Formative on Air Masses and Fronts Flashcards
What are four different types of air masses?
Maritime tropical, continental tropical, maritime polar, and continental polar.
What is maritime tropical?
moisture is high; temperature is high; forms over ocean/water
What is continental tropical?
moisture is low; temperature is high; forms over land
What is maritime polar?
moisture is high; temperature is low; forms over ocean/water
What is continental polar?
moisture is low; temperature is low; forms over land
What is a warm front?
It forms when a warm air mass meets and rises above a cold air mass.
It brings slow, steady rain.
Hot, humid weather follows.
It’s slope is a more gentle slope.
What is a cold front?
It forms when a cold air mass overtakes and pushes under a warm air mass.
It brings heavy rains and violent thunderstorms.
Fair, cool weather follows.
It’s slope is steeper.
What is a stationary front?
It forms when a warm and cold air mass meet and neither air mass has the force to move the other.
It brings clouds and fog, and it may rain or snow.
It can bring many days of clouds and precipitations.
What is an occluded front?
It forms when a warm air mass gets caught between two cold air masses. The warm air mass rises as the cool air masses push and meet in the middle.
It can bring strong winds and heavy precipitation.
Rain/snow likely as well as thunderstorms.
What is an air mass?
large bodies of air with uniform properties throughout
Why does warm air rise at a front?
It is less dense than colder air pushing beneath.
Why does cold air stay close to the ground?
It is more dense than warmer air.
What type of weather is associated with a warm front?
slow, steady rain
What type of weather is associated with a cold front?
heavy rain and violent thunderstorms
List two ways cold and warm fronts are similar or related to each other.
both produce rains
both boundaries between different air masses
