You are given two 500mb maps which are 12 hours apart. On the blank sheet you will plot and analyze the 12 hour height rises and falls computed from the data available at the two times.
1. Identify the lines of zero change in the 500mb height tendency field using black pencil.
2. Using a contour interval of 50 meters, analyze the 500mb height tendencies that you plotted, beginning with the 50 meter height rise/fall lines. Be sure to use a red pencil for height falls, and a blue pencil for height rises.
3. Discuss the correspondence, if any, between the height tendency field you analyzed for the two times and the position of the troughs/ridges at 00z, January 16. What is the lowest height value at 12z compared to 00z? If they are different, explain possible reasons why there is deepening or amplification.
4. Based on your results from #3, would you consider a real-time analysis of the height tendency field to be useful for weather forecasting in an operational environment (such as the National Weather Service)? If so, how far in the future do you think you could forecast based on such data (give your answer to the nearest order of magnitude in terms of hours)?