Why is "weather" abbreviated "Wx"?

Question

Don't answer if you don't know and just want to give some stupid answer please (unless it's actually funny, which is not the case most times).

Answer 1

Its all about shorthand.

Pilots and professionals in any industry develop their own shorthand, abbreviations, symbols, to enhance and shortern the time to communicate between each other,  when all the people all share the same referrents for the symbols being used, after a while is becomes routine, and after a period of time is becomes industry standard.

For example, clearances for IFR routes can be quite long, and complex, but a shorthand makes is much easier and faster to copy down and read back the clearance.

The Wx for weather is just a standard short hand for weather, to keep is differeniated with the weather reporting sites that end in S.

Answer 2

It isn't.  It is abbreviated "WX"--but only informally, not officially.  The "X" is just an intensifier.

Answer 3

What cppilot8 said, and it came from the military. Same reason our USAF rescue squadrons are called RQS, Res-Q-Squadron.

Just makes it short and easy.

Answer 4

Can't say for sure, but it just may come from the days of lore when they had to use morse code (old dits & dahs) instead of voice to communicate.  Everything was abbreviated as much as possible.

Just sending a request for "W" might be ambigous.  Sending "Weather" too long.  "WX" gets the message out.

This trend continued through use of teletype and even today's duat briefings are abbreviated as much as possible.

Answer 5

To be honest, I don't know the history behind this common abbreviation.  However, if it offers any clarity, I imagine it is the same reason that (in aircraft/radio lingo) receive is abbreviated with "Rx" and transmit is abbreviated with "Tx."  Merely a letter to provide a widely-accepted, widely-understood way of shortening the words.

Answer 6

WX is part of the shorthand found in e.g. METAR and TAF.

You must remember that weather forecasting has been in the past an extraordinary gathering of various worldwide weather stations. Until recently, it was common for vessels on the seven seas to report their position and the weather observed. Because of the language barrier and the the simplicity of radio telegraphy, weather report adopted ... a telegraphic style. So, if a telegraphic operator would send: tks fer nice qso dr om es cu agn vy sn. (thanks for a nice communication dear old man and see you again very soon) so will he use a shorthand technique to report the weather and rain would be RA, snow SN, etc.

Incidentally, the word Roger in aviation is because Roger is the letter R. Yes, today it is Romeo, but in the past, it was Roger. And why R then? Simply because telegraphy is like music; it's all about the sound and the beginning, operators liked to send di-dat-dit to say: Okay!