Geographical diversity of meteorological phenomena
Meteorology is a scientific study of the environment and how the atmosphere affects the weather. Meteorology’s concern is on the changes of weather in a short period. Changes in weather patterns are often by geographical conditions, atmospheric pressure, altitude and time of the year. Hence, a meteorological phenomenon is any weather occurrence that can be explained using meteorology, which in nature, affects meteorological phenomena (Bureau of Meteorology, 2012). This can be explained in light of:
Atmospheric circulations
Rays from the sun hit the tropical and equatorial regions more than the Polar Regions. The tropical regions receive more radiation than they can release, while the poles emit more energy than they can acquire. This translates into an uneven supply of heat on the universe prompting the need for atmospheric circulations. Atmospheric circulation therefore refers to the flow of air in masses enabling proper distribution of heat on earth’s surface. This transfer of heat is enabled by Hadley cells, Polar and Ferrel cells. This is facilitated by differences in temperature (MetEd par.4)
Winds
Wind is simply moving air. The imbalanced heating of the earth by the sun rays on the earth causes a disparity in air pressure. Heating the earth causes a decrease in air pressure. This translates into warm air rising to lower the pressure. Cool air rushes in to take the place of the warm air that has risen. The movement of air from high to low pressured areas causes winds (Pauluis et al., 3079).
Global scale
Weather occurs at dissimilar scales of both time and space. Global scale refers to patterns of weather that is related to the movement of air, humidity and thermal energy from the tropical regions to the Polar Regions. This is made possible by the Hadley cells. These cells help to move warm air up and push cool air to replace it (Chenjie et al. 553).
Synoptic scale
It is a phenomenon that covers a region of hundreds to thousand kilometers. High as well as low pressured systems are examples of synoptic scales. When atmospheric pressure of the earth’s surface is lower than the surrounding atmosphere, lower pressure system tends to results. High pressure systems on the other hand, occur when atmospheric pressure of the earth’s surface is greater than the surrounding atmosphere. Low pressure systems cause hurricanes while high pressure systems cause cold temperatures (Rudolph 946).
Meso scale
It is a phenomenon whose size ranges from a small amount of kilometers to approximately a thousand kilometers. Meso scale consists of Mesoscale Convective Complex and Mesoscale Convective Systems which are a result of convection (Chenjie et al. 554). Convection is a course that allows warm air and cold air to sink. Mesoscale Convective Complex causes heavy rains and flooding while Mesoscale Convective Systems cause smaller thunderstorms that don’t last for long.
JET Streams
A jet stream is air that moves at a very high speed above 57mph at a high altitude. Jet streams separate warm air from cold air which is always comparatively thin. The jet streams originate from the upper levels of the terrains ambiance that is amid stratosphere and troposphere (Tandon, Polvani and Davis 5718). Given that jet streams significantly add to the global weather pattern, they tend to assist meteorologists in forecasting the weather conditions anchored on the jet streams state of affairs. Besides, Jetstream is moderately imperious to midair movements as soaring either outwards or inwards of them could cut back on petroleum intake as well as aircraft voyage time.
Based on the researches that meteorologists and pilots conducted, there are two comprehensively known northern hemisphere jet streams. Whereas there is the existence of jet streams in the southern hemisphere, latitudes that fall amid 30 degrees north and 60 degrees north are the ones that give strongest jet streams. Any subtropical jet streams that are situated approximately thirty degrees are considered to be much weaker. The Jetstream position are alleged to move totally through time even though ensuing the sun for the reason that they travel southern with coldest climate but northern with warmest climate. It is also true that during the winter, there are stronger jet streams since exists a remarkable contrast amid the colliding tropical and Arctic air masses (Seeds and Dana 32). The temperature variances all through the season are less exciting amid the multitudes of midair although the Jetstream remains actually frailer.
Typically, jet streams could be thousand miles long and they cover extremely long distances. They normally wander transversely across the air and could be discontinuous yet each flows eastwards at very high speed. Rossby Waves which flow slowly in comparison to other air do so as a result of being caused by the effect of Coriolis. This in effect slows the eastward air movements when considerable flow meandering amounts exist. Jet streams are particularly caused by the masses of air that meet beneath the tropopause where strong winds are situated. When two different masses of air that have dissimilar meet at this point, the generated pressure by the divergent masses causes an increment of the winds. While these winds try to flow the cooler troposphere from the nearby stratosphere warm areas, the Coriolis Effect tends to deflect them (NOAA par.4). They in turn flow along the masses of the original two air boundaries. These yield the subtropical and polar jet streams which structure about the globe.
Jet streams have proved numerous importances more so with respect to commercial airline industry. Research shows the airlines flying within 7,600m jet streams have a reduction in the flight time to 11.5 hours from 8 hours. The aid of strong winds coupled with the reduction in flights time minimizes the level of the consumed fuel. Currently, jet streams are deemed to have considerable effects on the global weather outlines as well as severe weather events such as droughts and floods (WMO par.5).
Polar front jet
This is a jet that separates polar air from subtropical air. It often splits into two that is the north jet stream and the south jet stream, marking the prevailing westerly winds’ high speed. During summer, its position tends to move north and south during northern hemispheric winter (UCAR par.3). The core winds become stronger during winter and vice versa during summer.
Subtropical jet
This jet separates subtropical air from the tropical air. It lies above 4000 feet in altitude and 25A and 35A. During summer, it s position moves north and south during winter. Vertical shear and isotherms mark this jet. There is considerable weakening of the subtropical jets in the Northern Hemisphere during summer. This is merely certain in irregular streaks of velocity across the world. Subtropical jets tend to increase during winter and are located amid twenty and fifty degrees latitude. The maximum subtropical jet streams speed is approximately three hundred knots even though such elevated wind velocities are linked with an amalgamation with polar front jets (MetEd par.5). The motions that subside go along with subtropical jets which in turn generate principally fair weather in regions they pass-over.
Impact of land water distribution on weather
Land receives and emits heat at a faster rate than water bodies. This affects the weather of a region depending on how far or near it is from a water body. As a result, this leads to diversity in climate of regions. The position of land and water has an effect on atmospheric circulation (Koocheki et al. 248). Atmospheric circulation in turn affects the weather observed at a certain time and region.
Climate Patterns
Averages and Characteristics
Regions near large water bodies tent to experience a more constant climate as compared to those further inland. This is because oceans, seas and other large water bodies take in and store up heat from the sun. Water bodies have surface currents that carry moisture all over the world. These currents are referred to as gyres. These gyres transfer water which is warmed at the equator to the poles, thus transferring heat (Seeds and Dana 33). This water cools and then moves back to the tropics. Coastal shores with cold currents experience dry spells while those with warm ones experience a wet climate Due to sea breezes and land breezes, regions around large water bodies experience heavy rainfall.
This is because when air rises, it forms clouds, rainfall and sometimes thunderstorms. Regions near large water bodies experience small temperature variations throughout the year. In the continents land receives and loses heat at a very high speed. This translates into very hot days and cold nights. On the contrary at the coastal shores, the atmosphere contains water vapour. The water stores up much of the heat which warms the night, making the temperatures comfortable (McKnight and Darrel 65). Sea breezes keep the temperatures lower during summer as compared to the continents. Similarly during winter, the temperatures are mild as the water retains much of the heat.
Air Mass
Air masses are huge bodies whose temperatures and humidity are homogeneous throughout. They originate mostly from flat regions where air can possibly remain stagnant for a long time to adapt the features of the land below. Examples of air masses include maritime tropical air masses that originate from the subtropical oceans and move towards the north into U.S taking moisture and heat. Continental polar originate from Canada’s northern plains and move towards south taking cold dry air. Fronts form boundaries between air masses of varying temperatures (Penn State 9).
Origins
Locations where air masses develop are referred to air mass source regions. These regions are characterised by stagnation of air on a broad physically even area. Origins of air masses are affected by the latitude of the area and surface of the origin area –water or land. Air masses originating from the land are referred to as continental air masses while those originating from water bodies are referred to as maritime air masses (Futurity, Earth & Environment 24). Examples of Continental air masses are “Continental polar (Cp), Continental Arctic (cA) and Continental tropical (CT)”. The Continental polar and Continental Arctic are dry and cold. Examples of maritime air masses are Maritime polar (mP) and Maritime tropical (mT) Maritime tropical are cold and wet as they originate in high latitude oceans. Maritime tropical originate from warm waters such as Caribbean Sea and are therefore warm and wet.
Movement of air masses
Warm air masses migrate to the poles while the cold ones move towards equator. Thus cooling the tropical regions and warming the poles. Once the air masses shift, they are altered due to situational differences between the origin and destination (NOAA par.3).
Latitudinal and elevational variations
Latitudinal variation refers to the small changes that occur in the latitude of a region as a result of movement in poles of the earth caused by the rotation process. The elevation of a region is its altitude beyond a fixed point of reference.
Solar heating
The global average of solar energy is 340 w/ m2. The total amount of heat received by the earth differs significantly from polar latitude to tropical latitudes. It also diverges from season to season. The earth’s axis is inclined off perpendicular by roughly twenty three degrees. This causes imbalanced heating between the Polar Regions and the equator as well as changes in seasons. As the earth rotates around the sun the angle causes one hemisphere to receive more sunrays and experience longer days than the other (Burroughs, 2006). A summer hemisphere at the polar region is as a result of longer days and more sunlight than the tropical regions. Though illumination rises in the Polar Regions during summer, potential solar heating is reduced due to reflection of sun rays by sea ice and white snow. The disparities in solar illumination and reflectiveness at various latitudes cause net heating discrepancies. Net heating is defined as the difference between the amounts of heat received by the earth in form of sunlight and the amount of heat it emits back to space.
Topography
Topography refers to the study of earth’s surface physical features. These features include elevations such as mountains and hills, vegetation, ranges and escarpment. Topography of an area has an effect on climate. For example, regions close to a water body such as oceans, seas and lakes experience mild climates. On the other hand locations near mountains receive extreme weather. The windward side of the may be heavily vegetated while the leeward is dry due to lack of enough rainfall.
Elevations
High altitude areas experience lower temperatures than low altitude areas. The low temperatures have an effect on vegetation as well as soil. There is more vegetation, and more acidic soils. As you move higher vegetation cover decreases due to increase in permafrost. Eventually there is no vegetation cover and instead mosses grow on rocks (WMO par.5). Little shrubs are also seen in the places with soil.
Mountain ranges
Mountains have an effect on circulation of wind, air temperatures and precipitation. Mountains cause reflection of the sun’s heat and radiation- a condition known as albedo. This leads to low temperatures and eventually an experience of snow throughout the year. Presence of mountains on the earth’s surface has an effect on wind circulation. Moving air on finding a mountain is blocked causing warm air to rise. Once rises, this air cools. Unlike warm air, cool air is unable to hold moisture, hence it rains or snows. This occurs on the windward side.
On the leeward side, the opposite happens. Warm air is pushed down the mountain. Since, warm air has the ability to hold moisture, it fails to rain. Hence the leeward sides are drier than the windward sides (Seeds and Dana 34). For example, in North America, Oregon is among the wettest regions, this is as a result of wet winds from the Pacific Ocean which hit the mountains along the coast. The mountain’s orientation has also an effect on air temperature. This effect is known as rain shadow effect. Mountains also affect temperatures of a region, in that slopes that face the sun are always warmer than those facing away.
Microscale
Microscale winds last for a few minutes and are less than a kilometer. An example of a microscale is a dust devil. In fact, the turbulence which follows an active front passage is regarded to be made of microscale winds. These airstreams generate convective occasions comparable to dust-devils. Even though they are minute in scopes, the microscale winds tend to play key roles in the affairs in human beings (Baird, Stephen 17).
Land breeze
A land breeze is a wind that blows s from the land to a water body. A land breeze is caused by transfer of air from the land to water body. During the day heat from the sun heats both the land and the sun. The land radiates and emits heat faster than the water body. During the night, land’s surface is cooler than that of the water body as it emitted heat (Pauluis et al. 3078). The warm air on the surface of the water body rises. This air must be replaced. Hence cool air from the land rushes in to replace it, causing a land breeze. A land breeze is usually light.
Sea Breeze
On a calm normal morning, the pressure surface of both water and land will be at an equal height. During the day, heating of the land and a water body is the same. However, the water body receives the heat without warming up. On the other hand, land receives this heat and warms up very fast. It emits back this heat to the environment, thus warming the immediate air. This warm air rises through a process known as convection (UCAR par.3). Cooler air from the ocean rushes in causing a sea breeze. Sea breezes occur during summer or spring when days are warm. A sea breeze is much stronger than a land breeze and can result into gusty winds. This is because land can heat up very fast creating considerable disparity between its temperatures and those of the sea. “Common speeds of a sea breeze are 10 to 20 knots”
Proximity of water
Proximity to a water body affects the weather and eventually the climate of a region. Areas that are close to large water bodies such as sea oceans are more likely to experience sea and land breezes compared to the continental regions (Wu et al. 2870). As a result, water stabilizers and modifiers have been used to ensue that water bodies are not considerably affected to an extent that they in turn affect the regional climate.
Stabilizers and modifiers
Sometimes referred to as the original natural binders, stabilizers are organic powders which stabilize the soil particles through binding them up (Allen and Sherwood 1960). They are non-staining, odorless, non-toxic, environmentally natural and safe powders which accrue from seed hulls that have been crushed. Stabilizers are often used with various aggregates to modify the status of water bodies that have been affected by toxic materials.
All weather is caused by differential heating of the ground
The sun heats different parts of the earth at different times of the year. The variation is caused by the length of daylight and changes in season in the slant of the earth at which the rays from the sun strike the surface of the earth. The speed at which sun rays heat the land is four times higher than that of the water. This is because heat transfer faster in solid objects than liquids. Roughly fifty percent of this heat reaches the surface of the other (Linnenluecke and Griffiths 478). Thirty percent is reflected by space while twenty percent is taken up by clouds and atmospheric gases.
When the sun heats the ground, it warms the air. This warm air rises and is cooled by the temperatures at high altitude. Since cold air cannot hold moisture, it condenses into water droplets which form the clouds. These clouds may grow heavy when more and more droplets join and when unable to float in the cloud they fall back as rain.
Heat from the sun has an effect on winds too. Heat from the sun warms the ground consequently; the ground warms the air in the surrounding which in turn rises. Cold air is pushed down to replace the risen air. It is this up and down movement of air that causes wind (Huber et al. 1035). On a water body, heat from the sun causes water molecules to separate and changes these molecules into water vapour leading to evaporation. These droplets later fall back as rain.
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