Weather Patterns Flashcards
Convection Current
a current in a fluid that results from convection.
Sea Breeze
a breeze blowing toward the land from the sea, especially during the day owing to the relative warmth of the land.
Land Breeze
a breeze blowing toward the sea from the land, especially at night, owing to the relative warmth of the sea.
Coriolis Effect
an effect whereby a mass moving in a rotating system experiences a force acting perpendicular to the direction of motion and to the axis of rotation.
Jet Stream
a narrow, variable band of very strong, predominantly westerly air currents encircling the globe several miles above the earth. There are typically two or three jet streams in each of the northern and southern hemispheres.
Trade Winds
a wind blowing steadily toward the equator from the northeast in the northern hemisphere or the southeast in the southern hemisphere, especially at sea.
Doldrums
Ocean with calms, sudden storms, and light unpredictable winds. They also trap ships
Prevailing Winds
a wind from the direction that is predominant at a particular place or season.
Prevailing Westerlies
The west-to-east winds that occur in the temperate zones of the Earth.
Polar Easterlies
The polar easterlies are the dry, cold prevailing winds that blow from the high-pressure areas of the polar highs at the North and South Poles towards low-pressure areas within the Westerlies at high latitudes.
El Niño
A band of warm ocean temperatures that develop off the coast of South America.
La Niña
A band of cold ocean temperatures that develop off the coast of South America
