lesson 1 water cycle
the movement of water between the atmosphere, land, oceans, and living things
what is the water cycle
the condition of Earth's atmosphere at a certain time and place
what is weather
large volume of air in which temperature and moisture content are nearly the same throughout
what is air mass
an electric discharge
what is lightning
weather condition in an area over a long period of time
what is climate
occurs when liquid water changes into water vapor
what is evaporation
the amount of water vapor in the air
humidity
long distance winds that travel above global winds
jet streams
a tropical low pressure system with strong winds at 74 mph
what is a hurricane
the angular distance in degrees north and south of the equator
latitude
the release of water vapor into the air by plants
what is transpiration
the force of air molecules pushing on an area
what is air pressure
true or false fronts do not often form near the equator
true
a destructive rotating column of air that has very high wind speeds
what is a tornado
surface features of an area
topography
any form of water that falls to the Earth
what is precipitation
the measure of the transparency of the atmosphere
what is visibility
air sinks slowly down in this type of system
what is a high pressure system
holes in the ground that form when a cave roof collapses
what is a sinkhole
the height of an area above sea level
what is elevation
water that flows downhill toward oceans, lakes, and marshlands
what is runoff
the four forms of percipitation
what is rain, hail, snow and sleet
the curving of the wind
what is the Coriolis effect
a fire deep under the ground
muck fire
the three major climate zones
temperate, polar and tropical