Weather And Climate Flashcards
What is weather?
Weather refers to the condition or state of the atmosphere of a place, such as a city, over a short period of time, usually 24 hours or one day. It is never static, but ever-changing and, thus, cannot be generalized.
What is climate?
Climate is the average of the atmospheric conditions of a large area, such as a country, over a long period of time, usually 35 years.
What are the elements that determine weather?
The elements that determine weather are/temperature, pressure, humidity, precipitation, wind direction and speed, cloud cover, and sunshine.
What is temperature?
Temperature refers to the degree of hots or coldness of the air. It is measured usung a thermometer
What is altitude?
Altitude is the height of land above sea level and it is one of the factors that affect temperature.
Temperature decreases with an increase
In altitude
What are ocean currents?
A stream of water in an ocean constantly flowing in a single direction is called an ocean current
What are warm ocean currents?
Warm currents move from lower latitudes towards higher latitudes and generally make the coastal areas in higher latitudes warmer than usual.
What are cold ocean currents?
Cold currents move from higher latitudes to lower latitudes and lower the temperatures of places along the coasts in lower latitudes.
What is wind
Wind is air in motion
What is loo
Loo is a hot dry wind which originates in the desert in the north-western part of the Indian subcontinent.
What is affected by the presence of clouds?
The amount of solar radiation reaching the earth’s surface and the amount of terrestrial radiation leaving the earth’s surface are affected by the presence of clouds.
What is insolation
Incoming solar radiation
What is dew
Tiny drops of water that forms when water-vapour condenses on the ground or cool surfaces, when the temperature is not below 0°C.
What is frost?
When condensation takes place below 0°C tiny ervstals of ice form on plants, rocks and ground.
(GR) temperature decreases with increasing latitude.
•Owing to the spherical shape of the earth, the angle at which the sun’s rays strike the earth is not the same everywhere on the surface of the earth
• In the tropics, the sun’s rays are almost vertical throughout the year and are, therefore, stronger. As one moves away from the equator, the sun’s rays become increasingly slanted and are therefore weaker. So, temperature decreases with increasing latitude.
(GR) places near the sea have mild climate
•
Places near the sea have a mild climate.
When the land is hot, the comparatively cool air from the sea cools it.
When the land gets cold, the comparatively warm air from the sea makes it warm.
•Thus, the sea has a moderating influence on temperature, and the places near the sea have a mild climate
Why is a steep slope unsauitable for human habitation?
A steep slope usually cannot support soil and vegetation and is unsuitable for human habitation. So it is usually bare and experiences a more rapid change in temperature than a gentle slope.
Define aspect
Aspect refers to the direction of a slope with respect to the sun’s rays.
What is atmospheric pressure?
(Atmospheric pressure is the pressure that the atmosphere exerts on the surface of the earth because of its weight,
The pressure exerted by air is measured using an instrument called ______________
Barometer
What us humidity?
Humidity refers to the amount of moisture or water vapour present in the air.
What is absolute humidity
The actual amount of moisture present is called absolute humidity (AH), which is expressed in grams per cubic metre of air
What is relative humidity
-
The actual amt. of vapour present in the air to at any temp and the a max amt. of vapour the air can old at that paticular temp.
When the air can hold no more moisture we say the air is _____________
Saturated
What is condensation?
Condensation is the process by which water wapour in the air gets converted into tiny Doplets of water or ice. It is the opposite of evaporation
What is evaporation
- It is a process by which water changes into water vapour.
Name the different forms of condensation.
Clouds mis fog dee and frost
What is precipitation?
When tiny droplets of water in the atmosphere join to form bigger droplets that are too heavy to remain suspended in the air, they fall to the earth’s surface. •This release of atmospheric moisture onto the earth’s surface is called precipitation.
What us convectional rainfall?
•In regions closer to the equator, the rate of evaporation is very high.
•air gets heated because of the high temperature later and starts rising in the form of convection tiny currents.
•As it rises, it expands and cools. The
cooling causes condensation, which results heavy downpours.
•This rain is accompanied by thunder and lightning and since it mostly occurs around 4 p.m., it is often called the ‘4 o’clock showers’
What is relief or orographical rainfall? I
Sometimes moisture-bearing winds are forced to rise of the presence of a physical barrier, such as a mountain, in their path.
•Such winds expand and cool as they rise up the slope of the mountain or plateau, and on further cooling form clouds. When saturated, these clouds give rain.This rain is called relief rain
Why is relief rain called relief rain?
This rain is called relief rair because it is caused by the relief feature coming in the way of the wind, i.e., the mountain or plateau.
Which side of the relief feature that faces the moisture bearing winds?
The windward side
______________ side receives most rainfall
Windward side
The leeward side is also called the ___________
Rain shadow region
What is cyclonic ir frontal rainfall?
.
•This type of
rainfall occurs when warm and cold air masses meet and form a front.
•As cold air is denser, it remains close to the ground, while the warm air rises above it.
•As the warm air rises, it expands and cools, and the moisture in it condenses to form clouds. These clouds bring rainfall.
Cyclonic rainfall mosly occures in _____________ and ___________ regions.
Temperate and tropical
What are planetery winds?
(Planetary winds are also called permanent or Prevailing winds as they blow the year round in the same areas.
What are periodic winds
•These winds blow in a definite direction during sh a particular period only - either during the day/ night or during the summer/ winter season.
•Land and sea breezes, and the monsoons are examples of periodic winds.
What are variable winds?
•These winds affect only small areas and last for only a few days. They vary in time, speed, and area and are, therefore, rightly called ‘variable winds’.
•Cyclones and anticyclones are the best examples of variable winds.
What are local winds ?
These winds blow for a short period of time over a very small area. Some local winds likeLoo, Simoom, Chinook, and Foehn are warm winds. Others, such as the Bora, Mistral, Buran, and Pampero are cold winds. BMBP
How does cloud cover help in trapping heat near the surface of the earth
Cloud cover plays an important role in the weather at a place.
It not only reduces the amount of insolation but also reduces the amount of radiation from the surface of the earth escaping into space.
Thus, cloud cover helps in trapping heat near the surface of the earth)
