Weather/Climate & Tools
The Water Cycle
Air Masses 1
Air Masses 2
What kind of air or weather?
100
This tool is used to measure how hot or cold the air is outside.
thermometer
100
When the sun heats up water in puddles, rivers, or oceans, the water turns into an invisible gas called water vapor. This step is called...
evaporation
100
An air mass that forms over land is called continental. Because it is over land, is its air mostly dry or mostly wet?
dry
100
A Maritime Polar (mP) air mass forms over cold northern oceans (like the North Pacific). What are its two main weather characteristics?
cold and humid (or wet/moist)
100
What kind of air would a large cP air mass bring from over northern Canada?
cold and dry
200
If you want to know how much rain has fallen during a storm, you look at this container with measurement lines.
rain gauge
200
As water vapor rises high into the air, it cools down and turns back into tiny liquid water drops, forming clouds. This is called...
condensation
200
An air mass that forms over the ocean is called maritime. Because it is over water, is its air mostly dry or mostly wet (moist)?
mostly wet/moist
200
A Continental Tropical (cT) air mass forms over hot, dry desert regions like northern Mexico. What kind of weather does it bring?
hot and dry
200
What type of weather would the southern United States be expecting when this air mass approaches?
warm and moist, or rain.
300
This instrument measures air pressure and helps meteorologists predict if the weather will be stormy or clear.
barometer
300
When water droplets in clouds get too heavy to stay in the air, they fall back to Earth as rain, snow, sleet, or hail. This is called...
precipitation
300
A Maritime Tropical (mT) air mass forms over warm southern oceans. What kind of weather does it bring?
warm and humid (moist)
300
What type of precipitation would a maritime polar (mP) air mass most likely bring to an area?
snow/sleet
300
DAILY DOUBLE: What do we know about cold air that explains WHY this cP air mass would push south from Russia? 
Cold air is more dense than warm air.
400
This word describes the short-term state of the atmosphere (what you check day-to-day to know what clothes to wear).
weather
400
After rain falls, water flows across the land and collects back into streams, rivers, lakes, and oceans. This movement is called...
runoff
400
A Continental Polar (cP) air mass forms over cold northern lands like Canada. What kind of weather does it bring?
cold and dry
400
What type of precipitation would a maritime tropical (mT) air mass from the Gulf of Mexico bring to states along the east coast?
rain
400
A Maritime Polar (mP) air mass is now sitting over Iceland. What type of precipitation could they be experiencing if the average temperature is over 32 degrees Fahrenheit?
rain
500
This word describes the long-term weather pattern of a specific region averaged over 30 years or more.
climate
500
Plants also release water vapor into the air from their leaves in a process that is basically plant "sweat." What is this called?
transpiration
500
Looking at a North American map, what specific air mass forms over the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico and brings heavy moisture northward?
Maritime Tropical (mT)
500
Because of Earth's wind patterns, most weather systems and air masses across North America are pushed moving in which general direction—from East to West, or from West to East?
West to East (That's why they are called Westerlies)
500
This Maritime Tropical air mass formed near the equator; what direction will it most likely travel based on what you know about wind patterns and Earth's rotation?
northeast, or toward Mexico and California.