1. Weather and Climate Flashcards
air mass
a large body of air in the atmosphere that have similar temperature and humidity properties
air pressure
how heavy the air that is pressing is
anticyclone
an area of high pressure bringing blue skies
atmosphere
a group of gases that surround the earth
climate
what the weather is over a long period of time in a specific area (minimum 30 years of data)
condensation
the process by which gas becomes liquid
depression
an area of low pressure
drought
A drought is period of time when a place has less than average amounts of rain
evaporation
the process that changes liquid to gas
fog
a cloud at ground level
front
a boundary between two air masses
humidity
the amount of water vapor in the air
isotherm
line drawn on a map or chart joining points with the same temperature
microclimate
the distinctive climate of a small-scale area, such as a garden, park, valley or part of a city
north atlantic drift
the water stream that crosses from the USA and goes North East up to the Uk
precipitation
water released from clouds in the form of rain, freezing rain, sleet, snow, or hail
prevailing wind
the most frequent wind direction
how are humans affected by weather and climate (give 3 min)
- Food and water supply (reservoirs can be used)
- Housing (cold places need insulation and warm places need light colours and ventilation)
- Travel and tourism (some areas of the world have more predictable weather)
- Electricity (reliability on renewable energy such as wind and solar power will depend on the climate)
- Extreme Weather (it can cause death, injury, loss of infrastructure, businesses, contamination of water, spread of disease and more)
- Climate Change (can cause rising sea levels, spread of infectious diseases and changes to crop growing seasons)
what are all of the 6 of earth’s climate zones
- Polar & sub-polar
- Arid
- Mediterranean
- Temperate
- Tropical
- Mountainous
what factors affect a microclimate (give 3 min)
Shelter (buildings, natural features to provide shelter and reduce wind, making it feel warmer)
Natural/ physcial features (trees, lakes, rivers or hills for shelter)
Aspect (direction in which a place is facing in relation to the sun)
Buildings (offer shelter, but can funnel winds, give off heat and make shadows)
Surface (influences air temperature - artificial surfaces warm up faster than natural surfaces)
how to remember what affects a microclimate
SNABS
what factors affect temperature
Latitude (the further away it is from the equator)
Altitude (the higher the altitude, the lower the temperature)
Distance from sea (the land warms up and cools down more quickly than the sea. Places further inland become hotter in summer and colder in winter)
Ocean Currents (Warm currents raise the temperature of the areas adjacent to them, while colder currents lower the temperature of the adjacent area)
Prevailing wind (The direction of prevailing winds determines which type of air mass usually moves over an area)
how to remember what affects temperature
LADOP
describe relief rainfall
- Warm, moist air over the sea gets blown inland
- When it hits the mountain, the air is pushed upwards and cools down (condenses) and this forms a cloud, which produces rain
- Once the air passes over the mountain it descends and makes it warmer and it is called rain shadows as it is shadowed by the rainy side of the mountain)
describe frontal rainfall
- Warm air mass is less dense and so gets pushed over cold air mass, so when air is rising, the moisture condenses and so, rainfall occurs at the border of both the air masses
- When the warm air rises, once it reaches the Dew Point, it condenses into a cloud and then it rains
describe convectional rainfall
- When the sun’s energy comes in contact with the ground or vegetation, it causes the liquids in the plants to change to gaseous form (evaporation / transpiration) - rising warm air (convection currents)
- This pushes the warmer particles to rise above the cooler ones
- Once they reach the dew point, they condense into rain
what is the jet stream
fast flowing air current that separates warm tropical air from cold polar air, migrates N/S over the UK
what air goes W/E
warm - July 16° C
what air goes S/N
cold - Jan 4° C
bottom left isotherm
*Warm summers
*Mild winters
*Small temperature range (10°C)
*Wet: high rainfall spread throughout the year)
bottom right isotherm
*Very warm summers
*Cold winters
*Large temperature range (14°C)
*Dry: low rainfall spread throughout the year
top right iostherm
*Cool summers
*Cold winters
*Average temperature range (11°C)
*Steady rainfall spread throughout the year
top left isotherm
*Cool summers
*Mild winters
*Small temperature range (9°C)
*Very wet: high rainfall spread throughout the year
how are hurricanes formed
- Warm air rises from the ocean. When it rises, a space below it is left. The space is instantly filled with surrounding air, which while rushing in, causes strong winds
- The rising air brings moisture up. This cools and condenses the air to create storm clouds. Creating the eye wall.
- When the cooled air descends, it will form an area of calm in the centre called an eye.
- The spin of the earth leads to the storm starting to spin.
what is a wildfire
A wildfire is an fire uncontrollable (usually not man-made) that burns in the countryside in natural (green) areas
how to remember which rainfall is which
relief - happens over high land (relief)
convectional - caused by convection currents (warm air rising up)
frontal - when two different frontal air masses go up against eachother
frontal air mass
a transition zone between two different air masses at the Earth’s surface
how to remember how humans are affected by weather and climate
FEETCH
describe all 6 of the earth’s climate zones
- Polar & sub-polar (low temperatures and mainly snowy)
- Arid (little rain and high temperature)
- Mediterranean (hot, dry summer and mild, wet winter)
- Temperate (has 4 seasons with average rainfall and temperature throughout the year)
- Tropical (high temperature and high rainfall)
- Mountainous (cold and wet)
why is the west of the uk wetter
*It gets maritime winds which means the air Masses are wetter
*The west is more mountainous which means more relief rainfall
