Weather hazards Flashcards
Global atmospheric model
the equator receives more direct radiation from the sun so it is warmer than the rest which warms the air which rises. it reaches the upper atmosphere then spreads cooling down before it cools. areas of high pressure form where the air comes down and low pressure where it goes up.
polar cell
the cells of air movement at the poles
ferral cell
the ‘wild’ cell between the hadley and polar cells
hadley cell
the cell of air movement at the equator where the heat rises and falls, influencing the feral cells
coriolus force
winds that have formed going from areas of high pressure to low pressure across the earth
equator
the band around the middle of the earth which receives the most sunlight as it is closer to the sun
tropics
tropic of cancer or capricorn, where there is heavy rainfall due to the falling humid air that has cooled after coming from the equator
poles
the tips of the world where the earths axis goes through
tropical storm
formed within the hadley cell or intertropical conversion zone, they rotate and cause damage through huge wind speeds and really heavy rainfall their fuel is warm water or water vapour
intertropical conversion zone
where the trade winds cross, it is a low pressure belt of air
cyclone
tropical storm in/from the indian ocean
typhoon
tropical storm in/from the pacific ocean
hurricane
tropical storm in/from the atlantic ocean (or from USA)
eye of the storm
air descends at the centre of the hurricane, the eye is an area of calm conditions with a ring of clouds around it
condensation
water vapour in the air changed into liquid
evaporation
water it heated and becomes water vapour
cumulonimbus
dense towering vertical cloud associated with thunderstorms
distribution
how things are spread
frequency
the amount of things in a certain time
intensity
the degree or strength of something that happens
climate change
the century scale rise in the earths average temperature
thunder storms
usually include heavy rainfall and lightning occurs with thunder
drought
severe lack of water over an extended time which leads to cracked soils and parched flora
tropical continental air mass
warm and dry air mass that comes from southern Europe and north Africa (south of UK)
polar continental air mass
cold and dry air mass from northern Europe (east of UK)
tropical maritime air mass
warm and wet air mass from the atlantic ocean (south west of UK)
polar maritime air mass
cold and wet air mass from the north atlantic (west of UK)
arctic maritime air mass
very cold from the arctic ocean (north of UK)
extreme weather
unexpected unusual and unpredictable weather which can have a devastating impact on the world
