Reading the Clouds

Wouldn't it be useful to be able to come up with an accurate weather forecast simply by reading the clouds? Well, with this book, you can! TV forecasts, online predictions and smartphone apps are all based on the same data - a number-crunched overview of how air pressure and temperature affects the weather over a large geographical area. But to get an idea of how the weather will develop for the precise spot where you're standing (or walking, sailing, golfing, fishing, etc) you don't need any equipment or a wifi connection - you just need to look up. This book will give you a great understanding of why clouds are symptoms of weather patterns, not causes. Highly practical, it shows you how by reading these signs in the sky and referring to the explanatory colour photos and diagrams, you will be able to tell exactly what those signs mean. After its very well received first edition, this second edition is revised and expanded, including plenty of new photos to cover every possible view of the sky. With this at-a-glance guide to the clouds anywhere in the world, on land or at sea, you will be able to predict the weather by recognising cloud types, shapes, colours and behaviour. Including a Foreword by Tom Cunliffe, writer, TV presenter and yachting instructor, this will be an invaluable companion for everyone who enjoys time spent outdoors.

Oliver Perkins sailed a Laser 4.7 for the British team. He has written for Yachting Monthly and Practical Boat Owner, and is the author of Reading the Clouds and the Reeds Cloud Handbook as well as having updated the new edition of the late Alan Watts' seminal Weather Handbook, all published by Adlard Coles.

Foreword by Tom Cunliffe Foreword by Duncan Wells 1. Getting to know the basics 2. Reading the high clouds 3. Reading the middle clouds 4. Reading the low clouds 5. Clouds with vertical growth 6. Weather forecasting rules 7. Local conditions 8. Weather lore 9. Quiz - what did you learn? Appendix 1 - Logging your observations Appendix 2 - The Beaufort scale of wind speed Bibliography Glossary Quick reference guide