7.3 Thermal Inversion
What are the effects of thermal inversion?
Respiratory irritation, decreased tourism revenue, and decreased photosynthetic rate.
What are some air pollutants that can be trapped during thermal inversion?
Smog, particulate matter, ozone, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides.
What is the relationship between temperature and altitude in the troposphere?
Temperature decreases with increasing altitude due to decreasing pressure.
What is albedo?
The measure of how much light is reflected by a surface.
What happens to air pollutants during thermal inversion?
They are trapped closer to the Earth's surface.
Do thermal inversions occur over land or ocean?
They occur mainly over land, as the ocean retains heat better.
What is the Urban Heat Island Effect?
Urban areas have higher temperatures due to lower albedo and absorption of sunlight by concrete and asphalt.
What is the role of warm air in trapping cool air during thermal inversion?
Warm air rises, trapping cold air beneath it.
What is thermal inversion?
When a cooler air mass becomes trapped near the Earth's surface.
thermal inversion
A situation in which a relatively warm layer of air at mid-altitude covers a layer of cold, dense air below.
What causes thermal inversion?
A warm front moving in, or hot urban surfaces cooling overnight while releasing absorbed IR radiation.
What happens during thermal inversion?
Air pollutants are trapped closer to the Earth's surface.
What are some health effects of thermal inversion?
Asthma flare-ups, worsened COPD, and emphysema.
Why does temperature decrease with increasing altitude in the troposphere?
Because pressure decreases and air molecules are farther apart.
When does radiation from the Earth exceed radiation received from the sun?
During winter at the poles.
Where are thermal inversions more likely to occur?
In valleys, areas of oceanic upwelling, and during winter over land areas and at the poles.
What is the cause of the Urban Heat Island Effect?
Lower albedo and absorption of sunlight by concrete and asphalt.
