Buys Ballot's Law

In the Northern Hemisphere, if a person stands with his back to the wind, the low pressure area
will be on his left. This is because wind travels counter clockwise around low pressure zones in the
Northern Hemisphere. It is approximately true in the higher latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere,
and is reversed in the Southern Hemisphere, but the angle between the pressure gradient force
and wind is not a right angle in low latitudes.

Typical questions related to this law are like:

An aircraft is flying at FL 180 in the northern hemisphere with a crosswind from the left. Which of
the following is correct concerning its true altitude?

a) increases
d) decreases

the correct answer is "decreases"

Pressure Lapse Rate

Lapse rate is one hPa per 27 feet at msl.

Pressure falls exponentially with height i.e. roughly 300 mb drop in the first 10,000ft, 200mb in
the next and so on. Remember the following:

850mb - 5,000 ft
700mb - 10,000ft
500mb - 18,000ft
300mb - 30,000ft
200mb - 38,000ft

Temperature Lapse Rate

Adiabatic Lapse Rate per 1000 feet:

Dry (Unsaturated) - 3 deg C

Moist (Saturated) - 1.8 deg C in mid-latitudes (Not constant due to water vapour content)

Environmental (Average) - 2 deg C

Difference between QFE, QNH and QFF

QFE is the pressure at the station (or aerodrome) level.

QNH is the mean sea level pressure, derived by applying ICAO's standard atmosphere corrections
to QFE.

QFF is the mean sea level pressure, derived by taking into account the actual temperature
conditions.
e.g. If an airfield is 270 ft above sea level and the pressure here is 1000 mb then 1000 is the
QFE.

Sea level is below the airfield so sea level pressure will be more than the airfield pressure.

Sea level pressure can be calculated by using the standard lapse rate of 1 mb per 27 feet.

270 / 27 = 10 mb

Thus seal level pressure will be 1000 + 10 = 1010 (10 more than 1000). This is the QNH.

In cold and dense air, pressure changes more rapidly.

Considering the above example, in case of colder than standard temperature, the pressure change
will be more than 10 mb (as calculated above).

Assuming that the change in pressure is 20 mb, the pressure will now be 1000 + 20 = 1020 mb.
This is QFF.

Thus in colder than standard temperature QFF is more than QNH.

In warm and less dense air, pressure changes less rapidly.

If by applying the standard lapse rate, the pressure change was 10 mb, then for warmer than
standard temperature it will be less than 10. Assume it to be 5 mb.

So if QNH is 1000 + 10 = 1010 by applying the standard lapse rate, then QFF will be 1000 + 5 =
1005 when temperature is warmer than standard.

That means QFF is less than QNH in warmer than standard temperature.

However for an airfield below mean sea level things are opposite.

e.g. If an airfield is 270 ft below sea level and the pressure here is 1000 mb then 1000 is the QFE.

Sea level is above the airfield so sea level pressure will be less than the airfield pressure.
Sea level pressure can be calculated by using the standard lapse rate of 1 mb per 27 feet.

270 / 27 = 10 mb

Thus seal level pressure will be 1000 - 10 = 990 mb (10 less than 1000). This is the QNH.

In cold and dense air, pressure changes more rapidly.

Thus in case of colder than standard temperature, the pressure change will be more than 10 mb
(as calculated above).

Assuming that the change in pressure is 20 mb, the pressure will now be 1000 - 20 = 980 mb.
This is QFF.

Thus in colder than standard temperature QFF is less than QNH.

In warm and less dense air, pressure changes less rapidly.

If by applying the standard lapse rate, the pressure change was 10 mb, then for warmer than
standard temperature it will be less than 10. Assume it to be 5 mb.

So if QNH is 1000 - 10 = 990 by applying the standard lapse rate, then QFF will be 1000 - 5 = 995
when temperature is warmer than standard.

That means QFF is more than QNH in warmer than standard temperature.

To summarize:

If the temp = ISA conditions, then QNH = QFF.

1) For above MSL case:

If the temp > ISA then QNH > QFF

If the temp < ISA then QNH < QFF

2) For below MSL case:

If the temp > ISA then QNH < QFF

If the temp < ISA then QNH > QFF

For exams, the only thing that needs to be memorized is the above MSL case in warmer than ISA
conditions i.e.

If temp > ISA then QNH > QFF (arrows point in the same direction).

The rest you can reproduce yourself i.e.

If temp < ISA then reverse the sign (QNH < QFF).

The below MSL case is then opposite of the above MSL case.
Atmospheric Humidity

The term humidity describes the fact that the atmosphere can contain water vapour. The amount
of humidity found in air varies because of a number of factors. Two important factors are
evaporation and condensation. At the water/atmosphere interface over our planet's oceans large
amounts of liquid water are evaporated into atmospheric water vapour. This process is mainly
caused by absorption of solar radiation and the subsequent generation of heat at the ocean's
surface. In our atmosphere, water vapour is converted back into liquid form when air masses lose
heat energy and cool. This process is responsible for the development of most clouds and also
produces the rain that falls to the Earth's surface.

Scientists have developed a number of different measures of atmospheric humidity. We are

primarily interested in three of these measures: mixing ratio, saturation mixing ratio, and relative
humidity.

Mixing ratio is a measure that refers to the mass of a specific gas component relative to the
mass of the remaining gaseous components for a sample of air. When used to measure humidity
mixing ratio would measure the mass of water vapour relative to the mass of all of the other
gases. In meteorological measurements, mixing ratio is usually expressed in grams of water
vapour per kilogram of dry air.

Saturation mixing ratio refers to the mass of water vapour that can be held in a kilogram of dry
air at saturation.

Saturation can be generally defined as the condition where any addition of water vapour to a
mass of air leads to the condensation of liquid water or the deposition of ice at a given
temperature and pressure.

Warmer air has a higher saturation mixing ratio than cooler air at a constant atmospheric
pressure. It is important to note that this relationship between temperature and water vapour
content in the air is not linear but exponential. In other words, for each 10° increase in
temperature, saturation mixing ratio increases by a larger quantity.

The most commonly used measure of humidity is relative humidity.

Relative humidity can be simply defined as the amount of water in the air relative to the
saturation amount the air can hold at a given temperature multiplied by 100. Air with a relative
humidity of 50% contains a half of the water vapour it could hold at a particular temperature.

Tropopause

Average Height and Temperature of Tropopause

- Poles: 8 km and -45 deg C.

- Mid Latitudes: 11 km and -56 deg C.

- Equator: 16 km and -75 deg C.

Typical Tropopause Heights

Latitude 30 deg: 16 km in summers and winters.

Latitude 50 deg: 12 km in summers and 9 km in winters.

Latitude 70 deg: 9 km in summers and 8 km in winters.

Exam Question Tips:

Considering the North Atlantic route from the Azores to Bermuda, the mean height of the tropical
tropopause during summer is approximately 51,000 feet.

Adiabatic Temperature Change and Stability

In "The Atmosphere" we discovered that air temperature usually decreases with an increase in
elevation through the troposphere. The decrease in temperature with elevation is called the
environmental lapse rate of temperature or normal lapse rate of temperature. Recall that the
normal lapse rate of temperature is the average lapse rate of temperature of .65o C / 100 meters.
The environmental lapse rate of temperature is the actual vertical change in temperature on any
given day and can be greater or less than .65o C / 100 meters. Also recall that the decrease in
temperature with height is caused by increasing distance from the source of energy that heats the
air, the Earth's surface. Air is warmer near the surface because it's closer to its source of heat. The
further away from the surface, the cooler the air will be. It's like standing next to a fire, the closer
you are the warmer you'll feel. Temperature change caused by an exchange of heat between two
bodies is called diabatic temperature change. There is another very important way to change the
temperature of air called adiabatic temperature change.

Adiabatic temperature change of air occurs without the addition or removal of energy. That is,
there is no exchange of heat with the surrounding environment to cause the cooling or heating of
the air. The temperature change is due to work done on a parcel of air by the external
environment, or work done by a parcel of air on the air that surrounds it. What kind of work can
be done? The work that is done is the expansion or compression of air.

Imagine an isolated parcel of air that is moving vertically through the troposphere. We know that
air pressure decreases with increasing elevation. As the parcel of air moves upward the pressure
exerted on the parcel decreases and the parcel expands in volume as a result. In order to expand
(i.e.. do work), the parcel must use its internal energy to do so. As the air expands, the molecules
spread out and ultimately collide less with one another. The work of expansion causes the air's
temperature to decrease. You might have had personal experience with this kind of cooling if
you've let the air out of an automobile or bicycle tire. Air inside the tire is under a great deal of
pressure, and as it rushes outside it moves into a lower pressure environment. In so doing, the
parcel quickly expands against the outside environment air. By placing your hand in front of the
valve stem, you can feel the air cool as it expands. This is called adiabatic cooling.

As air descends through the troposphere it experiences increasing atmospheric pressure. This
causes the parcel volume to decrease in size, squeezing the air molecules closer together. In this
case, work is being done on the parcel. As the volume shrinks, air molecules bounce off one
another more often ricocheting with greater speed. The increase in molecular movement causes an
increase in the temperature of the parcel. This process is referred to as adiabatic warming.

The rate at which air cools or warms depends on the moisture status of the air. If the air is dry,
the rate of temperature change is 1oC/100 meters and is called the dry adiabatic rate (DAR). If
the air is saturated, the rate of temperature change is .6oC/100 meters and is called the saturated
adiabatic rate (SAR). The DAR is a constant value, that is, it's always 1oC/100 meters. The SAR
varies somewhat with how much moisture is in the air, but we'll assume it to be a constant value
here. The reason for the difference in the two rates is due to the liberation of latent heat as a
result of condensation. As saturated air rises and cools, condensation takes place. Recall that as
water vapor condenses, latent heat is released. This heat is transferred into the other molecules of
air inside the parcel causing a reduction in the rate of cooling.