#climate

• Abkhazia — A geographical region located on the eastern coast of the Black Sea and the southern slope of the Greater Caucasus. In the field of balneoclimatology and Eastern European medical history, Abkhazia is internationally recognized as a premier therapeutic climatic zone, famous for its sanatoriums in Gagra or Sukhumi, built for the recovery of patients with chronic respiratory ailments, pulmonary tuberculosis, and cardiovascular diseases due to ionized mountain-marine air.
• Sheltered — Being under shelter, placed in safety, shielded from harsh weather, dangers, or the action of harmful external factors; protected or hosted within a secured space. In meteorology and agriculture, it describes a terrain, garden, or facade protected against strong air currents or frost through natural or artificial barriers.
• Adriatic — Belonging to the Adriatic Sea, relating to this sea or to its surrounding coastal regions; specific to the Adriatic basin. In a geographical and geological sense, the term describes particular Mediterranean climate phenomena, marine ecosystems, historical trade routes, and lithospheric structures or tectonic microplates shaping the terrain.
• Atmospheric sounding — An experimental method or technical procedure for investigating the upper layers of Earth's atmosphere by launching sounding balloons, meteorological rockets, or drones specially equipped with measuring instruments. This structural process enables the determination of the vertical profile of temperature, pressure, humidity, and wind speed, providing fundamental data for weather forecasting.
• Agostru — A rare regional or archaic Romanian phonetic variant referring to the 'austru', a dry southwest wind prominent in folk meteorology. It is often associated with the scorching, crop-withering summer drafts or the heavy blizzards of winter, occasionally blending in local subdialects with agricultural references to the month of August.
• Agroclimatology — A branch of climatology that studies the interactions between climatic factors and agricultural production, analyzing the influence of climate on the development of crop plants and livestock. This science provides the necessary data for crop zoning, climate change adaptation, yield forecasting, and determining the optimal schedule for agricultural operations.
• Agrometeorologist — A specialist in agrometeorology; a person involved in the study, monitoring, and analysis of correlations between atmospheric conditions (temperature, precipitation, solar radiation, wind) and the development pattern of crop plants. This professional produces specific forecasts and agrotechnical recommendations aimed at protecting crops and optimizing the agricultural calendar.
• Agrometeorological — Pertaining to agrometeorology; relating to the impact of atmospheric conditions, climate, and meteorological phenomena on agricultural production processes and the physico-biological state of the soil. The term describes informational bulletins, automated stations, studies, or statistical data used to monitor weather in relation to crop vegetation.
• Agrometeorology — A branch of applied meteorology and climatology that studies the interactions between atmospheric factors (temperature, precipitation, humidity, solar radiation) and the agricultural environment, including soil, crops, and livestock. This science provides the theoretical and practical framework for forecasting yields, preventing climate risks, and optimizing the schedule of agrotechnical operations.
• Agulhas — A geographical proper name denoting Cape Agulhas (Cabo das Agulhas), the official southernmost tip of the African continent located in South Africa, marking the dividing line between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans; the term also names the famous warm western boundary ocean current (Agulhas Current) flowing southward along the east coast of Africa.
• Iceberg — A huge mass of ice structurally detached from a polar glacier or a continental ice shelf, drifting on the surface of oceans, carried by marine currents. From a physical standpoint, it is characterized by the fact that only a small part of its total volume (approximately ten percent) is visible at the water's surface, while the massive, microscopic core is submerged, representing a major danger to global maritime navigation.
• Icefield — A technical neologism and geographical term borrowed from the English language (icefield), used in glaciology to denote a massive ice field or a vast, continuous expanse of interconnected glaciers covering a mountainous area or a high plateau. Structurally, this glacial mass accumulated over millennia is topographically bounded by mountain ridges piercing through it as nunataks, functioning as a vital hydrological reserve and as an extremely sensitive microscopic indicator in monitoring global climate changes.
• Alaska — The largest state by area in the United States of America, located at the northwestern extremity of the North American continent, separated from the rest of the country by Canada; a region of major strategic and ecological importance, historically purchased from the Russian Empire in 1867. This structural territory is renowned for its spectacular mountainous relief, massive glaciers, rich natural resources in oil and gas, and unique arctic biodiversity, officially integrated as the 49th US state in 1959.
• Albedo — A physical quantity representing the ratio of light energy reflected by a surface to the incident energy upon it, expressed as a fraction or percentage; an indicator of the reflective capacity of celestial bodies, snow, or soil. In botany, the term denotes the inner, white, spongy, and fibrous layer of the peel of citrus fruits (located under the flavedo), rich in pectin and bitter substances.
• Albedometer — A precision meteorological instrument consisting of two coupled pyranometers (one facing upward and one downward), used for the direct measurement of a surface's albedo by simultaneously determining global solar radiation and that reflected by the ground.
• Aletsch Glacier — The largest glacier in the Alps, located in southern Switzerland, in the canton of Valais (Jungfrau-Aletsch region). Measuring approximately 23 kilometers in length and covering a massive surface area, this valley glacier is a major tourist attraction and a vital study site for global climate change, inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
• Trade wind — A regular and permanent planetary wind that blows throughout the year in intertropical zones, from subtropical high-pressure cells toward the equatorial low-pressure doldrums. Due to the Coriolis force, the trade winds are deflected westward, blowing from the northeast in the Northern Hemisphere and from the southeast in the Southern Hemisphere, playing a crucial role in establishing historical maritime routes and regulating global climate.
• Alpine — Pertaining to the Alps or, by structural extension, to high mountains in general; specific to landscapes, flora, fauna, and climates of high altitude located above the timberline. As a masculine noun, it defines a soldier from an elite troop specially trained for warfare in mountainous areas or a person practicing mountaineering.
• Altitudinal — Relating to altitude or determined by the variation of height above sea level; concerning the stratified or zoned distribution of flora, fauna, or climate in mountainous areas relative to terrain changes.
• Amundsen-Scott — The permanent American scientific research station located precisely at the geographical South Pole in Antarctica, named in honor of the two great rivals of polar exploration, Roald Amundsen and Robert F. Scott. This base represents the southernmost permanently inhabited place on Earth, serving as a crucial hub for advanced research in astrophysics, seismology, and global climatology.