Term
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Definition
| An expression of the amount of water vapor in the air in comparison with the total amount that could be there if the air were saturated. This is a ratio that is expressed as a percentage. |
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Term
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Definition
| Mass of water vapor in the air. |
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Term
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Definition
| Precipitation with a pH less than 5.6. It may involve dry decomposition without moisture. |
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Term
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Definition
Also known as dew point temperature.
Is the temp. at which air has to cool until you get 100% humidity and condensation begins to occur. |
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Term
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Definition
| A concept of the relative temperature that is sensed by a person's body. |
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Term
| Define the Various kinds of precipitation |
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Definition
Drizzle: fine rain--rain drops that are less than .5mm in diameter.
Rain: Rain drops that are .5mm or greater in diameter.
Snow: Forms when water vapor forms directly into ice crystals.
Hail: Most damaging. Water droplets freeze and start to fall, but then are bounced around by the updrafts for awhile, builds up in size and falls.
Sleet: Precipitation that freezes on its way to the ground.
Freezing rain: Precipiation that freezes as it hits the ground or cold surface. Sometimes known as glaze.
Virga: Is rain that evaporates before it hits the ground. Associated with microbursts. |
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Term
| How do you work out an orographic lifting problem? |
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Definition
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Term
| What are the 7 steps to how rain is produced? |
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Definition
1. Air must rise (LP).
2. Air must cool.
--H20 vapor needs a surface to condense on--
3. Condensation nuclei (little tiny particles in atmosphere) must be present.
4. Condensation will occur--clouds.
5. Coalescence ( 1 million little drops form one rain drop).
6. Trigger--atmosphere is stirred to produce more clouds. Could be a cold pool or air, etc.
7. Rain :) |
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Term
| Describe the various "lifting mechanisms". |
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Definition
| Convective lifting, Orographic, frontal and convergent |
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Term
| What are the characteristics of various kinds of fog? |
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Definition
Radiation fog (Valley, tule): Earth is radiating heat. Meets cooler air, forms fog.
Advention fog: Warm air moves over a cold surface (sea to land).
Evaporation fog: Cold air comes into contact with warm water. Mid lat; Fall.
Inversion Fog: Warm air above cold, moist air. Mid lat; Winter. |
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Term
What are the characteristics of clouds?
(As discussed in class) |
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Definition
Low Clouds: Surface (6000ft)
*Stratus: layered clouds (broad and long, flat) When it is overcast, is almost always stratus clouds.
*Nimbostratus: stratus clous that percipitate.
Middle Elevation Clouds: 5000-25000ft.
*(L)Statoculumulus
*(L)Cumulus
*(H) Altostratus
*(H) Altocumulus
High Clouds: Cirrus Coulds (25,000-40,000ft)
*When you are looking at these, you are seeing light reflecting off ice crystals.
* Cirrustratus: whispy
* Cirrocumulus: fluffy
* Cirrus
Contrails: Jet trails
Cumulonimbus, "Thunderheads": Range from 5,000-40,000 ft (rare). Responsible for violent weather.
Known as convective clouds.
Pg. 157 |
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Term
| Name the various forms of precipitation. |
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Definition
| Rain, Snow, Sleet, Glaze, Hail |
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Term
| Describe acid rain (just the basics) and the damage it causes. |
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Definition
| Acid rain happens when air pollution chemicals, which come from fuel-burning factories or cars, react to form acids in the air. The acids from burning fuel in the air attach to water molecules in the air and fall as rain or snow. We call the breakdown caused by acid rain, chemical erosion. The effects of acid rain (chemical erosion) include: damage to statues and buildings; weakening of the exposed metal on bridges and playground equipment; damage to wildlife, plants, forests and crops; and the contamination of drinking water supplies. |
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Term
| Describe the various kinds of air masses and their letter classification |
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Definition
(Arctic/Antarctic-A):Antarctica, Arctic Ocean and fringes, and Greenland-Very cold, very dry, very stable
(Continental Polar-cP): High Latitude plains of Eurasia and North America, Cold, dry, very stable; (Maritime polar mP): Oceans in vicinity of 50-60 degrees latitude, Cold moist, relatively unstable; (Continental Tropical-cT)- Low-latitude deserts, Hot, very dry, unstable; (Maritime Tropical-mT): Tropical and subtropical oceans, warm, moist of variable stability; (Equatorial-E): Oceans near the equator, warm, very moist, unstable.
Review pg 181 |
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Term
| Describe the various kinds of air fronts and their signs. |
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Definition
| Warm Fronts: A front formed by advancing warm air, its slope is gentle...Cold Fronts are formed by advancing cold air-steeper as it moves forward and usually develops a protruding "nose" a few hundred meters above the ground...; Stationary Fronts: when neither air mass displaces the other, their common boundary is called a stationary front..., Occluded Fronts is formed when a cold front overtakes a warm front. Reference your book or notes for more info. |
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Term
| What weather occurs with the approach and passage of a mid-latitude cyclone? |
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Definition
| Stormy weather, LP, converging ascending clockwise moving winds. |
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Term
| What are the features of tornadoes? |
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Definition
Travels 30 to 60 mph.
Flying debris makes them dangerous
Strongest of all winds.
A localized cyclonic low-pressure cells surrounded by a whirling cylinder of violent wind; characterized by a funnel cloud extending below a cumulonimbus cloud.
Associated with cold fronts/thunderstorms.
Most occur in the E. US.
Path of destruction: less than 100ft wide to over one mile wide.
Requirements: 1st must have warm, moist air from S. 2nd ,must have cool, dry air from N. 3rd, must have mild, dry air from SW (jet stream). |
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Term
| What are the features of thunderstorms? |
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Definition
A relatively violent convective storm accompanied by thunder and lightening.
Cause by convection and mostly over Equitorial regions. High humidity and temp.
Occur in mid-lat during warm months.
Associated with high humidity and temp.
Rare or absent poleward of 60 degree.
Precipitation "kills" them.
Lighting makes thunderstorms dangerous. |
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Term
| What are the features of hurricanes? |
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Definition
A tropical cyclone with wind speeds of 74 knots or greater.
Requirements: Have to have warm ocean water. Coriolis effect causes the turning winds. Coverging winds.
Characterisitics: Largest, most distructive storms. Spiraling cumulonimbus clouds. 100-600 miles in diameter. Eye is 10-25 miles in diameter.
Associated with strom surges, which are huge waves. Often follow the trade winds.
Die out when they move over land or cool water.
Main energy source is latent heat from evaporationg water.
Converging winds often start the tropical depressions, which often lead to hurricanes or other tropical storms.
Have different names according to location. |
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Term
| Diligently study your climate handout. |
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Definition
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Term
| Describe the letter classifications system of the climates. |
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Definition
A = Summer Climates
B = Dry Climates
C = Subtropical, Mild Climates
D = Continental Climates
E = Winter Climates |
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Term
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Definition
| An impermeable rock layer that is so dense as to exclude water. |
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Term
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Definition
| The free flow that results when a well is drilled from the surface down into the aquifer and the confining pressure is sufficient to force the water to the surface without artificial pumping. |
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Term
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Definition
| A permeable subsurface rock layer that can store, transmit, and supply water. |
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Term
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Definition
| Flow of water from land to oceans by overland flow, stream-flow, and groundwater flow. |
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Term
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Definition
| Water found underground in the zone of saturation. |
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Term
| Name and Describe the hydrologic zones |
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Definition
1. Surface
2. Zone of aeration
3. Water table
4. Zone of saturation
5. Aquiclude
6. Aquifer |
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Term
| What are the main ideas relating to the Ogallala or High Plains aquifer? |
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Definition
| A classic example of groundwater mining. Southern and Central parts of the Great Plains. Farmers began to tap it in 1930's. Much more so after wwII Good for farming, but the water table is sinking and so must dig deeper wells...Many farmer have faced or will soon face the prospect of abandoning irrigation entirely. in the next 40 years, est. that 2 mil. hectares (5 million acres) now irrigated will revert to dry-land production. "Recharge" varies aby location...esp. southwestern Kansas unsustainable water use! |
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Term
| Describe the steps of the hydrologic cycle |
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Definition
| Liquid water on Earth's surface evaporates to become water vapor in the atmosphere. That vapor then condenses and precipitates, either as liquid water or as ice, back onto the surface. This precipitated water then runs off into storage areas and later evaporates into the atmosphere once again. |
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Term
| What is the distribution of the world's water and the statistics pertaining to those (as least the order of the features). |
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Definition
Oceans: 97.2%
Glaciers: 2%
Ground Water: .5%
Lakes and Rivers: .3% |
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Term
| Discuss the history of the Aral Sea (Russia) |
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Definition
| Once the world's fourth largest lake in terms of surface area, but beginning in the 1960's, irrigation projects designed to boost agr. prod. in soviet Central Asia cut off much of the water flowing into the lake. The sea is now only about 25% of its original size. The once viable commercial fishing industry is gone, and winds now carry away a cloud of choking clay and salt dust ...The sea has split into several pieces. Recent reengineering of the Syr Darya River delta should allow the northern remnant to remain near its present size, but the southern remnants are likely to disappear completely within a couple of decades. |
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Term
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Definition
| Cold air mass froms a "front" and warm air in front of it gets pushed over its top. |
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Term
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Definition
| Warm air from different directions collide and both are pushed up. |
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Term
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Definition
| Air moves along and encounters a mt. range, air is forced to go up before it can descend down the back (if it is a substantial mt range). As air moves up, can have percipitation. As airm moves down, air warms up and relative humidity decreases. |
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Term
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Definition
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Term
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Definition
| Are down drifts that are very dangerous. High winds can affect airplanes, cooling process, trees, etc. Air can move very fast (100 mph). |
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Term
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Definition
| Air cools one degree C for every 100 meters in elevation. |
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Term
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Definition
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Term
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Definition
Review notes with 2/6/09
Pg 184 |
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Term
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Definition
Tropical Depression: Under 39 mph
Tropical Storms: 39-73
Hurricanes: over 74 |
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Term
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Definition
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Term
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Definition
| Temperature and percipitation affect climate. |
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Term
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Definition
Tropical Rainforest
Locations: Amazon, Congo, Indonesia
1. Always warm and always wet.
2. Feels hotter than it actually is because of high humidity.
3. Mornings are clear, afternoon thunderstorms.
4. Little wind
Controls: Latitude, ITC, and convection. |
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Term
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Definition
Tropical Monsoon
Locations: Burma/Thailand, Vietnam, Bangladesh/India, South America, French Guinea
1. Wettest in the summer months.
2. Hottest right before moonsoon season (spring).
3. Usually found along windward coast of SE Asia.
4/ 20-40 inches of rainfall in each of 2 or 3 months.
5. Winter time, less than 2 inches a month.
Controls: Shifting pressure systems |
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Term
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Definition
Tropical Savanna
Location: Most of Brazil, N. Australia, s. FL, central and S. Africa.
1. Hottest months are in the spring, right before the onset of the monsoon.
2. Most extensive of all the "A" climates.
3. Lies just N. and S. of the Af climates.
4. Summers are wet due to the ICZ.
5. Winters are dry due to the STH.
6. Wetter months have 10+ inches of rain per month.
Controls: shifting pressure systems. |
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Term
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Definition
Deserts
Locations: Sonoran, Sahara, Mojave, Gobi, Great Australian, Atacama, etc. 1. Potential evaporation exceeds precipitation.
2. Hottest temperatures.
3. Precipitation is scarce, sporadic, and often intense.
Controls: Leeward sides of mts or the STH. |
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Term
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Definition
Steppes
Location: Central Asia, Intermountain West.
1. Transition area from the deserts to more humid climates.
2. Semi-arid
3. Potential evaportation exceeds precipitation. |
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Term
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Definition
Mediterranean
Location: South Africa, Los Angelos, Santiago, Chile; South Australia
1. Summers totally dry
2. Mild, but wet winters
3. Hot summers
4. Precipitation mostly cyclonic but enhanced along mts.
5. STH pressure dominates during the summer. |
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Term
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Definition
Humid Subtropical
Locations: Georgia, SE China (SE of continents in general).
1. Hot, humid summers
2. Cold winters with killing frosts.
3. Usually by warm ocean currents.
4. Wet.
Controls: STH, SE side of continents |
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Term
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Definition
Marine West Coast
Location: High mid-latitudes: Seattle, London, New Zealand.
1. Cool, humid year-round
2. Fairly regular precipitation, but heaviest during winter.
3. Occasional very high temps when wind blows land to sea, rather than the more typical sea to land breeze.
4. Rain produced by frontal/cyclonic storms. |
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Term
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Definition
Humid Continental
Location: Chicago
1. Winters cold, summers very warm
2. Precipitation year-round, but heaviest in summer.
3. Winter precipitation mostly snow.
4. Humid |
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Term
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Definition
Sub-Arctic
Locations: Siberia, Canada (only in N, no land masses there in the S.)
1. Next to tundra climates (high lat. and high altitudes).
2. "Boreal" (Northern) and "taiga" (old word for forest)regions.
3. Long, cold winters: 6-7 months below freezing; world's coldest temps (besides icecaps). |
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Term
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Definition
Tundra
1. No trees--only grass and bushes.
2. There is a tree line between the ET and the Dfc.
3. Very cold most of the year.
4.Ground thaws during summer
5. only 1-4 months above freezing
6. Air is too cold for much moisture. |
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Term
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Definition
Ice Cap
Locations: Greenland, Antarctica
1. Frozen all year.
2. Little moisture, but what falls remains.
3. -127 degrees F at Vostok, Antarctica |
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Term
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Definition
[image] Cold air invading warm air |
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Term
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Definition
[image] Usually derived from the south |
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Term
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Definition
[image] Usually form at N. edge of westerlies bu subpolar low. Cold air from the N. invades warm air. |
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Term
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Definition
[image] When mid-lat. storms run out of energy they become occluded fronts. It is when a cold front has overtaken a warm front. |
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