Effect of Air Masses on World Weather

  • The properties of an air mass which influence the accompanying weather are vertical distribution temperature(indicating its stability and coldness or warmness) and the moisture content.
  • The air masses carry atmospheric moisture from oceans to continents and cause precipitationover landmasses.
  • They transport latent heat, thus removing the latitudinal heat balance.
  • Most of the migratory atmospheric disturbances such as cyclones and storms originate at the contact zonebetween different air masses and the weather associated with these disturbances is determined by characteristics of the air masses involved.