Layers of the Atmosphere
What is the atmosphere and its main components?
Atmosphere - A gaseous envelope which surrounds the Earth and protects us from the extremes of space. It also keeps us warm and causes our weather systems.
Its main components include: Nitrogen, Oxygen, Argon, Carbon dioxide, methane, and water vapor.
What is climate?
The long term or typical pattern of weather in a particular area.
Define cloud.
How are clouds classified?
Cloud - A collection of water droplets and dust particles that condense due to a drop in pressure. It is visible from Earth.
They are classified by appearance and height
What is precipitation? What is weather?
Precipitation - Water that falls to the Earth's surface.
Weather - The way the Earth's atmosphere behaves, changes day by day
What is a meteorologist?
A scientist who studies weather and weather forecasting
What are the layers of the atmosphere from top to bottom? Describe one thing about each layer
Thermosphere - Outer layer of the atmosphere - contains the ionosphere and exosphere
Mesosphere - The layer which meteors generally burn up
Stratosphere - The location where high level planes fly
Troposphere - The layer where weather occurs. It contains the majority of the atmospheric gases
What are currents? How about convection currents?
Currents - Patterns of circulation of air or water around the Earth that are caused by the Sun's heat.
Convection currents are formed as warm (less dense) air rises, cools, and then sinks back to Earth's surface, where it is heated once more.
Name three low level clouds and describe them
Stratus - Unbroken sheets of clouds, Cumulus - fluffy white balls of cotton, Stratocumulus - joined cumulus clouds, Cumulonimbus Clouds - very tall and anvil shaped
What is a supercell?
A strong, long-lasting, and organized thunderstorm fed by a consistently rotating updraft known as a mesocyclone.
What are isobars and isotherms?
Isobars - Lines on a weather forecasting map that show atmospheric pressure
Isotherms - Lines on a weather forecasting map that show temperature.
What is atmospheric pressure? How is it usually measured?
Atmospheric Pressure - The force that the air around us exerts.
Atmospheric pressure is usually measured with a barometer
What is the most important factor in determining an areas climate? What influences an areas climate?
The most important factor in determining an areas climate is its latitude.
An areas climate is influenced by energy from the sun and the ability of currents in the ocean and atmosphere to circulate the heat around the globe.
Name three mid-level clouds and describe them
Nimbostratus - dark colored fine sheets of clouds which bring rain or snow, Altostratus - fine sheets of white clouds, and Altocumulus clouds - bands of clouds which resemble ripple marks on the sea shore
What factors contribute to a regions weather?
Temperature, wind speed, air pressure, and humidity all affect a regions weather
What kind of equipment is utilized to measure weather in the lower atmosphere? The upper atmosphere?
Lower atmosphere equipment - anemometer (wind speed), barograph (atmospheric pressure), wet and dry bulb (humidity), thermometer (temperature)
Upper atmosphere equipment - weather monitoring aircraft, computers, weather station networks, high-altitude weather balloons, and satellites
What is the ozone layer and where is it located?
What is the ionosphere and where is it located?
The ozone layer is a protective screen that blocks potentially harmful ultraviolet radiation from the sun. It is located in the stratosphere and is being destroyed by chemicals released in human activities.
The ionosphere is found in the upper layer of the mesosphere and lower layer of the thermosphere. It is an ionized layer which means it has lost an electron and it can reflect shortwave radio waves which is important for global radio communications.
What is a greenhouse gas and how does it effect the Earth?
Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas. It traps heat in our atmosphere. The correct amount of carbon dioxide is very important. Too much will increase the temperature of the Earth and could cause problems for all of the worlds climate. Too little could cause temperatures to decrease very low. Balance is very important.
Name three high level clouds and describe them
Cirrocumulus - tufts of clouds that may make a regular ripple pattern, Cirrus - strands of clouds, Cirrostratus clouds - form a veil high up in the atmosphere
All are made of small ice crystals and have a wispy appearance. Cirrus means tuft
How does the sun affect the weather?
Solar radiation is absorbed by the Earth which causes the surface to warm up. This heat rises, causing the air near the surface to warm up. The closer the part of the Earth is to the sun, the stronger the effect of the solar radiation.
What are the four main types of fronts? What happens when a cold front meets a warm front? What symbols are utilized on weather maps to show the different fronts?
Types of fronts - cold front, warm front, occluded front, stationary front
Cold air is denser and will push warm less dense air above it.
Weather maps show cold front with blue triangles, warm fronts with red half circles, and occluded fronts with alternating triangles and half circles either in purple or alternating red and blue
What role do animals and plants play in maintaining our atmosphere?
Animals and plants help to maintain balance in our atmosphere. In the light, plants take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen while animals take in oxygen and release carbon dioxide. This is the carbon cycle. They also play a role in the nitrogen cycle.
What is the coriolis effect? How do winds travel around the globe?
Coriolis Effect - The effect of the spinning of the Earth, which forces winds and currents into a spiral
Warm air rises around the equator, causing very little horizontal winds (the doldrums). Around the tropic of cancer and the tropic of capricorn, there are consistent trade winds. Above these regions, there are strong westerly winds and at the polar regions easterly winds. Between the the trade winds and westerlies lie areas of very little horizontal winds called the horse latitudes. There are also seasonal winds that occur in areas around the globe
What factors affect the type of cloud that forms? What is fog and how is it formed?
- How much and how quickly warm air cools
- Whether warm moist air meets a mass of cold air
- What altitude the water vapor condenses at
Fog is when a cloud forms at ground level. It forms when when moist cool air travels over a cool surface on land or at sea. There is frontal fog, upslope fog, radiation fog and advection fog.
How is a tornado formed? Where are most hurricanes formed and do they have low pressure centers or high pressure centers?
Tornadoes form when hot, fast, upward moving air meets cold downward - moving air currents.
Most hurricanes are located in the gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. The eye of the storm is a low pressure area of the storm.
How do modern weather forecasters predict the weather?
Modern forecasters collect weather data from multiple points and use it to gauge the likely changes in the weather. They make comparisons between multiple weather maps.