Meteorology and atmospheric science terminology · MLC-0110

Meteorology and atmospheric science terms: B (142)

• BAbbreviation used on long-term climate outlooks issued by CPC to indicate areas that are likely to be below...
• Back Door Cold FrontA cold front moving south or southwest along the Atlantic seaboard and Great Lakes; these are especially...
• Back-building ThunderstormA thunderstorm in which new development takes place on the upwind side (usually the west or southwest side)...
• BackfireA fire started to stop an advancing fire by creating a burned area in its path.
• BackflowIn hydrologic terms, the backing up of water through a conduit or channel in the direction opposite to normal...
• backing(abbrev. BCKG)- A counterclockwise shift in wind direction (for example, south winds shifting to the east).
• Backing WindsWinds which shift in a counterclockwise direction with time at a given location (e.g. from southerly to...
• BackscatterThe portion of power scattered back in the incident direction.
• back-sheared anvil[Slang], a thunderstorm anvil which spreads upwind, against the flow aloft. A back-sheared anvil often...
• BacksightIn hydrologic terms, a rod reading taken on a point of known elevation, a benchmark or a turning point...
• backwater curveIn hydrologic terms, the longitudinal profile of the surface of a liquid in a non-uniform flow in an open...
• Backwater EffectIn hydrologic terms, the effect which a dam or other obstruction has in raising the surface of the water...
• Backwater FloodingHydrologic terms, upstream flooding caused by downstream conditions such as channel restriction and/or high...
• BAMBinary Angular Measure
• bandpass filterA filter whose frequencies are between given upper and lower cutoff values, while substantially attenuating...
• bandwidthThe frequency range between the lowest and highest frequencies that are passed through a component, circuit...
• bankIn hydrologic terms, the margins of a channel. Banks are called right or left as viewed facing in the...
• bank storageIn hydrologic terms, water absorbed and stored in the void in the soil cover in the bed and banks of a...
• BankfullThe water level, or stage, at which a stream, river or lake is at the top of its banks and any further rise...
• bankfull stageAn established gage height at a given location along a river or stream, above which a rise in water surface...
• banner cloudA cloud plume often observed to extend downwind behind isolated mountain peaks, even on otherwise cloud-free...
• BAPSUBay Area Public Service Unit. Public Service section of the San Francisco Bay Area Weather Service Forecast...
• barAn obstacle formed at the shallow entrance to the mouth of a river or bay.
• Barber Pole[Slang], a thunderstorm updraft with a visual appearance including cloud striations that are curved in a...
• Baroclinic leaf shieldA cloud pattern on satellite images - frequently noted in advance of formation of a low pressure center.
• Baroclinic ZoneA region in which a temperature gradient exists on a constant pressure surface. Baroclinic zones are favored...
• baroclinityA measure of the state of stratification in a fluid in which surfaces of constant pressure (isobaric)...
• barogramAn analog record of pressure produced by a barograph
• barographA barometer that records its observations continuously.
• barometerAn instrument that measures atmospheric pressure.
• Barometric PressureThe pressure of the atmosphere as indicated by a barometer.
• Barotropic SystemA weather system in which temperature and pressure surfaces are coincident, i.e., temperature is uniform (no...
• barotropyThe state of a fluid in which surfaces of constant density (or temperature) are coincident with surfaces of...
• BarrageIn hydrologic terms, any artificial obstruction placed in water to increase water level or divert it. Usually...
• barrier jetA jet-like wind current that forms when a stably-stratified low-level airflow approaches a mountain barrier...
• Bartel's Rotation NumberThe serial number assigned to 27-day rotation periods of solar and geophysical parameters. Rotation 1 in this...
• BASE DATAThose digital fields of reflectivity, mean radial velocity, and spectrum width data in spherical coordinates...
• Base FloodIn hydrologic terms, the national standard for floodplain management is the base, or one percent chance...
• BASE PRODUCTSThose products that present some representation of the base data. This representation may not necessarily be...
• Base ReflectivityBase Reflectivity is the default image. Taken from the lowest (½° elevation) slice, it is the primary image...
• Base StationIn hydrologic terms, a computer which accepts radio signals from ALERT gaging sites, decodes the data, places...
• base widthIn hydrologic terms, the time duration of a unit hydrograph.
• BaseflowIn hydrologic terms, streamflow which results from precipitation that infiltrates into the soil and...
• basinAn area having a common outlet for its surface runoff. Also called a "Drainage Basin."
• Basin BoundaryThe topographic dividing line around the perimeter of a basin, beyond which overland flow (i.e.; runoff)...
• basin lagIn hydrologic terms, the time it takes from the centroid of rainfall for the hydrograph to peak.
• basin rechargeIn hydrologic terms, rainfall that adds to the residual moisture of the basin in order to help recharge the...
• bathymetryThe science of measuring depths of the oceans, lakes, seas, etc.
• BCKGBacking- A counterclockwise shift in wind direction (for example, south winds shifting to the east).
• BCMBecome
• BCMNGBecoming
• BDBlowing Dust
• Beach ErosionThe movement of beach materials by some combination of high waves, currents and tides, or wind.
• beam fillingThe measure of variation of hydrometeor density throughout the radar sampling volume. If there is no...
• BEAM WIDTHAngular width of antenna pattern. Usually that width where the power density is one-half that of the axis...
• Bear's Cage[Slang], a region of storm-scale rotation, in a thunderstorm, which is wrapped in heavy precipitation. This...
• Beaufort ScaleThe Beaufort wind scale is a system used to estimate and report wind speeds when no measuring apparatus is...
• Beaver('s) Tail[Slang], a particular type of inflow band with a relatively broad, flat appearance suggestive of a beaver's...
• Bed LoadIn hydrologic terms, sand, silt, gravel, or soil and rock detritus carried by a stream on or immediately...
• Beginning of FreezupIn hydrologic terms, date on which ice forming a stable winter ice cover is first observed on the water...
• Beginning of the BreakupIn hydrologic terms, date of definite breaking, movement, or melting of ice cover or significant rise of...
• benchmark(Abbrev. BM) - In hydrologic terms, a permanent point whose known elevation is tied to a national network...
• Bergeron ProcessThe process by which ice crystals in a cloud grow at the expense of supercooled liquid water droplets.
• bergy bitA piece of ice which has broken away from an iceberg, extending 1-5 meters above the sea surface and 100-300...
• Bermuda highA semi-permanent, subtropical area of high pressure in the North Atlantic Ocean off the East Coast of North...
• best trackA subjectively-smoothed representation of a tropical cyclone's location and intensity over its lifetime. The...
• BFRBefore
• BGNBegin
• BHNDBehind
• BIASA systematic difference between an estimate of and the true value of a parameter.
• billow cloudA cloud consisting of broad parallel bands oriented perpendicular to the wind.
• BINRadar sample volume.
• BINOVCBreaks in Overcast
• BKNBroken
• BLAbbreviation for Boundary Layer; a layer of air adjacent to a bounding surface. Specifically, the term most...
• black ice1. Slang reference to patchy ice on roadways or other transportation surfaces that cannot easily be seen.
• blackbodyA hypothetical "body" that absorbs all of the electromagnetic radiation striking it - it does not reflect or...
• blackbody radiationThe electromagnetic radiation emitted by an ideal blackbody adhering to the radiation laws; it is the...
• BLDBuild
• BLDUPBuildup
• blizzard(abbrev. BLZD)- A blizzard means that the following conditions are expected to prevail for a period of 3...
• Blizzard WarningIssued for winter storms with sustained or frequent winds of 35 mph or higher with considerable falling...
• BLOBelow
• Blocked FlowFlow approaching a mountain barrier that is too weak or too stable to be carried over the barrier.
• BlowingA descriptor used to amplify observed weather phenomena whenever the phenomena are raised to a height of 6...
• Blowing Dust AdvisoryThis product is issued when widespread, synoptically driven blowing dust is reducing visibilities to 1 mile...
• Blowing Dust or SandStrong winds over dry ground, that has little or no vegetation, can lift particles of dust or sand into the...
• Blowing Dust WarningThis product is issued when widespread, synoptically driven blowing dust is reducing visibilities to ¼ mile...
• blowing snowBlowing snow is wind-driven snow that reduces surface visibility. Blowing snow can be falling snow or snow...
• Blowing Snow AdvisoryIssued when wind driven snow reduces surface visibility, possibly, hampering traveling. Blowing snow may be...
• Blue Watch or Blue Box[Slang], a severe thunderstorm watch.
• BlusterySame as Breezy; 15 to 25 mph winds.
• BLVbefore
• BLZDBlizzard- A blizzard means that the following conditions are expected to prevail for a period of 3 hours or...
• BNBlowing Sand
• BNDRYBoundary
• BombPopular expression of a rapid intensification of a cyclone (low pressure) with surface pressure expected to...
• boraA regional downslope wind whose source is so cold that it is experienced as a cold wind, despite compression...
• Border IceIn hydrologic terms, an ice sheet in the form of a long border attached to the bank or shore.; shore ice.
• boundary layerIn general, a layer of air adjacent to a bounding surface. Specifically, the term most often refers to the...
• bounded weak echo region(Also known as a vault.) Radar signature within a thunderstorm characterized by a local minimum in radar...
• BOVCBase of Overcast
• bow echoA radar echo which is linear but bent outward in a bow shape. Damaging straight-line winds often occur near...
• Bowen ratioFor any moist surface, the ratio of heat energy used for sensible heating (conduction and convection) to the...
• Box ModelA computer model used to calculate air pollution concentrations. A box model is based on the assumption that...
• BRMist
• Brackish IceIn hydrologic terms, ice formed from brackish water.
• Braided StreamIn hydrologic terms, characterized by successive division and rejoining of streamflow with accompanying...
• Brash IceIn hydrologic terms, accumulation of floating ice made up of fragments not more than 2 meters across; the...
• BRDBorder
• BreachIn hydrologic terms, the failed opening in a dam.
• BreakersWaves that break, displaying white water. Depends on wave steepness and bottom bathymetry.
• breakupIn hydrologic terms, the time when a river whose surface has been frozen from bank to bank for a significant...
• Breakup DateIn hydrologic terms, date on which a body of water is first observed to be entirely clear of ice and remains...
• Breakup JamIn hydrologic terms, an ice jam that occurs as a result of the accumulation of broken ice pieces.
• Breakup PeriodIn hydrologic terms, the period of disintegration of an ice cover.
• Breezy15 to 25 mph winds
• BRFBrief
• bright band1. A distinct feature observed by a radar that denotes the freezing level of the atmosphere. The term...
• Bright Surge on the DiskIn solar-terrestrial terms, a bright gaseous stream (surge) emanating from the chromosphere.
• Bright Surge on the LimbIn solar-terrestrial terms, a large gaseous stream (surge) that moves outward more than 0.15 solar radius...
• BrightnessA basic visual sensation describing the amount of light that appears to emanate from an object, or more...
• Brisk15 to 25 mph winds
• Brisk Wind AdvisoryA Small Craft Advisory issued by the National Weather Service for ice-covered waters.
• BRKBreak
• BRN(Bulk Richardson Number) A non-dimensional number relating vertical stability and vertical shear (generally...
• BroadbandA method of signaling in which multiple signals share the bandwidth of the transmission by the subdivision of...
• Brocken SpecterAn optical phenomenon sometimes occurring at high altitudes when the image of an observer placed between the...
• Broken LevelA layer of the atmosphere with 5/8 to 7/8 sky cover (cloud cover).
• BSBlowing Snow
• BTRBetter
• BTWNBetween
• bubble highA mesoscale area of high pressure, typically associated with cooler air from the rainy downdraft area of a...
• Bubbler GageIn hydrologic terms, a water stage recording device that is capable of attaching to a LARC for data...
• BUFKITA software tool used by forecasters to examine the vertical profile and other aspects of the atmosphere.
• bulk Richardson numberA non-dimensional (i.e., no units) number relating vertical stability to vertical shear (generally, stability...
• buoyancyThe tendency of a body to float or to rise when submerged in a fluid; the power of a fluid to exert an upward...
• BurstIn solar-terrestrial terms, a transient enhancement of the solar radio emission, usually associated with an...
• BustSlang for an inaccurate forecast, especially one where significant weather (e.g., heavy snowfall) is...
• Buttress DamButtress dams are comprised of reinforced masonry or stonework built against concrete. They are usually in...
• BWERAbbreviation for Bounded Weak Echo Region; a radar signature within a thunderstorm characterized by a local...
• BYDBeyond

142 of 3,164 terms in Meteorology and atmospheric science terminology (MLC-0110). Request the full dataset.