GEOG 102 Chapter 8: Tropical Climatology Textbook: Chapter 8
Document Summary
Small-scale variability in the tropical atmospheric circulation - easterly waves, hurricanes (typhoons), thunderstorms. Presence of warm and humid air masses. In this state: any upward movement of air will be reinforced by the release of large amounts of latent heat of condensation. The rising air movements can therefore reach high levels. The requirement of instability of warm and humid air masses is less numerous in dry air masses than humid ones. Therefore, tropical disturbances rarely develop over cool ocean currents and areas where the trade wind inversion is strong. Temperature normally decreases with height in the atmosphere. (the higher you go, the colder it gets. ) For dry air, the temperature drops 9. 8 c for every kilometer. An inversion is a layer where the temperature either remains the same or increases with height. It is the result of an outside force, such as a change in air mass along a front where warm air overruns cold air.
