DR. FRANK FIELD'S WEATHER BOOK

by Frank Field ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 4, 1981

Field, weatherman with WNBC-TV in New York (son Storm forecasts for rival WABC-TV), holds forth entertainingly and quite informatively on meteorology, pure and applied. With reference to his own career, Field looks at TV forecasts and forecasters, and how both develop (the Army made him a meteorologist); provides a behind-the-scenes picture of a TV weatherman in operation; and confesses to some early indiscretions (in 1949 Field accepted $300 for a long-range, almanac-style forecast; his satisfied client came back for more), as well as to some of those unfortunate bloopers that are the bane of the weatherman's life. Next, he explains global weather maps (with instructions for putting together your own forecast--often, using local knowledge, more accurate than the official version). Plus: the causes of violent storms, how they move about, and how to survive them; the ways in which we deliberately or inadvertently modify the weather; the role of research, satellites, and computers in constantly improving the accuracy of forecasts; how weather influences our health and moods. Winding up, Field answers the questions most often asked by viewers. The exposition is mostly solid--though Field needs to revise his ideas on the shape of raindrops (not teardrops, but hockey pucks), on the direction winds blow in the Southern Hemisphere, and on how long the sun may be expected to keep burning. Otherwise, a good show for anyone interested in how TV weather forecasters arrive at their prognostications.

Pub Date: Nov. 4, 1981

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Putnam

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1981

Categories: NONFICTION