1. What are the two types of tropical air masses that have implications in the f
ID: 118913 • Letter: 1
Question
1. What are the two types of tropical air masses that have implications in the formation of weather systems in North America? Make sure to give detailed descriptions of the air masses and the locations in which they form, as well as discussing what type of weather they are likely to generate when they meet with polar air masses. Explain, in detail, how a warm front forms and how precipitation is generated. Make sure to include the types of air masses involved and make a sketch that shows their interactions. Explain, in detail, how atmospheric gases such as carbon dioxide, water vapor and methane lead to an overall warming of the atmosphere 2. 3.Explanation / Answer
1. The 2 types of tropical air masses that have implications in the formation of weather systems in North America are
Descriptions:
Maritime Tropical Airmass - This is basically humid, hot and unstable air mass. Origin- Carribbean Sea, Subtropical Pacific, West Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico. They are closely associated with the formation of cumulus clouds, thunderstorms and heavy rain showers. Advection form is developed during the winter months. Rocky Mountains of America are the most affected by this type of air mass. During the winter months, Central and South USA are dominated by the continental polar air mass and so, the airmass cannot enter here. This gives rise to maritime tropical stable warm air mass (mTw).
Continental Tropical AirMass- This air mass is hot, unstable and dry and affects North America only during the summer months. Origin- Western USA (Texas), Eastern USA (New Mexico), Mexico. There are no cloud formations because of the low humidity. Thus, there is low rainfall. Prolonged existence of this type of air mass over an area implies to the formation of severe droughts.
2. Warm fronts in the atmosphere are formed when warm air masses push over cold air masses. They are associated with clouds like Cirrus, Cirrostratus and Altostratus. These are high and medium altitude clouds. These clouds drift to lower altitudes and cause heavy rain and thunderstorms when warm fronts passes over an area which contains these clouds. Upon descending to lower altitudes, the air mass cools and expands and thus, leads to the condensation of water vapour and formation of extensive cloud cover. Thus, warm fronts are density discontinuities.
3. Carbon dioxide, water vapour and certain other gases of the atmosphere trap the radiations from the sun and thus, contibute to the overall warming of the atmosphere. They are greenhouse gases. They trap energy from the sun and amplify the warmth. A positive feedback loop is generated as warm atmosphere can store more quantity of these gases. Consequently, radiation from the sun is trapped in the atmosphere.
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