Explorations In Meteorology Answer Key Template printable pdf download

ANSWER KEY

Part I: Air Mass Classification

What are the differences between cT and mT air masses?

A continental tropical air mass is hot and dry. Maritime tropical air masses are warm and moist. The cT forms over land

and the mT forms over water.

What are the differences between cP and mT air masses?

Continental polar air masses are cold and dry. Maritime tropical air masses are warm and moist. The cP air mass is

formed over land and has less moisture than the mT, which is formed over water. The cP air mass is formed at higher

latitudes than the mT air mass.

(a) Five air mass types affect the United States during the course of a typical year: continental polar,

continental arctic, continental tropical, maritime polar, and maritime tropical. Locate the source regions of

each air mass type using Figure 4.

a. Air mass type for source region #1 = cA

b. Air mass type for source region #2 = cP

c. Air mass type for source region #3 = mP

d. Air mass type for source region #4 = cT

e. Air mass type for source region #5 = mT

Air mass type for source region #6 = mP

g. Air mass type for source region #7 = mT

(b) Which air mass is the least significant to your location and why?

This answer is somewhat subjective, depending on one’s location and interpretation of “significant.” Two possible

answers include the following:

1. The cA air mass is the least significant because it invades the U.S. on an infrequent basis. It is a shallow air mass, and

by the time it travels southward through the central U.S. from the Arctic, it may have little influence if it has been modified

(e.g., warmed). However, infrequent freezing conditions that sometimes occur along the U.S. Gulf Coast states during cA

outbreaks can be significant for local economies, as both tender vegetation and shallow water pipes freeze.

2. The mP air masses that originate over the northern Atlantic may be the least significant because they oppose the

general westerly flows that normally are observed over the mid-latitudes. Therefore, mP conditions do not have long

durations across the eastern U.S.

Lab 6 Answer Key

Explorations in Meteorology

Explorations In Meteorology Answer Key Template