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Name: Kathleen
Status: student
Age: 16
Location: N/A
Country: N/A
Date: 2/23/2003
Question:
Does the air mass of the cold, dry weather and wet, warm weather have anything to do with the difference in pressure?

Replies:
Cold, dry air is more dense than warm, moist air. If hot air masses are the same height, the cold air will have higher pressure at the earth's surface.

Richard E. Barrans Jr., Ph.D.
PG Research Foundation, Darien, Illinois

Kathleen,

The difference in winter and summer air masses have more to do with their origins. Cold, dry winter air masses originate in the dry regions of Northern Canada or the Arctic, whereas warm, wet summer air masses originate from the south or the Gulf of Mexico, where more moisture is available to be evaporated into the air mass.

David R. Cook
Atmospheric Research Section
Environmental Research Division
Argonne National Laboratory

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