Reviewing what we have learned

Using one white board for you and a table partner, two white boards for each table. Write your answers to the following questions and see what you remember. Select one person to tally the responses for each question. After the question is asked you will hold up the white board and then check your answer. You should get one point for a reasonable answer and 2 points for an answer that matches the idea of the answers.

Orographic lift occurs when an air mass is forced from a low elevation to a higher elevation as it moves over rising terrain. As the air mass gains altitude it quickly cools down adiabatically, which can raise the relative humidity to 100% and create clouds and, under the right conditions, precipitation. Read more:

The sun heats the surface of the earth unevenly. The ocean has a higher heat capacity than does land, so warm ocean masses begin to evaporate more, absorbing energy from the hydrosphere, then releasing the energy as latent energy into the atmosphere. As the storm moves over land, the Latent energy from evaporation of the water, is no longer “fuel “ for the storm and it dies out, the atmosphere now holds more heat energy

Hurricanes like Katrina are the most powerful storms in nature. They begin when a group of storms comes together over warm waters in the ocean along the equator. All summer long, these areas absorb heat from the sun. By late summer, the higher water temperatures allow storms to strengthen and grow. This signals the start of “hurricane season.” Warmer water means more energy for a storm’s development. Storm systems create areas of low pressure, which cause large amounts of water to evaporate. This makes the air very humid. As the warm air rises, cooler air rushes in to replace it. As this cycle intensifies, these rushing winds pick up speed. At first, these winds blow in toward the center of the storm system. As the storm grows, however, the effect of Earth's rotation begins to spin the storm around. The center rotates in a counterclockwise direction. The winds now whip around the center and create the “eye” of the storm. Swirling bands of clouds and rain curve outward from the center and give the forming hurricane its familiar shape.

The seasons occur in the northern and southern hemispheres because of earth tilt or, its obliquity. the tilt is 23.5 degrees to the right, and the orbit is counter clockwise. In the winter the earth is to the right of the sun and is tilted away from the sun. It receives INDIRECT sunlight, it is less intense, and days are shorter so less heat is transferred…. COLD WEATHER. In the summer we are on the left side of the sun, and the earth is tilted towards the sun, giving us more DIRECT sunlight. The days are longer, light is more intense and there is more heat transferred…. HOT WEATHER.