1. Arctic (A): Cold and dry air originating from the Arctic region.
2. Polar (P): Cold and dry air originating from high latitudes (not as cold as Arctic air).
3. Tropical (T): Warm and moist air originating from the tropics.
4. Equatorial (E): Warm and very moist air originating near the equator.
Additionally, each air mass can be further classified based on its moisture content:
* Continental (c): Dry air that originates over land.
* Maritime (m): Moist air that originates over the ocean.
This leads to a combination of classification, like:
* cA: Continental Arctic (very cold and dry)
* cP: Continental Polar (cold and dry)
* mT: Maritime Tropical (warm and moist)
* mE: Maritime Equatorial (very warm and moist)
These air masses play a significant role in weather patterns, as they move across the globe, interacting with each other and producing different weather phenomena.
