The best, most readable and visually stimulating guide to our nation's weather--featuring the full-color graphics of the most popular section of America's most popular newspaper.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
The oft-disparaged USA Today has influenced the American press most notably in its thorough, graphic approach to weather. This book, written by the founding editor of the newspaper's weather page and illustrated by its artists, taps that expertise. Useful both as a reference work and a browse, the book presents a wealth of information, making complex ideas--such as why wind directions change with altitude--accessible through colorful maps and graphics. Chapters cover everything from storms to droughts, with a look at weather forecasting as well as the diversity of our country's weather. The chapters include interesting tidbits such as the effect of heat on an airplane's takeoff distance and the importance of seeking higher ground during a flood. Boxed sidebars examine weather disasters and profile weather scientists such as Jack Parrish, who flies into hurricanes to study them. In the margins Williams offers weather factoids such as Eskimo names for snow. Only infrequently does the newspaper's cutesy style grate, such as in a graphic headlined "Inside the Sun: Our Life-Giving Inferno." Included are a glossary and weather record for all 50 states.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
Most people are familiar with the colorful maps and other graphics used on the weather page of USA Today . This book, by one of the founders of that page, supplies the background to better understand weather maps and a multitude of weather phenomena. As one might expect, the illustrations are outstanding and the text is readable and up to date. But the text is meaty as well. This is a very good detailed introduction to the field, complementary to David M. Ludlum's The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Weather (Knopf, 1991). The only negative aspect of the book is its narrow inner margins, making rebinding a problem. Recommended for public and high school libraries.
- Joseph Hannibal, Cleveland Museum of Natural History
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
- Joseph Hannibal, Cleveland Museum of Natural History
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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More About the Author
The "AMS Weather Book: The Ultimate Guide to America's Weather" is Jack Williams' sixth book.
He was the founding editor of the USA TODAY weather page in 1982 and took on additional duties as online weather editor when USATODAY.com was established in 1995. He retired from USA TODAY in 2005 and became the Coordinator of Public Outreach for the American Meteorological Society.
He wrote the "AMS Weather Book" while working for the AMS. He is now a freelance science writer, which includes writing the monthly "The Weather Never Sleeps" for Flight Training Magazine.
Williams' first book was the "USA TODAY Weather Book" with two editions, the first in 1991 and second in 1996.
His other books are: "The USA TODAY Weather Almanac" in 1993, co-author of "Hurricane Watch: Forecasting the Deadliest Storms on Earth" in 2001, with Dr. Bob Sheets, retired director of the National Hurricane Center, "The Complete Idiots Guide to the Arctic and Antarctic," in 2003, and co-author with Stephen Leatherman of "Hurricanes: Causes, Effects, and the Future
in 2008.
The AMS awarded Williams its "Louis J. Battan Author's Award" for the "Weather Book" in January 1994, and Williams and Sheets the same award in 2004 for "Hurricane Watch."
Williams became fascinated with weather in the late 1970s when he earned a private pilots license. At the time, he was a copy editor at the Democrat and Chronicle in Rochester, N.Y. He took courses in meteorology at the State University of New York College at Brockport, and began writing a weekly weather column for the Democrat and Chronicle, which is owned by Gannett Corp., Inc.
When Gannett decided in 1981 to look into publishing a new national newspaper to be known as USA TODAY, Williams was assigned to work with the editors and artists designing the new national newspaper. When the company decided to publish the paper in early 1982 Williams moved to the Washington, D.C. area as a member of the paper's founding staff.
At USA TODAY Williams reported on atmospheric and other sciences, incuding polar science beginning in 1997 when the National Science Foundation selected him to travel to Greenland to report from a research camp on the Ice Sheet. In 1999 he reported from Antarctica, where he became a pioneer blogger from the South Pole and other parts of Antarctica with his daily "trip diary" reports for USATODAY.com. Between 1999 and 2004 Williams made three more reporting trips to Greenland's Ice Sheet, and a research icebreaker sailing the Arctic Ocean. He also reported from flights into hurricanes aboard National Oceanic Administration WP-3 airplanes.
He was the founding editor of the USA TODAY weather page in 1982 and took on additional duties as online weather editor when USATODAY.com was established in 1995. He retired from USA TODAY in 2005 and became the Coordinator of Public Outreach for the American Meteorological Society.
He wrote the "AMS Weather Book" while working for the AMS. He is now a freelance science writer, which includes writing the monthly "The Weather Never Sleeps" for Flight Training Magazine.
Williams' first book was the "USA TODAY Weather Book" with two editions, the first in 1991 and second in 1996.
His other books are: "The USA TODAY Weather Almanac" in 1993, co-author of "Hurricane Watch: Forecasting the Deadliest Storms on Earth" in 2001, with Dr. Bob Sheets, retired director of the National Hurricane Center, "The Complete Idiots Guide to the Arctic and Antarctic," in 2003, and co-author with Stephen Leatherman of "Hurricanes: Causes, Effects, and the Future
in 2008.
The AMS awarded Williams its "Louis J. Battan Author's Award" for the "Weather Book" in January 1994, and Williams and Sheets the same award in 2004 for "Hurricane Watch."
Williams became fascinated with weather in the late 1970s when he earned a private pilots license. At the time, he was a copy editor at the Democrat and Chronicle in Rochester, N.Y. He took courses in meteorology at the State University of New York College at Brockport, and began writing a weekly weather column for the Democrat and Chronicle, which is owned by Gannett Corp., Inc.
When Gannett decided in 1981 to look into publishing a new national newspaper to be known as USA TODAY, Williams was assigned to work with the editors and artists designing the new national newspaper. When the company decided to publish the paper in early 1982 Williams moved to the Washington, D.C. area as a member of the paper's founding staff.
At USA TODAY Williams reported on atmospheric and other sciences, incuding polar science beginning in 1997 when the National Science Foundation selected him to travel to Greenland to report from a research camp on the Ice Sheet. In 1999 he reported from Antarctica, where he became a pioneer blogger from the South Pole and other parts of Antarctica with his daily "trip diary" reports for USATODAY.com. Between 1999 and 2004 Williams made three more reporting trips to Greenland's Ice Sheet, and a research icebreaker sailing the Arctic Ocean. He also reported from flights into hurricanes aboard National Oceanic Administration WP-3 airplanes.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
50 of 54 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best weather book for the layman ever written,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Weather Book: An Easy-to-Understand Guide to the USA's Weather (Paperback)
Reading this book is a lot like watching a TV weather report. It is concise yet entertaining, and it is always accurate down to every detail. The colorful graphics and the easy to understand explanations make this book a winner. I constantly refer viewers that call me with questions about weather to this book. If you only buy one book in your life about weather, buy this one, you won't be disappointed!
30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Great Base for Understanding Weather,
By
This review is from: The Weather Book: An Easy-to-Understand Guide to the USA's Weather (Paperback)
A simply wonderful book to better understand (almost) all there is to know about weather. Large, clear graphics help illustrate some of the more difficult topics, occasional little weather tid bits thrown in for fun, and easy-to-read style makes this book a must have for anyone wanting to learn more about our atmosphere. I've even used this book to teach a "Weather for Non-Science Majors" college course.
24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Exceptional,
This review is from: The Weather Book: An Easy-to-Understand Guide to the USA's Weather (Paperback)
A very exceptional book with regards to an introduction to weather and meteorology. Three dimensional drawings and plain language make understanding weather systems much more understandable. A great aid for weather chasers and pilots who want to understand more about the weather ;)
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Inside This Book
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Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs):
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tornado deaths, lightning deaths, strongest tornadoes, supercooled drops, strong tornadoes, computer forecasts, tornado outbreak, rising air cools, advancing cold front, steering currents, ensemble forecasts, hurricane research, numerical forecasting, extratropical cyclones, extratropical storms, old radars, weather makers, tropical air masses, rotating column, jet stream winds, infrared energy, air aloft, more water vapor, polar air masses, geomagnetic storms Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
United States, National Weather Service, East Coast, Gulf of Mexico, World War, Hurricane Center, New York, Northern Hemisphere, New England, Gulf Stream, Donner Pass, North America, North Atlantic, Mississippi River, New Orleans, Pressure Gradient Force, Weather Bureau, Des Moines, Hurricane Andrew, Pacific Ocean, South America, Southern Hemisphere, Atlantic Coast, Caribbean Sea, Florida Keys New!
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
tornado deaths, lightning deaths, strongest tornadoes, supercooled drops, strong tornadoes, computer forecasts, tornado outbreak, rising air cools, advancing cold front, steering currents, ensemble forecasts, hurricane research, numerical forecasting, extratropical cyclones, extratropical storms, old radars, weather makers, tropical air masses, rotating column, jet stream winds, infrared energy, air aloft, more water vapor, polar air masses, geomagnetic storms Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
United States, National Weather Service, East Coast, Gulf of Mexico, World War, Hurricane Center, New York, Northern Hemisphere, New England, Gulf Stream, Donner Pass, North America, North Atlantic, Mississippi River, New Orleans, Pressure Gradient Force, Weather Bureau, Des Moines, Hurricane Andrew, Pacific Ocean, South America, Southern Hemisphere, Atlantic Coast, Caribbean Sea, Florida Keys New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 14
books:
See all 14 books this book cites
3
books
cite this book:
- The Essence Of Chaos (The Jessie and John Danz Lecture Series) by Edward Lorenz on page 184, and Back Matter
- Searching for Certainty: What Scientists Can Know About the Future by John L. Casti in Back Matter
- Weather at Sea by David Houghton in Back Matter
- What Light Through Yonder Window Breaks: More Experiments in Atmospheric Physics (Wiley Science Editions) by Craig F. Bohren in Back Matter
- The Hurricane and Its Impact by Robert H. Simpson in Back Matter
See all 14 books this book cites
- Washington Weather by Kevin Ambrose in Back Matter
- State-of-the-Art Fact-Finding: New Ways to Find the Information You Need, Now by Trudi Jacobson on page 330
- The Gardener's Weather Bible: How to Predict and Prepare for Garden Success in Any Kind of Weather by Sally Roth in Back Matter
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