Weather Map Reading Only Cold Front Rain?
Epitome Credit: NOAA (click to enlarge)
We see them every day on the evening news during the weather forecast. A atmospheric condition map is the most important tool in a meteorologist's toolkit as it allows him or her to get a bird'due south eye view of what's happening in our temper.
It'southward not too difficult to translate a weather map on your own, and being able to do so might let you to forecast the weather condition by yourself without the assist of the local weatherman. Let'south get started.
Learn How to Read a Surface Conditions Assay Map
Using the various tools available, the meteorologist tin can make a map showing the present weather, which also helps him or her to make meliorate judgments on what the weather will be in the future. Information technology's called a surface weather analysis map, and it shows the positions of high and low-force per unit area systems, and the boundaries between warm and cold air called fronts.
Types of Weather Fronts
A weather front is a boundary separating two air masses of different density. These air masses tin have large temperature contrasts over a brusque distance on either side of the front. If it sounds a bit militaristic, that's because it is—meteorologists gave these boundaries this name for the similarity to a war machine unit of measurement moving across a battlefield. The air masses separated by a forepart will often have contrasting backdrop, there is usually a shift in wind direction across the front as well as changes in temperature and humidity.
Although non always the case, a majority of these fronts volition be guided by the polar and subtropical jets, bringing a modify in the conditions every bit they pass. There are iv main types of fronts—common cold, warm, occluded and s tationary fronts.
Cold Fronts
The cold front is usually the nearly active of the four major weather fronts. A cold front is defined as the leading border of a cold air mass which is replacing and pushing up a warm air mass ahead of it. Because colder air is denser than warmer air, a cold front pushes the warmer air higher. As the warm air rises, information technology causes an expanse of low pressure forth the common cold front, every bit this occurs it tin cause the formation of a narrow line of showers and thunderstorms when enough moisture is present (as shown below in the diagram from the Met Office United kingdom of great britain and northern ireland).
Common cold conditions fronts generally motility from northwest to southeast. When a common cold forepart passes through temperatures tin drop significantly. The air behind a cold front is noticeably colder and drier than the air ahead of it. In improver, they can bring about gusty, shifting winds.
Cold fronts on a weather map are depicted as a blue line with triangles on it, the triangles indicating the direction of its move.
Image Credit: Met Office UK
Warm Fronts
Warm fronts are the opposite of cold fronts, where the warmer air mass, replaces the colder air mass. Warmer air is less dense, so unlike the cold forepart, information technology will lift over the top of the colder air as it moves through (see diagram). They typically movement from southwest to northeast, and will bring about an increment in both temperature and humidity equally the air behind the front is warmer and moister than the air ahead of it.
Warm fronts are red lines with semicircles, with those semicircles pointing in the direction of its movement.
Image Credit: Met Office UK
Occluded Fronts
By definition, an occlusion in meteorology is where a common cold front catches upward to the warm front every bit they typically move faster than warm fronts. Every bit a result, the warm air mass is forced up forming an apoplexy. There are ii types of occlusions, just they are both represented by the same symbol on a weather map. Occluded fronts are shown in royal with alternate triangles and semicircles on the side pointing to its direction of move.
Paradigm Credit: NOAA
In a common cold occlusion, the most common, the air behind the apoplexy is colder than the air out ahead in the warm front end. The common cold front overtakes the warm front and also undercuts the cooler air mass ahead of the warm front.
Prototype Credit: NOAA
A warm occlusion occurs when the air associated with the common cold front end backside the occluded front end is actually warmer and less dumbo than the air mass in the warm front alee of information technology. The warm air is pushed up as earlier, just now the colder more dense air mass in the warm front remains at the surface forcing the air mass associated with the less dumbo and warmer cold front upwards every bit well.
Stationary Fronts
As the name implies, stationary fronts are cold or warm fronts that are no longer moving as a balance exists between the common cold and warm air masses on either side of the front, so that neither air mass can accelerate on the other.
The blue triangles of the cold forepart point towards the warmer air, and the red semicircles of the warm front towards the cold air. One of its most noticeable features is a marked temperature and/or wind direction change when crossing from i side of a stationary front to the other.
Less Common Symbols
The following symbols are much less common on basic weather condition maps. However, yous might run into these on more than advanced conditions maps from the NOAA and other sources.
Dry Line
Well-nigh areas of the state don't experience them often, but it's of import to mention the dry line. Dry out lines are most ordinarily institute in the High Plains states during the spring and early summertime. You can think of these dry lines as a boundary marking the difference in humidity—warm, boiling air on i side, and dry, hot air on the other. As the drier air behind dry out lines lifts the moist air ahead of it, it tin can trigger the evolution of thunderstorms and sometimes severe tornadic thunderstorms along and ahead of the dry line.
Troughs
Troughs are not really fronts similar the above symbols, but instead are elongated areas of lower atmospheric pressure (we'll talk about highs and lows adjacent). There's no change in air mass across a trough, but y'all'll find changes in wind direction.
Troughs reverberate the modify in the atmospheric conditions in the upper temper. As such, troughs tin can be areas where showers and thunderstorms can form.
Squall Line
On some advanced maps, meteorologists will place the squall line symbol to point the presence of an organized and severe line of thunderstorms. This line of thunderstorms more often than not forms along a front, and the storm then moves ahead of the front. They are unremarkably seen alee of cold fronts and dry lines, and can produce extended and fast-moving severe weather in the class of heavy rainfall, potent winds, hail, and lightning.
Understanding High and Low-Pressure Systems
Fronts aren't the only things you see on a weather map. Meteorologists also similar to plot areas of high and low force per unit area, and sometimes lines of equal force per unit area, chosen isobars. This information is just as important as the location of fronts, equally it provides valuable clues for the day-to-day changes in our weather.
The world's atmosphere exerts a force per unit area onto the surface which directly influences the movement of air. Areas of high and depression pressure are formed by ascending and descending air masses. Every bit air warms, it ascends, leading to low force per unit area on the surface. And as air cools, it descends leading to high pressure on the surface.
Most of the time, areas of depression pressure level develops unsettled weather with clouds and precipitation. Whereas, areas of loftier pressure tend to bring settled dryer weather with articulate skies.
High-Pressure level Systems
A high-pressure arrangement is an surface area where the atmospheric pressure level is higher at its heart than the areas surrounding information technology. A blue H denotes a high-force per unit area arrangement on a weather map. Air usually flows from areas of high force per unit area to areas of low pressure. From the point of highest pressure, this air moves in a clockwise (counter-clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere) or anticyclonic fashion outward, causing the air above to sink. This is the reason why clouds and precipitation are rare under the influence of loftier pressure level.
Low-Pressure Systems
A low-force per unit area system is an area where the atmospheric pressure is lower at its center than the areas surrounding it. A red L denotes a low-pressure system on a weather condition map. Air will tend to accident inward towards a low pressure in a counter-clockwise (clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere) or cyclonic fashion causing air to ascent at the point the air converges. As the air rises it cools, h2o vapor inside it condenses forming clouds and oft atmospheric precipitation too. This is why low-force per unit area systems are usually associated with cloudy, rainy atmospheric condition and even thunderstorms.
What Are Isobars?
Image Credit: NOAA
Yous've almost likely seen a atmospheric condition map with curved lines on information technology in various circle-like shapes and sizes. These shapes are ordinarily closer together effectually a low-pressure level system, and further apart around areas of high pressure. These are called isobars—they connect points of equal force per unit area. Isobars are an important tool in identifying the locations of highs, lows, and even fronts. The numbers measure the atmospheric pressure in millibars.
Isobars also assist to provide clues as to the current of air management and the speed of that moving air. When these lines are closer together, the pressure level gradient is steeper causing air to motion faster, while air moves slower when they're further autonomously.
Other Symbols on a Weather Map
While a majority of weather condition maps volition merely have the to a higher place symbols, more advanced maps will also include some of the symbols listed in this image from the New Jersey Department of Ecology Protection.
In that location are a few things yous will want to continue in mind. On American weather condition maps, temperatures are generally listed in Fahrenheit (this isn't always the case, so be careful!), while maps from international sources will list temperatures in Celsius. The amount of cloud embrace is indicated by the extent to which the center circle is filled in.
Wind speeds are always listed in knots, and the direction that the wind barbs come out of the center circumvolve indicates the direction the air current is blowing from. If at that place is precipitation, you'll run into ane of the symbols listed in the upper correct of the graphic.
Another reporting method to report is what is chosen the conditions station model on the bottom of the graphic. This is a standardized method used worldwide to bear witness weather observations graphically.
For farther reference, I have included a sample synoptic nautical chart beneath which shows some of these symbols so yous can see how information technology looks on a real weather map. Come across if yous can read the map using the central as a guide!
Prototype Credit: NOAA
Need More Assistance? Sentinel This Video
I promise you've learned quite a bit most how to read a weather map. To necktie this all together, I recommend you watch the post-obit video produced by The Weather Channel's Ryan Davidson to assist you empathize some of the concepts better.
Source: https://www.weatherstationadvisor.com/how-to-read-a-weather-map/
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