Extreme weather

• Global atmospheric circulation

  • The worldwide system of winds, which transports heat from tropical to polar latitudes.
  • In each hemisphere, air also circulates through the entire depth of the troposphere which extends up to 15km
• Low pressure


  The type of air pressure associated with rising air
• High pressure


  The type of air pressure associated with descending air
• Coriolis effect

  The force, caused by the rotation of the Earth, which deflects the direction of the wind to the right in the northern hemisphere and to the left in the southern hemisphere
• Solar insulation


  The amount of solar energy, measure in kWh per square meter, falling on a particular geographic location
• Atmosphere


  The mixture of gases that surrounds the earth
• Hadley cell


  A large-scale atmospheric convection cell in which air rises at the equator and sinks at medium latitudes, typically about 30 degrees north or south
• Ferrel cell


  A large-scale atmospheric convection cell lying between the Polar cell and Hadley cell
• Polar cell


  The smallest and weakest cell atmospheric cell, which extends from between 60 and 70 degrees north and south, to the poles
• Trade winds


  A wind blowing steadily towards the equator from the north-east in the northern hemisphere or the south-east in the southern hemisphere, especially at sea
• Westerlies


  The belt of prevailing westerly winds in medium latitudes in the northern and southern hemisphere
• Easterlies 


  Polar easterlies are dry, cold prevailing winds that blow from the east. They emanate from the polar highs, areas of high pressure around the North and South Poles.