Pokemon Learning League

Weather
Written By
Timothy Whitfield

(Episode opens with Ash, Pikachu and Serena on

Route 18, heading to Fuchsia City on a partly
cloudy & windy afternoon. The clouds are blowing
in the wind & momentarily block out the Sun in
some parts. A cold breeze blows through the area
& Serena speaks to Ash.)
Serena: Ooh, it feels cold out today.
Ash: You said it, Serena, but were almost at
Fuchsia City.
Serena: Oh, thats good. So, is the Safari Zone
here a great place?
Ash: You bet it is. You can catch all kinds of wild
Pokemon in there.
Serena: Thats pretty interesting. What was it like
when you first visited it?
Ash: Boy, was it something. When Misty, Brock
and I first arrived there, the warden at the time, a
guy named Kaiza, was a very tough man.
Serena (intrigued): Really?
Ash: Yep, and he was very strict about enforcing
the rules. If you didnt follow them, you were going
to get it.
Serena (understanding): Ah-ha.
(As they go on, more clouds start rolling into the
area until it becomes an overcast.)

Serena: What else happened?

Ash: Then, Team Rocket showed up and issued us a
challenge, that if we won, theyd leave us alone,
but if they did, wed have to give them all our
Pokemon.
Serena: Sounds like that wouldve been awful.
Ash: Oh, it wouldve been. So, we went in and had
gotten off to a pretty good start. Brock and I
caught a couple of Tauros, then after that, I tried to
catch a Rhyhorn, though I wasnt being careful and
accidentally caught another Tauros.
Serena: Ahh. Thats pretty silly.
Ash: Yep. In fact, by the end, I wounded up
catching thirty of them. But anyways, we later
found out that Team Rocket was going after a rare
Dratini and were going to use an electric bomb to
get all the Pokemon living in the Dragon Valley
lake.
Serena: My goodness.
Ash: It was about to go off, so Kaiza dived in to get
it. Then, I dived in after with him, along with
Mistys Staryu, where I had it take him back to the
surface, while I went after the bomb. I had gotten
it and tried to swim back to the surface, but I had
run out of air and nearly drowned.
Serena (sympathetically): Well, thats horrible.

Ash: But then, a Dragonair came in & rescued me,

and it turned out that it evolved from the Dratini
Kaiza saved.
Serena (impressed & amazed): Wow, thats really
amazing.
Ash: Mmm-hmm, but you cant tell anyone else
about the Dragonair or Dratini.
Serena: All right, I wont.
(They continue onward. Eight minutes later, they
arrive in Fuchsia City. Just then, lightning flashes
within the clouds and, two seconds later, the
thunder rumbles.)
Ash: Ooh, sounds like its going to get nasty.
Serena: Yeah. We better head take cover.
(They hustle on over to the Pokemon Center before
the storm starts.)
Joy: Hello, there guys. Hows it going?
Ash & Serena: Good, Nurse Joy.
Joy: Well, thats great to hear. I take it you want to
rest up your Pokemon?
Ash: You bet we do.
Joy: Okay, Ill get right on it.
(They hand her their PokeBalls & Pikachu, puts
them on a rack and carts them off. Now, they go

over to the waiting area and sit in a booth seated

near a window.)
Serena: So, after the Safari Zone, what do we do
from there?
Ash: I dont know yet, but whatever itll, Im sure
its going to be fun.
Serena: Okay, then. Oh, I almost forgot. I have
something for you.
(She goes into her backpack, pulls two small bags
and hands them to Ash. One is full of Poke Puffs,
and the other has macarons.)
Ash (appreciatively): Thank you, Serena. Thats
really nice.
Serena: Youre welcome, Ash.
(She turns & looks out the window and gets a
surprised look on her face.)
Serena: (gasps.) Ash, you have to see this.
Ash: What is it, Serena?
(He looks outside and sees its snowing very
hard, and the wind blows it all around and a flash
of lightning appears in the sky.)
Ash (amazed): Whoa! Thats incredible.
Serena (concurring): Yeah, but how is this possible?

Ash: I dont know. It is really weird seeing lightning

& thunder in a snowstorm.
Serena: Maybe Siara will know something about it.
(She goes into her bag, pulls the Pokepilot out,
turns it on and calls Siara, who is doing some
training with her Dragalge.)
Siara: Hi, guys.
Serena: Hey, Siara. How are you doing?
Siara: Oh, terrific. Just helping Dragalge work on
its Scald attack.
Ash: Thats cool, and hows that been going?
Siara: Its been going well so far.
Ash: Thats great.
Siara: Mmm-hmm. So, what are you guys up to?
Serena: Right now, were at the Pokemon center,
and theres a thunder snowstorm going on right
now.
Siara (fascinated): Really?
Serena: Yeah.
(She holds the Pokepilot out to the window and
shows Siara.)
Siara: My, that is a strange phenomenon.

Ash: You said it, so do you know how this kind of

weather can happen?
Siara: Well, to better understand that, you need to
know how a lot of the weather is formed.
Ash: Okay, how does it happen?
Siara: To start with, it usually depends on the
atmospheric pressure. Essentially, because the
amount of heat from the Sun varies each day,
temperatures will also vary depending on where
you are. Also, the rotation of the planet causes
what is known as the Coriolis Force, where wind
patterns in the northern & southern hemisphere go
in opposite directions, which results in creating
high & low pressure systems.
(The images and words highlight as she continues
to speak.)
Siara: With high pressure systems, the air is a lot
denser and holds in more water vapor in the lower
levels of the atmosphere, resulting in warmer
temperatures and a clearer and dryer environment,
whereas with low pressure systems, as you can
guess, they have the opposite effect. With it being
less dense, the air rises to higher levels, where the
temperatures get much cooler, and the water
vapor condenses into clouds, thus bringing
precipitation to some areas.

Serena: Okay, thats pretty important. Now what?

Siara: Next up is the amount of solar & terrestrial
radiation given off. While the Sun gives off a vast
amount of energy, which travels through space as
short-wave radiation, only a small portion of it ever
reaches the Earths surface. Also, believe it or not,
much of the atmosphere isnt heated by the solar
radiation, but by terrestrial radiation the planet
itself gives off.
Serena (intrigued): Really? How does it do that?
Siara: Basically, when the Earth absorbs the solar
radiation, it also emits long-wave radiation. Also,
while water vapor & carbon dioxide molecules
allow short wave radiation to pass through, they
absorb the Earths radiation, thus heating the
atmosphere from the ground up.
Ash: Thats really interesting. Now what?
Siara: Another key component of weather
formation is the wind. When the air gets heated
up, the molecules move around more rapidly,
pushing each other father apart, resulting in it
becoming less dense & rise through the
troposphere to thinner air, as well as also move to
colder regions. Then, it eventually cools back
down to a denser state and sinks back down.
Ash: Okay, then what happens?

Siara: The air in one area heats up faster than the

air in an adjoining area, the pressure differentials
create wind. When this occurs, the air in the hotter
area becomes less dense & rises as an updraft.
After that, cooler air comes in as surface wind, gets
heated up as well, rises with the updraft, cools
down and gets pushed out as upper air wind.
(As she talks goes on, an image of a city and a
bordering countryside animate to the words being
spoken.)
Serena: Oh, thats interesting.
Siara: Yep, but thats not all. They also create
convection cells, which occur when a mass
movement or circulation transfers heat through a
substance. They act as one of the central
components, as temperatures and air pressure are
constantly changing. There are also three key
factors in the global atmospheric circulation. First,
theres the pressure-gradient force, where more
wind is generated, due to high-pressure air flowing
into low-pressure areas. Low-pressure centers,
also called cyclones, rotate in a vortex pattern
similar to a hurricane, while high-pressure winds
spiral into the low-pressure center & ascend in an
updraft, while high-pressure centers, or
anticyclones, descend in a downdraft and spiral
along the surface into low-pressure areas.

Serena: Okay, what the next one?

Siara: Then, theres the Coriolis force, which, as
mentioned earlier, causes the winds in both
hemispheres to blow in opposite directions, but
thats not all it does. It also breaks the
hemispheric cells into three different types: The
Hadley cells, the Ferrel cells and the Polar cells.
Lastly, theres the friction with the Earths surface.
Wherever surface winds make contact with the
Earth, itll cause friction, thus slowing down &
redirecting the flow of air, but upper air winds are
unaffected by it.
Ash: Man, thats really complex. Whats next?
Siara: As you probably know, water plays an
important role when creating weather, even though
it makes up about 4 percent of the atmosphere in
some areas. Because it exists in various states, it
goes through the water cycle, which you already
know about.
Serena: All right, whats left?
Siara: Lastly, theres the involvement of air
masses. When humid air rises to the point where
cooler temperature forces it to be condensed, it
often involves the movement of air masses, which
are large bodies of air with similar temperatures
and moisture content. There are four natural
occurrences that cause air to rise, like the

Orographic lifting, which happens when an airflow

encounters elevated terrains, like a mountain
range. Next is the frontal wedging, which occurs
when a warm & a cold air mass collides and create
a front, and there are four kinds of them: warm,
cold, stationary and occluded. Then, theres the
convergence, where two masses with the same
temperatures collide and neither one is willing to
go back down, but only up. Finally, the localized
convection lifting. Basically, the unequal heating
of the Earths surface causes a pocket of air to heat
up faster than the air surrounding it, causing it to
ascend, take some water vapor with it and forms
into clouds.
Ash: Man, thats all pretty complex.
Siara: Yep, it sure is, but once you understand it
better, it wont be as much, which is why Im going
to show you two something.
Serena: All right, then.
(Pan up to an upper panel, displaying the various
stages of weather formation.)
Siara: Well, are you two ready to go?
Ash: You bet, Siara.
Siara: Okay, then. What do high pressure & low
pressure systems respectively bring?

Ash: Hmm. High-pressure systems bring warmer &

clearer weather, while low-pressure systems bring
cooler weather.
Siara: All right, Ash. Now, how does the terrestrial
radiation heat up the atmosphere?
Serena: The Earth absorbs solar radiation, gives off
long-wave radiation and water vapor & carbon
dioxide molecules absorb it.
Siara: You know it, Serena. What happens to the
air as it gets heated?
Ash: Molecules move faster, push further apart,
become less dense and rise to cooler regions &
thinner air.
Siara: Very nice. Now, what happens when a large
area absorbs a lot of heat & what happens from
there?
Serena: The air becomes less dense and rises in an
updraft, then cooler air comes in as surface wind,
heats up & rises with the updraft, make the air
above it cool down and push out as upper air wind.
Siara: You got it. What are the three types of
convection cells?
Ash: Pressure-gradient force, the Coriolis force and
friction with the Earths surface.
Siara: Very good. You two did great.

Serena: Thanks, Siara.

Siara: Youre welcome, Serena. Now, if you guys
will excuse me, we need.
Ash: Okay, before you go, would you mind
explaining how a thunder snowstorm can occur?
Siara: Sure thing. Basically, what happens is that a
cold front comes in, lifts up the warmer air, which
then condenses into clouds, and it allows ice
particles to rub against each other, thus resulting
in a thunder snowstorm.
Ash (comprehending it): Oh, okay. Thanks.
Siara: No problem. Well, see you guys later.
Ash: See you.
(Serena puts the Pokepilot away, but just then,
they hear the chime.)
Serena: I guess we better go get them.
(Ash gets up from his seat.)
Ash: Hang on, Serena. Let me go get them for us.
Serena: Oh, okay.
(He goes up to the front desk, where Nurse Joy is
waiting with Pikachu and the other PokeBalls.)
Joy: All your Pokemon are well-rested and ready to
go.

Ash: Thats good.

Pikachu: Pika, Pika.
(Pikachu jumps off the tray & onto Ashs shoulder,
while Ash takes the rest if his PokeBall and puts
them back on his belt.)
Ash: Hey, Nurse Joy, do you mind if I bring Serenas
PokeBalls to her myself?
Joy: Of course not. Go right ahead.
Ash: Thanks.
(He picks up Serenas PokeBalls, goes back over to
the booth & hands them over to her.)
Ash: Here you are, Serena.
Serena: Thanks, Ash. That was really nice of you.
Ash: No problem.
(She takes them from Ash and puts them back in
her bag. Ash looks out the window and sees that
the storm has died down a bit, but its still coming
down and the winds still blowing hard.)
Ash: Boy, its going to take a while before the
storm lets up.
Serena: Yeah. What do you say we go get
something to eat?
Ash: Sure.

(They get from their booth and head over to the

buffet. Once there, they each get a plate & tray.
Ash gets some cheesy breadsticks, onigiris,
lasagna and snickerdoodles, while Serena gets
some sweet rolls, onigiris, spaghetti & meatballs
and regular breadsticks. They leave the buffet and
head back over to their booths. Ash place his tray
down, gets out a can Pokemon food for Pikachu out
of his bag, pours some into his hand and gives it to
him. Now, Ash & Serena start eating.)
Both (warmly & contented): Ahh.
Pikachu (contented): Pika.
(As they go on consuming their food, Nurse Joy
comes over to them.)
Joy: I see you two are enjoying your lunch.
(They both nod their heads to her.)
Joy: Thats great. So, how would you two like to
see something Ive been working on?
Serena: Sure thing. What is it?
Joy: Well, follow me and Ill show you.
(They get up from their booth and they follow
Nurse Joy over to a special room, where they see a
few Litwick sapping energy from the sleeping
Pokemon and trainers dreams. Red mists of
energy emanate from the sleeping Pokemon and

are absorbed by the flames on the top of the

Litwicks heads, which grow bigger with each one
they absorb.)
Joy: As you can see, theyre absorbing the energy
from these Pokmons nightmares and are helping
them sleep better.
Ash (concerned & wondering): Okay, but wont
they take more of their life energy once they wake
up and take them to the Ghost World?
Joy: No need to worry about that. Theyve been
trained to not do that to any Pokemon or people.
Ash (comprehending): Oh. Well, thats good.
Joy: Mmm-hmm, it is.
(Just as they exit the room, one of the Litwick tries
to leave with them, but Joy turns back and Litwick
stops it in its tracks.)
Joy (very sternly & authoritatively): Dont even
think about it.
(It turns back around and heads back over to the
other two. Now, we cut back out to the main
lobby.)
Serena: So, what made you decide to do this?
Joy: Well, I wanted to help Pokemon or their trainers
that are having trouble sleeping, so I thought of

using the Litwicks ability of sapping energy from

Pokemon & people, but in a good & helpful manner.
Serena: I hope that goes well for you.
Joy: Well, thank you. I think it will.
(She walks back over to her station.)
Serena: So, Ash, how about we resume what we
were doing before?
Ash: Sure, Serena. Lets see if the audience are up
for this.
Serena: Okay. (She turns over to the audience.)
You guys up for this? (She casually waits for an
answer from the audience for one second.) Oh,
okay.
(Diagonal wipe back to the image of the various
stages.)
Serena (V.O.): Okay, lets get to it. What are the
three convection cells caused by the Coriolis force?
(She casually waits for an answer from the
audience for one and a half seconds.) Hadley,
Ferrel and Polar. All right, then.
Ash (V.O.): Now, how much of the atmosphere is
made up of water? (He casually waits for an
answer from the audience for one and a half
seconds.) About four percent. Very good.

Serena (V.O.): How are the air masses formed?

(She casually waits for an answer from the
audience one and a half seconds.) When humid air
rises, gets condensed, it often involves the
movement of air masses, which are large bodies of
air with similar temperatures and moisture
content. Oh, yeah.
Ash (V.O.): Lastly, what are the four natural
occurrences that make air rise? (He casually waits
for an answer from the audience for one and a half
seconds.) Orographic lifting, frontal wedging, a
convergence and a localized convection lifting. You
got it.
(Vertical wipe back to the two and Ash casually
speaks to the audience.)
Ash (casually): You guys did great.
Pikachu: Pika-chu.
Serena: So, Ash. What were some of the weirdest
adventures you had?
Ash: Ooh, boy, there were so many of them. There
was the time where this group of Clefairy were
going around, stealing everyones stuff so they
could build a spaceship and we had to stop them.
Serena: All right, then. What else?
Ash: Another time, during our adventure in the
Orange Islands, we had an encounter with a ghost

ship when Team Rocket tried to steal the Orange

League cup.
Serena: My goodness.
(Now, we pan as he goes on about it dissolve to an
hour and a half later, where we see the storm has
let up and the entire city is covered in five-to-six
inches of snow, but it remains an overcast. Cut
back to the inside of the Center.)
Serena: Whoa, those were some really crazy stuff
you did.
Ash: Yeah, and Im sure therell be plenty more in
the future.
(He looks out the window and sees its stopped
snowing & all the snow covering the ground.)
Ash: Well, its finally let up. You ready to head to
the Safari Zone?
Serena: Yep.
Ash: All right, then.
(They each go a changing room and put on their
winter coats, gloves & boots. Now, they exit the
rooms, pick up their bags, leave the Pokemon
Center and head on over to the Safari Zone.
Moments later, they arrive at the destination and
head inside, where the new Warden, Lorenzo,
awaits them. He has brown hair, sapphire blue

eyes, a brown mustache and is wearing a park

uniform and black loafers.)
Lorenzo: Afternoon, you two. How are you both
doing?
Serena: Were doing well, thanks.
Lorenzo: Oh, good. Wasnt that a strange storm
that came through?
Ash: It certainly was.
Pikachu (agreeing): Pika-chu.
Lorenzo: Anyways, I take it youre here for a visit?
Ash: You bet we are.
Pikachu: Pika-chu.
Lorenzo: Very well, then. (Very seriously.) Just
remember to follow the rules, or else.
Ash (confidently): Dont worry. We will.
(He gets out a bucket full of safari balls and a
couple of fishing rods. They take them and start
back outside.)
Lorenzo: Hang on a second. Youll need these.
(He hands them each a pair of snowshoes.)
Serena: Okay, thanks.

(Now, we dissolve to them back outside, at the

main entryway, where Lorenzo opens up the
gates.)
Lorenzo: You two have a good time now.
Serena: Oh, we will.
(They enter into the Safari Zone and the gate
closes behind them. Once inside, they see herds
of Stantler and Sawsbuck eating leaves off of lowhanging tree branches or bushes, a couple of
Gogoats head-butting into each other, a Rhyhorn
using its horn to dig through the snow and get to
the grass and over by a pond, some Bibarel are
taking refuge in a lodge/dam from a pack of
Mightyenas, while others are trying to fend them
off from their home.)
Ash: Boy, theyre really going all out over there.
Serena: Yeah, you said it. How long do you think
theyll be at it?
Ash: Who knows? Maybe for hours.
(As they continue on through, they take notice of a
pride of Pyroar huddled around, keeping each
other warm. Then, they see an Emolga trying to
keep a young Darumaka warm, while also
protecting it from a large Staraptor.)
Serena: Hey, would you look at that?

Ash: Yeah. It must really care about that

Darumaka.
Serena: Mmm-hmm. Im really enjoying what Im
seeing so far.
Ash: Thats good. Theres plenty of more like this
to come.
Serena: Okay, good.
(They both turn over to the audience.)
Both (casually): Thanks, you guys.
Pikachu (casually): Pika, Pika.
(Now, we wipe to moments later, where they are in
another part of the Safari Zone.)
Serena; that was an interesting episode. Did you
like it? (She casually waits for an answer from the
audience for one second.) Oh, okay. Then, well
see you later.
(They both casually wave goodbye to the audience
and resume on searching through the Safari Zone.
Now, we pan up to see the snow-covered area &
trees, as well as some Pokemon digging through it
and we iris out, ending the episode.)