weather, climates

Weather is the daily and hourly change of the atmospheric condition, while the climate the state of the atmosphere over longer terms.

"Determination of the outdoor environment and establishment of that desired indoors is an essential first step in exterior wall design.

Only when these factors are known is it possible to assess the over-all performance requirements of the wall acting as a separator. Inevitably, at this stage, some aspects of the building services become involved. Through them certain features of the indoor environment are adjusted to the desired levels. The delighting characteristics of the transparent portions of the wall must be considered in relation to lighting; and heating and cooling requirements are related to the nature of the wall as a barrier to solar radiation, heat, moisture and air during both winter and summer. Other barrier requirements such as those related to dust and smoke may have implications also for the services required. One consideration, that of the relative humidity to be carried indoors, is of such potential importance as a factor in indoor environment and the design of exterior walls for cold weather conditions that it merits special attention.

The nature of relative humidity, its effects upon building occupancy, and some of its implications in the operation of buildings have been discussed in CBD 1. Further developments, particularly the added precautions that must be taken to avoid difficulties, are outlined in CBD 42. Relative humidity, either indoors or outdoors, poses a problem mainly when it represents, at the particular temperature at which it is measured, a dew-point above the temperature on the cold side. During the summer, air-conditioned buildings and cold storage buildings may have special problems. Fortunately, the maximum outside dew-point in Canada is only likely to exceed the indoor temperature for short periods during the summer in buildings cooled for normal occupancy. Usually, the most perplexing situations occur in winter when the dew-point temperature indoors greatly exceeds that outdoors. In these cases special provisions may have to be made in the barrier characteristics of the wall or window for the control of heat, moisture, air and water vapour. Specifically, substantial relative humidities indoors with low temperatures outdoors introduce the possibility of wetting on the surface as well as within the wall (see CBD 30).

Once the indoor and outdoor environmental conditions and their various requirements have been established, the planning of a suitable wall may proceed. Estimates should be made of temperature and moisture conditions throughout the wall and any adjoining parts of the building frame for both winter and summer conditions. These thermal and moisture gradients should then be examined to determine the effect of the environment at any plane in the wall on the materials selected for its construction." --[CBD: http://www.nrc.ca/irc/cbd/cbd-e.html]

Tidbits

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A good overview Climatic Design of Buildings (course notes)

Online weather education by wundergound.com. [2006.2]

STEPHEN H. SCHNEIDER on climate science and climatic change (and publications)

ASHRAE-American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers

"the sole purpose of advancing the arts and sciences of heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration for the public's benefit through research, standards writing, continuing education and publications."




Energy Design Guidelines for High Performance Schools

To design buildings to save 25% of the $6 billion of energy used by schools. Downloadable guideline for all five climate types, i.e.: Hot and Dry Climates, Temperate and Humid Climates, Cool and Dry Climates, Hot and Humid Climates, Cool and Humid Climates , Temperate and Mixed Climates, Cold and Humid Climates




Experimental Studies Division (ARQX) of the Meteorological Service of Canada (MSC)

"areas of research interest: Space Studies, Ozone and UV Radiation Monitoring, Solar Radiation Studies and Field Experiments which include the management of the Arctic Stratospheric Ozone Observatory, Eureka, Nunavut in the high Arctic"




International Research in Building Physics and Building Climatology




Mesan- an Operational Mesoscale Analysis System

Global meteorological analysis




WMO - World Meteorological Organization

"... coordinates global scientific activity to allow increasingly prompt and accurate weather information and other services for public, private and commercial use, including international airline and shipping industries."

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A moisture index to characterize climates for building envelope design, by Cornick, S. and Dalgliesh, W. A., 2003

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A new methodology towards determining building performance under modified outdoor conditions, by Flor, F., Liss¨¦n, J. M. S. and Dom¨Şnguez, S.¨˘., 2006

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Building science for a cold climate, by Hutcheon, N. B. and Handegord, G. O., 1995

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Characterizing Global Climate Change by means of K?ppen Climate Classification, by Beck, C., Grieser, J., Kottek, M., Rubel, F. and Rudolf, B., 2006

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Climate change 2001: impacts, adaptation, and vulnerability, by IPCC, 2001

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Climate change 2001: the scientific basis, by IPCC, 2001

effect on building envelopes

Climate loads and their effect on building envelopes - an overview, by Cornick, S.M, 2001

sensitivity to climatic data on moisture balance

Drying of an AAC flat roof in different climates Computational sensitivity analysis versus material property measurements, by Holm, A., 2001

will change due to global climate

Effects of climate change on built environments, by Lis?, K.R, 2001

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El Ni?o water leaks identify rooms with concealed mould growth and degraded indoor air quality , by Morey, P. R., Hull, M. C. and Andrew , M., 2003

boundary conditions for long-term simulation

Environmental boundary conditions for long-term hygrothermal calculations, by Djebbar, R., van Reenen, D. and Kumaran, M.K, 2001

WeatherSmart

Environmental boundary conditions for long-term hygrothermal calculations, by Djebbar, R., van Reenen, D. and Kumaran, M.K, 2001

climate change

Impacts of climate change performance on building in New Zealand, by Camilleri, M., Roman Jaques, Nigel Isaacs, 2001

temperature model

Model to transform measured climatic data from a local level to a micro level: temperatures model to transform climatic data, by Eriksson B. and Westberg, K., 1999

hot humid

Moisture influence in building for thermal comfort in hot humid region, by Suman, B. M., K. N. Agarwal, et al., 2000

environmental conditions in envelope design

Requirements for Exterior Walls, by Hutcheon, N.B, 1963

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The ten most wanted - a search for solutions to reduce recurring losses from natural hazards, by ASCE and IBHS, 2001

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The effectiveness of thermal insulation in different types of buildings in hot climates, by Al-homoud, M. S., 2004

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Third Assessment Report - Climate Change 2001, by IPCC, 2001

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Uncertainty approaches for hygrothermal building simulations - drying of an AAC flat roof in different climates, by Holm, A. and Kuenzel, H. M., 2001

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WMO Annual report 2001, by WMO, 2002

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World Map of the K?ppen-Geiger climate classification updated, by Kottek, M., Grieser, J., Beck, C., Rudolf, B. and Rubel, F., 2006

weather data for 77 North America cities

WYEC2 Software, by ASHRAE, 2001