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buoyancy
- is the tendency of an object to float in a fluid
- it is controlled by differences in density between the object and the fluid, where density is given by the mass of a substance within a unit volume.
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subsidence
this phenomenon
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convergence
the merging of air masses that are moving inward toward a low pressure region is called convergence
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intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ)
the converging air masses that meet at the tropics and rise make up the intertropical convergence zone
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divergence
in this case refers to the movement of air outward from a region in the atmosphere
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hadley circulation
this pattern of air movment, with convergence occurring in the tropics and divergence and subsidence some 30 away in one large convection cell, is called hadly circulation
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polar front zone
the equator moving cold air meets the warm air moving poleward from the subtropics, producing a zone of steep temperature gradients called the polar front zone at approximately 60 N and S latitude
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coriolis effect
is the apparent tendency for a fluid ( air or water ) moving across earth's surface to be deflected from its straigh -line path.
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monsoon
is a seasonal reversal in the surface winds. in summer the large asian land mass, with its high elevationsin temperatures, low atmospheric pressures, and intense convection of air above the surface.
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latent heat of vaporization
the energy needed to convert liquid water to water vapor
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latent heat of fusion
the energy needed to convert ice to liquid water, equals 335 kj/ kg
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hydrologic cycle
the reservoirs and the pattern of water storage and movement throughout the system comprise the global hydrologic cycle
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groundwater
water that penetrates through soil and rock and collects below the surface
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partial pressures
of the individual gases--that is, the pressure each gas would exert if it were the only gas present
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evaporation
imagine a body of water. water molecules at the surface that have a little more energy than do their neighbors can overcome the attractive forces that hold the molecules together and thereby exscape as water vapor molecules into the air above
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condensation
some of these water vapor molecules that subsequently come into contact with teh water surface would lose energy be caught by the liquid water molecules, and become liquid water again
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uplift
thus most rainfall situations occur with some form of UPLIFT, or rising of air masses. uplift is a general term denoting any process by which air at a given level in the atmosphere is lifted to a higher altitude
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deserts
and we can examine why they are located where they are
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Ekmans spiral
the deeper below the surface in the northern hemispher and to the left in the souther hemisphere
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