A cold front is a cool, dense mass of air that replaces a warmer one. Cold fronts typically move from the northwest to the southeast, with the air behind the front cooler and drier than the air in front of it.

 

The areas in front of a cold front may experience heavy precipitation, depending on the amount of precipitation in the area, as well as a drop in temperature and a rise in pressure.

 

Cold fronts are represented on weather maps with a blue line that often has blue triangles pointing in the direction the front is moving.

 

(Text by Noel Kirkpatrick)

(Photo: National Weather Service Wichita, Kansas)