Witterungsabhängig

Witterungsabhängig is an adjective used in German to describe processes, properties or outcomes that depend on the weather or climate. The term derives from Witterung ("weather, prevailing conditions") and abhängig ("dependent"). It is used across disciplines when the rate or occurrence of a phenomenon varies with ambient conditions such as temperature, humidity, precipitation and wind.

In geology and soil science, weathering rates are witterungsabhängig because temperature fluctuations, moisture availability and freeze-thaw cycles control both physical and chemical breakdown of rocks and soils. For example, higher humidity accelerates chemical weathering, while repeated freezing and thawing promotes mechanical fragmentation.

In materials science and civil engineering, many properties are witterungsabhängig. Examples include moisture-related swelling of wood, freeze-thaw durability of concrete, corrosion risk of metals in humid or saline air, and changes in porosity and thermal conductivity due to moisture uptake.

In agriculture and ecology, weather-dependent processes such as germination, plant growth, disease pressure and runoff are described as witterungsabhängig.

Assessment and modelling often incorporate climate data to account for witterungsabhängige effects; typical inputs are temperature, precipitation, humidity and wind, while indices like degree-days and freeze-thaw cycles are used to quantify the dependency.