•Pressure
Gradients
–The pressure
gradient force initiates movement of atmospheric mass, wind, from
areas of higher to areas of lower pressure
•Horizontal
Pressure Gradients
–Typically only
small gradients exist across large spatial scales (1mb/100km)
–Smaller scale
weather features, such as hurricanes and tornadoes, display larger
pressure gradients across small areas (1mb/6km)
•Vertical Pressure
Gradients
–Average vertical pressure gradients are usually
greater than extreme examples of horizontal pressure
gradients as pressure always decreases with altitude (1mb/10m)