AIR MASSES

AIR MASSES LESSON

Directions:

Print the Air Masses reading comprehension passage and questions (see below).

Students should read the passage silently, then answer the questions.  Teachers may also use the text as part of a classroom lesson plan.

Lesson Excerpt

An air mass is just a large body of air that is all the same temperature, density, and air pressure.  Air masses can form over either water or land.  There are five kinds of air masses found in the United States.  When one of these air masses moves over an area, it can bring a change in the weather.  To understand how the weather will change, you need to know the different kinds of air masses. 

Air masses that form over land are called continental air masses.  Where they form tells you a little about the air's temperature and moisture content.  A continental tropical air mass has warm, dry air.  They form over the Sonora Desert in the southwest part of the U.S.  They are abbreviated as cT.  They usually bring fair, dry weather.

Continued...