Environmental Geology Laboratory: Jet Streams - Case Study Example

A chinook is like the wind that occurs in Southern California in Santa Ana. These hot, desiccating winds greatly increase the threat of fire in this already dry area. During daylight hours, the air along the slopes of mountains is heated more intensely than the air at the same elevation over the valley floor. Because this warmer air is less dense, it glides up along the slope and generates a Valley breeze. Near the equator, the rising air is associated with the pressure zone known as the Equatorial low.

A region marked by abundant precipitation. Seasonal changes in wind direction are known as the Monsoons. When the wind consistently blows more often from one direction than from another, it is called a Prevailing wind.PART thunderstorms are caused by the upward movement of warm, moist, unstable air. They are associated with cumulonimbus clouds that generate heavy rainfall, lightning, thunder, and occasionally hail and tornadoes. Arctic (A) and Polar (P) air masses are low-pressure systems that occur in the region between southern Florida and Alaska.

Mid-Latitude cyclones originate in high latitudes toward Earth’s poles. Fronts are boundaries that separate different air masses, one warmer than the other and often higher in moisture content. Although cP air masses are not normally associated with heavy precipitation, those that cross the Great Lakes in late autumn and winter sometimes bring snow to the leeward shores. These are known as lake effect snows, and they make Buffalo and Rochester, New York, among the snowiest cities in the United States.

PART IVOne commonly used guide to tornado intensity is the Enhanced Fujita intensity scale Because tornado winds cannot be measured directly the scale is determined by assessing the worst damage produced by a storm. Whereas a tornado watch is designed to alert people to the possibility of tornadoes, a tornado warning is issued by local offices of the National Weather Service when a tornado has been sighted in an area or is indicated by weather radar. When winds are between 61 and 119 kilometers (38-74 miles) per hour, the cyclone is termed a tropical storm.

Tornadoes are local storms of short duration that must be ranked high among nature’s most destructive forces. A storm surge is a dome of water 65 to 80 kilometers (40-50 miles) wide that sweeps across the coast near the point where the hurricane eye makes landfall.