Thun ( French : Thoune ) is a town and a municipality in the administrative district of Thun in the canton of Bern in Switzerland . It is located where the Aare flows out of Lake Thun (Thunersee), 30 kilometres (19 miles) southeast of Bern .
111-455: As of December 2018 the municipality has almost about 45,000 inhabitants and around 80,000 live in the agglomeration. Besides tourism, machine and precision instrument engineering, the largest garrison in the country, the food industry, armaments and publishing are of economic importance to Thun. The official language of Thun is (the Swiss variety of Standard) German , but the main spoken language
222-452: A colonel , brigadier or major-general , assisted by a garrison sergeant major . In Ireland , Association football (as distinct from Gaelic football ) has historically been termed the "garrison game" or the "garrison sport" for its connections with British military serving in Irish cities and towns. Precipitation (meteorology) In meteorology , precipitation is any product of
333-499: A channel around 11 micron wavelength and primarily give information about cloud tops. Due to the typical structure of the atmosphere, cloud-top temperatures are approximately inversely related to cloud-top heights, meaning colder clouds almost always occur at higher altitudes. Further, cloud tops with a lot of small-scale variation are likely to be more vigorous than smooth-topped clouds. Various mathematical schemes, or algorithms, use these and other properties to estimate precipitation from
444-405: A concern downwind of the warm lakes within the cold cyclonic flow around the backside of extratropical cyclones . Lake-effect snowfall can be locally heavy. Thundersnow is possible within a cyclone's comma head and within lake effect precipitation bands. In mountainous areas, heavy precipitation is possible where upslope flow is maximized within windward sides of the terrain at elevation. On
555-705: A dramatic effect on agriculture. All plants need at least some water to survive, therefore rain (being the most effective means of watering) is important to agriculture. While a regular rain pattern is usually vital to healthy plants, too much or too little rainfall can be harmful, even devastating to crops. Drought can kill crops and increase erosion, while overly wet weather can cause harmful fungus growth. Plants need varying amounts of rainfall to survive. For example, certain cacti require small amounts of water, while tropical plants may need up to hundreds of inches of rain per year to survive. In areas with wet and dry seasons, soil nutrients diminish and erosion increases during
666-425: A layer of above-freezing air exists with sub-freezing air both above and below. This causes the partial or complete melting of any snowflakes falling through the warm layer. As they fall back into the sub-freezing layer closer to the surface, they re-freeze into ice pellets. However, if the sub-freezing layer beneath the warm layer is too small, the precipitation will not have time to re-freeze, and freezing rain will be
777-510: A military base nearby. "Garrison towns" ( Arabic : أمصار , romanized : amsar ) were used during the Arab Islamic conquests of Middle Eastern lands by Arab - Muslim armies to increase their dominance over indigenous populations. In order to occupy non-Arab, non-Islamic areas, nomadic Arab tribesmen were taken from the desert by the ruling Arab elite, conscripted into Islamic armies, and settled into garrison towns as well as given
888-404: A non-precipitating combination is a colloid .) Two processes, possibly acting together, can lead to air becoming saturated with water vapor: cooling the air or adding water vapor to the air. Precipitation forms as smaller droplets coalesce via collision with other rain drops or ice crystals within a cloud. Short, intense periods of rain in scattered locations are called showers . Moisture that
999-454: A one-room apartment was 601.00 CHF (US$ 480, £270, €380), a two-room apartment was about 784.97 CHF (US$ 630, £350, €500), a three-room apartment was about 927.87 CHF (US$ 740, £420, €590) and a six or more room apartment cost an average of 1821.24 CHF (US$ 1460, £820, €1170). The average apartment price in Thun was 91.2% of the national average of 1116 CHF. The vacancy rate for the municipality, in 2013,
1110-411: A physical barrier such as a mountain ( orographic lift ). Conductive cooling occurs when the air comes into contact with a colder surface, usually by being blown from one surface to another, for example from a liquid water surface to colder land. Radiational cooling occurs due to the emission of infrared radiation , either by the air or by the surface underneath. Evaporative cooling occurs when moisture
1221-428: A population (as of December 2020) of 43,476. As of 2012, 12.3% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Between the last 2 years (2010-2012) the population changed at a rate of 0.3%. Migration accounted for 0.4%, while births and deaths accounted for -0.4%. Most of the population (as of 2000) speaks German (36,551 or 90.5%) as their first language, Italian is the second most common (728 or 1.8%) and Albanian
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#17328512515391332-480: A share in the spoils of war . The primary utility of the Arab-Islamic garrisons was to control the indigenous non-Arab peoples of these conquered and occupied territories, and to serve as garrison bases to launch further Islamic military campaigns into yet-undominated lands. A secondary aspect of the Arab-Islamic garrisons was the uprooting of the aforementioned nomadic Arab tribesmen from their original home regions in
1443-559: A single year. A significant portion of the annual precipitation in any particular place (no weather station in Africa or South America were considered) falls on only a few days, typically about 50% during the 12 days with the most precipitation. The Köppen classification depends on average monthly values of temperature and precipitation. The most commonly used form of the Köppen classification has five primary types labeled A through E. Specifically,
1554-409: A slow-falling drizzle , which has been observed as Rain puddles at its equator and polar regions. Precipitation is a major component of the water cycle , and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the planet. Approximately 505,000 km (121,000 cu mi) of water falls as precipitation each year, 398,000 km (95,000 cu mi) of it over the oceans. Given
1665-752: A subject of research. Although the ice is clear, scattering of light by the crystal facets and hollows/imperfections mean that the crystals often appear white in color due to diffuse reflection of the whole spectrum of light by the small ice particles. The shape of the snowflake is determined broadly by the temperature and humidity at which it is formed. Rarely, at a temperature of around −2 °C (28 °F), snowflakes can form in threefold symmetry—triangular snowflakes. The most common snow particles are visibly irregular, although near-perfect snowflakes may be more common in pictures because they are more visually appealing. No two snowflakes are alike, as they grow at different rates and in different patterns depending on
1776-448: A total of 18,153 apartments (92.4% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 1,080 apartments (5.5%) were seasonally occupied and 406 apartments (2.1%) were empty. As of 2012, the construction rate of new housing units was 5.5 new units per 1000 residents. As of 2003 the average price to rent an average apartment in Thun was 1017.63 Swiss francs (CHF) per month (US$ 810, £460, €650 approx. exchange rate from 2003). The average rate for
1887-407: A variety of datasets possessing different formats, time/space grids, periods of record and regions of coverage, input datasets, and analysis procedures, as well as many different forms of dataset version designators. In many cases, one of the modern multi-satellite data sets is the best choice for general use. The likelihood or probability of an event with a specified intensity and duration is called
1998-420: Is IC. Occult deposition occurs when mist or air that is highly saturated with water vapour interacts with the leaves of trees or shrubs it passes over. Stratiform or dynamic precipitation occurs as a consequence of slow ascent of air in synoptic systems (on the order of cm/s), such as over surface cold fronts , and over and ahead of warm fronts . Similar ascent is seen around tropical cyclones outside of
2109-410: Is RA, while the coding for rain showers is SHRA. Ice pellets or sleet are a form of precipitation consisting of small, translucent balls of ice. Ice pellets are usually (but not always) smaller than hailstones. They often bounce when they hit the ground, and generally do not freeze into a solid mass unless mixed with freezing rain . The METAR code for ice pellets is PL . Ice pellets form when
2220-478: Is a grassland biome located in semi-arid to semi-humid climate regions of subtropical and tropical latitudes, with rainfall between 750 and 1,270 mm (30 and 50 in) a year. They are widespread on Africa, and are also found in India, the northern parts of South America, Malaysia, and Australia. The humid subtropical climate zone is where winter rainfall (and sometimes snowfall) is associated with large storms that
2331-480: Is a stable cloud deck which tends to form when a cool, stable air mass is trapped underneath a warm air mass. It can also form due to the lifting of advection fog during breezy conditions. There are four main mechanisms for cooling the air to its dew point: adiabatic cooling, conductive cooling, radiational cooling , and evaporative cooling. Adiabatic cooling occurs when air rises and expands. The air can rise due to convection , large-scale atmospheric motions, or
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#17328512515392442-449: Is a time when air quality improves, freshwater quality improves, and vegetation grows significantly. Soil nutrients diminish and erosion increases. Animals have adaptation and survival strategies for the wetter regime. The previous dry season leads to food shortages into the wet season, as the crops have yet to mature. Developing countries have noted that their populations show seasonal weight fluctuations due to food shortages seen before
2553-573: Is accompanied by plentiful precipitation year-round. The Mediterranean climate regime resembles the climate of the lands in the Mediterranean Basin, parts of western North America, parts of western and southern Australia, in southwestern South Africa and in parts of central Chile. The climate is characterized by hot, dry summers and cool, wet winters. A steppe is a dry grassland. Subarctic climates are cold with continuous permafrost and little precipitation. Precipitation, especially rain, has
2664-620: Is added to the air through evaporation, which forces the air temperature to cool to its wet-bulb temperature , or until it reaches saturation. The main ways water vapor is added to the air are: wind convergence into areas of upward motion, precipitation or virga falling from above, daytime heating evaporating water from the surface of oceans, water bodies or wet land, transpiration from plants, cool or dry air moving over warmer water, and lifting air over mountains. Coalescence occurs when water droplets fuse to create larger water droplets, or when water droplets freeze onto an ice crystal, which
2775-437: Is associated with their warm front is often extensive, forced by weak upward vertical motion of air over the frontal boundary which condenses as it cools and produces precipitation within an elongated band, which is wide and stratiform , meaning falling out of nimbostratus clouds. When moist air tries to dislodge an arctic air mass, overrunning snow can result within the poleward side of the elongated precipitation band . In
2886-475: Is equally distributed through the year. Some areas with pronounced rainy seasons will see a break in rainfall mid-season when the Intertropical Convergence Zone or monsoon trough move poleward of their location during the middle of the warm season. When the wet season occurs during the warm season, or summer, rain falls mainly during the late afternoon and early evening hours. The wet season
2997-416: Is filled by 2.5 cm (0.98 in) of rain, with overflow flowing into the outer cylinder. Plastic gauges have markings on the inner cylinder down to 1 ⁄ 4 mm (0.0098 in) resolution, while metal gauges require use of a stick designed with the appropriate 1 ⁄ 4 mm (0.0098 in) markings. After the inner cylinder is filled, the amount inside is discarded, then filled with
3108-652: Is first mentioned in 1133 as Tuno . The region of Thun became a part of the Holy Roman Empire in 1033, when Conrad II gained the title of King of Burgundy. The emperors entrusted the Zähringen family, centred in Bern, with subduing the unruly nobles of central Switzerland. Around 1190 Duke Bertold V of Zähringen , built Thun castle and expanded the town. After Bertold's death in 1218, his territories went to Ulrich III von Kyburg. In 1264 Thun received town rights and in 1384
3219-470: Is followed by three years of obligatory lower Secondary school where the students are separated according to ability and aptitude. Following the lower Secondary students may attend additional schooling or they may enter an apprenticeship . During the 2012–13 school year, there were a total of 3,923 students attending classes in Thun. There were a total of 603 students in the German language kindergarten classes in
3330-503: Is in rivers and streams. On 31 December 2009 Amtsbezirk Thun, of which it was the capital, was dissolved. On the following day, 1 January 2010, it became the capital of the larger Verwaltungskreis Thun. Between 1981 and 2010 Thun had an average of 123.7 days of rain or snow per year and on average received 1,024 mm (40.3 in) of precipitation . The wettest month was August during which time Thun received an average of 138 mm (5.4 in) of rain or snow. During this month there
3441-401: Is intermittent and often associated with baroclinic boundaries such as cold fronts , squall lines , and warm fronts. Convective precipitation mostly consist of mesoscale convective systems and they produce torrential rainfalls with thunderstorms, wind damages, and other forms of severe weather events. Orographic precipitation occurs on the windward (upwind) side of mountains and is caused by
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3552-754: Is known as the Bergeron process . The fall rate of very small droplets is negligible, hence clouds do not fall out of the sky; precipitation will only occur when these coalesce into larger drops. droplets with different size will have different terminal velocity that cause droplets collision and producing larger droplets, Turbulence will enhance the collision process. As these larger water droplets descend, coalescence continues, so that drops become heavy enough to overcome air resistance and fall as rain. Raindrops have sizes ranging from 5.1 to 20 millimetres (0.20 to 0.79 in) mean diameter, above which they tend to break up. Smaller drops are called cloud droplets, and their shape
3663-404: Is lifted or otherwise forced to rise over a layer of sub-freezing air at the surface may be condensed by the low temperature into clouds and rain. This process is typically active when freezing rain occurs. A stationary front is often present near the area of freezing rain and serves as the focus for forcing moist air to rise. Provided there is necessary and sufficient atmospheric moisture content,
3774-567: Is located on the Aare, just downstream of the point where that river flows out of Lake Thun, and encompasses both banks of the river and an island between. The town covers an area of 21.6 km (8.3 sq mi), with the town boundaries reaching up to 4 km (2.5 mi) from the town centre. The town ranges in altitude between about 560 m (1,840 ft), in the town center, and 1,170 m (3,840 ft), on its eastern boundary. Thun has an area of 21.57 km (8.33 sq mi). As of
3885-528: Is made, various networks exist across the United States and elsewhere where rainfall measurements can be submitted through the Internet, such as CoCoRAHS or GLOBE . If a network is not available in the area where one lives, the nearest local weather office will likely be interested in the measurement. A concept used in precipitation measurement is the hydrometeor. Any particulates of liquid or solid water in
3996-655: Is one of the earliest examples of damascening technique in the world. The gold inlay decoration on the axe may also have a numerical, astronomical meaning. Another site at Wiler contained approximately 1,500 maritime snail shells which were harvested from the Mediterranean and traded over the Alps . The name of the town derives from the Celtic term Dunum , meaning "fortified town". It fell to Rome in 58 BC, when Roman legions conquered almost all of Switzerland, and it soon became one of
4107-412: Is one of the lowest in the canton. In 2012 the average local and cantonal tax rate on a married resident, with two children, of Thun making 150,000 CHF was 12.1%, while an unmarried resident's rate was 18.1%. For comparison, the average rate for the entire canton in 2011, was 14.2% and 22.0%, while the nationwide average was 12.3% and 21.1% respectively. In 2010 there were a total of 20,367 tax payers in
4218-519: Is spherical. As a raindrop increases in size, its shape becomes more oblate , with its largest cross-section facing the oncoming airflow. Contrary to the cartoon pictures of raindrops, their shape does not resemble a teardrop. Intensity and duration of rainfall are usually inversely related, i.e., high intensity storms are likely to be of short duration and low intensity storms can have a long duration. Rain drops associated with melting hail tend to be larger than other rain drops. The METAR code for rain
4329-618: Is the local variant of the Alemannic Swiss German dialect. The area of what is now Thun was inhabited since the Neolithic age (mid-3rd millennium BC). During the early Bronze Age there were a number of settlements along the lake shore and the Aare. A site at Renzenbühl had a local chief or nobleman's grave which contained one of the richest collections of early Bronze Age artifacts in Europe. The Thun-Renzenbühl axe, dating from 1800 BC,
4440-489: Is the temperature to which a parcel of air must be cooled in order to become saturated, and (unless super-saturation occurs) condenses to water. Water vapor normally begins to condense on condensation nuclei such as dust, ice, and salt in order to form clouds. The cloud condensation nuclei concentration will determine the cloud microphysics. An elevated portion of a frontal zone forces broad areas of lift, which form cloud decks such as altostratus or cirrostratus . Stratus
4551-489: Is the third (511 or 1.3%). There are 399 people who speak French and 31 people who speak Romansh . As of 2013, the population was 47.5% male and 52.5% female. The population was made up of 17,629 Swiss men (41.1% of the population) and 2,779 (6.5%) non-Swiss men. There were 19,956 Swiss women (46.5%) and 2,559 (6.0%) non-Swiss women. Of the population in the municipality, 12,265 or about 30.4% were born in Thun and lived there in 2000. There were 15,105 or 37.4% who were born in
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4662-457: Is the time of year, covering one or more months, when most of the average annual rainfall in a region falls. The term green season is also sometimes used as a euphemism by tourist authorities. Areas with wet seasons are dispersed across portions of the tropics and subtropics. Savanna climates and areas with monsoon regimes have wet summers and dry winters. Tropical rainforests technically do not have dry or wet seasons, since their rainfall
4773-709: The 2019 federal election for the Swiss National Council the most popular party was the SVP which received 26.6% (-4.2) of the vote. The next six most popular parties were the SP (16.9%, -2.1), the Green Party (15.1%, +5.6), the glp (10.9%, +4.0), FDP (7.6%, -1.0), the BDP (7.0%, -4.1), and the EVP (5.9%, +0.1). In the federal election a total of 13,904 votes were cast, and the voter turnout
4884-633: The Arabian Peninsula in order to proactively avert these tribal peoples, and particularly their young men, from revolting against the Islamic state established in their midst. In the United Kingdom , "Garrison" also specifically refers to any of the major military stations such as Aldershot , Catterick , Colchester , Tidworth , Bulford , and London , which have more than one barracks or camp and their own military headquarters , usually commanded by
4995-470: The French garnison , itself from the verb garnir , "to equip") is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a military base or fortified military headquarters . A garrison is usually in a city , town , fort , castle , ship , or similar site. "Garrison town" is a common expression for any town that has
5106-659: The Great Basin and Mojave Deserts . Similarly, in Asia, the Himalaya mountains create an obstacle to monsoons which leads to extremely high precipitation on the southern side and lower precipitation levels on the northern side. Extratropical cyclones can bring cold and dangerous conditions with heavy rain and snow with winds exceeding 119 km/h (74 mph), (sometimes referred to as windstorms in Europe). The band of precipitation that
5217-473: The Köppen climate classification system use average annual rainfall to help differentiate between differing climate regimes. Global warming is already causing changes to weather, increasing precipitation in some geographies, and reducing it in others, resulting in additional extreme weather . Precipitation may occur on other celestial bodies. Saturn's largest satellite , Titan , hosts methane precipitation as
5328-541: The condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls from clouds due to gravitational pull. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle , rain , sleet , snow , ice pellets , graupel and hail . Precipitation occurs when a portion of the atmosphere becomes saturated with water vapor (reaching 100% relative humidity ), so that the water condenses and "precipitates" or falls. Thus, fog and mist are not precipitation; their water vapor does not condense sufficiently to precipitate, so fog and mist do not fall. (Such
5439-459: The electromagnetic spectrum that theory and practice show are related to the occurrence and intensity of precipitation. The sensors are almost exclusively passive, recording what they see, similar to a camera, in contrast to active sensors ( radar , lidar ) that send out a signal and detect its impact on the area being observed. Satellite sensors now in practical use for precipitation fall into two categories. Thermal infrared (IR) sensors record
5550-446: The eyewall , and in comma-head precipitation patterns around mid-latitude cyclones . A wide variety of weather can be found along an occluded front, with thunderstorms possible, but usually their passage is associated with a drying of the air mass. Occluded fronts usually form around mature low-pressure areas. Precipitation may occur on celestial bodies other than Earth. When it gets cold, Mars has precipitation that most likely takes
5661-425: The return period or frequency. The intensity of a storm can be predicted for any return period and storm duration, from charts based on historical data for the location. The term 1 in 10 year storm describes a rainfall event which is rare and is only likely to occur once every 10 years, so it has a 10 percent likelihood any given year. The rainfall will be greater and the flooding will be worse than
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#17328512515395772-426: The 2004 survey, a total of 6.03 km (2.33 sq mi) or 27.9% is used for agricultural purposes, while 4.32 km (1.67 sq mi) or 20.0% is forested. Of rest of the municipality 10.76 km (4.15 sq mi) or 49.9% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.29 km (0.11 sq mi) or 1.3% is either rivers or lakes and 0.19 km (0.073 sq mi) or 0.9% is unproductive land. From
5883-658: The Earth's surface area, that means the globally averaged annual precipitation is 990 millimetres (39 in). Mechanisms of producing precipitation include convective, stratiform , and orographic rainfall. Convective processes involve strong vertical motions that can cause the overturning of the atmosphere in that location within an hour and cause heavy precipitation, while stratiform processes involve weaker upward motions and less intense precipitation. Precipitation can be divided into three categories, based on whether it falls as liquid water, liquid water that freezes on contact with
5994-532: The IR data. The second category of sensor channels is in the microwave part of the electromagnetic spectrum. The frequencies in use range from about 10 gigahertz to a few hundred GHz. Channels up to about 37 GHz primarily provide information on the liquid hydrometeors (rain and drizzle) in the lower parts of clouds, with larger amounts of liquid emitting higher amounts of microwave radiant energy . Channels above 37 GHz display emission signals, but are dominated by
6105-777: The Northern Hemisphere, poleward is towards the North Pole, or north. Within the Southern Hemisphere, poleward is towards the South Pole, or south. Southwest of extratropical cyclones, curved cyclonic flow bringing cold air across the relatively warm water bodies can lead to narrow lake-effect snow bands. Those bands bring strong localized snowfall which can be understood as follows: Large water bodies such as lakes efficiently store heat that results in significant temperature differences (larger than 13 °C or 23 °F) between
6216-973: The action of solid hydrometeors (snow, graupel, etc.) to scatter microwave radiant energy. Satellites such as the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) and the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission employ microwave sensors to form precipitation estimates. Additional sensor channels and products have been demonstrated to provide additional useful information including visible channels, additional IR channels, water vapor channels and atmospheric sounding retrievals. However, most precipitation data sets in current use do not employ these data sources. The IR estimates have rather low skill at short time and space scales, but are available very frequently (15 minutes or more often) from satellites in geosynchronous Earth orbit. IR works best in cases of deep, vigorous convection—such as
6327-497: The atmosphere are known as hydrometeors. Formations due to condensation, such as clouds, haze , fog, and mist, are composed of hydrometeors. All precipitation types are made up of hydrometeors by definition, including virga , which is precipitation which evaporates before reaching the ground. Particles blown from the Earth's surface by wind, such as blowing snow and blowing sea spray, are also hydrometeors , as are hail and snow . Although surface precipitation gauges are considered
6438-413: The atmosphere due to their mass, and may collide and stick together in clusters, or aggregates. These aggregates are snowflakes, and are usually the type of ice particle that falls to the ground. Guinness World Records list the world's largest snowflakes as those of January 1887 at Fort Keogh , Montana; allegedly one measured 38 cm (15 in) wide. The exact details of the sticking mechanism remain
6549-484: The average time between observations exceeds three hours. This several-hour interval is insufficient to adequately document precipitation because of the transient nature of most precipitation systems as well as the inability of a single satellite to appropriately capture the typical daily cycle of precipitation at a given location. Since the late 1990s, several algorithms have been developed to combine precipitation data from multiple satellites' sensors, seeking to emphasize
6660-531: The best analyses of gauge data take two months or more after the observation time to undergo the necessary transmission, assembly, processing and quality control. Thus, precipitation estimates that include gauge data tend to be produced further after the observation time than the no-gauge estimates. As a result, while estimates that include gauge data may provide a more accurate depiction of the "true" precipitation, they are generally not suited for real- or near-real-time applications. The work described has resulted in
6771-420: The best instantaneous satellite estimate. In either case, the less-emphasized goal is also considered desirable. One key aspect of multi-satellite studies is the ability to include even a small amount of surface gauge data, which can be very useful for controlling the biases that are endemic to satellite estimates. The difficulties in using gauge data are that 1) their availability is limited, as noted above, and 2)
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#17328512515396882-532: The changing temperature and humidity within the atmosphere through which they fall on their way to the ground. The METAR code for snow is SN, while snow showers are coded SHSN. Diamond dust, also known as ice needles or ice crystals, forms at temperatures approaching −40 °C (−40 °F) due to air with slightly higher moisture from aloft mixing with colder, surface-based air. They are made of simple ice crystals, hexagonal in shape. The METAR identifier for diamond dust within international hourly weather reports
6993-413: The classroom language. During the same year, the lower secondary school had a total of 1,270 students. There were 12.5% who were permanent or temporary residents of Switzerland (not citizens) and 23.1% have a different mother language than the classroom language. As of 2000, there were a total of 5,562 students attending any school in the municipality. Of those, 4,331 both lived and attended school in
7104-458: The coding of GS, which is short for the French word grésil. Stones just larger than golf ball-sized are one of the most frequently reported hail sizes. Hailstones can grow to 15 centimetres (6 in) and weigh more than 500 grams (1 lb). In large hailstones, latent heat released by further freezing may melt the outer shell of the hailstone. The hailstone then may undergo 'wet growth', where
7215-424: The deeper the clouds get, and the greater the precipitation rate becomes. In mountainous areas, heavy snowfall accumulates when air is forced to ascend the mountains and squeeze out precipitation along their windward slopes, which in cold conditions, falls in the form of snow. Because of the ruggedness of terrain, forecasting the location of heavy snowfall remains a significant challenge. The wet, or rainy, season
7326-531: The descending and generally warming, leeward side where a rain shadow is observed. In Hawaii , Mount Waiʻaleʻale , on the island of Kauai, is notable for its extreme rainfall, as it has the second-highest average annual rainfall on Earth, with 12,000 millimetres (460 in). Storm systems affect the state with heavy rains between October and March. Local climates vary considerably on each island due to their topography, divisible into windward ( Koʻolau ) and leeward ( Kona ) regions based upon location relative to
7437-539: The equator in Colombia are amongst the wettest places on Earth. North and south of this are regions of descending air that form subtropical ridges where precipitation is low; the land surface underneath these ridges is usually arid, and these regions make up most of the Earth's deserts. An exception to this rule is in Hawaii, where upslope flow due to the trade winds lead to one of the wettest locations on Earth. Otherwise,
7548-458: The first harvest, which occurs late in the wet season. Tropical cyclones, a source of very heavy rainfall, consist of large air masses several hundred miles across with low pressure at the centre and with winds blowing inward towards the centre in either a clockwise direction (southern hemisphere) or counterclockwise (northern hemisphere). Although cyclones can take an enormous toll in lives and personal property, they may be important factors in
7659-712: The flow of the Westerlies into the Rocky Mountains lead to the wettest, and at elevation snowiest, locations within North America. In Asia during the wet season, the flow of moist air into the Himalayas leads to some of the greatest rainfall amounts measured on Earth in northeast India. The standard way of measuring rainfall or snowfall is the standard rain gauge, which can be found in 10 cm (3.9 in) plastic and 20 cm (7.9 in) metal varieties. The inner cylinder
7770-579: The form of ice needles, rather than rain or snow. Convective rain , or showery precipitation, occurs from convective clouds, e.g. cumulonimbus or cumulus congestus . It falls as showers with rapidly changing intensity. Convective precipitation falls over a certain area for a relatively short time, as convective clouds have limited horizontal extent. Most precipitation in the tropics appears to be convective; however, it has been suggested that stratiform precipitation also occurs. Graupel and hail indicate convection. In mid-latitudes, convective precipitation
7881-400: The funnel needs to be removed before the event begins. For those looking to measure rainfall the most inexpensively, a can that is cylindrical with straight sides will act as a rain gauge if left out in the open, but its accuracy will depend on what ruler is used to measure the rain with. Any of the above rain gauges can be made at home, with enough know-how . When a precipitation measurement
7992-425: The gauge. Once the snowfall/ice is finished accumulating, or as 30 cm (12 in) is approached, one can either bring it inside to melt, or use lukewarm water to fill the inner cylinder with in order to melt the frozen precipitation in the outer cylinder, keeping track of the warm fluid added, which is subsequently subtracted from the overall total once all the ice/snow is melted. Other types of gauges include
8103-403: The government. The main node for public transport in Thun is Thun railway station . Here public transport bus service , both within the urban area and connecting Thun with nearby towns, is provided by Verkehrsbetriebe STI . Intercity passenger rail service is provided by BLS AG and by Swiss Federal Railways (SBB CFF FFS) . BLS also operates passenger ships on Lake Thun, which reach
8214-459: The hailstones to the upper part of the cloud. The updraft dissipates and the hailstones fall down, back into the updraft, and are lifted again. Hail has a diameter of 5 millimetres (0.20 in) or more. Within METAR code, GR is used to indicate larger hail, of a diameter of at least 6.4 millimetres (0.25 in). GR is derived from the French word grêle. Smaller-sized hail, as well as snow pellets, use
8325-483: The higher mountains. Windward sides face the east to northeast trade winds and receive much more rainfall; leeward sides are drier and sunnier, with less rain and less cloud cover. In South America, the Andes mountain range blocks Pacific moisture that arrives in that continent, resulting in a desertlike climate just downwind across western Argentina. The Sierra Nevada range creates the same effect in North America forming
8436-479: The ice crystals the crystals are able to grow to hundreds of micrometers in size at the expense of the water droplets. This process is known as the Wegener–Bergeron–Findeisen process . The corresponding depletion of water vapor causes the droplets to evaporate, meaning that the ice crystals grow at the droplets' expense. These large crystals are an efficient source of precipitation, since they fall through
8547-416: The leeward side of mountains, desert climates can exist due to the dry air caused by compressional heating. Most precipitation occurs within the tropics and is caused by convection . The movement of the monsoon trough , or Intertropical Convergence Zone , brings rainy seasons to savannah regions. Precipitation is a major component of the water cycle , and is responsible for depositing fresh water on
8658-454: The liquid outer shell collects other smaller hailstones. The hailstone gains an ice layer and grows increasingly larger with each ascent. Once a hailstone becomes too heavy to be supported by the storm's updraft, it falls from the cloud. Snow crystals form when tiny supercooled cloud droplets (about 10 μm in diameter) freeze. Once a droplet has frozen, it grows in the supersaturated environment. Because water droplets are more numerous than
8769-577: The main centers of Roman administration in the region. The Romans were driven out of Thun, and out of the rest of Switzerland, by the Burgundians around 400 AD. The Aare became the frontier between the Christian Burgundians and the Pagan, German-speaking Alemanni , who lived north. The region was mentioned for the first time during the 7th century, in the chronicle of Frankish monk Fredgar . The town
8880-429: The moisture within the rising air will condense into clouds, namely nimbostratus and cumulonimbus if significant precipitation is involved. Eventually, the cloud droplets will grow large enough to form raindrops and descend toward the Earth where they will freeze on contact with exposed objects. Where relatively warm water bodies are present, for example due to water evaporation from lakes, lake-effect snowfall becomes
8991-431: The municipality and 9,195 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with about 1.4 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving. A total of 11,320 workers (47.2% of the 23,993 total workers in the municipality) both lived and worked in Thun. Of the working population, 27% used public transportation to get to work, and 41.2% used a private car. The local and cantonal tax rate in Thun
9102-488: The municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 44.5% of the workforce. In 2008 there were a total of 20,331 full-time equivalent jobs. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 66, of which 63 were in agriculture, 1 was in forestry or lumber production and 1 was in fishing or fisheries. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 6,159 of which 3,898 or (63.3%) were in manufacturing and 2,092 (34.0%) were in construction. The number of jobs in
9213-503: The municipality, while 1,231 students came from another municipality. During the same year, 427 residents attended schools outside the municipality. Thun is home to the Stadtbibliothek Thun library. The library has (as of 2008) 56,800 books or other media, and loaned out 330,316 items in the same year. It was open a total of 300 days with average of 35 hours per week during that year. Garrison A garrison (from
9324-440: The municipality. Of that total, 6,140 made over 75,000 CHF per year. There were 133 people who made between 15,000 and 20,000 per year. The greatest number of workers, 6,238, made between 50,000 and 75,000 CHF per year. The average income of the over 75,000 CHF group in Thun was 113,507 CHF, while the average across all of Switzerland was 131,244 CHF. In 2011 a total of 2.4% of the population received direct financial assistance from
9435-421: The municipality. Of the kindergarten students, 18.7% were permanent or temporary residents of Switzerland (not citizens) and 29.9% have a different mother language than the classroom language. The municipality's primary school had 2,050 students in German language classes. Of the primary students, 15.7% were permanent or temporary residents of Switzerland (not citizens) and 26.3% have a different mother language than
9546-462: The planet. Approximately 505,000 cubic kilometres (121,000 cu mi) of water falls as precipitation each year: 398,000 cubic kilometres (95,000 cu mi) over oceans and 107,000 cubic kilometres (26,000 cu mi) over land. Given the Earth's surface area, that means the globally averaged annual precipitation is 990 millimetres (39 in), but over land it is only 715 millimetres (28.1 in). Climate classification systems such as
9657-424: The popular wedge gauge (the cheapest rain gauge and most fragile), the tipping bucket rain gauge , and the weighing rain gauge . The wedge and tipping bucket gauges have problems with snow. Attempts to compensate for snow/ice by warming the tipping bucket meet with limited success, since snow may sublimate if the gauge is kept much above freezing. Weighing gauges with antifreeze should do fine with snow, but again,
9768-491: The population have completed non-mandatory upper secondary education , and 17.6% have completed additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule ). Of the 4,675 who had completed some form of tertiary schooling listed in the census, 68.6% were Swiss men, 22.5% were Swiss women, 5.8% were non-Swiss men and 3.1% were non-Swiss women. The Canton of Bern school system provides one year of non-obligatory Kindergarten , followed by six years of Primary school. This
9879-618: The population) belonged to no church, are agnostic or atheist , and 1,246 individuals (or about 3.09% of the population) did not answer the question. As of 2011, Thun had an unemployment rate of 2.41%. As of 2011, there were a total of 28,536 people employed in the municipality. Of these, there were 114 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 44 businesses involved in this sector. The secondary sector employs 6,625 people and there were 450 businesses in this sector. The tertiary sector employs 21,797 people, with 2,696 businesses in this sector. There were 20,515 residents of
9990-542: The population) who belonged to the Christian Catholic Church , and there were 1,823 individuals (or about 4.51% of the population) who belonged to another Christian church. There were 17 individuals (or about 0.04% of the population) who were Jewish , and 1,365 (or about 3.38% of the population) who were Muslim . There were 115 individuals who were Buddhist , 347 individuals who were Hindu and 35 individuals who belonged to another church. 2,765 (or about 6.85% of
10101-486: The precipitation regimes of places they impact, as they may bring much-needed precipitation to otherwise dry regions. Areas in their path can receive a year's worth of rainfall from a tropical cyclone passage. On the large scale, the highest precipitation amounts outside topography fall in the tropics, closely tied to the Intertropical Convergence Zone , itself the ascending branch of the Hadley cell . Mountainous locales near
10212-581: The primary types are A, tropical; B, dry; C, mild mid-latitude; D, cold mid-latitude; and E, polar. The five primary classifications can be further divided into secondary classifications such as rain forest , monsoon , tropical savanna , humid subtropical , humid continental , oceanic climate , Mediterranean climate , steppe , subarctic climate , tundra , polar ice cap , and desert . Rain forests are characterized by high rainfall, with definitions setting minimum normal annual rainfall between 1,750 and 2,000 mm (69 and 79 in). A tropical savanna
10323-406: The remaining rainfall in the outer cylinder until all the fluid in the outer cylinder is gone, adding to the overall total until the outer cylinder is empty. These gauges are used in the winter by removing the funnel and inner cylinder and allowing snow and freezing rain to collect inside the outer cylinder. Some add anti-freeze to their gauge so they do not have to melt the snow or ice that falls into
10434-413: The result at the surface. A temperature profile showing a warm layer above the ground is most likely to be found in advance of a warm front during the cold season, but can occasionally be found behind a passing cold front . Like other precipitation, hail forms in storm clouds when supercooled water droplets freeze on contact with condensation nuclei , such as dust or dirt. The storm's updraft blows
10545-438: The rising air motion of a large-scale flow of moist air across the mountain ridge, resulting in adiabatic cooling and condensation. In mountainous parts of the world subjected to relatively consistent winds (for example, the trade winds ), a more moist climate usually prevails on the windward side of a mountain than on the leeward or downwind side. Moisture is removed by orographic lift, leaving drier air (see katabatic wind ) on
10656-690: The same canton, while 5,846 or 14.5% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 5,699 or 14.1% were born outside of Switzerland. As of 2012, children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 17.5% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 60.7% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 21.8%. As of 2000, there were 15,905 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 18,969 married individuals, 2,875 widows or widowers and 2,628 individuals who are divorced. As of 2010, there were 7,537 households that consist of only one person and 919 households with five or more people. In 2000,
10767-419: The same survey, industrial buildings made up 5.7% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 26.8% and transportation infrastructure made up 12.1%. while parks, green belts and sports fields made up 4.4%. All of the forested land area is covered with heavy forests. Of the agricultural land, 11.4% is used for growing crops and 15.6% is pasturage. Of the water in the municipality, 0.9% is in lakes and 0.4%
10878-455: The standard for measuring precipitation, there are many areas in which their use is not feasible. This includes the vast expanses of ocean and remote land areas. In other cases, social, technical or administrative issues prevent the dissemination of gauge observations. As a result, the modern global record of precipitation largely depends on satellite observations. Satellite sensors work by remotely sensing precipitation—recording various parts of
10989-804: The station by means of the Thun ship canal . The Steamship Blüemlisalp, the former Hotel Bellevue-Du Parc, the former Hotel Thunerhof, the zum Rosengarten House, the Landsitz Bellerive, the armory (Mannschaftskaserne), the former hospital at Platzschulhaus, the Rathaus (Town council house), the Reformed Church of Scherzligen and the Sammlung Historisches Armeematerial (Collection of Historical Military Equipment) are listed as Swiss heritage site of national significance . In Thun about 57.3% of
11100-541: The strengths and minimize the weaknesses of the individual input data sets. The goal is to provide "best" estimates of precipitation on a uniform time/space grid, usually for as much of the globe as possible. In some cases the long-term homogeneity of the dataset is emphasized, which is the Climate Data Record standard. Alternatively, the High Resolution Precipitation Product aims to produce
11211-424: The surface, or ice. Mixtures of different types of precipitation, including types in different categories, can fall simultaneously. Liquid forms of precipitation include rain and drizzle. Rain or drizzle that freezes on contact within a subfreezing air mass is called "freezing rain" or "freezing drizzle". Frozen forms of precipitation include snow, ice needles , ice pellets , hail , and graupel . The dew point
11322-518: The tertiary sector was 14,106. In the tertiary sector; 2,910 or 20.6% were in wholesale or retail sales or the repair of motor vehicles, 918 or 6.5% were in the movement and storage of goods, 968 or 6.9% were in a hotel or restaurant, 345 or 2.4% were in the information industry, 663 or 4.7% were the insurance or financial industry, 1,075 or 7.6% were technical professionals or scientists, 692 or 4.9% were in education and 2,457 or 17.4% were in health care. In 2000, there were 12,673 workers who commuted into
11433-513: The town was bought by the canton of Bern. Thun was the capital of the Canton of Oberland of the Helvetic Republic , which lasted from 1798 until 1803. In 1819 a Military School was founded in the town, which later developed into the main military school in Switzerland. Thun was connected to the railway network of Switzerland in 1859 and telephone access made available in 1888. The center of Thun
11544-437: The tropics—and becomes progressively less useful in areas where stratiform (layered) precipitation dominates, especially in mid- and high-latitude regions. The more-direct physical connection between hydrometeors and microwave channels gives the microwave estimates greater skill on short time and space scales than is true for IR. However, microwave sensors fly only on low Earth orbit satellites, and there are few enough of them that
11655-405: The water surface and the air above. Because of this temperature difference, warmth and moisture are transported upward, condensing into vertically oriented clouds (see satellite picture) which produce snow showers. The temperature decrease with height and cloud depth are directly affected by both the water temperature and the large-scale environment. The stronger the temperature decrease with height,
11766-447: The westerlies steer from west to east. Most summer rainfall occurs during thunderstorms and from occasional tropical cyclones. Humid subtropical climates lie on the east side continents, roughly between latitudes 20° and 40° degrees from the equator. An oceanic (or maritime) climate is typically found along the west coasts at the middle latitudes of all the world's continents, bordering cool oceans, as well as southeastern Australia, and
11877-438: The worst storm expected in any single year. The term 1 in 100 year storm describes a rainfall event which is extremely rare and which will occur with a likelihood of only once in a century, so has a 1 percent likelihood in any given year. The rainfall will be extreme and flooding to be worse than a 1 in 10 year event. As with all probability events, it is possible though unlikely to have two "1 in 100 Year Storms" in
11988-502: Was 0.1%. In 2012, single family homes made up 46.7% of the total housing in the municipality. The historical population is given in the following chart: From the 2000 census, 26,334 or 65.2% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church , while 5,852 or 14.5% were Roman Catholic . Of the rest of the population, there were 441 members of an Orthodox church (or about 1.09% of the population), there were 37 individuals (or about 0.09% of
12099-612: Was 42.8%. In the 2011 federal election the most popular party was the Swiss People's Party (SVP) which received 25.5% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the Social Democratic Party (SP) (19.6%), the Conservative Democratic Party (BDP) (16.1%) and the Green Party (8.9%). In the federal election, a total of 15,012 votes were cast, and the voter turnout was 46.8%. From 1996 to 2019 Thun
12210-413: Was precipitation for an average of 11.7 days. The month with the most days of precipitation was June, with an average of 12.9, but with only 132 mm (5.2 in) of rain or snow. The driest month of the year was February with an average of 46 mm (1.8 in) of precipitation over 8.3 days. The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Gules on a Bend Argent in chief a Mullet of Seven Or. In
12321-650: Was twinned with Gabrovo in Bulgaria. For 30 years, authorities, associations and other population groups have been visiting the Zähringer towns. In Germany, this friendly alliance includes: Freiburg im Breisgau , Villingen-Schwenningen , Neuenburg am Rhein , Bräunlingen , St. Peter in the Black Forest and Weilheim an der Teck , and in Switzerland: Bern , Freiburg , Burgdorf , Murten and Rheinfelden . Thun has
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