Mountain Meteorology

"Whiteman has grasped an opportunity to compile a broad text covering all aspects of mountain meteorology in a general way, and three selected aspects in specific ways. His efforts are to be applauded and enjoyed. This book represents a significant advance over available books on the topic, and will be warmly welcomed by its intended audience." -- Prof Douw Steyn, University of British Columbia, Agricultural and Forest Meteorology "In this book, the author and his fellow contributors have done a very credible job explaining many of the unique phenomena associated with the mountain environment. Both the clear explanations and an overall manner that makes reading this book a very agreeable learning experience are credits to the author and his editor. This is indeed a book that someone interested in mountain weather would find very useful and informative. Clearly written, well organized, and appropriately illustrated, it is well worth the read."--Kenneth Rancourt, Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society "C. David Whiteman ... has used his expertise to help not just hikers but anyone understand and, in some cases, forecast weather. It's available in his book ... 'I find that when I hike, I get more enjoyment if I can start to recognize things like the wildflowers,' Whiteman said. 'There's never been anyone who has done that for mountain weather, and I thought it would be nice to have the people who read the book be able to recognize the weather features around them and help them predict.' At 355 pages, this is no guidebook to toss in your backpack. Rather, it's a textbook that sent me back to school and those days of ... yellow highlighter pens. But don't let the size of this hardcover intimidate you because Whiteman makes weather, especially those mesmerizing graphics they flash on the Weather Channel, easier to comprehend. ... [A] book for hikers, campers, farmers, pilots, firefighters and anyone who watches TV to see what the weather forecast is for tomorrow."--Tri-City Herald "[A] completely nonmathematical meteorology book with emphasis on fundamentals and applications in mountainous regions. It is particularly recommended for its coverage of air pollution, fire weather and smoke management, and aerial spraying for fire suppression, seeding, fertilizing, and pesticide use for agriculture, forests, and grasslands. Admirably, considerable space is devoted to discussion of energy budgets, temperature differences, and winds in the mountains. Sidebars include safety concerns such as frostbite, hypothermia, heat exhaustion and heat stroke, and dangers from lightning. The figures, diagrams, and especially the photographs are outstanding . . . Meteorological instrumentation, observations, codes, and weather maps are presented. A good glossary, abbreviations, and acronym list are provided. Highly recommended for everyone new to the mountains, and for all meteorology students. General readers; undergraduate and graduate students; professionals."--Choice "C. David Whiteman ... has used his expertise to help not just hikers but anyone understand and, in some cases, forecast weather. It's available in his book ... 'I find that when I hike, I get more enjoyment if I can start to recognize things like the wildflowers,' Whiteman said. 'There's never been anyone who has done that for mountain weather, and I thought it would be nice to have the people who read the book be able to recognize the weather features around them and help them predict.' At 355 pages, this is no guidebook to toss in your backpack. Rather, it's a textbook that sent me back to school and those days of ... yellow highlighter pens. But don't let the size of this hardcover intimidate you because Whiteman makes weather, especially those mesmerizing graphics they flash on the Weather Channel, easier to comprehend. ... [A] book for hikers, campers, farmers, pilots, firefighters and anyone who watches TV to see what the weather forecast is for tomorrow."--Tri-City Herald "An introduction to basic principles and concepts of mountain weather and their applications to natural resources management. Emphasizes observable indicators of atmospheric processes, such as winds, temperature, and clouds, in order to facilitate readers' recognition of weather systems and events. Material is primarily descriptive and nonmathematical. Includes some 200 figures, diagrams, and photos, many in color. Whiteman is a staff scientist at the US Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest Laboratory, and teaches meteorology at Washington State University."--SciTech Book News "This book offers an introduction to the basic principles and concepts of mountain weather and explores their applications to natural resources management. It emphasizes observable indicators of atmospheric processes, such as winds, temperature, and clouds, in order to facilitate readers' recognition of weather systems and events. More than 200 figures, diagrams, and photographs, many in full color, illustrate the book. It is primarily descriptive and nonmathematical. Numerous examples focus on the mountain ranges of North America, but the European Alps, the Southern Alps of New Zealand, and the Himalayas are also considered, making this book of interest to a range of readers."--Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society "Whiteman has grasped an opportunity to compile a broad text covering all aspects of mountain meteorology in a general way, and three selected aspects in specific ways. His efforts are to be applauded and enjoyed. This book represents a significant advance over available books on the topic, and will be warmly welcomed by its intended audience." -- Prof Douw Steyn, University of British Columbia, Agricultural and Forest Meteorology "In this book, the author and his fellow contributors have done a very credible job explaining many of the unique phenomena associated with the mountain environment. Both the clear explanations and an overall manner that makes reading this book a very agreeable learning experience are credits to the author and his editor. This is indeed a book that someone interested in mountain weather would find very useful and informative. Clearly written, well organized, and appropriately illustrated, it is well worth the read." -- Kenneth Rancourt, Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society "The book has a very pleasant format, the text is nicely laid out, and the figures are, on the whole, superb, making use of excellent, didactic graphics and sketches. [. . .] [A] most useful contribution to our understanding of weather and climate processes in complex terrain."--Mountain Research and Development "This book would be a valuable addition to any library of weather or mountain related fields, whether run by an organization or kept by an individual."--Journal of Meteorology