Weather and Climate
warm front
Forms when warm air slides up and over a cold air mass; it brings gentle rain or light snow followed by warmer weather.
weather
day-to-day changes in atmospheric conditions, including temperature, air pressure, humidity, wind, cloud coverage, or precipitation
Layers of the atmoshere
earth's surface troposphere;stratoshere;mesoshere;thermosphere
altitude
elevation above sea level
Coriolis effect
the change that Earth's rotation causes in the motion of objects and that explains how winds curve
water cycle
the continual movement of water among Earth's atmosphere, oceans, and land surface through evaporation, condensation, and precipitation
atmosphere
the layer of gases that surrounds Earth
air pressure
the pressure caused by the weight of a column of air pushing down on an area
condensation
the process by which molecules of water vapor in the air become liquid water
evaporation
the process by which water molecules in liquid water escape into the air as water vapor
dew point
the temperature at which the water vapor in the air becomes saturated and condensation begins
barometer
tool that measures air pressure
wind vane
tool that measures wind direction
anemometer
tool that measures wind speed
cold front
A front where cold air moves in under a warm air mass.
Low pressure
A mass of rising warm air air that usually bring stormy weather.
High pressure
A mass of sinking cool air that usually bring fair weather.
High to Low pressure
How winds move related to pressure
Westerlies
The dominant winds that move across the USA
drought
a long period of unusually dry weather
humidity
amount of moisture in the air
climate
long-term average of weather in an area
Pressure
the amount of force pushing on an area
Land breeze
Movement of air from land to sea at night, created when cooler, denser air from the land forces up warmer air over the sea
precipitation
any form of water that falls from clouds and reaches Earth's surface
jet stream
fast moving stream of wind where cold, polar air meets warm air from the equator
air mass
large body of air with the same temperature and humidity
Sea Breeze
movement of air from sea to land during the day when cooler air from above the water moves over the land, forcing the heated, less dense air above the land to rise
front
where two different air masses meet normally causing precipitation