Clouds and Precipitation
Tools
Phenomema
Currents and Winds
Air Pressure and Fronts
100
What are the 5 Types of Precipitation we discussed?
Rain, Snow, Sleet, Freezing Rain, and Hail
100
What are the three main climate zones that can help us determine the average weather of a location?
Tropical zone: near equator, generally warm/hot year round, receives the most direct sunlight
Temperate zone: between tropical and polar zones (U.S. is in temperate zone), experiences different seasons throughout the year based on the tilt of the Earth towards or away from the sun
Polar zone: furthest north and south , generally cold year round, receives little direct sunlight
100
What is the difference between Weather and Climate?
Weather: conditions of the atmosphere at any given place or time (constantly changing!)
Climate: average weather pattern of a region over a long period of time
100
Where does the Gulf Stream Current start?
At the tip of Florida and the Gulf of Mexico
100
Describe a Continental Polar Air Mass
Cold and dry
200
What do cumulus clouds look like and what do they tell us about weather?
white, puffy clouds that look like cotton balls
fair weather
200
What does a thermometer measure?
Air Temperature
200
Why do the Northern and Southern hemispheres experience OPPOSITE seasons?
Because of the tilt of the earth on its axis
200
What causes wind to blow faster?
A large difference in air pressure
200
What is the difference between an air mass and a front?
Air mass: large body of air with the same temperature and humidity throughout
a front is where two air masses meet
300
What do cirrus clouds look like and what do they tell us about weather?
thin, wispy, feather-like clouds that are made of ice crystals
fair weather, show that weather will change in the next 24 hours
300
What does a barometer measure?
Air pressure
300
What are tornadoes?
Tornadoes are whirling columns of air with winds that spin incredibly fast.
Winds moving in opposite directions--> the difference in wind speed and direction can create a horizontal spinning effect in the lower atmosphere.
As a thunderstorm forms, warm, humid air begins rising upward.
300
Which winds are primarily responsible for impacting our weather?
Prevailing westerlies
Winds that blow from west to east in the temperate climate zones. These winds are responsible for moving weather across the U.S.!
300
What is the difference between a high and a low air pressure system?
high pressure system--> air is heavy and sinks causing cool, clear, dry, fair weather.
low pressure system--> air is light and rises (more evaporation and condensation!) causing warm, wet, cloudy, precipitation
400
How is a cloud formed?
Water vapor in the air rises, cools, and condenses around a speck of dust or another particle into tiny water droplets or ice crystals.
400
What does an anemometer measure?
Wind speed
400
What is the difference between El Nino and La Nina and what weather do they cause?
El Nino--> the unusual warming of water in the Pacific Ocean (Causes extreme storms or dryness in the U.S.)
La Nina--> the unusual cooling of water in the Pacific Ocean (extreme storms or dryness in the U.S.)
400
What is the difference between sea breeze and land breeze?
Sea breeze--> Wind blows from sea towards land during the day (because the air above the beach is warm and rises, and the cooler air from over the ocean rushes in)
Land breeze--> Wind blows from land towards sea at night (because the air above the ocean is warm and rises, and the cooler air from the land rushes in)
400
What will always occur at a front?
Precipitation
500
What is the difference between the weather of cumulonimbus clouds vs. nimbostratus clouds?
cumulonimbus-->thunderstorms and severe weather
(tall, anvil-shaped cloud, white/gray)
nimbostratus clouds--> steady showers of rain or snow
(low, dark gray, blanket-like clouds that cover the sky, just like stratus, but brings rain)
500
What does a hygrometer measure?
Humidity
500
What causes the U.S East Coast to stay mind/warm and warms parts of Europe?
The Gulf Stream
(a warm ocean current in the Atlantic Ocean that flows north from the equator along the eastern coast of the U.S. and to Europe)
500
How does the Jet stream impact our weather?
It moves the weather as a fast-moving tube of air that flows from west to east high above the U.S.
areas N of jet stream=COLD
areas S of jet stream= WARM
500
What is the difference between a warm front and a cold front and what weather do they cause?
Warm front (warm air mass approaches and slowly rises/slides over a cold air mass)--> Causes steady rain, nimbostratus clouds, warmer temperatures follow
Cold front (cold air mass pushes under a warm air mass, forcing the warm air up quickly)--> Causes thunderstorms or other severe weather (tornadoes), cumulonimbus clouds, cooler temperatures follow