Assignment:
Clouds and Precipitation
Create a draft PowerPoint presentation relative to the final project that incorporates most of the Circulation section and introduces atmospheric pressure, wind (including the forces involved), atmospheric moisture, cloud formation, forms of condensation, and the precipitation processes. Be sure to include detailed speaker's notes and appropriate graphs, charts, figures, pictures, or other relevant media to support your ideas. Make sure to address the points below.
• Identify the atmospheric forces that generate a resulting surface wind. Include explanations of pressure measurement and units of pressure, isobars, isobaric maps, pressure gradients, and the simultaneous interactions of forces.
• Next, contrast surface winds to upper atmospheric winds. Be sure to include geostrophic/gradient winds, super- and subgeostrophic flow, and ridges and troughs.
• Review the concepts of atmospheric moisture, phase changes, saturation, and condensation/freezing nuclei; associated lapse rates; and adiabatic process in parcel theory in the development of clouds.
• Contrast the different forms of condensation (including cloud types) and the role of atmospheric stability in the development of clouds.
• Compare the two precipitation-generating mechanisms relative to the various forms of precipitation.