Climate is not the same as weather. While both involve measuring essentially the same things, the way the data is analyzed and the time frame are different. When it comes to weather, the time periods observed range from hours to days to a week; when it comes to climate, the time period is much longer—at least 30 years. The quote “Climate is what we expect, weather is what we get,” attributed to Mark Twain, suggests that, much like the seasons, climate reflects weather patterns expected for a specific location over a certain period of time. For example, in winter, sub-zero temperatures are expected in Northern Europe. You can find podcasts that cover both climate and weather in this category.

Totally Cooked – The Climate & Weather Podcast

“Totally Cooked” is a science-based podcast that discusses climate and weather in an open

Weather Geeks Podcast

The Weather Geeks Podcast is made by the people behind The Weather Channel TV

Met Office – Podcasts

Mostly Weather is the podcast by Met Office, the national meteorological service for the

Weather vs. Climate: Key Differences

Many misunderstandings about the terms “climate” and “weather” arise when people discuss them without knowing the differences between the two. Understanding the difference between weather and climate is particularly important in discussions about climate change. To address this, we have created a comparison chart that outlines what is typical of weather and what is typical of climate.

Aspect	Weather	Climate
Time scale	Minutes to weeks	30 years or more
Change rate	Can change within hours	Changes over decades
Forecast period	Days to weeks	Years to decades
Analogy	What you get	What you expect
Example	It will rain tomorrow	It has a temperate climate
Adjusting clothing	The clothes you choose to wear for the day	What’s on hand in the closet for every season