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77 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Invention of thermometer
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1539
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Invention of telegraph
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1843
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Air Mass Theory
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1920
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Weather Radar
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1957
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Weather Satellite
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1960
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Elements of weather
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Air temperature, humidity, clouds, precipitation, wind direction, wind speed, atmospheric pressure, visibility
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Weather observation tools
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Satellite, radar, atmospheric profilers, rawinsondes, surface weather observations, aircraft observations, lightning detection networks, buoys, human observation networks
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Isolines
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lines of equal/constant values of a given property with respect to place and time
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Isobar
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line of equal barometric pressur
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Isotherm
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line of equal temperature
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Stanley Gedzelman's 7 Causes of Weather
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1. Suns's heating varies with seasons
2. Differences in air temp cause wind 3. Rotation of Earth destroys simple wind patterns 4. Precipitation is caused by cooling the air 5. Pressure in the atmosphere always decreases with height 6. The process of decreasing air pressure causes temp to fall & the process of raising air pressure causes temp to rise 7. Clouds are caused by rising air, clear skies are caused by falling air |
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Permanent Gases
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Nitrogen (78%), Oxygen (21%), Argon (.1%), Neon (.001%)
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Variable Gases (greenhouse gases)
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H20, methane (CH4), Ozone (O3), Nitrous oxide (N2O), CO2, CFCs
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Troposphere
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0 - 15 mi
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Stratosphere
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15 - 30 mi
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Mesosphere
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30 - 55 mi
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Thermosphere
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55+ mi
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Homosphere
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well-mixed, 0 - 55/60 mi
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Heterosphere
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divided, 55/60 mi+
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Ionosphere
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45 - 50 mi, not a true layer but a region,
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Vernal Equinox
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March 21, passes Tropic of Cancer
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Summer Solstice
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June 21, equator
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Autumnal Equinox
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September 21, passes Tropic of Capricorn
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Winter Solstice
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December 21, equator
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Circle of Illumination
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boundary between day & night
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% of solar radiation reflected by clouds
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21%
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% of solar radiation absorbed by clouds
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19%
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% of solar radiation reflected by earth's surface
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4%
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% of solar radiation absorbed by earth's surface
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51%
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% of solar radiation scattered in atmosphere
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6%
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Convection
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vertical transfer of heat (thunderstorms)
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Advection
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horizontal transfer of heat (cold fronts)
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Short-wave radiation
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comes from the sun
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Long-wave radiation
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comes from the Earth
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Rayleigh scattering
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smallest particles ie gases
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Mei scattering
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medium-sized particles like dust, pollen, clouds
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Albedo
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total fraction of radiation reflected by a given surface
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Average albedo
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30%
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Albedo of fresh snow
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80 - 85%
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Albedo of thick clouds
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70 - 80%
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Albedo of water (low sun angle)
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50 - 80%
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Albedo of old snow
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50 - 60%
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Albedo of thin clouds
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25 - 50%
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Albedo of sand
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20 - 30%
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Albedo of grassy areas
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20 - 25%
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Albedo of dry earth
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15 - 25%
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Albedo of wet earth
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10%
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Albedo of forest
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5 - 10%
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Albedo of water (direct sun)
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3 - 5%3
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Black Body object
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perfect absorber/emitter
The sun & earth are both black body objects, but the atmosphere is not |
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Radiative equilibrium temp on Earth
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0F, -18C
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Surface temp on Earth
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59F, 15C
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Heat Capacity
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ration of heat absorved by a system compared to the corresponding temperature rise & fall
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Latent heat
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energy required for change of state, "hidden" heat
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Evaporation is a...
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cooling process
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Condensation is a
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warming processs
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Latent heat is absorbed during
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melting, evaporation, sublimation
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Latent heat is released during
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condensation, deposition, and freezing
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Where is more shortwave radiation recieved than lost?
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At the 36 latitude & below
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Where is more shortwave radiation lost than recieved?
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Above the 36 latitude
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Rules for thermometer placement
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no direct sunlight, well ventilated, shielded from radiating surfaces, 5 ft from ground, above a grassy area,
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Fahrenheit
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zero point is 32
98.6 human body temp 212 water's boiling point |
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Celsius
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0 - zero point
37 - human body temp 100 - boiling point |
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Kelvin
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zero point is absolute zero
no negative numbers 273 freezing point 373 boiling point |
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Cooling degree day season
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January - December
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Heating degree day season
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July 1 - June 30
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Relative humidity
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ratio of the air's actual water vapor content compared with the amount of water vapor required for saturation at a given temperature
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Relative humidity is influenced by
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adding/subtracting moisture in the air and changing different temperatures
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Dew point temperature
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the temp to which a parcel of air would need to be cooled in order to reach saturation
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Relative humidity is higher when
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Air temp & dew point temp are close together
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Relative humidity is lower when
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Air temp & dew point temp are far apart
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Dew Cell
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directly measures water vapor pressure
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Atmospheric stability
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refers to a state of equilibrium in the atmosphere
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Adiabatic process
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when a parcel of air expands or compresses with no exchange of heat with outside environment
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Diabatic process
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when a parcel of air expands or compresses with exchange of heat with outside environment
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Rate of cooling in dry adiabatic
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5.5 F/1000 mi
10 C/1000 mi |
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Rate of cooling in wet adiabatic
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3.3 F/1000 mi
6 C/1000 mi |
