Polar air

From Glossary of Meteorology
Revision as of 16:37, 25 April 2012 by imported>Perlwikibot
(diff) ← Older revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)



polar air

A type of air mass with characteristics developed over high latitudes, especially within the subpolar highs.

Continental polar air (cP) has low surface temperature, low moisture content, and, especially in its source regions, great stability in the lower layers. It is shallow in comparison with arctic air. Maritime polar air (mP) initially possesses similar properties to those of continental polar air, but in passing over warmer water it becomes unstable with a higher moisture content.


Copyright 2024 American Meteorological Society (AMS). For permission to reuse any portion of this work, please contact permissions@ametsoc.org. Any use of material in this work that is determined to be “fair use” under Section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Act (17 U.S. Code § 107) or that satisfies the conditions specified in Section 108 of the U.S.Copyright Act (17 USC § 108) does not require AMS’s permission. Republication, systematic reproduction, posting in electronic form, such as on a website or in a searchable database, or other uses of this material, except as exempted by the above statement, require written permission or a license from AMS. Additional details are provided in the AMS Copyright Policy statement.