Thunderstorms may be an awesome force to watch and admire form afar, but they are something that many of us try to avoid. After all, it's not much fun to be struck by lightning!

So how do pilots avoid thunderstorms when they are up in the air close to a storm while flying a plane?

Thunderstorm avoidance is a technique important to pilots. Thunderstorms have been known to take down a number of small planes, and they even have been responsible for (or at least suspected as being the cause of) some accidents involving large planes. 

• One way pilots avoid a thunderstorm when flying a plane is to fly on top of the thunderstorm.
   
• They also use air traffic control's help as well -- since they can see on radar what a pilot cannot see out the window when flying through rain.
   
• Another thing pilots do is track storms on radar ahead of time to see where the thunderstorms are heading.

Well, then here's a good site for you: Is It Going To Rain?

By simply punching in your zip code, you will get a quick answer as to whether it is going to rain or not -- based on where you are.

• Yes - means you have rain coming.
• No - means you don't have rain coming.

It's as simple as that!

Survival kits are also vital when your home has been greatly affected by the weather and you need a way to survive without your usual food, housing, and comfort items.

Survival kits usually include:

• Flashlights
• First-aid kit
• Change of clothes
• Water
• Toiletries
• Weather radio
• Cards, a small board game, or something else to pass the time

Survival kits can assembled and used for all types of weather events, but some of the most common scenarios during which you will likely use a survival kit are:

• Tornadoes
• Blizzards
• Severe thunderstorms
• Flooding
• Hurricanes

• Flood insurance, generally, is a separate type of insurance policy, so prepare to have to pay for it separately from your other insurance coverage.
   
• Check FEMA insurance rate maps or your local county government to find out if you live in a flood zone.
   
• Insurance usually takes 30 days to take effect, so that means the flood insurance you take out today will not cover next week's hurricane flood damage. Don't wait for a hurricane warning to get flood insurance!

Interestingly, The Old Farmer's Almanac has been making year-long weather forecasts for decades and decades, yet modern technology still struggles with making accurate year-long forecasts.

Still, some meteorologists try to make long-range forecasts for major companies who want the data to project and prepare for sales or upcoming events.

The goal, it seems, is to have long-range weather forecasting available on a regular basis to all. That day may eventually come as long-range forecasting becomes more reliable and as the technology becomes less expensive.

For now, though, you can try making your own weather predictions. Or, take the easy way out and just make your picnic plans, party preparations, or vacation itineraries based off the 7-day forecast on the local news.

 

Well, sort of.

Scholastic (the major children's book publisher) is offering kids a chance to control the weather using an interactive weather maker.

The interactive weather maker lets you do practically anything you want with the weather. You must follow only 2 rules:

• You have to keep the temperature at the equator warmer than the temperatures toward the North Pole and South Pole
   
• You have to keep the difference between the 2 temperatures less than 71 degrees

Sounds pretty fun, huh?

If you just want to know what the local weather is going to be like and don't want to worry about having to control it, then be sure to use some of these tips to get the best local forecast:

• Use more than one local news station (if available) to get an idea as to the "average" forecast
   
• Be sure to check out local online news services for their local forecasts and a view of the local weather radar to look for incoming storms

They would make wonderful activity books for your children, your students, or any other young friends or family members who might have an interest in weather and meteorology!

There are many great ways to help pique a young person's interest in weather, including fun weather activities and experiments that will certainly make any young child curious about weather, meteorology, and all the great and dramatic things that happen in the sky.

But in nature they serve a very important role.

Hurricanes form over warm ocean waters when gathering thunderstorms become an area of low pressure and further strengthen.

Hurricanes can travel at speeds of 20 miles per hour or greater and pack winds of over 155 miles per hour. It's easy to see why hurricanes wind up doing some pretty extreme damage.

So, how exactly do hurricanes serve a good purpose when they tend to destroy our communities and many things within them?

Actually, hurricanes do a number of beneficial things:

• Hurricanes cool off areas underneath with rain, wind, and cloud cover.
   
• Rains from a hurricane can snap a drought very quickly.
   
• Hurricanes may destroy trees and mess up beaches, but in the process they encourage the growth of new trees and create new sand bars and other beach formations.

These 10 global warming commercials range from sarcastic to poignant, but they all drive home an important point:  we cannot avoid facing the sobering reality of global warming.

There are many people who do not believe global warming is being caused by humans' activities since the Industrial Revolution. Yet, whether we cause warmer global temperatures or not, the point is that we are caught in a trend of temperatures which are increasing every year and facing the meltaway of Greenland's and the Arctic's ice caps.

Here's when you can expect to see the next meteor shower and what to expect.

Once you nail down a time and a location, the next hurdle is making sure Mother Nature keeps clear skies above -- so you can actually see the meteor shower!

Believe me, clouds really can be a problem with meteor showers. I have tried to view some meteor showers in the past but the sky got cloudy and I couldn't see any meteors streaking across the heavens!

Thankfully, there is almost always a meteor shooting across the sky somewhere, so if you wait long enough you will likely see one.

FUN TIP: If you want to hear meteor showers, turn on your FM radio so that all you hear is static. Whenever a meteor shower happens, the ionosphere (where radio waves bounce up in the atmosphere) is ionized, temporarily allowing stations up to 1,000 miles away to be heard on your radio! 

Cold fronts are not themselves actual masses of cold air, per se. Cold fronts simply are the line (or transition area) between a warmer air mass and the cooler air mass moving in.

While most cold fronts are accompanied by clouds, rain, and often severe storms, some cold fronts pass without much -- if any -- fanfare at all.

Here's everything you want to know about weather cold fronts...

I never knew either, until I saw this great video that shows the whole thing being done right before my very eyes.

It's quick, and you can't blink, so watch carefully -- that boiling water turns into ice crystals in a flash!
 

Snow is coming down in parts of the country already, and some folks have already seen some blisteringly cold weather, so maybe you can give it a try yourself sometime!

And don't forget that their are many other ways to have fun with snow, too. Here's to a fun winter, everybody!

While some people may think of a golden retriever or dachshund sitting in a lawn chair and basking in the sun, a real sun dog has nothing to do with dogs.

But they sure do have a lot to do with the sun!

By the way, sun dogs, are often referred to by their Latin name: parhelion (or parhelia, when referring to more than one parhelion).

Sun dogs are also sometimes called "mock suns."

Okay, so what exactly are sun dogs?...

It's true. But it takes some skill.

The key is in learning Mother Nature's signs and symbols which indicate what future weather is going to be like.

For example:

• A red sky in the west indicates fair weather is likely coming your way
• A red sky in the east during the morning means storms could soon be charging toward you.

There are many similar tips, tricks, and tactics which people use to forecast the weather on their own. If you take your time to study weather patterns, you will soon find that forecasting the weather on your own can be a piece of cake and a load of fun!