Revised and updated, "Skywatch West offers a clear and interesting way of understanding how weather actually works, from calm and predictable cycles to dramatic and unpredictable events. Through Richard A. Keen's lively descriptions and colorful photographs, readers will discover all the joys of weather-watching in the always fascinating American West. They will also learn practical skills, such as how to "read" clouds, how to build a home weather station, and how to read weather maps. Being prepared for the weather around us is an integral part of life in the West, where the weather can be as wild and rugged as the land itself. As Keen points out, westerners have seen winds "strong enough to send parked airplanes into unwanted flight and airborne planes crashing to the ground"; storms so intense they have flattened forests, destroyed bridges, and washed neighborhoods into the sea; and temperatures so high only the Sahara has recorded higher ones. And much more.