GEO 110 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Advection, Hygroscopy, Cyclogenesis
15 Dec 2017
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Document Summary
The hydrologic cycle: water covers over 70 percent of the planet. A unique substance which easily changes state: water cycles through the earth/atmosphere system by: Humidity: the amount of water vapor in the air. The maximum quantity of moisture that can be held in the air depends on air temperature. Relative humidity: compares the amount of water vapor present in the air to the maximum amount that the air can hold at that temperature. At 100% relative humidity, air is saturated. Atmosphere gains or loses water vapor: evaporation. Specific humidity: actual quantity of water held by a parcel of air. Grams of water vapor per kilogram of air (g/kg) Dew-point temperature: temperature at which air with a given humidity will reach saturation when cooled without changing its pressure. Frost point: saturation occurs below the freezing point. Saturation vapor pressure: maximum water vapor pressure possible, solely temperature dependent, exponentially increases with temperature.
