Meteorology and Environment in Islamic Scientific Tradition (4th/10th–6th/12th Century)

Abstract

Meteorology in the Islamic scientific tradition covers ample ground. Under this umbrella may fall as­tronomical anwāʾ, historical meteorology, and scientific understanding of several phenomena. This article will present on overview of meteorological contributions by fundamental authors of the later centuries of the so-called golden age of Islamic scientific tradition—namely, al-Bīrūnī, Ibn Sīnā, Abū l-Barakāt, and Ibn Rušd—focus­ing on the origin of clouds, precipitations, and rivers and climatic differences across regions. Building on their understanding of meteorological phenomena and atmospheric structures, it is possible to draw broader conclusions about their views of the (created) natural world and what we understand today in terms of the environment. The varied multiplicity of their approaches and conclusions features a shared prominence of experience as a fundamental tool of inquiry.