Air Pressure and Weather
Atmospheric pressure is the most reliable source for predicting weather because it reveals studied and time-tested trends within the weather that consistently occur. Weather throughout the world can be predicted based upon specific air stream trends known as high and low pressure systems. In fact, these systems are so precise that even tornado and monsoons can be predicted through the studying of these trends.
When the air pressure is low with a cold air core, it reveals rain and prime pressure for cyclones. In this form of air pressure, air in all levels of the atmosphere is rising, making the overall pressure very low (Ahrens, 2011). In fact, low pressure systems are so relatively predictable for rainfall, that atmospheric circulation reconstructions over the earth have been produced and distributed to farmers to help the better understand the relative rainfall in their area compared to other areas throughout the world (Allan, 2011).
When the air pressures is low with a warm air core, it is an indicator of dry summer weather. According to common weather trends, this type of air pressures is especially common in the Southwestern United States and is responsible for monsoon thunderstorms (Isaac, 2012).
When the air pressure reveals a cold core or high pressure it means that there will not be any rain within the center of the pressure front. This is by far the farthest spread type of air pressure system (Keenan, 2011).
Finally, warm core high pressure indicates little rainfall, and is actually known to heat the air even more. This is known as convective daytime heating and is especially common is certain parts of Asia (Romatschke, 2011).
Question 2
The primary cause of thunderstorms within the regions of Colorado and New Mexico is the Rocky Mountains. Mountain regions are so high that the entire area actually changes the course of air pressure systems (Sheppard, 2002). Air pressure moves throughout the various atmospheric levels but is always decreased by mountain regions. When this decrease happens, the lower pressure at the bottom of the mountain region traps more moisture, preventing it from leaving that region (Sheppard, 2002).
As an air pressure system moves across the West, it releases most of the rainfall into the New Mexico and Colorado basins. The reason is that the mountain region actually traps the high pressure systems that cause the rainfall (Goode, 2012). Because the air pressure remains trapped, it builds and releases any precipitation into this region of Colorado and New Mexico.
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