| Weather
By Cindy Grigg |
|
1 Weather is
what is happening in the air around Earth. Rain, snow, and sunny, fair
days are examples of weather. Three main things cause our weather to
change. Heat, wind, and moisture cause changes in our weather. Heat,
of course, comes from the sun. Places near the equator get more heat
from the sun than places near the North and South Poles do. Land heats
up quicker than oceans. Oceans hold heat longer, though, because land
cools quicker than oceans do. This uneven heating and cooling of
different parts of the Earth causes winds. Winds move clouds from place
to place. Clouds carry moisture that falls as rain or snow. Warm air
can carry more moisture than cooler air can. Storms crop up when two
different kinds of air masses meet. A mass of cold, dry air might move
down from the north. A mass of warm, moist air from the south might move
toward the north. The line where two kinds of air masses meet is
called a front. When these two air masses meet, there is a change of
weather along the front. Warm air rises. Cool air moves in to take its
place. As the warm, moist air rises, it also cools. Then it more
often than not rains. Storms often take place along a front.
Copyright © 2012 edHelper
Questions:
1. What is the main idea of this story?
2. What is a front?
3. Where does weather happen?
4. Warm air ______.
5. What often happens along a front?
