| Further Study on Adiabatics |
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| The study on adiabatics has inevitably been simplified. In particular we have largely ignored the effects of moisture in the atmosphere. Any good book on basic meteorology should give a more rigorous explanation of atmospheric stability. The recommended text is C Donald Ahrens book, Meteorology Today (now in its 5th Edition) published West Publishing Company of Minneapolis/St Paul. Chapter 7 will support this area and Chapter 17 is an excellent introduction to air pollution meteorology. Before we go on to look at air pollution models it is timely for you to consider the ideas of atmospheric stability again. |
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Task 2: Consider the stability class tables above and the statement about class D, neutrally stable conditions when the sky is overcast. Consider the situation during the daytime. Since the sky is overcast the sun has no effect of heating the surface of the earth and thus no effect on the temperature of the layer of air closest to the earth. Now consider the sky clearing and the surface of the earth warming up. Establish the sequence of events that follow the break up of cloud so as to establish conditions of instability. Illustrate and describe your analysis. |