| A | B |
|---|
| atmosphere | layer of gases surrounding the Earth |
| Lithosphere | solid portion of the Earth |
| Hydrosphere | Liquid portion of the Earth |
| Troposphere | lowest layer of the atmosphere where weather occurs |
| Stratosphere | second layer of the atmosphere where the ozone layer is found |
| Mesosphere | Third, and coldest, layer of the atmosphere |
| Exosphere | layer of the atmosphere furthest from the Earth |
| evaporation | process by which a liquid changes to a gas. |
| evaporation | occurs as water in the hydrosphere changes to water vapor and enters the atmosphere |
| condensation | process by which a gas changes to a liquid. |
| condensation | occurs as water vapor in the atmosphere is changed back to a liquid |
| precipitation | water that enters the lithosphere when the air in the atmosphere becomes saturated with water vapor. |
| deposition | the process by which water vapor in the air is deposited on the lithosphere in the form of ice |
| transpiration | the release of water from plants via tiny openings called stomata |
| runoff | water that moves over the surface of the earth into lakes, rivers, oceans, etc. |
| weather | local or short-term changes determined by variables in temperature, wind, humidity, pressure |
| humidity | water vapor in the air |
| wind | a natural and perceptible movement of air parallel to or along the ground |
| air pressure | pressure created by the weight of the earth's atmosphere |
| isobars | isolines on a weather map used to connect points of equal pressure. |
| isotherms | isolines on a weather map used to connect points of equal temperature |
| air mass | large body of air with similar characteristic |
| weather front | point where two different air masses meet |
| cold front | forms when a cold air mass collides with a warm air mass |
| warm front | forms when a warm air mass collides with a cold air mass |
| occluded front | occurs when a fast-moving cold front overtakes a slower moving warm front |
| stationary front | occurs when a cold front and a warm front meet, but move very slowly relative to one one another |
| relative humidity | measure of the amount of water vapor in a given sample of air compared to the maximum amount of water vapor that the air sample could hold. |
| climate | is the characteristic weather that prevails from season to season and year to year |
| what causes weather | the uneven heating of the Earth's surface |
| greenhouse effect | the trapping of infrared radiation by greenhouse gases and/or pollution in the earth's atmosphere |
| greenhouse gases | gases that trap solar radiation |
| greenhouse gases | carbon dioxide, methane, water vapor |
| hazardous weather conditions | thunderstorms, tornados, ice storms, hurricanes, blizzards |
| jet stream | large steam of air moving in the upper atmosphere from west to east |
| high pressure system | usually brings fair weather |
| low pressure system | usually brings cloudy unstable conditions |
| weather conditions at a location are determined by | temperature, humidity, and pressure of air masses over the location |
