Weather experts are predicting an extremely cold January and February for the northeastern Uni...........

Geography and Environment(BPSC) World climates

Weather experts are predicting an extremely cold January and February for the northeastern United States, much of northern Europe and parts of Asia. The reason being given is the polar vortex.Consider the following statements regarding Polar Vortex:

1. It is part of a high-pressure system.

2. The polar vortex is technically in the troposphere.

Which of the above statement(s) is/are correct?

1 only

2 only

Both 1 and 2

None of the above

छोटे Courses बड़े Results

Master World climates

Prepare through Micro-courses

Try Now

Explanation:

The polar vortex is part of a low-pressure system, and just like other lows this one spins as winds blow in toward the lower pressure at the centre of the system.
Due to Earth's spin and a phenomenon called the Coriolis effect, these systems spin counter clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere.
As the North Pole tilts away from the sun in the winter months, bathing it in 24 hours of darkness, temperature gradients form between higher and lower latitudes. These gradients drive winds, leading to a pattern of low pressure that circulates counter clockwise around the pole.
The polar vortex is technically in the stratosphere, the middle layer of Earth's atmosphere. That area of low pressure is about 20 miles (32 kilometers) above the Earth's surface, Furtado said. The vortex affects daily weather when it drops down into the troposphere, the lowest layer of the atmosphere.