Am I A Meteorologist?

Norm Dvoskin

Very often I'm asked, "Are you a meteorologist?" I assume they mean, "Are you a meteorologist or a weatherman?" I'm not sure what the difference is. I looked up weatherman in the dictionary and it said, "A person who forecasts or reports weather conditions." I do that, so I guess I'm a weatherman. Then I looked up meteorologist. There are many variations but one that seems to be most suitable is, "A person who is professionally employed in the study or practice of dealing with the phenomena of the atmosphere. It often refers to individuals who have a degree in meteorology. I qualify. So I guess I'm a weatherman and a meteorologist.

These terms should not be confused with other similarly sounding words.

Meterologist: Someone who works for LIPA and reads meters..or perhaps a taxi driver.

Meatyurologist: A chubby doctor.

Whetherman: A person (man) who can look into girls eyes and tell whether? (This one is really old.)

When I tell someone that I'm a meteorologist, they sometimes ask, "Then why don't you forecast meteors?" This question seems logical and stems from confusion about the word meteorology.

The word meteorology is derived from the Greek word meteoron, which refers to any phenomenon in the sky. Astronomy, including the study of geometeors or "shooting stars" later became a separate discipline. The science of meteorology was restricted eventually to the atmosphere. Various weather phenomena are still referred to as "meteors." Liquid or frozen water...rain, snow, sleet, clouds and fog are hydrometeors. Dry particles...sand, dust and smoke are lithometeors. Optical phenomena such as halos, rainbows and mirages are termed photometeors. Lightning and Saint Elmo's fire are electrometeors.

Whether you call yourself a "meteorologist" or a "weatherman" and you work on television, it's important to have the "American Meteorological Society Seal of Approval." If I didn't have it and someone came up to me and asked, "Hot enough for you?" I'd  have to say," I can't comment."