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Explore the ITCZ, Hadley Cells, pressure cells, and monsoons. Learn about the movement of air in mid to high latitudes, effects on land, and orographic precipitation. Discover how the Sun influences the strength of Hadley cells and the shifting of the ITCZ.
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Major Zones • ITCZ (Intertropical convergence zone) • Subtropics (30 degrees, north/south hemisphere) • Front • Poles
Hadley Cells • Giant tropical circulation pattern • Partially driven by convective processes along the ITCZ
Hadley Cell Products • Heavy rainfall with in the ITCZ • Major transfer of energy from the ITCZ to higher latitudes • Sensible heat • Latent heat • Sets the stage for the dominant pressure cells in the Earth’s atmosphere
Pressure Cells • ITCZ • Rising hot air • Creates zones of low pressure • Subtropics • Sinking dry air • Creates zones of High pressure
Hadley Cell products continued • Subtropics: ↓ condensation and evaporation • Sahara dessert
Subtropics feed into the Hadley cell • Warm dry air (trade winds, N & S) moves through the subtropics and towards the tropics picking water vapor. • These warm moist winds meet in the ITCZ and feed the Hadley cell.
The Sun’s role • Provides energy to the Hadley cell • So, if the energy from the sun changes so does the strength of the Hadley cell and the location of the ITCZ • Summer, N (June-September), ITCZ shifts north • Summer, S (December-March), ITCZ shifts south
Atmospheric circulation at middle and high latitudes • The movement of air from mid to high latitudes • Areas above 35 degrees latitude • Air typically moves from areas of high pressure to areas of low pressure • Except……..
Effects on the land in mid latitudes • Low pressure cells tend to move fast in a west to east direction in the mid-latitudes • Sometimes these cells are forced to move over topographically high areas. • Orographic precipitation