This a large and heavily dense cloud which produces thunderstorms and travels through all layers of the clouds
Cumulonimbus cloud
The lowest layer of the atmosphere where weather occurs
Troposphere
How are winds primarily caused?
Differential heating of the atmosphere
How does energy from the sun reach us here on Earth
radiation
What is evaporation
A process from liquid to gas
What layer of the atmosphere does weather occur and what 3 factors describe weather
The troposphere and wind, temperature, and precipitation
What does insolation stand for
Incoming solar radiation
How does wind work
As air rises from an area of low pressure and heat, air rushes in from higher pressure and cold to fill the vacancy
What is radiation
The transfer of energy through space through electromagnetic waves
What is condensation
A process from gas to liquid
These clouds are generally close to the ground and produce drizzles
stratus clouds
Which layer do planes fly in and why?
The stratosphere so that they may fly over the weather
Describe temperature inversion
An abnormal temperature profile in which temperature INCREASES with altitude
Which part of the Earth retains the most heat (besides the ocean)
the surface
What is the relationship between temperature and water in the air
The higher the temperature, the more energy air has. Therefore, the hotter it is the more water vapor air can hold
How are clouds formed
When air containing water vapor rises through the atmosphere, expands, and cools
How does the temperature change as you go up in vertical distance of the atmosphere
Temperature decreases with altitude in the troposphere, increases in the stratosphere, decreases in the mesosphere, and increases again in the thermosphere
How does saturation occur and what is a dew point
Saturation occurs when evaporation and condensation occur at the same rate. Dew point is the temperature to which air must be cooled to reach saturation
Describe conduction and convection
Conduction is the transfer of energy through matter from particle to particle (direct contact) and convection is the transfer of energy in a gas or liquid by movement of currents (
What is the scientific definition of humidity?
The amount of water vapor present in the air
What are condensation nuclei and what do they do?
Small particles such as salt, dust, or smoke and it provides surfaces on which the phase change from gas to liquid or gas to solid can happen. It helps precipitation form.
How do Aurora Borealis (and Aurora Australis) occur and in which layer of the atmosphere do they occur?
They occur from solar flares from the sun traveling to Earth and reflecting the energized particles to the poles by deflection of the magnetic field. They occur in the thermosphere (or ionosphere)
How does temperature inversion work
Heavy cold air beneath light warm air. As saturated air rises and clouds form, temperature inversion in the lower part of the atmosphere acts will act like an impenetrable ceiling to rising clouds below, stopping their vertical growth.
Provide a detailed example of a scenario in which conduction, convection, and radiation are all present
Boiling Water. The pot is using conduction, the water is using convection, and radiation is the heat coming from around the source
What are the 5 forms of precipitation in order from warmest to coldest
Rain, freezing rain, hail, sleet, snow