Polar vortex

High school (ages 12+)
Environment & Earth

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/polar-vortex

1. What is the tropospheric vortex definition?
2. Why does the polar vortex get stronger in winter?
3. How can the polar vortex make the weather very cold in places like the United States?

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the tropospheric vortex definition?Often defined as the region poleward of the tropospheric jet stream
2. Why does the polar vortex get stronger in winter?In winter the temperature difference between the poles and the tropics is biggest, and the Coriolis effect makes strong cyclonic winds that spin the vortex tighter.
3. How can the polar vortex make the weather very cold in places like the United States?When the stratospheric vortex weakens or splits, cold air that is usually stuck near the poles can move southward, and the jet stream steers it across the country.

Circumpolar Vortex: A large-scale region of cold, rotating air that encircles Earth's polar regions.
Coriolis Effect: The apparent deflection of moving objects (like air currents) due to Earth's rotation.
Teleconnections: Relationships between weather patterns in different parts of the world, often linked by atmospheric phenomena like the polar vortex.