Download Air Movement

Today’s Agenda…
Quiz
Review Water Cycle Anticipation Guide
Air Movement Notes
Air Movement
Study Pack #11
Page 103
Today’s goals…
I can explain the effect of the Sun’s
energy on Earth’s systems.

Including the water cycle and winds.
Review
Convection
When particles in the air are heated, they
move more rapidly and spread apart
The air becomes less dense and is moved
upward
When cooled, the particles move more slowly
and closer together
The air becomes more dense and it sinks
Heated Air
Areas of Earth receive different
amounts of radiation because the Earth
is curved
See Figure 15
Which areas receives the most direct
sunlight? The least?
Equator
 Poles

Heated Air
At the equator air is heated and rises,
forming a low pressure area
As the air moves away from the equator
it cools and sinks and most returns to
the equator as trade winds, some flows
on to the poles
This creates convection currents
Forming Wind
Wind is the movement of air
from an area of higher
pressure to an area of lower
pressure
This is caused by the uneven
heating of Earth’s surface
The Coriolis Effect
The Coriolis effect makes the winds appear to
be curving to the west as they travel to the
equator
This contributes to weather patterns as well
as to where and when planes fly and ships
sail
See page 104, Figure 16
More
Doldrums
Trade winds meet, calm area
Recall the water cycle
Warm air at the equator rises and cools
causing a low pressure area
Cloudy, rainy weather is common here
Prevailing Westerlies
30 – 60 degrees latitude
The winds that flow toward the poles
appear to curve from west to east
Responsible for many of the weather
movements across the US and Canada
Polar Easterlies
The cool air flows away from the poles
and is deflected from the east toward
the west by the coriolis effect
Winds in the Upper
Troposphere
Jet streams are narrow belts of strong
winds that blow near the top of the
troposphere
It helps move storms across the country
Pilots also take advantage of the jet
streams
Sea Breezes
Convection currents over areas where
the land meets the sea can cause winds
Created during the day because solar
radiation warms the land more than the
water
Sea Breezes
Warm air over the land rises, creating
an area of low pressure
Cool air over the water has higher
pressure and flows toward the warmer,
less dense air
Land Breezes
The opposite occurs at night when land
cools more rapidly than water
The cool air over land moves toward the
warmer air over the water
More about wind…
BrainPop
Review Questions
What causes wind?
What surface winds move weather across the
US?
What deflects wind to the right north of the
equator and to the left south of the equator?
What winds do pilots take advantage of to
save fuel and time?
What type of wind is a movement of wind
toward water?
Exit Slip
3-Sentence Wrap-Up
In 3 sentence or less, sum up today’s
lesson.

Focus on the important parts! 