ANT Forum

Hi everyone,
Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about how unpredictable the weather can be. One day it's sunny and mild, the next it’s stormy and cold, sometimes with no obvious reason. This made me wonder: what exactly influences the weather we experience on a daily basis?

I know temperature, humidity, and air pressure are important factors, but I don’t really understand how they interact. How do large-scale systems like jet streams, ocean currents, or even volcanoes affect weather patterns?
And what role do things like altitude or urban environments play?

I'm especially curious whether weather is mostly local or if it's always tied to larger, global systems. Does climate change have a daily effect on the weather, or is that influence more long-term? And how much of our weather can truly be predicted accurately?

Also, does human activity influence weather in small, noticeable ways—or only in terms of long-term climate shifts? I've read about things like “urban heat islands” and cloud seeding, but I’m not sure how significant those really are.
What are some of the most surprising or lesser-known factors that influence weather conditions?

Lastly, I'm wondering how weather forecasting works in the first place—how are these predictions made, and what are their limits?
Would love to hear your thoughts, personal experiences, or even book/documentary recommendations on this fascinating topic!

Thanks in advance for any insights you can share!      

Hey there!

Great question—weather is incredibly complex, and you're right to wonder how so many different things can affect it at once. At its core, weather is influenced by the sun’s energy, which heats the Earth unevenly, causing variations in temperature, air pressure, and moisture.

This uneven heating creates wind systems, which move air masses around. The Coriolis effect—caused by Earth’s rotation—shapes how winds and storms move, especially in large-scale systems like hurricanes. On top of that, jet streams, which are fast-moving air currents high in the atmosphere, play a huge role in steering weather systems.

Oceans are another big player: currents like the Gulf Stream transport warm water to colder regions, influencing coastal climates and storm development. Things like El Niño and La Niña can drastically shift global weather patterns every few years.

On a smaller scale, mountains can block or lift air masses, leading to rain on one side and dryness on the other—this is called the rain shadow effect. Cities contribute too, creating urban heat islands, where concrete and asphalt trap heat, slightly altering local temperatures.

Human activity, especially through greenhouse gas emissions, contributes more to climate change than direct day-to-day weather changes. However, pollution can affect cloud formation and rainfall in certain regions. Experiments like cloud seeding are real, but their effectiveness is still debated.

One of the most interesting lesser-known influences is volcanic eruptions—they can inject particles into the upper atmosphere, cooling the planet temporarily by reflecting sunlight. Similarly, solar activity (like sunspots) may have subtle, long-term effects.

Weather forecasting relies on massive computer models, fed by data from satellites, weather stations, and balloons. These models simulate atmospheric behavior—but they’re only reliable up to about 7–10 days due to the chaotic nature of the system.

So yes, weather is affected by both local conditions and global systems, and while forecasts are improving, nature still loves to surprise us.

Hope this gives you a better overview!