Notes for 10-15-04
by Leon Sun and Danae Lintz
We started the class of by reviewing the first midterm. Professor Monteverdi gave us a list of which questions a lot of people had problems with. Those questions were, 1, 2, 8, 9, 19, and 28-36. Answers B and D will both be accepted for question 19.
Forecasters need to know how to interpret maps so they can forecast.
The class was divided into 3 groups and each was assigned to figure out what kind of front was located in a certain area on a sea level surface map for 12Z 15 Oct. 04 that everyone was given. The fronts had been drawn in and labeled A, B, and C. Front A was a stationary front, Front B was a cold front, and Front C was a warm front. The stationary front was the most difficult for the class to label.
Front: a boundary between cold and warm air masses.
Cold Front Symbol: a flag like symbol colored in blue that points away from the cold air mass.
Warm Front Symbol: a half circle colored in red that points away from the warm air mass.
Stationary Front Symbol: both of these symbols on one line with the blue flags on the opposite side of the line pointing away from the cold air & the red half circle on the opposite side of the warm air pointing away from the warm air.
In the fall, fog is more likely to be found near the ground because of radiation cooling. This is true because during the fall there are longer nights, about 14 hours, which allows for the ground to cool longer and thus we have cooler temperatures near the ground. Thus a sign that fall is here is low-lying fog.
This website is being redesigned to include more information options.
We took a look at several infrared images at different resolutions:
-the 2km image showed clouds going across the NW part of the US.
-the 16km image showed clouds in a counterclockwise direction off of southern CA,
upon further study this was indicated to be a cyclone.
-the 28km image showed cumulonimbus clouds not too far off the CA coast, possibly
an indication of an approaching storm.
The 28km looped image also
indicates that a typhoon in the west pacific was affecting weather in the north
pacific.
Otherwise known as the storm track by the media because large storms often move along this stream. The polar jet stream shows up best at 36,000 ft or 300mb.
Here are 4 important things to know about the Coriolis Effect.
1. There is no Coriolis Effect at the equator.
2. In the Northern Hemisphere, deflection occurs to the right.
3. The faster a frictionless object is moving, the greater the Coriolis Effect.
4. The larger the low pressure area, the more dependent on a
Coriolis Effect to survive.
Two things that are not affected by the Coriolis effect: toilets and tornados
For more information see the Coriolis effect link.