Atmospheric Phenomena (Meaning and Explanation)

We explain what atmospheric phenomena are, what types exist, their consequences, characteristics and various examples.

hurricane atmospheric phenomena — Changes in air pressure, humidity or temperature generate atmospheric phenomena.

What are atmospheric phenomena?

Atmospheric phenomena or meteorological phenomena, are all events that take place in the Earth's atmosphere. Most of them are due to local variations and imbalances in temperature and density, that is, winds, which always go from areas of colder and denser air to areas of warmer and more dilated air.

The Earth's atmosphere comprises various strata as it moves away from the Earth's surface, varying in its pressure and temperature conditions. The same thing happens when you change latitude and longitude, according to the various climatic regions of the world, which change in the relationship of humidity, density and amount of solar energy received.

Changes in the forces and properties of the atmosphere cause various phenomena such as the hydrological cycle and the different meteorological cycles of the globe. They also cause more intense or erratic atmospheric phenomena, which may well turn into a natural catastrophe, or even striking atmospheric optical effects.

Broadly speaking, atmospheric phenomena can be of three types, according to their nature:

Opticians. When they are due to the way sunlight enters the Earth's atmosphere, and its interaction with the air at its different levels. An example of this is the northern lights.
Water When they are due to the impact of atmospheric conditions on the hydrological or water cycle. For example, rains and drizzles.
Meteorological When they are due to the impact of pressure and temperature conditions on the air masses that make up the atmosphere (the winds). For example, hurricanes and tropical depressions.

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Examples of atmospheric phenomena

atmospheric phenomena northern lights — The northern lights are optical atmospheric phenomena.

We can list some well-known atmospheric phenomena, such as:

The precipitations That is, rain, drizzle and, depending on the pressure and temperature conditions in the atmospheric regions close to the Earth's surface, also hail and snow, as they are solid or semi-solid forms of water.
The hurricanes This fearsome atmospheric phenomenon is due to the encounter and contrast of hot and cold winds that, rotating around a common axis, become trapped and generate a loss of pressure. In principle, these typically tropical and Atlantic Ocean phenomena are called “Tropical Depressions,” and as they absorb matter and energy, enlarging, they become “Tropical Storms” and finally “Hurricanes.” They are characterized by heavy rainfall, very strong and fast winds, and rapid drops in temperature.
The auroras Both in the northern hemisphere (aurora borealis) and in the south (aurora australis), these visual phenomena are due to the impact of solar particles emitted into space (solar wind) with the Earth's magnetosphere, producing in the regions near the poles of the planet a visual spectacle of colors, lights and shapes apparent in the sky.
The tornadoes A tornado is a column of air in a vortex that is in contact with the Earth's surface and with a cumulus nimbus cloud, rotating on its axis with an extremely high angular velocity. This is the cyclonic phenomenon with the highest energy density on the planet, and they usually have the shape of a funnel or an inverted cone, being capable of dragging and throwing various materials and living beings in their path.
The rainbow Rainbows are well-known optical phenomena, which cross the sky after (or during) a light rain or some other similar situation of atmospheric humidity. In these cases, sunlight passes through the raindrops as it would through a prism, breaking down into all the colors that make up the visible light spectrum.