Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Memorize this!!!!!!!!
Mrs. Degl 3
Mrs. Degl 4
Air (Barometric)Pressure
The force exerted by the column of air overhead
Air pressure is influenced by:
1. Air temperature
2. Elevation above sea level
3. How much moisture is in the air.
Mrs. Degl 5
2. As elevation increases (you get higher above sea level), air
pressure decreases, because there is less air over your head.
As elevation decreases (you get closer to sea level) air pressure
increases, because there is more air over your head.
Mrs. Degl 6
We need to learn how to code and un-code air pressure values in order
to use and create weather maps.
Meteorologists do not put the real air pressure values on the weather
maps because the numbers are too long and take up too much
space on the map. They use a abbreviation system.
How to read the air pressure numbers on a map:
1. If the air pressure (in millibars) is below 500, put a 10 in
front of the number and a decimal between the last two
digits. This number is the real air pressure.
2. If the air pressure number is above 500, put a 9 in front of
it and a decimal between the last two digits.
Mrs. Degl 8
Landbreezes and Seabreezes
During the day, the land heats up faster
than the water. The air over the land has a
lower density than the air over the water.
Because of this, the air over the land rises.
There is now an empty spot over the land,
so the air over the water fills it in. That is
why the breeze always comes off of the
water during the day. This is a seabreeze.
Areas of Convergence – where the winds collide (0°, 60°N and 60 °S).
These latitudes are very wet and have a lower air pressure.
Areas of Divergence – where the winds blow away from each other.
(30°N, 30°S, 90°N, 90°S) These latitudes are dry (deserts of the world)
and have a much higher air pressure.
Mrs. Degl 10
Prevailing Winds – zones on the Earth’s surface where winds tend to
blow in the same direction over long periods of time. The prevailing
winds in NYS are called the southwesterlies (they blow from the SW).
See page 14 ESRT’s.
Mrs. Degl 11