What determines the temperature and humidity of an air mass?
3 min read
Asked by: Tasha Thompson
The properties of air masses are determined by the the underlying surface properties where they originate. Once formed, air masses migrate within the general circulation. Upon movement, air masses displace residual air over locations thus changing temperature and humidity characteristics.
What determines the temperature of an air mass?
The latitude of the source region fundamentally determines the temperature of an air mass. Arctic air masses form between 60o and 90o north latitude.
Where do air masses gain temperature and humidity properties?
An air mass forms whenever the atmosphere remains in contact with a large, relatively uniform land or sea surface for a time sufficiently long to acquire the temperature and moisture properties of that surface. The Earth’s major air masses originate in polar or subtropical latitudes.
What affects the humidity of an air mass?
Humidity depends on the temperature and pressure of the system of interest. The same amount of water vapor results in higher relative humidity in cool air than warm air. A related parameter is the dew point. The amount of water vapor needed to achieve saturation increases as the temperature increases.
What’s the humidity and temperature of a continental tropical air mass?
The two words that best characterize this air mass are warm (80F-90F in the summer) (70F-80F in the winter) and moist (dew points greater than 50F year-round).
How do temperature humidity and pressure vary within air masses?
Temperature and humidity vary, but pressure does not. Temperature, humidity, and pressure are basically the same all through an air mass. Temperature at the border of an air mass is always higher than in the middle. Humidity makes the pressure in an air mass increase.
What are the two most important properties of an air mass?
An air mass is a large body of air with similar properties all through it. The most important properties are temperature and amount of water vapor.
What causes air masses movement?
Air masses are large bodies of air that have similar temperature and humidity. These air masses are moved around the atmosphere by prevailing winds that blow in one direction. At the boundaries between air masses, weather fronts form. Weather fronts cause changes in the weather such as rain, storms and wind.
What causes air mass movements quizlet?
Air masses are formed by uneven heating and cooling of the Earth by the sun. This causes pressure differences in different areas of the globe. The movement of air masses is just the flow of high pressure air masses to low pressure areas. You just studied 8 terms!
What causes air masses to rise or fall?
The air of cold air masses is more dense than warmer air masses. Therefore, as these cold air masses move, the dense air undercuts the warmer air masses forcing the warm air up and over the colder air causing it to rise into the atmosphere.
