EARTHSS 17 Lecture 30: ESS 17 Final Review
5 Dec 2016
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Document Summary
It cools, water vapor condenses and clouds form. Air reaches its dew point and condenses. It causes winds to deflect due to the earth"s rotation. From the pole towards the south, with a deflection to the west. As a rising mass of air expands, its heat is distributed over a larger volume. Heated air molecules move faster, so they expand and decrease in density. Air near the surface moves from regions of high pressure to regions of low pressure. Cool air in the upper atmosphere has higher density and therefore starts to fall. This wind travels from the west to the east b/w 30n and 60n and is responsible for the warm, dry, dessert conditions within this region: westerly winds. Earth"s axis is inclined at 23. 5 degrees. In the winter in the us, the northern hemisphere tilts away from the sun. Orographic effect: when moist air reaches land, it rises over mountain ranges where it expands adiabatically and cools.
