Hi, guys! Welcome back.
Today, we're going to talk about-
Sorry about that.
Today, we're going to talk about-
Are you finished, thunder?
Thank you.
Thunder is pretty excited because today's episode is all about it!
Well, to be more specific, today's episode is all about severe weather.
But before things get all snowy, windy and rainy in here, let's bundle up and ask ourselves the big question!
We know that weather is a condition of the air or the atmosphere on our planet.
Severe weather is the same thing only more extreme.
ＥＸＴＲＥＭＥ！
But what does that mean?
How do you know when the weather is severe or extreme and when it isn't?
Some light rain probably wouldn't count as severe weather, but a thunderstorm with heavy rain and lightning, would.
Tornadoes, blizzards, hurricanes, floods, and droughts are other forms of severe weather that can be dangerous to humans.
But the more you know about these weathers events, the less scarier they seem.
Let's start with tornadoes.
With wind speeds up to over 300 kilometers an hour, tornadoes have the power to pick up and destroy everything in their path.
Well, not as quite windy as a tornado.
Speaking of lots of water, let's talk flooding.
A drought is sort of the opposite. Think a lot less water, or no water at all!
How so? Let's find out! I'll conjure up some different types of severe weather to see how exactly shake-ups in the atmosphere can impact the biosphere and the geosphere.
Severe weather can be dangerous for people, obviously, but beyond affecting humans in the biosphere, severe weather can affect plants and animals too.
Take a drought, after very long spells without enough rain, this nice mountain pond will become smaller and maybe even dry up entirely!
That means less habitats for the animals that live in the water like ducks and beavers.
But it also means less plant life around because plants need water too.
And fewer plants mean less food for animals like deer and elk that feast on them.
But what about the opposite problem? What about the problem of too much water in the form of heavy rain?
Really strong thunderstorms can sometimes bring lightning and high winds that can damage trees.
Maybe breaking off some of their limbs and uprooting them or even setting them on fire!
This is bad news not only for the tree but everything that lives in it.
And finally, even the ground. As solid as it might seem, can be reshaped by severe weather.
Strong recurring flood waters act like powerful rivers that can actually wear down rocky formations like mountains over time.
The atmosphere interacts strongly with the other spheres of the environment, particularly when it's cooking up severe weather.
It can even move things in the biosphere and reshape the geosphere!
So now you know how to tell if weather is severe or not.
If the answer is yes, you're not dealing with normal weather patterns.
Severe weather might be less common but it has a much bigger impact on the world around you.
Anything to add, thunder?
I guess that means we're done!
Captions by SnowstormBoy ^-^