THE ATHMOSPHERE

DEFINITION

The atmosphere is the layer of gases (mainly oxygen and nitrogen) that surrounds the Earth and protect it from solar radiation. It is about 1.000km wide and is divided into layers. WHY DOES THE ATMOSPHERE MAKE LIFE ON EARTH POSSIBLE?

IT CONTAINS GASES THAT ARE VITAL FOR LIVING CREATURES THE OZONE LAYER FILTERS ULTRAVIOLET RAYS THAT ARE DAMAGING FOR LIVING THINGS. IT REGULATES THE TEMPERATURE OF THE EARTH, PREVENTING IT FROM GETTING TOO HOT DURING THE DAY AND TOO COOL DURING THE NIGHT. IT MINIMISES THE IMPACT OF METEORITES AND OTHER PARTICLES FROM OUTER SPACE

THE WEATHER
DEFINITION

IT IS THE CONDITION OF THE ATMOSPHERE AT A GIVEN TIME AND PLACE.

WHY DOES THE WEATHER VARY ?

WEATHER VARIES BECAUSE THE MASSES OF AIR IN THE ATMOSPHERE ARE CONSTANTLY MOVING, FORMING A CIRCUIT KNOWN AS THE GENERAL ATMOSPHERIC CIRCULATION

BUT, WHY ARE MASSES OF AIR CONSTANTLY MOVING?

BECAUSE THEY HAVE DIFFERENT CHARACTERISTICS DEPENDING ON THE REGIONS WHERE THEY ARE FORMED. THEY CAN BE CHARACTERIZADED BY THEIR PRESSURE, TEMPERATURE AND HUMIDITY

THERE ARE HIGH AND LOW PRESSURE SYSTEMS

CURRENTS ARE COLD WHEN THE AIR COMES FROM THE POLES OR WARM IF IT COMES FROM TROPICAL AREAS

CURRENTS CAN BE HUMID IF THEY HAVE COME FROM OR TRAVEL OVER THE SEA, OR DRY IF THEY COME FROM OR TRAVEL OVER CONTINENTS

THE CLIMATE
DEFINITION

THE CLIMATE IS THE AVERAGE STATE OF THE ATMOSPHERE IN A REGION DURING A LONG PERIOD OF TIME (BETWEEN THIRTY AND FORTY YEARS)
BY STUDYING THEIR ELEMENTS AND FACTORS

HOW CAN A CLIMATE BE DETERMINED?

ELEMENTS

FACTORS

THE ELEMENTS OF THE CLIMATE ARE MEASURABLE COMPONENTS OF THE ATMOSPHERE, THEIR SET OF ACTIONS DEFINE THE CLIMATE OF A PLACE.

THE FACTORS OF A CLIMATE ARE THE AGENTS WHICH PERMANENTLY INFLUENCE AND MODIFY ITS ELEMENTS.

TEMPERATURE

LATITUDE
DISTANCE FROM THE SEA

PRECIPITATION AIR PRESSURE

ALTITUDE WIND

WHICH OF THESE ARE FACTORS AND WHICH ARE ELEMENTS?

ELEMENTS
TEMPERATURE PRECIPITATION ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE WIND

FACTORS

LATITUDE ALTITUDE DISTANCE FROM THE SEA

FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE

ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE DEFINITION It is the degree of warmth in the It is the water that falls from It is the weight of the air air. the clouds onto the surface on the Earth. of the Earth. INSTRUMENT of It is measured with a It is measured with a It is measured with a MEASURE thermometer pluviometer barometer MEASURE It is expressed in degrees (oC) It is expressed in millimetres It is expressed in millibars (mm) or l/m2 (mb). REPRESENT We use isotherms to represent We use isohyets to We use isobars to ATION the represent the temperature represent the temperature in a map. on a map. temperature on a map. Temperatures decrease as we There is less precipitation as LATITUDE move away from the equator. we move further away from the equator. The temperature falls 0.64oC for Precipitation is more Pressure decreases the ALTITUDE every 100 metre increase in frequent the higher the higher the altitude height (adiabatic gradient) altitude. DISTANCE FROM THE SEA The sea moderates the temperature because the water in seas and oceans changes temperature more slowly than the surface of the Earth does. Precipitation is usually more abundant in coastal areas.

TEMPERATURE

CLIMATE ELEMENTS PRECIPITATION

WIND

Wind is the air horizontal in movement.

Its strength is measured with an anemometer. It is expressed in kilometers per hour. Its direction is represented by a weather vane.

THE LETTER L SHOWS LOW PRESSURE AREAS,OR DEPRESSIONS. IN THESE AREAS THERE MAY BE RAIN AND STORMS

WEATHER CHARTS SHOW ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE AND ARE USED TO MAKE WEATHER FORECAST

THE LETTER H IS USED FOR HIGH PRESSURE AREAS OR ANTICYCLONS. IN THESE AREAS THE WEATHER IS DRY AND STABLE

CLIMATE ZONES

THE EARTH HAS COLD, TEMPERATE AND TROPICAL ZONES

AS A RESULT OF THE EARTHS ROTATIONAL TILT, DIFFERENT CLIMATE ZONES RECEIVE DIFFERENT AMOUNTS OF SOLAR RADIATION

METEOROLOGY
HAILSTONE TEMPERATE ZONE DEPRESSIONS ANTICYCLONES

IT IS THE SCIENTIFIC STUDY OF THE WEATHER

SMALL BALLS OF ICE THAT FALL LIKE RAIN FROM THE SKY
LOCATED BETWEEN THE TWO TROPICS AND THE POLAR CIRCLES. TEMPERATE CLIMATE AND FOUR SEASONS. AREAS WHERE THE PRESSURE IS LOWER THAN 1013 MB

AREAS WHERE THE PRESSURE IS HIGHER THAN 1013 MB

CLIMATOLOGY
TORNADO

IT IS THE SCIENTIFIC STUDY OF CLIMATE

IT IS A VIOLENT WIND STORM CONSISTING OF A TALL COLUMN OF AIR WHICH SPINS AROUND VERY FAST AND CAUSES A LOT OF DAMAGE

HUMUS LAYER
SCRUBLAND OZONE LAYER PARENT ROCK

It is the part of soil which consists of dead plants that have begun to decay. It is an area of land covered with low trees and bushes, no taller than 4 meters.
It is the part of the Earth's atmosphere that has the most ozone in it. It protects living things from the harmful radiation of sun.

Rock under the soil .

WEATHER VANE

A device that indicates the direction of the wind.