Fronts
What is this front?
A moving cold air mass replaces a warm air mass
A Cold Front
What type of pressure is associated with fair, clear, and sunny weather?
High Pressure
How do thermal energy and gravity affect the water cycle?
Thermal Energy: Causes evaporation (the process of water molecules heating up and changing from a liquid to a gas state)
Gravity: Causes precipitation (the process of water collecting inside clouds and falling due to gravity)
What air mass is cold and dry?
Continental Polar
Why does warm air rise and cold air sink?
Cold air is more dense because the molecules come much closer together when they cool causing it not to be able to rise.
What is this front?
A warm air mass overtakes a cold air mass.
A warm front
What type of pressure is associated with stormy and windy weather?
Low pressure
What are the 6 MAIN STEPS of the water cycle?
1. Evaporation
2. Condensation
3. Precipitation
4. Transpiration
5. Infiltration
6. Runoff
What air mass is cold and wet?
Maritime Polar
How do floods form?
Name 3
Due to an extreme excess of water.
1. Thunderstorms
2. Hurricanes
3. Dam breakage
3. Snow melting
What is this front?
A warm and cold air mass "face-off" and can't move each other causing light precipitation for an extended amount of time.
A stationary front
Why does the egg get sucked into the jar when the fire goes out?
During the fire, the molecules in the jar heat up and spread out. When the fire goes out, the molecules cool down which makes them slow down and move closer together causing low pressure inside the jar. As a result, the pressure outside of the jar is greater than the pressure inside the jar. This causes the egg to be sucked in to balance out the imbalance of air pressure.
True or False: The water cycle, much like the rock cycle, has a set order.
False: The water cycle can happen on any order.
What air mass is warm and wet?
Maritime Tropical
How do tornadoes form?
When unstable air (warm air rising and cold air falling) creates strong updrafts that rotate horizontally then vertically due to wind shear
How is a stationary front formed?
When a cold air mass and a warm air mass meet but do not mix causing a lot of drawn out precipitation in the area.
How does air pressure change with temperature, altitude, and water vapor?
Higher temperature: Low pressure
Higher altitude: lower pressure
More water vapor: lower pressure
Lower temperature: high pressure
Lower altitude: high pressure
Less water vapor: high pressure
How are clouds created?
What air mass is cold and wet?
Continental Tropical
What "ingredients" cause hurricanes?
1. Warm ocean water
2. Warm, moist air
3. Low vertical wind shear
4. A Pre-Existing Weather Disturbance
When a warm air mass is caught between 2 cold air masses...
An occluded front
What tool do scientists use to measure air pressure?
A barometer
The Sun's heat and gravity
What is an air mass?
A large body of air that has similar temperature and moisture throughout.
What causes blizzards?