Timeline of meteorology

A chronological account of major observations, instruments, theories, and developments in the scientific study of the atmosphere and weather.

Connect

Aristotle's Meteorologica: A fourth-century BCE treatise discussing weather, atmospheric phenomena, and other events below the Moon. It gave meteorology its name and framed atmospheric phenomena for centuries.
Mercury barometer: An instrument that measures atmospheric pressure by balancing a mercury column against the surrounding air. It enabled pressure observations essential to identifying changing weather systems.
Galileo Galilei: An Italian astronomer and physicist who developed an early thermoscope, a precursor to the thermometer. Temperature measurement became one of the foundations of systematic weather observation.
Weather forecasting: The use of observations and models to estimate future atmospheric conditions. Its growth is the central practical outcome of meteorology’s historical developments.
Weather lore: Traditional sayings and practices that infer weather from recurring natural signs. It contrasts local inherited prediction with instrument-based scientific meteorology.
Anemometer: An instrument that measures wind speed, and sometimes wind direction. Early wind measurement turned qualitative weather reports into comparable observations.
Thermometer: An instrument that measures temperature using a calibrated physical property that changes with heat. Standardized temperature readings made local weather records comparable.
Edmond Halley: An English astronomer who published an influential map of global trade winds in 1686. His account connected large-scale winds with solar heating and Earth’s rotation.
Storm warning: An official alert that hazardous storm conditions are expected or occurring. Forecasting systems developed partly to give communities and ships advance warning.
Climate science: The study of long-term patterns, variability, and change in Earth’s climate system. Meteorological observations became foundational records for distinguishing weather from climate.