meteorology air masses & fronts
DESCRIPTION
Meteorology Air Masses & Fronts. Reference. From the Ground Up Chapter 6.6 & 6.7: Air Masses & Fronts Pages 140 - 147. Introduction. Giant air masses move around with the winds and rotate around pressure systems to bring different weather to areas. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Sep 2012Lesson 4.6
Meteorology
Air Masses & Fronts
Reference
From the Ground UpChapter 6.6 & 6.7:Air Masses & FrontsPages 140 - 147
Introduction• Giant air masses move around with the
winds and rotate around pressure systems to bring different weather to areas.
• It’s important to know what types of air masses and fronts exist, how they form, and what kind of weather they will cause
Outline• Air Masses• Fronts
Air Masses• Large section of troposphere with
uniform properties of temperature and moisture in the horizontal
• May be several thousand miles across
• Takes on properties of surface over which it forms (known as Modification)
Classifications• Classifications
– Continental Dry c– Maritime Moist m
– Arctic Cold A– Polar Moderate P– Tropic Warm T
• Main types in North America in winter = cA, mA, mP
• Main types in North America in summer = mA, mP, mT
Air Masses
Cold Air Mass Warm Air Mass
Stability Unstable Air Stable Air
Turbulence Turbulent Smooth
Visibility Good Poor
Clouds Cumulus Stratus, Fog
Precipitation Showers, Hail, Thunderstorms
Drizzle
Fronts• Transition zone between two air masses
Cold Front Warm FrontSlope Steep 1:50 Shallow 1:200
Weather Severe (unstable) Mild (stable)
Clouds Cumulus Stratus
Winds Veer Veer
Precipitation Showers Steady, Storms
Temperature Cools Warms
Fronts• Cold Front
– Leading edge of advancing cold air mass– Faster the front, the more severe the thunderstorm
Fronts• Warm Front
– Trailing edge of retreating cold air mass– Indicated by high to low stratus clouds
Other Fronts• Stationary Front
– Cold air neither advancing nor retreating
• Occluded Front (AKA Occlusion)– Cold front overtakes warm front, lifts warm air up
• Trowal (Trough of Warm Air Aloft)– Warm air lifted by occluded front
Next Lesson
4.7 – MeteorologyPrecipitation, Fog & Thunderstorms
From the Ground UpChapter 6.8, 6.9:Precipitation, Fog & ThunderstormsPages 147 - 154