Starter Activity

Write your name on the Jotter

Write “exam questions examples” on jotter

Stick the sheet on the table neatly in your jotter (fold it in half and stick in
the centre of the page lengthways )
Weather and Climate
Factors effecting temperature in the UK
There are a number of factors that effect the temperatures in the UK
Latitude
Aspect
Relief
Distance from the Sea
Latitude

Latitude describes how far a place is from the equator. Islay is 55.7667° North of the
Equator. St Ives in Cornwall is 50.8167° North.

The suns rays bring less heat to Islay because..

They are at a lower angle and pass through more atmosphere and the clouds gas and
dust absorb the heat.

At a lower angle they are spread out over a wider area so there is less heat and any
one place
Copy this
diagram
Relief

Temperatures decrease by one degree for every 100 metres in height
Aspect

Is the direction that the and faces. Places facing south are warmer than those
facing north, because

They receive more heat from the sun when it is in the south and at its
warmest

They are sheltered from cold northerly winds
Copy
this
diagra
m
Distance from the sea

In the winter it is warmer in the west on the UK because
The Atlantic Ocean is warmer than the land because water cools down more
slowly than the land
The Atlantic drift makes the temperatures even milder
The prevailing wind is from the south west which brings warm winds

In the summer it is cooler in the west because the ocean takes longer to heat
up than the land
Factors affecting
rainfall
Relief

The height of the land affects rainfall as well as temperature

Upland areas receive more rainfall than lowland areas
Aspect
The hillside that faces the moist wind will receive the most rain. On the leeward side there
is very little rain this is called the rainshadow
Distance from the sea
Most of the water vapour in our air has come from the Atlantic ocean so places on the west
get the most rain and those on the east the least
Copy
this
diagra
m
You now have some questions to answer

Homework will be to complete the living graph
Starter Activity
Quick write
10 mins of silent writing and or
diagrams on the topic of weather
so far – using the piece of paper
on your desk
Air Masses effecting the UK

By the end of the lesson you will be able to explain
What an air mass it (national 4)
Describe what type of weather each brings (national 4 and 5)
Describe differences between two (national 4 and 5)
Give reasons for the weather bought by one of the masses
(national 5)
Justify the type of weather that one of the air masses is
responsible for (national 5)
Questions

Polar maritime air masses develop over cold oceans.
Describe where out other four air masses develop.

Describe the weather associated with Tropical Maritime
Air

Give reasons for the weather brought by Artic Maritime

Compare the weather brought by Tropical Continental and
Polar continental air masses

Which Air mass is responsible for most of the rain we
receive in the UK? Justify your answer
Depressions
 Understand
how a depression is
formed
 Know the main features of a
depression
 Know the weather found in different
parts of a depression
Formation of a
Depression
Where the Tropical
Maritime and Polar
Maritime masses meet
is called a front
The front is not a
straight line but wavy
and warm air makes a
wedge into the cold
air (stage 1)
The two masses
have different
densities so do not
mix – so the warm
air rises over cold
air and creates a
low pressure area
(stage 2)

Winds blow around and towards the
centre of the depression in an
anticlockwise direction

This are of low pressure is called a
depression

As the cold front and cold air forces
warm air upwards so that the cold
front gets nearer and nearer to the
warm front eventually the cold air
forces upwards all the warm air into
the warm sector and the cold front
meets the warm front. This is
called an occluded front.
Time for a video
Pat does depressions
Warm Front
Area of low
pressure
Cold Front
Pat
Describe the direction of air flow in a depression.
Low Pressure
Warm Front
Cold Front
Warm Sector
Draw the direction
of air flow
Where
Is Pat?
Why are there clouds
here?
Why are there
showers here?
Frontal
Convection
or
Relief rainfall.
Why is it clearer here?
1
2
Warm Front
Warm Sector
Cirrus Clouds
Continuous Rain
Nimbostratus
Clouds
Showers after the
Cold Front
Intermittent Showers
Rain, Thunder and
Lightening
Cold Front
Cumulonimbus
clouds
Complete the paragraph in your jotters
1 over the
When warm air meets cold air, the warm air is forced to rise
cold air, this is because it is less dense.
As the warm air rises, it cools,
2
condenses, forms nimbo-stratus
clouds and there is continuous
3
4
rainfall.
5 under the
When cold air meets warm air, the cold air is forced to sink
warm air, this is because it is more dense. As the cold air sinks it
forces the warm air to rise.
6 As the warm air rises, it cools, condenses,
7
forms cumulu-nimbus
clouds and rains. This collision of air is
particularly violent,
often there may be thunder
and lightening.
8
9
10
In your Jotters write down as
four weather conditions that u
can see in these pictures
You should have spotted
These are all characteristic of winter
Anticyclonic conditions.
HIGH PRESSURE SYSTEMS
High pressure systems are also known as anticyclones
HIGH ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE
The Earth’s atmosphere
presses down on the surface of
the Earth.
Cold, dense air falls. This
increases the weight of the
air pressing down on the
Earth’s surface.
The Earth’s surface
WHAT CAUSES HIGH PRESSURE?
When air high in the atmosphere is cold, it falls
towards the earth’s surface.
Falling air increases the weight of air pressing down
on the Earth’s surface.
This means that air pressure is high.
WHAT WEATHER DOES HIGH PRESSURE BRING?
As the cold air falls through the atmosphere, it
becomes slightly warmer.
Because warm air can hold more moisture than cold
air, no condensation or clouds occur.
There are no warm or cold fronts in high pressure areas.
This means that high pressure systems bring clear skies.
Winds are usually light, and blow out of the high
pressure area.
HIGH PRESSURE IN WINTER
High pressure in winter gives us
clear skies
very low temperatures
calm, or light winds
no precipitation
frosty conditions
HIGH PRESSURE IN SUMMER
High pressure in summer
gives us
clear skies
high temperatures
calm, or light winds
no precipitation
© Microsoft Word clipart
1.Rain, snow,
1.What
is precipitation?
sleet and hail.
2.A
line is
that
equal points of pressure.
2.What
an joins
isobar?
3.Some surfaces
reflect more heat than others.
3.What
is albedo?
4.It
becomes
cooler
the higher
you go.
4.How
does relief
affect
temperature?
5.It
will weather
bring warm
wet weather.
5.What
will and
a tropical
maritime air
mass bring?