Information on this site is adapted a site written by Bob McDavitt, who is the Weather Ambassador, from the Meteorological Service of New Zealand.

You see weather maps on TV at the end of the news, or in a newspaper. These are special maps which show what is happening on the surface of the earth at a particular time. You have to understand the symbols, and what they mean in order to understand a weather map. You also need to remember that they only show what is happening at the surface - they don't show what winds are doing higher in the sky - which might be quite different. Weather forecasts tell you what meteorologists THINK will happen in the next day or so, but they don't KNOW what will happen. Weather can take everybody by surprise!