Weather and Ocean Systems

Weather Maps, Ocean Currents, Hurricanes, and Convection STAAR Questions

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Some choice items from recent STAAR tests!

Weather Maps

Multiple Choice

• Bright sun with no wind

• Partly cloudy with no wind

• Mostly sunny with light winds

• Overcast skies with strong winds

Multiple Choice

• Denver, because it is raining there

• Minneapolis, because a cold front is approaching

• Atlanta, because a warm front is approaching

• Houston, because it is in a high-pressure area

Oceans Currents and Hurricanes

Multiple Choice

• regulating when tides occur in coastal areas

• trapping heat at the equator to regulate the global climate

• distributing heat from the uneven absorption of solar energy

• increasing the rate of evaporation to transport water to areas experiencing droughts

Multiple Choice

• The formation of a low-pressure area south of Bangkok

• The formation of a high-pressure area south of Bangkok

• Cool water moving into the sea east of Hanoi

• Warm water moving into the sea east of Hanoi

Multiple Choice

• The state of Florida is smaller than the state of California.

• The air in Florida is more stable than the air in California

• The air above Florida holds less moisture than the air above California

• The ocean currents near Florida are warmer than the ocean currents near California.

Multiple Choice

• Area 1

• Area 2

• Area 3

• Area 4

Convection

Multiple Choice

• The warm air in Earth’s atmosphere and the warm water in Earth’s oceans sink instead of rise.

• The heat source for Earth’s atmosphere and oceans is the sun, which heats from above instead of below.

• Convection cells in Earth’s atmosphere and oceans flow in the same direction instead of opposite directions.

• Cold air in Earth’s atmosphere and cold water in Earth’s oceans are less dense than warm air and warm water instead of being more dense.