How does a Pilot know for sure he's entering "turbulent area"

[z.khalid]

While flying, and you hear the Captain say "ladies and gentlemen fasten seat belts as we are entering an area of light turbulence (for example).

Are the Pilot seeing this from the charts they have?
Is there something on the aircraft screen on the ND that shows this?

Just curious, thanks guys..

[Bealzebub]

It starts getting bumpy. The aircraft ahead reports that it has started to get bumpy. Air traffic control reports that aircraft have been reporting turbulence at various levels on that route. Weather charts show forecast areas of likely turbulence.

Aircraft don't have instruments that show clear air turbulence. They do have weather radar that shows areas of significant cloud. They also have instruments that show windspeed and outside temperature, which an experienced and skilled pilot can sometimes use to interpret and predict areas of possible turbulence.

[Northbeach]

Seldom do we end up flying as the only jet in the sky. Often we are just a few minutes behind some other flight that just reported turbulence. Now would be a good time to turn on the seat belt sign.

Or we look out the window and recognize the signs of turbulent air ahead, such as an obvious change in the type or composition of cloud(s), a line of thunderstorms, top of a stratus layer getting whipped up-a thousand telltale signs recognized following decades of plying our trade flying around the earth's middle & upper atmosphere.

We do have dispatch generated turbulence charts displaying reported or predicted areas of turbulence to reference.

Stormscopes/strike finders and radar are capable of displaying information useful in predicting unstable, turbulent and potentially dangerous flying conditions.

[mustafagander]

You know for sure when you have white caps on your coffee!! :ok: