air mass
nounDefinition of air mass
: a body of air extending hundreds or thousands of miles horizontally and sometimes as high as the stratosphere and maintaining as it travels nearly uniform conditions of temperature and humidity at any given level
Examples of air mass in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Where these two vastly different air masses clash, severe storms are in the forecast. — Matthew Cappucci, chicagotribune.com, "‘Ring of fire’ pattern brings dangerous heat, severe storms, flooding," 15 Aug. 2019 The loss of sea ice across the Arctic has led to sea surface temperatures that are much above average for this time of year, which may be contributing to unusually unstable air masses being pushed across the central Arctic Ocean. — Andrew Freedman, Anchorage Daily News, "Lightning struck within 300 miles of the North Pole, Fairbanks meteorologists say," 10 Aug. 2019 For the eastern two-thirds of the country, a 60-degree dew point in the middle of the summer is considered a relatively comfortable air mass. — Chris Bianchi, The Denver Post, "When you see this number, it probably means storms are on the way," 3 Aug. 2019 Meteorologists say the temperatures, a result of a warm air mass traveling north from Africa, could climb well above the typical June average to 40 degrees Celsius, or more than 104 degrees Fahrenheit, in large stretches of the continent. — Megan Specia, New York Times, "The heat wave is Europe’s new normal.," 26 June 2019 High pressure rolling overhead should continue to feed a comfortable air mass in from the north to keep temperatures running below normal. — Matt Rogers, Washington Post, "D.C.-area forecast: Afternoon showers and storms, then dry through the end of the workweek," 5 June 2018 Low pressure extending south from the US and Mexico border had been forecast to contribute to developing storms along the boundary separating different air masses, CNN Meteorologist Michael Guy said. — Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, "Guadalajara, Mexico, blanketed in freak hailstorm," 1 July 2019 Low pressure extending south from the US and Mexico border had been forecast to contribute to developing storms along the boundary separating different air masses, CNN Meteorologist Michael Guy said. — Christina Maxouris, CNN, "A Mexican city was covered in ice after a freakish summer hailstorm," 1 July 2019 The jet stream is powered by temperature differences between the cooler polar region to the north and warmer air masses to the south. — Denise Chow, NBC News, "A strange, wavy jet stream is blasting Europe with heat. Scientists say this could be the 'new normal.'," 29 June 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'air mass.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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