Contents
Is air mass a large body of air?
An air mass is a large body of air with generally uniform temperature and humidity. The area over which an air mass originates is what provides its characteristics. The longer the air mass stays over its source region, the more likely it will acquire the properties of the surface below.
What classifies an air mass?
An air mass is a large body of air whose properties of temperature and humidity are similar in any horizontal direction. Air masses can cover hundreds of thousands of square miles. Air masses are formed when air stagnates for long periods of time over a uniform surface.
What is a large mass of air called?
An air mass is a large mass of air that has similar characteristics of temperature and humidity within it. An air mass acquires these characteristics above an area of land or water known as its source region.
What is the purpose of an air mass?
In meteorology, an air mass is a volume of air defined by its temperature and water vapor content. Air masses cover many hundreds or thousands of miles, and adapt to the characteristics of the surface below them. They are classified according to latitude and their continental or maritime source regions.
Why do air masses move?
Winds and air currents cause air masses to move. Moving air masses cause changes in the weather. A front forms at the boundary between two air masses. Types of fronts include cold, warm, occluded, and stationary fronts.
What are the characteristics of an air mass source?
Air masses have fairly uniform temperature and moisture content in horizontal direction (but not uniform in vertical). Air masses are characterized by their temperature and humidity properties. The properties of air masses are determined by the the underlying surface properties where they originate.
What happens when two air masses meet?
When two different air masses come into contact, they don’t mix. They push against each other along a line called a front. When a warm air mass meets a cold air mass, the warm air rises since it is lighter. At high altitude it cools, and the water vapor it contains condenses.
How big is an air mass in square miles?
What are the characteristics of an air mass?
Air Masses. An air mass is a large mass of air that has similar characteristics of temperature and humidity within it. An air mass acquires these characteristics above an area of land or water known as its source region.
How are air masses defined across the globe?
They are primarily defined by the area in which they originate, this is called the ‘source region’. The characteristics of an air mass can then be modified as they travel across the globe. Where two air masses of different temperatures meet, a boundary forms which is termed a ‘front’.
Where are the air masses in the UK?
There are five main air masses which affect the UK as detailed by the map below. The following questions help to describe and explain the weather that brings air masses together. Where has the air mass come from – is it the Arctic Circle, the North Pole or the Tropics?