Mother Nature provides us a huge array of weather conditions. People have come up with a variety of ways to protect themselves from all that that the weather can send our way. From umbrellas to raincoats to storm shelters, we can combat most any types of conditions. We've even come to rely upon the weather for recreation - just try skiing or snowboarding without a little precipitation! Next time it rains, grab your umbrella, head outside and ponder these amazing weather facts!

Temperature

•  Listening to the chirps of crickets can give you a rough estimate of what the temperature outdoors is on the Fahrenheit scale. Count the amount of chirps you hear in fifteen seconds and add 37!
•  Death Valley, California holds the U.S. temperature record: 134°F recorded at Greenland Ranch.
•  Prospect Creek, Alaska holds the U.S. record for the coldest temperature: -80°F!
•  The hot and cold temperature extremes ever recorded on earth is over 260°F.

• Current U.S. Temperature Map
• Kids Temerature Experiments
• WeatherWizKids Teperature Calculators

Precipitation

•  Every winter around one septillion snowflakes fall from the sky! That's a one with 24 zeros following it!
•  Hilo, Hawaii is the wettest city in the United States with an average annual precipitation of 128 inches! To put that into perspective, one inch of rain covering a 5' market umbrella is over 12 gallons of water or nearly 100 pounds of water.
•  The largest hail stone ever discovered was found in Nebraska and its circumference was that of a soccer ball!

• Kinds of Precipitation
• Water Cycle Experiment
• Snow and Hail Science Projects

Wind

•  The Mount Washington Observatory recorded the greatest wind gust speed ever recorded on earth: 231 miles per hour in 1934 during a severe storm. For a little perspective thats a strong enough wind to exert over 5 tons of force on a 7.5' wood umbrella.
•  Persia went "green" before being environmentally conscious was a concern. The first windmills were found there, although electricity wasn't invented as we know it until the1800s.
•  A light wind is called a "zephyr." Many poets use the term to describe the gentlest of breezes.

• Where Wind Comes From
• Weather Works: Wind
• Wind Energy Time Line

 Lightning

•  A lightning bolt travels up to 60,000 miles per second and can reach temperatures as high as 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit.
•  Bad family genes? A woman gets struck by lightning in 1995. Three weeks prior her nephew was struck and suffered temporary blindness. Years before in 1970 her cousin was zapped when lightning hit her umbrella, but this wasn't the first time, she was also struck once before in 1965. Her grandfather was killed by lightning in 1921 and his brother struck and killed in the 1920's!
•  The best chance to be fatally struck by lightning is before you see the storm as lightning can travel horizontally over six miles!

• Lightning Photos
• Amazing Lightning Stories
• Kids Lightning Experiments

Tornadoes

•  The largest tornado in the United States was around two and a half miles wide. It happened in Nebraska in 2004.
•  The Enhanced Fujita Tornado scale measures wind speeds of tornados from EF0 to an EF5. Only 51 EF5s have been recorded since 1953 and just two since 2007. The wind speed of an EF5 is over 200 miles per hour.
•  Tornadoes are nature's most violent storms, but they can pick up people and debris and set them down unharmed. One near Decatur County, Indiana, sent a piece of straw into the bark of a large tree unbent in 1974.

• "Tornado Alley"
• Make a Homemade Tornado
• Kids Tornado Safety

Hurricanes

•  Did you know that hurricanes have an eye in the center of its spiral that is calm and even sunny? However, the arms of the hurricane have a destructive force that can decimate entire coastlines and towns.
•  Katrina was a category four hurricane that hit the southern coastline of the United States in 2005. Camille, a category five hit the same area less than forty years earlier.
•  Tropical cyclones are called hurricanes if they develop in the Atlantic Ocean. If they develop in the Pacific Ocean, they are called typhoons.

• Hurricane Preparedness Tips
• K-12 Hurricane Experiements 
• Hurricane Names

Wood Market and Patio Umbrellas

Offering your guests or customers a comfortable place out of the elements is as important to us as it is to you! Our promise is to offer high quality, affordable market umbrellas to better meet the needs of your business. Our testimonials show that across a wide variety of markets, from the restaurant and hospitality industries to amusement parks and home consumers, we offer the best value in market umbrellas. We've highlighted a variety of features available to you below and look forward to serving you! Please contact us with any questions.

How long will our wood market umbrella last?

Care of your umbrella is important as it is with any product intended for outdoor use. We're often asked about the longevity of our products and we'd like to offer some tips for increasing the amount of time between having to replace your umbrella. Following these easy steps will ensure your high quality market umbrella will last for years:

• •  Always open and close your umbrella in the intended manner
• •  Store your umbrella properly when not in use
• •  Secure your umbrella during storms or periods of high winds