Sub-vortices - Small areas of intense rotation located within a type of tornado called a multi-vortex tornado. These spinning whirls can be thought of as individual tornadoes that are mixed within the main tornado. These are also sometimes referred to as suction vortices and the winds within them can be 100 mph stronger than the main body of the tornado. These can explain why the damage path in a tornado can vary greatly.

Tropical Storm - A tropical cyclone with sustained winds between 39 and 73 mph. Once sustained winds reach 74 mph or greater it is called a hurricane. In the Western Pacific it would be called a typhoon, while it is called a cyclone in the South Pacific.

Valley Breeze - A breeze that flows up a mountainside during the day. This upsloping breeze occurs due to the fact that the valley walls warm up faster than the higher terrain in the mountains. This makes the air in the valleys lighter than the air along the higher terrain of the mountains, making the air near the valley buoyant. The result is the upward breeze along the mountainsides during the day.

Zodiacal Light - A softly luminous cone of white light visible from an hour or so after sunset or before dawn. The cause of this pre-dawn or post-dusk light is created by sunlight that reflects off of grains of dust in space between the Earth and the Sun. To an unknowing observer it can be mistaken for a glare of city lights on the distant horizon.

Trough - A sharpened zone of cyclonic wind change usually associated with a zone of lower pressure. Troughs can occur at the surface up to around 30,000 ft up in the atmosphere. Deep troughs in the mid to upper levels tend to be associated with surface frontal boundaries and surface low pressure systems. Inclement weather can be expected when a trough moves through a particular area.

Short waves - Relatively small, short-wavelength ripples that occur in the mid to upper levels of the atmosphere. These are basically small-scale troughs that can produce bands of precipitation as they induce upward vertical motions. Short waves tend to move quickly along the prevailing winds and are a common occurrence in the vicinity of a jet stream.

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.