JOIN OUR WHATSAPP GROUP. CLICK HERE

Synoptic weather map interpretation Grade 12 Notes

Synoptic weather map interpretation Grade 12 Notes Grade 12 Notes on reading synoptic weather maps can be found below.

The ability to read and analyze the synoptic weather map is essential for grasping the nature of weather phenomena and weather patterns.

Based on simultaneous global data, a synoptic weather map displays meteorological conditions and phenomena (such as temperature, precipitation, wind speed and direction, atmospheric pressure, and cloud coverage) over a large region at a specific moment (from weather stations, airplanes, weather balloons and satellites).

Understanding isobars

Isobars are lines on a weather map joining together places of equal atmospheric pressure.

These lines join points of equal pressure (all along one isobar the pressure is the same).
The pressure is measured in hectopascals (hpa)/millibars (mb).
The isobars form patterns (shapes formed by many isobars).

Synoptic Weather Map Exam Tips

In the exam, you may be asked to describe the weather of a particular place on the synoptic weather map by referring to the weather station. You will need to comment on the following weather elements:

Cloud cover interpretation
Wind direction interpretation
Wind speed interpretation
Air temperature interpretation
Dew point temperature interpretation
Precipitation (any form of water falling from the sky, e.g. rain, hail,snow and ice) interpretations.

Video Lesson:

Important Weather symbols: Match weather symbols to words

In the Geography Grade 12 exam, you may be asked to match weather symbols to words. Below are the most common weather symbols that grade 12 learners should know: