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12-1 Flash Cards
The Causes of Weather
Term/Question | Definition/Answer |
---|---|
Meteorology | It is the study of atmospheric phenomena. |
Weather | Short-term variations in atmospheric phenomena that interact and affect the environment and life on Earth |
Climate | Is the long term average of variations in weather for a particular area. |
Why is the Earth's surface heated unevenly? (314) | Because land heats faster than water. |
What is an air mass? (314) | It is a large volume of air that has the same characteristics, such as humidity and temperature, as its source region. |
What does the source region have to do with the air mass over it? (316) | The source region is the area over which the air mass forms. |
Tropical Air Masses- What are their qualities and where do they form? (316) | They form in the tropics. Warm and moist in its lowest layers |
Continental Polar Air Masses- What are their qualities and where do they form? (316) | Continental polar air masses form over the interior of Canada and Alaska. In winter, these air masses can carry frigid air southward. In the summer, however, cool, relatively dry, continental polar air masses bring relief from hot, humid weather. |
Continental Tropical Air Masses- What are their qualities and where do they form? (316) | The southwestern United States and Mexico are a source region of continental tropical air, which is hot and dry, especially in summer |
Maritime Polar Air Masses- What are their qualities and where do they form? (316) | They form over the cold waters of the North Atlantic and North Pacific. It occasionally brings heavy rains in winter. |
Maritime Tropical Air Masses- What are their qualities and where do they form? (316) | The origins of maritime tropical air are tropical bodies of water. In the summer, they bring hot, humid weather to the eastern two-thirds of North America. |
Arctic Air Masses- - What are their qualities and where do they form? (316) | In Siberia and the Arctic Basin are the source regions of arctic air masses. During part of the winter, these areas receive almost no solar radiation. As a result, they become extremely cold and can bring the most frigid temperatures during winter. |