Seiches - Standing waves that oscillate back and forth over an open body of water. They are most common in large bodies of water such as bays or lakes. The impetus for a seiche to occur is persistent strong winds that push water from one end of the body of water to the other. When the winds let up, the water that has been pushed to one side of the bay or lake starts to oscillate to the opposite shore and then back again. Anyone who sloshes water from one side of a bathtub to the other side has witnessed a small-scale seiche. The Great Lakes occasionally see seiche events that are noted by a rhythmic rise and fall of water levels.

Arctic Front - The semi-permanent, semi-continuous boundary that separates the deep, cold arctic air from the shallower, less frigid polar air of the northern latitudes. Major shifts in the polar jet stream can drive arctic fronts southward into the mid-latitudes during the winter season.

Absolute Zero - A temperature of 0 on the Kelvin scale equates to -273 degrees C or -460 degrees F. This is theoretically the lowest possible temperature as there is no molecular motion at this temperature. Researchers at NASA have cooled sodium gas to just above absolute zero in a vacuum chamber.

Green flash - A brilliant green color that can appear on the upper limb of the sun as it rises or sets. It is believed that it occurs due to atmospheric refraction and is most commonly seen at sunset. On rare occasions it has been seen as a green ray of light briefly shooting up from the sun as it rises or sets.

DAPE - An acronym that stands for Downdraft Available Potential Energy. This is a measurement of a thunderstorm's ability to produce strong currents of descending air that reach the surface, called downdrafts. Thunderstorms with high levels of DAPE, can produce intense downdrafts that can result in straight-line winds of over 100 mph.

Orographic Lifting - The forced rising of air that occurs when winds run into a mountain or any area with notably higher terrain. When moist air pushes against and rises up a mountain, the air cools adiabatically, resulting in clouds and precipitation. This is the reason why higher elevations in the mountains will see greater amounts of precipitation.

Chinook (wind) - Chinook winds are commonly experienced in communities that live just downstream of a mountain range. When prevailing winds blow perpendicular to the mountain range, they ascend on the upstream side of the mountain and then descend on the downstream side. When the winds descend down the mountain, the air warms by compression, resulting in rapid upward spikes in temperatures. These winds are referred to as snow eaters, since they result in rapid snow melt during the cold season.