How does the rate of cooling on mountain slopes influence the formation of local winds at night?
Rapid cooling on slopes creates dense air that flows into the valley
At night, mountain slopes lose heat rapidly by radiation, so the air in contact with them also cools quickly. Cool air is denser and heavier than the surrounding air.
This dense, cold air drains down the slopes under gravity and collects in the valley below. Such a downslope night-time wind is called a mountain breeze or katabatic wind, and it can produce frost and temperature inversion in valley floors.
Air rising from the valley up the slopes is the daytime valley breeze, caused by heating, not night cooling. The air on cooled slopes does not stay stationary, and warm air rising up the slopes is again a daytime process.
Hence, Rapid cooling on slopes creates dense air that flows into the valley.
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