of Hurricane Fiona in Puerto Rico

Just five years after Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico is again largely without power or clean water. Here’s how to help.

It's not everywhere that you can walk on a lake—but you can in Alaska.

The 20 Coldest States in the U.S.

If snow sports and curling up with a good book and steaming mug of tea are your favorite activities, you might want to consider moving to one of America's chilliest states.

What Causes a Heat Wave?

The conditions for stifling heat are pretty easy to explain, and so is the solution: Keep cool.

An aerial shot of downtown Phoenix, Arizona.

The 25 Sunniest Cities in the U.S.

If you’re looking for a change of scenery, don’t underestimate the importance of sunlight.

15 Amazing Facts About "The Year Without a Summer"

Few volcanoes had had such a dramatic and devastating impact on the world as Indonesia's Mount Tambora.

Why Does Humidity Make Us Feel Hotter?

Is it really not the heat, but the humidity? With temperatures spiking around the world, it's a good time to answer some questions about the heat index.

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