
The Weather Machine
A Journey Inside the Forecast
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $16.19
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Greg Tremblay
-
By:
-
Andrew Blum
About this listen
From the acclaimed author of Tubes, a lively and surprising tour of the infrastructure behind the weather forecast, the people who built it, and what it reveals about our climate and our planet
The weather is the foundation of our daily lives. It’s a staple of small talk, the app on our smartphones, and often the first thing we check each morning. Yet behind these quotidian interactions is one of the most expansive machines human beings have ever constructed - a triumph of science, technology, and global cooperation. But what is this "weather machine" and who created it?
In The Weather Machine, Andrew Blum takes listeners on a fascinating journey through an everyday miracle. In a quest to understand how the forecast works, he visits old weather stations and watches new satellites blast off. He follows the dogged efforts of scientists to create a supercomputer model of the atmosphere, and traces the surprising history of the algorithms that power their work. He discovers that we have quietly entered a golden age of meteorology - our tools allow us to predict weather more accurately than ever, and yet we haven’t learned to trust them, nor can we guarantee the fragile international alliances that allow our modern weather machine to exist.
Written with the sharp wit and infectious curiosity Andrew Blum is known for, The Weather Machine pulls back the curtain on a universal part of our everyday lives, illuminating our relationships with technology, the planet, and the global community.
©2019 Andrew Blum (P)2019 HarperCollins PublishersListeners also enjoyed...
-
College Level Meteorology
- By: AudioLearn Content Team
- Narrated by: Kevin Charles
- Length: 9 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
AudioLearn’s College Level Courses presents Meteorology. Developed by experienced professors and professionally narrated for easy listening, this course is a great way to explore the subject of meteorology. The audio is focused and high-yield, covering the most important topics you might expect to learn in a typical undergraduate course in Meteorology. The material is accurate, up-to-date, and broken down into bite-sized sections.There are quizzes and key takeaways following each section to review questions commonly tested and drive home key points.
-
-
Works well as an audiobook
- By Kau on 08-16-21
-
A Walk Around the Block
- Stoplight Secrets, Mischievous Squirrels, Manhole Mysteries & Other Stuff You See Every Day (And Know Nothing About)
- By: Spike Carlsen
- Narrated by: Daniel Henning
- Length: 9 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this celebration of the seemingly mundane, Carlsen opens our eyes to the engineering marvels, human stories, and natural wonders right outside our front door. He guides us through the surprising allure of sewers, the intricacies of power plants, the extraordinary path of an everyday letter, and the genius of recycling centers — all the while revealing that this awesome world isn’t just a spectator sport. Engaging as it is endearing, A Walk Around the Block will change the way you see things in your everyday life.
-
-
Great look at the infrastructure under, above and all around us.
- By Chris on 10-24-20
By: Spike Carlsen
-
Tubes
- A Journey to the Center of the Internet
- By: Andrew Blum
- Narrated by: Andrew Blum
- Length: 7 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Almost everything about our day-to-day lives - and the broader scheme of human culture - can be found on the Internet. But what is it physically? And where is it really? Our mental map of the network is as blank as the map of the ocean that Columbus carried on his first Atlantic voyage. The Internet, its material nuts and bolts, is an unexplored territory. Until now. In Tubes, Andrew Blum goes inside the Internet's physical infrastructure and flips on the lights, revealing a fresh look at the online world we think we know.
-
-
Don't listen to this while driving
- By John K on 06-24-12
By: Andrew Blum
-
Satellite Boy
- The International Manhunt for a Master Thief That Launched the Modern Communication Age
- By: Andrew Amelinckx
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On April 6, 1965, Georges Lemay was relaxing on his yacht in a south Florida marina following one of the largest and most daring bank heists in Canadian history. For four years, the roguishly handsome criminal mastermind hid in plain sight, eluding capture and the combined efforts of the FBI, Interpol, and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. His future appeared secure. What Lemay didn't know was that less than two hundred miles away at Cape Canaveral, a brilliant engineer named Harold Rosen was about to usher in the age of global live television.
-
-
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED — this is a gripping history!!
- By Deborah R. Castleman on 03-22-23
By: Andrew Amelinckx
-
Emperors of the Deep
- Sharks - The Ocean's Most Mysterious, Most Misunderstood, and Most Important Guardians
- By: William McKeever
- Narrated by: Timothy Andrés Pabon
- Length: 10 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this remarkable, groundbreaking audiobook, a documentarian and conservationist, determined to dispel misplaced fear and correct common misconceptions, explores in-depth the secret lives of sharks - magnificent creatures who play an integral part in maintaining the health of the world’s oceans and ultimately the planet.
-
-
I wanted to like this book, but...
- By Lissa on 08-05-19
By: William McKeever
-
Silent Spring Revolution
- John F. Kennedy, Rachel Carson, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, and the Great Environmental Awakening
- By: Douglas Brinkley
- Narrated by: Stephen Graybill
- Length: 29 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
New York Times bestselling author and acclaimed presidential historian Douglas Brinkley chronicles the rise of environmental activism during the Long Sixties (1960-1973), telling the story of an indomitable generation that saved the natural world under the leadership of John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, and Richard Nixon.
-
-
Need one more book...
- By Chuck Wofford on 02-23-23
By: Douglas Brinkley
-
College Level Meteorology
- By: AudioLearn Content Team
- Narrated by: Kevin Charles
- Length: 9 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
AudioLearn’s College Level Courses presents Meteorology. Developed by experienced professors and professionally narrated for easy listening, this course is a great way to explore the subject of meteorology. The audio is focused and high-yield, covering the most important topics you might expect to learn in a typical undergraduate course in Meteorology. The material is accurate, up-to-date, and broken down into bite-sized sections.There are quizzes and key takeaways following each section to review questions commonly tested and drive home key points.
-
-
Works well as an audiobook
- By Kau on 08-16-21
-
A Walk Around the Block
- Stoplight Secrets, Mischievous Squirrels, Manhole Mysteries & Other Stuff You See Every Day (And Know Nothing About)
- By: Spike Carlsen
- Narrated by: Daniel Henning
- Length: 9 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this celebration of the seemingly mundane, Carlsen opens our eyes to the engineering marvels, human stories, and natural wonders right outside our front door. He guides us through the surprising allure of sewers, the intricacies of power plants, the extraordinary path of an everyday letter, and the genius of recycling centers — all the while revealing that this awesome world isn’t just a spectator sport. Engaging as it is endearing, A Walk Around the Block will change the way you see things in your everyday life.
-
-
Great look at the infrastructure under, above and all around us.
- By Chris on 10-24-20
By: Spike Carlsen
-
Tubes
- A Journey to the Center of the Internet
- By: Andrew Blum
- Narrated by: Andrew Blum
- Length: 7 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Almost everything about our day-to-day lives - and the broader scheme of human culture - can be found on the Internet. But what is it physically? And where is it really? Our mental map of the network is as blank as the map of the ocean that Columbus carried on his first Atlantic voyage. The Internet, its material nuts and bolts, is an unexplored territory. Until now. In Tubes, Andrew Blum goes inside the Internet's physical infrastructure and flips on the lights, revealing a fresh look at the online world we think we know.
-
-
Don't listen to this while driving
- By John K on 06-24-12
By: Andrew Blum
-
Satellite Boy
- The International Manhunt for a Master Thief That Launched the Modern Communication Age
- By: Andrew Amelinckx
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On April 6, 1965, Georges Lemay was relaxing on his yacht in a south Florida marina following one of the largest and most daring bank heists in Canadian history. For four years, the roguishly handsome criminal mastermind hid in plain sight, eluding capture and the combined efforts of the FBI, Interpol, and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. His future appeared secure. What Lemay didn't know was that less than two hundred miles away at Cape Canaveral, a brilliant engineer named Harold Rosen was about to usher in the age of global live television.
-
-
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED — this is a gripping history!!
- By Deborah R. Castleman on 03-22-23
By: Andrew Amelinckx
-
Emperors of the Deep
- Sharks - The Ocean's Most Mysterious, Most Misunderstood, and Most Important Guardians
- By: William McKeever
- Narrated by: Timothy Andrés Pabon
- Length: 10 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this remarkable, groundbreaking audiobook, a documentarian and conservationist, determined to dispel misplaced fear and correct common misconceptions, explores in-depth the secret lives of sharks - magnificent creatures who play an integral part in maintaining the health of the world’s oceans and ultimately the planet.
-
-
I wanted to like this book, but...
- By Lissa on 08-05-19
By: William McKeever
-
Silent Spring Revolution
- John F. Kennedy, Rachel Carson, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, and the Great Environmental Awakening
- By: Douglas Brinkley
- Narrated by: Stephen Graybill
- Length: 29 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
New York Times bestselling author and acclaimed presidential historian Douglas Brinkley chronicles the rise of environmental activism during the Long Sixties (1960-1973), telling the story of an indomitable generation that saved the natural world under the leadership of John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, and Richard Nixon.
-
-
Need one more book...
- By Chuck Wofford on 02-23-23
By: Douglas Brinkley
-
What's Gotten into You
- The Story of Your Body's Atoms, from the Big Bang Through Last Night's Dinner
- By: Dan Levitt
- Narrated by: Mike Chamberlain
- Length: 12 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Every one of us contains a billion times more atoms than all the grains of sand in the earth’s deserts. If you weigh 150 pounds, you’ve got enough carbon to make 25 pounds of charcoal, enough salt to fill a saltshaker, enough chlorine to disinfect several backyard swimming pools, and enough iron to forge a 3-inch nail. But how did these elements combine to make us human?
-
-
One of the Very Best Science Books I have Read
- By TStair on 03-20-23
By: Dan Levitt
-
War Beneath the Sea
- Submarine Conflict During World War II
- By: Peter Padfield
- Narrated by: Chris MacDonnell
- Length: 25 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This riveting chronicle of submarine warfare is the first to cover all the major submarine campaigns of the war, describing, in detail, the operations of the British, American, Japanese, Italian, and German submarine and anti-submarine forces. Beginning with a vivid re-creation of the sinking of the passenger liner Athenia by a German U-boat in September 1939, critically acclaimed military historian Peter Padfield's compelling narrative casts an unflinching eye on the devastating consequences of maritime warfare.
-
-
Fills in the gaps of other submarine books
- By Ben on 05-19-21
By: Peter Padfield
-
First Steps
- How Upright Walking Made Us Human
- By: Jeremy DeSilva
- Narrated by: Kaleo Griffith
- Length: 9 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Blending history, science, and culture, a stunning and highly engaging evolutionary story exploring how walking on two legs allowed humans to become the planet’s dominant species.
-
-
Mammalian Bipedalism's Many Layers
- By Sarah C. on 06-07-22
By: Jeremy DeSilva
-
Oxygen
- The Molecule That Made the World
- By: Nick Lane
- Narrated by: Nigel Patterson
- Length: 16 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Oxygen takes the listener on an enthralling journey, as gripping as a thriller, as it unravels the unexpected ways in which oxygen spurred the evolution of life and death.
-
-
A Story About Pretty Much Everything
- By ZebraBear on 09-09-20
By: Nick Lane
-
Road to Disaster
- A New History of America’s Descent into Vietnam
- By: Brian VanDeMark
- Narrated by: Ron Butler
- Length: 23 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Many books have been written on the tragic decisions regarding Vietnam made by the stars of the Kennedy and Johnson administrations. Yet despite many words of analysis and reflection, no historian has been able to explain why such decent and previously successful men stumbled so badly. That changes with Road to Disaster. Historian Brian VanDeMark draws upon decades of archival research, his own interviews with many of those involved, and a wealth of previously unheard recordings by Robert McNamara and Clark Clifford, who served as Defense Secretaries for Kennedy and Johnson.
-
-
Vietnam Veteran
- By Jim Rollins on 04-02-19
By: Brian VanDeMark
-
Fuzz
- When Nature Breaks the Law
- By: Mary Roach
- Narrated by: Mary Roach
- Length: 9 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What’s to be done about a jaywalking moose? A bear caught breaking and entering? A murderous tree? Three hundred years ago, animals that broke the law would be assigned legal representation and put on trial. These days, as New York Times best-selling author Mary Roach discovers, the answers are best found not in jurisprudence but in science: the curious science of human-wildlife conflict, a discipline at the crossroads of human behavior and wildlife biology.
-
-
The footnotes
- By Alex on 09-24-21
By: Mary Roach
-
Ingredients
- The Strange Chemistry of What We Put in Us and on Us
- By: George Zaidan
- Narrated by: George Zaidan
- Length: 6 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Cheese puffs. Coffee. Sunscreen. Vapes. George Zaidan reveals what will kill you, what won’t, and why - explained with high-octane hilarity, hysterical hijinks, and other things that don’t begin with the letter H. Ingredients offers the perspective of a chemist on the stuff we eat, drink, inhale, and smear on ourselves. Apart from the burning question of whether you should eat that Cheeto, Zaidan explores a range of topics.
-
-
Disappointed in the nutrition conclusion
- By Cristi on 01-30-22
By: George Zaidan
-
A Wild Idea
- By: Jonathan Franklin
- Narrated by: George Newbern
- Length: 10 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The incredible true story of the entrepreneur turned conservationist - the founder of the iconic company The North Face who used his fortune to protect more than 25 million acres of land from development and exploitation and “foster peace between people and wild nature”.
-
-
How could I have not known.
- By Nancy B. Bryant on 06-01-23
-
Pests
- How Humans Create Animal Villains
- By: Bethany Brookshire
- Narrated by: Courtney Patterson
- Length: 10 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A squirrel in the garden. A rat in the wall. A pigeon on the street. Humans have spent so much of our history drawing a hard line between human spaces and wild places. When animals pop up where we don’t expect or want them, we respond with fear, rage, or simple annoyance. It’s no longer an animal. It’s a pest. At the intersection of science, history, and narrative journalism, Pests is not a simple call to look closer at our urban ecosystem. It’s not a natural history of the animals we hate. Instead, this book is about us.
-
-
Amazing Conclusion!
- By Anonymous User on 01-29-23
-
The Possibility of Life
- Science, Imagination, and Our Quest for Kinship in the Cosmos
- By: Jaime Green
- Narrated by: Jaime Green
- Length: 8 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
One of the most powerful questions humans ask about the cosmos is: Are we alone? While the science behind this inquiry is fascinating, it doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It is a reflection of our values, our fears, and most importantly, our enduring sense of hope. In The Possibility of Life, acclaimed science journalist Jaime Green traces the history of our understanding, from the days of Galileo and Copernicus to our contemporary quest for exoplanets. Along the way, she interweaves insights from science fiction writers who construct worlds that in turn inspire scientists.
-
-
A dazzling journey into the vast depths of life’s meaning!
- By E. McDermott on 08-11-23
By: Jaime Green
-
Apollo
- By: Charles Murray, Catherine Bly Cox
- Narrated by: Bob Souer
- Length: 18 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Apollo is the behind-the-scenes story of an epic achievement. Based on exhaustive research that included many exclusive interviews, Apollo tells how America went from a standing start to a landing on the moon at a speed that now seems impossible. It describes the unprecedented engineering challenges that had to be overcome to create the mammoth Saturn V and the facilities to launch it. It takes you into the tragedy of the fire on Apollo 1, the first descent to the lunar surface, and the rescue of Apollo 13.
-
-
Best book ever for space, ops, and engineering fans
- By JDM on 10-29-19
By: Charles Murray, and others
-
The 300
- The Inside Story of the Missile Defenders Guarding America Against Nuclear Attack
- By: Daniel Wasserbly
- Narrated by: Neal Bledsoe
- Length: 7 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Comprised of just 300 soldiers, the United States Army’s 100th Missile Defense Brigade and 49th Missile Defense Battalion utilize sophisticated and cutting-edge technology to monitor the skies and seas surrounding the country and shield 300 million Americans against any potential nuclear threat. Named for the number of Spartan warriors who defended Greece at the Battle of Thermopylae, these vigilant individuals endure rigorous, always-evolving regimens to maintain peak efficiency in the event of an actual nuclear strike.
-
-
This audiobook needs an editor
- By Jason Draper on 10-13-22
By: Daniel Wasserbly
What listeners say about The Weather Machine
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Joshua
- 07-08-19
Very well done
An incredibly interesting read on modern and historical weather prediction methods. Well researched and explained. Great for anyone who wonders how weather is predicted. A very good reader too.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Tintin
- 08-02-19
Good, could have been great
It was interesting to hear the history of weather forecasting, though I had hoped to learn more about how weather works. That wasn't the point of the book which could have been called The Weather Forecasting Machine.
The models self-correct and sync with better and better data from more and more elaborate weather stations, they balance local resolution with temporal reach, and we visit with the author a historic weather station, and done in the cafeterias of the modem European Mecca of weather forecasting. Satellites feed these models. Efforts for weather prediction rely on and createsl international cooperation. I thought it was odd not to reflect on what climate change means for weather forecasting, as I've heard It said that "crazy weather is the new norm." But mainly I had expected to learn more about weather itself... that's for the sequel I hope ...
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Grant837
- 08-01-19
Good view on basic’s
Nice historic view, glad I listened, but listened to ‘18 miles’ first t obtain a great basis.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Robotmax64
- 06-13-24
Good niche subject.
This is not.an overall or introductory meteorology textbook. Instead it tells about how different types of forecasts are made and the history of weather science.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Kevin
- 08-03-19
Great information on the models, lacking on observational data
I was hoping this book would not only detail the historical perspectives and data on weather models, but also cover critical observations on things like radar along with innovations in radar technology used for many extreme weather events. While the former was covered in depth, I can only recall the word “radar” being used once or possibly a handful of times in context of a satellite, and was never spoken of again.
This is a great book if your interest is specifically in a more in-depth background of weather models, but it’s lacking in anything relating to observational challenges and specific weather events.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- chris yoder
- 01-11-20
waste of money
this book talked nothing of the weather and its components. it goes into great detail about what the European weather service office looked like. waste of money
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 08-03-20
Overall boring
An hours worth of material crammed into 5. The history is interesting, but when I see and experience the result of current weather forecasting, including that of the Hysterical Channel (Sorry, I meant the Weather Channel) which uses the European Model, much lauded in this audio, I don't see any change over the last 60 years.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful