Chapter 12 Lesson 2 Lesson Preview Page 396-405

Pages 396-397 Do you think all floods are caused by hurricanes? Name various types of severe weather. Figure 7: What are high-pressure systems and low-pressure systems?

Pages 398-399 Suppose a high-pressure system sits over an area of Earth’s surface that is cold and has low moisture. Predict what the air in the system will be like. If an air mass forms over land what type of air mass is it?

Pages 398-399 Figure 8: Where does the continental polar air come from? Figure 8: What words would you use to describe an air mass that formed over land near the equator? Suppose your local weather forecaster says there is a maritime tropical air mass headed to your area. What kind of weather conditions would you expect? What drives weather patterns? Why are there two classifications of polar air masses and tropical air masses?

Pages 400-401 What types of air masses might make up the cold air mass in a cold front? What causes a warm front to form? What type of weather is associated with warm fronts? What is a weather front? How do fronts form? Why do you think the weather changes along fronts? Which air mass is denser: a cold air mass or a warm air mass? Explain.

Figure 9 Describe the difference in a warm front and a cold front. What happens to the warm air mass when a warm front forms? What happens when the warmer air rises?

Page 400-401 What happens when the boundary between two air masses stalls? How do occluded fronts differ from the other types of fronts?

Pages 402-403 How are thunderstorms and low-pressure systems related? During which stage of a thunderstorm would you expect to see the most lightning? Why? Why do you think it is important for scientist to learn about how tornados form? Tornadoes are associated with which types of fronts?

What is a hurricane? Describe the eye of a hurricane. How is air moving in the rainbands? In the northern hemisphere, hurricanes rotate counterclockwise. In the southern hemisphere, hurricanes rotate clockwise. In which hemisphere is this hurricane? Figure 12 pg. 404 Compare and contrast hurricanes and tornados. Why is it important to be inside during a blizzard?