Clouds & precipitation: Nicole Irvine

Clouds & precipitation: Nicole Irvine

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  By: Nicole Irvine
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   Definition: whenair compresses it gets warmer, when it expands, it cools  Air at high pressures, that compresses and heats to 10 degrees Celsius, moves downward; which is called dry adiabatic rate  Air that cools after condensation begins and is released, heat then works against the adiabatic cooling; which is called wet adiabatic rate http://www.bio.georgia southern.edu/bio- home/harvey/lect/lectu res.html?ccode=el&mda =scrn&flnm=abel&ttl=P opulations%20and%20th eir%20environment
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   Definition: elevated terrainsact like barriers to air flow (Ex: Mountains)  On a mountain, the windward side would be cold and moist; leeward side is dry and warm  When air descends, it warms adiabatically https://earthscience-in-the- nationalparks.wikispaces.com/Death+ Valley
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   Definition: largemasses of warm and cold air meeting, causes a front  When the two masses of air meet, colder air is denser and is like a barrier against the warmer air  Fronts that are weather producing have to do with specific storm systems; called middle- latitude cyclones geo.hunter.cuny.edu
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   Definition: whenair in lower atmosphere flows together it then lifts  May lead to adiabatic cooling and/or possible cloud formations  Depending on patterns of air movement, thunderstorms may form or occur http://zebu.uoregon.edu/ph121/conv erge.html
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   Unequal heatingof Earth’s surface, on hot days, can cause pockets of air to be warmed more than the surrounding air  Localized convective lifting is a process that produces rising thermals  When parcels that are warm rise above the condensation level, clouds form santasusana.org
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   If temperaturesdrop because of expansion its because the volume of the air was forced to rise  Stable air: remains in it’s position; Unstable air: tends to rise  Clouds that have air that’s unstable are more likely to cause thunderstorms/tornadoes academic2.american.edu
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   Air mustbe saturated for condensation to occur  For water vapor to condense, it must have a surface  When condensation happens, air above the ground have condensation nuclei appear  When condensation takes place the growth rate of cloud droplets increase decorating.visitacasas.com
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   Cirrus: high,white, thin, wispy fibers  Cumulus: flat base, appearance of rising towers  Stratus: sheets or layers that cover the sky windows2universe.org
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   3 types:Cirrus, Cirrostratus, Cirrocumulus  All of these are thin, white, and made of ice crystals  They aren’t considered precipitation makers eo.ucar.edu
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   Appear at2,000- 6,000 meters high  Larger and denser than other clouds  Light snow or drizzle may come from these clouds braindanceisawayoflife.blogspot.com
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   3 types:Stratus, Stratocumulus, Nimbostratus  May produce light precipitation  “Nimbus”- means rainy in Latin  “Stratus”- means cover w/ layer in Latin chr.wikipedia.org
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   Some cloudsdon’t fit into specific categories  Some have low height, and expand upward  When upward movement happens and the acceleration is powerful, clouds then have great vertical range to form kidsresearchexpress-3.blogspot.com
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   Has thesame appearance and structure of a cloud  Defined as a cloud with its base close to the ground  Fog can produce in mornings or nights when Earth’s surface cools by radiation brainharmonycenter.com
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   When wateris cooled below 0 degrees Celsius its called “super cooled”  Ice crystals grow as cloud droplets do, when they’re big enough they will fall  When the surface temperature is above 4 degrees Celsius, snowflakes will melt before reaching the ground physorg.com
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   Rainfall isrelated to clouds located below the freezing level  Rain drops formed in warm clouds have a process called “collision- coalescence” process  When large droplets move through clouds they collide and coalesce web.me.com
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   In meteorology,rain means drops of water that fall from a cloud  At low temperatures, light snow made of individual six-sided ice crystals may form  Temperatures warmer than -5 degrees Celsius, cause crystals to join in large clumps madmikesamerica.com
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   Small particlesof clear ice is called sleet  Sleet can form by a layer of air (with temperatures above freezing) overlie subfreezing near the ground  Hail produces in cumulous clouds by ice pellets growing by collecting super cooled water droplets pix.10tv.com