GEO 110 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Ideal Gas Law, Wind Speed, Humboldt Current
15 Dec 2017
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Document Summary
The global atmospheric circulation and its seasonal variability is driven by the uneven solar hearing of the earth"s atmosphere and surface. Solar radiation on a planet at different axial inclinations. The concept of flux density (1/ d2, energy/time/area) and the cosine law. Because earth"s rotation axis is tilted relative to the plane of its orbit around the sun, there is seasonal variability in the geographical distribution of sunshine. The geographical distribution of temperature and its seasonal variability closely follows the geographical distribution of sunshine (solar radiation). Temperature plays a direct role in determining the climate of every region. Temperature differences are also key in driving the global atmospheric circulation. Warm air tends to rise because it is light, while cold air tends to sink because it is dense, this sets the atmosphere in motion. The tropical circulation is a good example of this.
