Why does the earth have cloudy, wet weather and sunny, dry weather? What can I do to prepare for potentially harmful weather conditions such as floods, winter storms, tornadoes and severe thunderstorms? How do temperature changes affect other weather conditions? What guidelines will help me better understand a television weather map and even make a simple weather forecast for my location?

Kentucky 4-H members discover the answers to these and other fascinating aspects of the weather in the four unit Weather Project. Youth progress from learning about elements that make up the weather to applying knowledge to forecast extremes and safeguarding themselves and others from severe conditions.

To reinforce this knowledge, 4-H members take part in a variety of hands-on activities in the Weather Project. For example, 4-Hers might use a globe or large ball and lamp to demonstrate how the earth rotates on its own axis (giving us day and night) and how tilting toward and away as it travels around the sun gives us seasons. 4-H youth experiment with making a cloud and building a simple barometer to measure air pressure changes. They also learn how to prepare for severe weather conditions. Making a winter storm kit for the family vehicle is an important project to complete with their parents or other 4-H Club members.

4-H Club members also build a rain gauge, wind vane, cup anemometer and hair hygrometer to measure humidity. Then, they use this equipment to make and record weather observations for several months. As their weather knowledge increases, 4-H members better understand television weather reports, including the current surface weather map, weather watches and warnings, current and future forecasts and the location of the jet stream and its impact on weather conditions.

4-Hers learn that the atmosphere surrounding the earth is made up of gases. If we compared the earth to a baseball the gaseous covering would be about as thick as a baseball cover. Many complex processes are constantly taking place in the atmosphere. Some can be seen and some cannot. Most of us take these processes for granted. Clouds advertise the weather that is coming your way just as billboards advertise or describe products along a highway. If you know what to look for in a cloud you may be able to forecast the weather more accurately. You will learn about clouds and severe weather.

All these activities and related information are collectively featured in the four 4-H Weather Project Units: The Weather Makers, Billboards in the Sky, Weather Variables and Weather Forecasting.

For more information on the Weather Project and other fun and education 4-H projects, contact Raymond Cox at the Harlan County Cooperative Extension Service at 606-573-4464, 606-273-0835 or rcox@uky.edu.

Raymond Cox is the county extension agent for 4-H/youth development. Educational programs of the Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service serve all people regardless of race, color, age, sex, religion, disability or national origin.