Chapter 13 Flashcards
What is precipitation
water that falls from the atmosphere in liquid or solid form
what is the most common precipitation
rain
what is snow
rain that falls to the earth as solid ice crystals
what is sleet
rain that falls through a layer of that is 0 degrees C, freezing into ice
where does hail form
thunder clouds
how does hail form
small ice pellets circulate up and down in the cloud many times in convection currents that creates a hailstone made up of many layers of ice
what is the water cycle
a series of natural process by which water continually mares among oceans, land and the atmosphere (look at a picture)
what is evaportaion
the change of water vapor due to energy from the sun
what is transportaion
the release if water vapor from living organisms
what is condensation
water vapor changes to liquid water in the cooler upper atmosphere, forming clouds.
what is precipitaion
water falling from the atmosphere as rain, snow, ect
what is runoff / infiltatinion / groundwater
water on or below the surface of the earth
what is the pressure system
when air moves from areas if high pressure to areas of low pressure
in a body of circulating air where is high and low pressure in a HIGH PRESSURE system
high pressure at the center and low pressure outside the system
in a HIGH PRESSURE system, where does the high pressure in the middle of the circulating air go
goes away from the center
In a HIGH PRESSURE system, what does the high pressure moving away from the center of a body of circulating air do to the sky
brings clear skies and fair weather
where is high and low pressure in body of circulating air in a LOW PRESSURE system
low pressure in the center and high pressure outside of the system
what happens to the low pressure in the center of a circulating body of air in a LOW PRESSURE system
it moves upward
what happens when the low pressure in a LOW PRESSURE system moves upward
creates clouds and precipitation
what is air mass
a body of air that has similar temperature, humidity, and pressure at any height
how is air mass classified
by their temperature and moisture characteristics
when does air mass change charateristics
as the air mass moves over land and water
what is maritime tropical
warm, humid, air masses
where does maritime tropical form
over tropical oceans
what kind of weather does Maritime tropical bring in summer
hot, humid, stormy weather
what kind of weather does Maritime tropical bring in the winter
heavy rain or snow
where does Maritime affect the world
west, southwest, and eastern portions on the US
what is Maritime polar and where do they form
cool, humid, air masses that form over North Pacific or north Atlantic oceans
what kind of weather does Maritime polar bring
cloudy, rain weather
where does maritime polar effect the world
west coast more than east coast areas
where does continental tropical form
over the southwest and northern Mexico and southern Great plains
what does continental tropical feel like
hot, dry air masses
when does continental tropical form
in the summer
where does continental tropical affect
and southern Great plains
what does continental polar feel like
cold all year round, dry, fast-moving, air masses
where does continental polar affect
central and eastern US
where does Artic air masses form
over Siberia or the artic
how cold can artic air masses get
down to -40 degrees
whats a front
a boundary between 2 air masses
what is the weather like in a front
the weather can drastically change
what is a cold front
when a cold air mass runs into a warm air mass
what happens to the warm air in a cold front
the warm air goes above the cold
what forms around a cold front
clouds and sometimes severe storms
what happens in a warm-air front
a warm air mass overtakes a cold air mass
what forms around a warm air front
a wide blanket of clouds
what does a warm air front do to the weather
brings warmer temperatures, rain, and increases humidity
what is a stationary front
when warm and cold air masses meet but do not move
what can a stationary front result in
in many days of clouds and light rain
what is an occulted front
when warm air masses are caught between 2 cold air masses
what does oculated light result in
in cloudy, rainy weather
what is a thunderstorm
an electrical storm featuring heavy precipitation, thunder and lightning
what type of clouds do thunderstorms occur in
cumulonimbus
what many stages do thunderclouds have
3
stage 1. Cumulus stage. What happens
time when clouds form and updrafts
stage 2. Mature stage. What happens
heavy winds, rain, and lightning
stage 3. Dissipation stage. What happens
storms weaken and fall apart
how does lightning form in the clouds
positive and negative particles in the clouds or between clouds and ground
what is thunder
the sound of the air rapidly expanding after lightning
why do you see lightning before thunder
because light travels faster than sound, so you see the lightning before the thunder
what is a tornado
a violent, whirling column of air in contact with the ground.
how long does a tornado last
brief - 15 minutes
how fast can tornados get
400 km per hr
what type of clouds do tornados form in (the same clouds as thunderstorms)
cumulonimbus
why are tornados invisible
the debries it picks up makes it invisible
what country do tornados occur most in
US
where is tornado alley
Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas
how do tornados most often occur in tornado alley
humid gulf air meets cool, dry Canadian air
what scale do humans use to classify tornados. And how does the scale measure.
Fujita scale. Measures from F0 to F5. F0 being the lowest and F5 being the highest
how fast can a hurricane’s wind speeds get
119 km per hour or more
what is the most destructive storm on the earth
hurricane
how many miles can hurricanes go across water
300 miles
how many times larger is a hurricane than a tornado
150,000 times larger
what are hurricanes also known as
typhoons or tropical cyclones
what is the most damage from a hurricane
strong winds, prolonged rains, and flooding
what is the center of a hurricane called
an eye
what happens in the eye of a hurricane
area of clear skies and light winds
what kind of storms are winter storms
ice storms and freezing rain
how does freezing rain form
starts as now, goes through a layer of warm air, freezes on contact
what can winter storms do to the earth
can cause trees, power lines, and other structures to break
what is a blizzard
a violent winter storm with freezing temps, strong winds, and blowing snow
What is the difference between a watch and a warning
a watch means severe weather is possible, and a warning means severe weather is already occurring
what do you do if you are inside and a thunderstorm is happening
stay away from electrical cords and metal objects
what happens if there is a thunderstorm and you are outside
lay in a low area and stay away from tall structures
what do you do if there’s a tornado and you are inside
go in a low area or bathtub with no windows around
what do you do if there’s a tornado and you are outside
lay flat in a ditch
what do you do to stay safe if there’s a winter storm
dress in layers and cover skin
what do you do to stay safe in sunny weather
use UV protection and sunglasses sunglasses (remember snow, water, and sand double the effects of the sun.)
what do triangles mean on a weather map
cold air is moving in
what does a semi circle mean on a weather map
warm air front
on a weather map what does it mean when triangles and semi circles are next to eachother
means that it is a warm and cold stationary front
what do thermometers measure
tempature
what do barometers measure
pressure
what do phychrometeres measure
relative humidity
what do anemometers measure
wind speed
what do surface reports describe
a set of weather measurements made on earths surface
what do surface reports use to measure weather
weather stations
what do surface reports describe
temperature, pressure, wind speed, direction, humidity, and precipitation
what do upper air reports describe
wind, temp, and humidity above earth’s surface
what are upper air reports measured by
radiosondas
what is a radiosonda
instruments carried by weather ballons
how far above earth can satellites reach
35,000
what do satellites show
clouds, precipitation, atmosphere, temp
what do doppler radars detect
precipitation and the movement of small particles
what is a weather map
tools that permit meteorologist to simplify weather data
what does a station model do
displays data from many different weather measurements for a particular location by using numbers and symbols
what do wether maps use to portray different weather events
symbols and colors
what are isobars
lines that connect areas of equal pressure
in an isobar what does it mean when the lines are close together
it is windier
what are isotherms
lines that connect areas of equal tempature
today what is used to predict weather
computer models
how do computers predict the weather
detailed computer programs solve sets of complicated math formulas
why are computers used to predict weather (2 things)
computers have greater accuracy than humans and computers can be updated continually as weather factors change
