Today's Weather Map Review

Lets look at today's weather map and review some terms:
low pressure- rotate counterclockwise, winds blow towards the center, rising air, also known as cyclones, move from west to east.

high pressure- rotate clockwise, winds blow out from the center, sinking air, also known as anticyclones, move from west to east.

prevailing westerlies- the consistent wind that blows from west to east across the US, remember winds are named from the direction they blow and wind speed is measured by an instrument known as an anemometer.

Notice the cold front extending from northern Mexico all the way north to the western side of New York state.
A cold front is symbolized by triangular points on one side and is the boundary between a warm and cold air masses. Behind this cold front is a cold air mass that originated in Canada and is known as a continental Polar (cP) air mass. Air masses take on the temperature and moisture characteristics from where they form.

Along the US/Canadian border, upstate New York, is a warm front. This warm front is identified by the semicircles extending from one side. Much of the warm air behind the warm front originates in the Gulf of Mexico and is a maritime Tropical (mT) air mass.