GGR100H1 Lecture : lecture notes 8
Document Summary
Key points activity: mechanisms for air parcel lifting and consequences for the weather, role of air masses, why it"s important: links between weather and ecosystems, human. Principle regional air masses for n. america: moisture and temperature characteristics, mt =moisture: maritime (wet) or continental (dry) temperature: arctic, polar, or tropical. Movement of air masses: air masses take on local temperature/humidity. Effect of moving air mass on local weather. What causes an air parcel to lift: convergent lifting, convectional lifting, orographic lifting. Front = edge of advancing air mass: density/temperature differences lead to lifting along margin (= edge) Advancing cold front abrupt lifting: wind shift, drop in barometric pressure, heavy precipitation, thunder, due to, as cold front passes, higher pressure, lower temperatures, clearing clouds. Advancing warm front: gentle lifting lower density of warm vs. cold front, drizzly precipitation. Storm tracks: upper air winds, regional names. Lightning (electrical discharge within clouds, clouds-ground) superheated air thunder: microbursts.