Forecasting the Weather Web Quest

Introduction: How do meteorologists forecast the weather? In this web quest we will explore air masses, fronts, weather stations and weather forecasts.

1. What is an air mass?

http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/af/arms/home.rxml

2. Describe the temperature, moisture and air pressure associated with a Continental Polar air mass. http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/af/arms/artc.rxml

3. Describe the temperature, moisture and air pressure associated with a Maritime Tropical air mass. http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/af/arms/trp.rxml

4. Describe a high pressure center. What is another name for a center of high pressure? http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/wwhlpr/anticyclone.rxml?hret

=/guides/mtr/af/arms/artc.rxml

5. What is a cyclone? What direction do winds flow in cyclones in the Northern Hemisphere? In the Southern Hemisphere? http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/wwhlpr/cyclone.rxml?hret=/g uides/mtr/af/arms/artc.rxml

6. Watch this animation on how winds flow around cyclones (pressure lows) and anticyclones (pressure highs) in the Northern Hemisphere. Draw and describe what you observe below. http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/wwhlpr/anticyclone_ani.rxml? hret=/guides/maps/sfc/temp/sfctmpslp.rxml

7. What is the definition of a front?

http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/af/frnts/home.rxml

8. Individual surface weather stations use a standard format to report date. Review the weather stations symbols for temperature, weather symbol, dew point, cloud cover, sea level pressure and wind. Draw and label the station symbol in this example. http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/wwhlpr/sfcobs.rxml?hret=/gui des/mtr/af/arms/trp.rxml

9. What is a cold front? Describe the characteristics before, during and after a cold front below.

http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/af/frnts/cfrnt/def

.rxml

10. Watch the animation of a cold front and describe the type of precipitation associated with cold front movement. http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/af/frnts/cfrnt/def.rxml

11. What is a warm front? Describe the characteristics before, during and after a cold front below. http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/af/frnts/wfrnt/def.rxml

13. What factors lead to an increased probability (chance) of precipitation? http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/fcst/prcp/frnt.rxml

14. The importance of temperature in the formation of rain, freezing rain, sleet or snow. http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/cld/prcp/zr/fcst/fcst

.rxml

15. What is a Supercell Storm? What dangerous conditions may develop during supercell storms? What wind and cloud conditions are prevalent in supercell storms? http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/wwhlpr/supercell.rxml?hret=/ guides/mtr/af/frnts/ofdef.rxml&prv=1

16. What is the “Jet Stream” and at what altitude is the jet stream measured? http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/maps/upa/3wndhgt.rxm l

17. a. Describe the “trends” method of forecasting. What factors does a meteorologist using the trends method consider?

b. If a line of thunderstorms is located 60 miles to your northwest and moving southeast at 30 miles per hour, how long will it take to reach your location? Show your calculation. http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/fcst/mth/trnd.rxml

18. List two things you learned and one think you would like to learn about forecasting weather.

Weather Across Canada

City Name / Vancouver, BC / Edmonton, AB / Toronto, ON / Montreal, QC / Halifax, NS
Time
Temperature
Wind Direction
Wind Speed
Precipitation
General Weather Conditions

Go to http://weather.ec.gc.ca/canada_e.html to record current weather conditions in each of the cities.

Cloud Types and Formation

Click on http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/cld/cldtyp/home.rxml. Answer the following questions.

  1. What does the word "Cirrus" mean?
  2. Are cirrus clouds low or high?
  3. What are the large clouds that sometimes look like huge puffs of cotton?
  4. What root word tells us that a cloud brings rain?
  5. Which type of cloud usually covers the whole sky and brings gray days?

Click on http://octopus.gma.org/surfing/weather/fog.html. Answer the following questions.

  1. Why is fog especially common in the spring and fall along the coast?
  2. Fog is a ______that touches the ground.
  3. In class or at home, conduct the experiment, "Find out how fog is formed".

Click on http://www.howstuffworks.com/dictionary/meteorological-terms/cloud2.htm

Answer the following questions about cloud formation.

Below is a list of steps involved in cloud formation. Complete the missing information.

  1. Warm ______rises.
  2. Water vapor in the air cools to its ______point.
  3. Condenses into ______and becomes visible as a ______.

Climate

Click on http://www.infoplease.com/ce5/CE011513.html to complete these questions.

  1. Climate is the average condition of the atmosphere near the earth's surface over a long period of time, taking into account ______, ______, humidity, wind, ______pressure, and other phenomena.
  2. The major influence governing the climate of a region is its ______.

Find the average temperatures for the flowing places in Canada and complete the table below.

Victoria, BC / Regina, SK / Quebec City, QC
January Average Temp
April Average Temp
July Average Temp
October Average Temp
Average Rainfall (mm)
Average Days of Rainfall
Average Snowfall (cm)