chapter1 Flashcards
Synoptic meteorology
meteorology traditionally involves the study of weather systems, such as - extratropical high and low pressure systems, - jet streams - associated waves - fronts.
mesoscale meteorology
the study of convective storms, land–sea breezes, gap winds, and mountain waves
Weather forecasting
forecasting necessitates understanding a wide range of processes and phenomena acting on a variety of spatial and temporal scales.
forecasting for a coastal location requires information concerning:
- The near-shore water temperature
- The potential for land–sea breeze circulations
- The strength and orientation of the prevailing synoptic-scale wind flow.
The prediction of precipitation type can benefit from knowledge of:
- Atmospheric thermodynamics - Cloud physics.
quasigeostrophic (QG) equations
simplified version of the full primitive equations
Momentum equations
- continuous
- ideal gas
- hydrostatic
scale analysis
systematic strategy to determine which terms in the equations, often associated with specific physical processes, are most important and which are negligible in a given meteorological setting. By characterizing the temporal and spatial scales associated with specific weather systems, we can systematically neglect “small” terms in the governing equations in the study of those systems.
The length scale
related to the size of a weather system, or how far an air parcel would travel within the system during a given time interval.
The time scale
how long it would take an air parcel to circulate within the system
rawinsonde can measure pressure with
baroswitch
length scale of microscale
time scale of microscale
Example phenomena of microscale
turbulence, PBL
length scale of mesoscale
1-1,000 km
time scale of mesoscale
1h - 1day
example phenomena of mesoscale
thunderstorm and, land sea breeze
length scale of synoptic scale
1,000-4,000 km
time scale of synoptic scale
1 day - 1 week
Example phenomena of synoptic scale
Upper- level troughs, ridges. surface low and high
length scale of planetary scale
>4,000 km
time scale of planetary scale
>1 week
Example phenomena of planetary scale
polar front jet stream, trade winds
what are the variables in the system?
Four independent variables: three spatial directions (x,y,z) and time (t)
