AIR MASSES Chapter 16 Section 2

A. AIR MASSES Air masses take on the characteristics of the area where they form. 2. Air mass temperature and moisture are consistent throughout.

B. AIR MASS FORMATION 1. Warm air forms over tropical regions. (T) 2. Cold air forms over polar regions. (P) 3. Wet air forms over water. (m) 4. Dry air forms over land. (c)

C. MOISTURE AND TEMPERATURE 1. Moisture content is noted by the first letter. m – maritime – wet c – continental – dry 2.Temperature is noted by the second letter. P – polar – cool T – tropical - warm

D. AIR MASSES 1. mP- maritime polar air mass: wet and cold 2. cP – continental polar air mass: dry and cold 3. mT – maritime tropical air mass: wet and warm 4. cT – continental tropical air mass: dry and warm

E. FRONTS 1. A front is a boundary between air masses. a. Cold front 2. Four types of fronts and map symbols a. Cold front b. Warm front c. Occluded front d. Stationary front

F.COLD FRONT 1. Cold air mass meets a warm air mass and pushes the warm air mass out of its way. 2. Bring thunderstorms, rain or snow. 3. Cold front followed by cooler drier air. http://www.mesoscale.iastate.edu/agron206/animations/05_cnWfronts.html

G. WARM FRONT 1. Warm air mass meets a cold air mass and the warm air rises over the cold air. 2. Brings drizzly precipitation. 3. Followed by clear warm weather. http://www.mesoscale.iastate.edu/agron206/animations/05_cnWfronts.html

H. STATIONARY FRONT 1. Cold air meets warm air. 2. Not enough force to move either. 3. Many days of cloudy, wet weather. http://www.phschool.com/atschool/phsciexp/active_art/weather_fronts/

I. OCCLUDED FRONT 1. Warm air caught between two cold air masses. 2. Brings cool temperatures with large amounts of rain or snow http://www.phschool.com/atschool/phsciexp/active_art/weather_fronts/

AIR MASSES AND FRONTS 1. Describe a maritime polar (mP) air mass, Moisture and temperature. 2. What is the name of an air mass that forms over water? 3. What is the name of an air mass that forms over land? 4. What is the name of an air mass that forms in a cold region? 5. What is the name of an air mass that forms in a warm region? 6. Describe a continental tropical (cT) air mass, Moisture and temperature. 7. The boundary between two air masses is called a 8. A cold air mass meets and pushes a warm air mass out of the way. What type of front am I? 9. A warm air mass is trapped between to cold air masses. 10. A warm air mass meets a cold air mass and the warm air moves over the cold air. 11. I am a front that brings drizzly rain and am followed by warm clear weather. 12. A cold air mass meets a warm air but neither is very strong. They are separated and many days of wet , cloudy weather occur.