Chapter 12-Clouds and Precipitaton Flashcards
Liquid is changed to gas
Evaporation
Three states of matter
Solid
Liquid
Gas
Water vapor (gas) is changed to liquid and forms dew, fog or clouds
Condensation
Solid is changed to liquid
Melting
Liquid changed to solid
Freezing
Solid changed directly to gas
Sublimation
Ice cubes shrinking in freezer
Water vapor (gas) changed to a solid
Deposition
Frost in freezer
Adiabatic heating/cooling
Temp changes
Air is compressed
Air expands
Process that lifts air
Orographic lifting
Frontal lifting
Convergence
Localized convective lifting
Where the air is flowing together and rising
Convergence
Where unequal surface heating causes pockets of air to rise because of their buoyancy
Localized convective lifting
Elevated terrains act as barriers
Orographic lifting
Cool air act as a barrier to warm air
Frontal wedging
Stability of Air
Types of stability
Stable air
Absolute instability
Occurs when the environmental lapse rate is less than the wet adiabatic rate
Absolute stability
Occurs when the atmosphere is stable for an unsaturated parcel of air but unstable for a saturated parcel
Conditional instability
Made up of millions and millions of :
- minute water droplets or
- tiny crystals of ice
Clouds
Three basic forms of clouds
Cirrus
Cumulus
Stratus
Clouds
Classification based on height
High Clouds- >6,000 meters
Cirrus
Cirrostratus
Cirrocumulus
Clouds
Classification based on height
Middle Clouds- 2,000 to 6,000 meters
Altostratus
Altocumulus
Clouds
Classification based on height
Low clouds- < 2,000 meters
Stratus
Stratocumulus
Nimbostratus
Clouds of vertical development
Cumulonimbus
Most fog forms because of?
Radiation cooling
or
Movement of air over a cold surface
Types of fog
3, fogs caused by cooling) (2, evaporation fogs
- Advection fog
- Radiation fog
- Upslope fog
#Steam fog # Frontal fog
Snow has two measurements
Depth
Water equivalent
