NIWA

Science topics for students

Learn more about the weather and its impacts on the environment, or select your own study topic and create ideas for science projects from our climate data.

Climate change information for climate solvers

Helping you understand the science of climate change. The things we can do to combat climate change, individually, and alongside our whānau, school and community, can and will make a difference.

Climate and weather

Information about climate and weather and links to climate-related websites.

Clouds

Common questions about clouds, how they are formed and how they behave.

Common hydrological terms

Descriptions of the common terms that explain the processes that occur in hydrology.

Common climate and weather terms

A glossary of common climate change and meteorological terms.

Drought

Defining drought and identifying its causes and impacts on humans.

Estuaries

An estuary is a partially enclosed body of water formed where freshwater from the land meets and mixes with saltwater from the ocean.

Ideas for projects using climate data

Use these climate questions to spark ideas for science projects.

Layers of the atmosphere

The atmosphere is comprised of layers based on temperature. These layers are the troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere and thermosphere.

Storms and cyclones

Common questions about storms and cyclones in New Zealand.