| A | B |
|---|
| ozone | important substance in the upper atmosphere and is a form of oxygen |
| atmospheric dust | various kinds of tiny solid particles |
| nitrogen cycle | amount of nitrogen n atmosphere that it is maintained through |
| atmospheric pressure | ratio of teh weight of the air to the area of the surface on which it presses |
| barometer | insstrument that measures atmospheric pressure |
| mercurial barometer | a type of barometer |
| standard atmospheric pressure | a reafign of 760 mm on the barometer |
| millibars | official weather maps use another measurement of air pressure |
| aneriod barometer | type of barometer most commonly used today does not contain mercury |
| altimeter | aneroid brometer can also measure altitude above sea level, when used for this pupose |
| troposphere | atmospheric layer closest to the earths surface |
| tropopause | upper boundary of the troposphere |
| stratosphere | layer of the stmosphere, almost all of ozone in atmosphere is concentrated in it |
| stratopause | high temperature zone |
| smog | air pollution formed from a mixture of dust and chemicals |
| mesosphere | coldest layer of the atmospjere that extends upward to an altitude of about 80 km |
| mesopause | upper boundary of the mesosphere marked by an increase in temperature |
| thermosphere | the atmospheric layer above the meopause, the temperature increases steadily with altitude |
| ionosphere | the region of the thermosphere thta is at 80-550 km |
| exosphere | layer of atmosphere that merges with interplanetary space (above the ionosphere) |
| air pollutant | any substance in the atmosphere that is harmful to people, animals, or property |
| temperature inversion | atmospheric condition in which warm air traps colder air |
| weather | general condition of the atmosphere at a particular time and place; includes temperature, air movements, and moisture |
| climate | general weather conditions over many years |
| temperature | measurement of atomic movement |
| order of electromagnetic spectrum | longest to shortest: infared, visible light, ultraviolet, x-rays, gamma rays |
| visible light | only light humans can see |
| radiation | all the energy that the earth recieves from teh sun which travels through outerspace and the sun |
| wavelength | the distance from on wavecrest to another |
| infared waves | longer wave lengths which are longer than visible light |
| electromagnetic waves | the waves that make up all forms of radiation |
| electromagnetic spectrum | the complete range of wavelengths; includes: radio/tv waves, microwaves, infared, visible light, ultraviolet, x-rays, gamma rays |
| scattering | when water droplets and dust suspended in teh atmosphere reflect and bend the rays |
| reflection | the amount of energy the earth absorbs and reflects; .3 |
| albedo | the fraction of solar radiation reflected by a particular surface; albedo of moon: .07. earth: .3 |
| greenhouse effect | process by which the atmosphere traps infared rays over the earths surface |
| convection | transfew of heat through the movement of a fluid material |
| conduction | type of energy transfer in which vibrating molecules pass heat along to other vibrating molecules by direct contact |
| coriolis effect | the motion that causes winds in the N. Hemisphere to be deflected to the right and those in the S. hemisphere to be deflected to the left |
| convection cells | the air flowing from the equator completes three looping paterns of flow |
| trade winds | the winds in both hemispheres flowing toward the equator between 30 degrees, and 0 degrees lattitude |
| N.E. Trades | trade winds that flow from the norhteast |
| S.E. trades | trade winds that flow from the southeast |
| horse lattitudes | a belt of high pressure in the vicinity of 30 degrees lattitudes is created bye descending air |
| doldrums | where the trade winds meet at the equator |
| westerlies | global winds located between 40 degrees, and 60 degres lattitude that flow from teh southwest in the northern hemisphere, and from the northwest in teh southern hemisphere |
| Sub-polar lows | when warm air (low pressure) moving poleward from the subtropical high is lifted by cold polar air moving toward the equator |
| polar easterlies | surface winds created by the polar high pressure are deflected by the coriolis effect |
| jet streams | bands of high-speed, high-altitude westerly winds (in the upper tropaosphere, and lower stratosphere over N, & S hemisphere |
| breezes | gentle winds that extend over distances of 100km |
| sea breeze | wind moving from water to land (daytime) the warmer air above teh land rises, and cool air from aboe the water replace it |
| land breeze | flows from the cooler land to the warmer water (night) |
| valley breeze | (daylight) when warm air from the valleys move up onto the cool mountain |
| mountain breeze | cooler air that descends from the mountain peaks (night) |
| water vapor | the form of water in a gas |
| sublimation | solid changes directly to a vapor (skips liquid form) |
| deposition | vapor becoming solid (skipping liquid) |
| latent heat | the energy absorbed and stored in mollecules (realeased when water melts, condenses) |
| humidity | the amount of water vapor in teh atmosphere |
| saturatred | when air holds all water vapor it can at a fiven temperature |
| relative humidity | a ratio that compares the mass of water vapor i the air wiht the mass of water vapor that the air can hold |
| psychrometer | an instrument used to measure realtive humidity |
| radiosonde | a package that carries an electric hygrometer to high altitudes |
| specific humidity | espresses the actual amount of moisture in the air |
| dew pint | the temperature to which air must be cooled to reach saturation |
| dew | type of condensation formed when air that is in contact with a cool surface looses heat until it reaches saturation |
| frost | ice crystals formed when the dew point is below 0 degress C and water vapor directly enters the solid state |
| condensation nuclei | solid particles in the atmosphere, such as ice and dust, that probide the surfaces on which water vapor condences |
| convective cooling | the lowering of the temperature of a mass of air dure to its rising and expanding |
| adiabatic temp. changes | changes in temperature that result soley form the expansion of compression of air |
| condensation level | teh level of which condensation forms |
| advective cooling | cooling produced when wind carries warm, moist air across a cold ocean or region of land |
| stratus clouds | lowest clouds; form where a layer of warm, moist air lies above a layer of cool air |
| altostratus | form at the middle lattitudes , thinner than lower stratusand produces little percipitation |
| nimbostratus | dangerous clouds |
| cumulas clouds | puffy, shapely clouds; form when warm, moist air rises and cools, as air reaches dew point forms a cloud |
| dirrus clouds | composed of ice crystals, sunight can easily pass through; curly clouds |
| radiation fog | fog that results in a loss of radiation |
| advection fog (ground fog) | fog that forms when warm moist air moves across a cold surface |
| upsloap fog | formed by the lifting and adiabatic cooling of air as it rises along and slopes; cloud formation at ground level |
| steam fog | forms over rivers and lakes, formed when cool air moves over a warm body of water, in fall only b/c water i still hot from summer, and NOT in spring b/c water is cold from winter |
| precitpitation | any moisture that falls from the earths surface |
| sleet | forms when rain falls through a layer of freezing air |
| glaze ice (freezing rain) | when rain freezes when it hits a surface near the ground |
| hail | lumps of ice; forms in cumulonimbus clouds, convection currents with in the clouds carry raindrops to high levels, where they freeze |
| coalescene | when a cloud droplets gets added to by other cloud droplets and gathers droplets until big enough to fall from cloud |
| supercooling | process in which water droplets are induced to remain liquid at temperatures below ) degrees C |
| cloud seeding | the method used to attempt to find the cause or increase of percipitation |
| freezing nuclei | particles that are used in the center of snowflakes and in raindrops in order to freeze |
| rain gauge | measures amount of rainfall; has funnel in which water goes through |
