WorksheetsPSI: Weather & Climate
Total questions: 38
Worksheet time: 19mins
Which statement below is TRUE of tornadoes and hurricanes?
The diameter of a tornado is much greater than that of a hurricane.
The wind speed of a tornado is much slower than that of a hurricane.
Both tornadoes and hurricanes are systems of rotating winds around a low pressure center.
The condition known as global warming is caused by:
The angle at which the sun’s rays strike the Earth.
An increase in CO2 in the Earth’s atmosphere over the last 150 years.
An uneven heating of the Earth’s surface due to elevation and moisture.
Earth has seasons because:
Earth’s axis is tilted at an angle, resulting in varying degrees of direct and indirect sunlight on different parts of the planet.
Earth is much closer to the sun in the summer than in the winter.
Earth spins slower during the summer, allowing more sunlight to reach each location.
Air near the equator is responsible for initiating the process of wind and ocean currents because:
Higher temperatures cause moisture to condense.
Higher temperatures cause air to expand and rise.
Lower temperatures cause air to expand and rise.
Which of the following is TRUE about weather and climate?
Day to day, the weather in a given city does not change much.
Climate describes the day to day changes in weather conditions.
Climate is a generalized composite of weather conditions over a period of time in a specific region.
Which of the following factors directly impact daily weather? MARK ALL THAT APPLY. (3)
Temperature
Air pressure
Relative humidity
The amount of snow that fell last year
The type of heat transfer that transmits energy from the Sun to Earth is called:
Insulation
Radiation
Convection
What happens to the sun’s energy that reaches the ground on Earth?
It is absorbed and then re-emitted as infrared radiation (heat) at night.
Very little of the sun’s energy reaches Earth at all.
It is all completely absorbed by the ground and retained to keep Earth warm.
The temperature on Earth remains relatively constant because:
Earth is exactly the right distance from the sun.
The rate at which energy is absorbed by the ground is roughly equal to the rate at which energy is emitted from the ground.
The cool air mixes with the warm air creating a livable climate on Earth.
What percent of the incoming sun’s rays is absorbed by the ground on Earth?
0 %
25 %
50 %
The higher a location’s latitude,
the less direct sunlight received.
the more direct sunlight received.
no sunlight is received.
Lines of longitude begin at 0 degrees. This line is referred to as:
the Equator
the International Date line
the Prime Meridian
What aspect of the Earth results in day and night?
The Earth’s revolution around the Sun
The Earth’s tilted axis
The Earth’s rotation on its axis
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
Light spread over a larger area is less intense.
All of the sun’s rays hit Earth at the same angle.
Light hits the equator indirectly all year round.
On which two days each year does the sun rise due east and set due west in the Northern Hemisphere?
The Vernal & Autumnal Equinoxes (March & September)
The Vernal Equinox & the Summer Solstice (March & June)
The Autumnal Equinox & the Winter Solstice (September & December)
Which of the following is impacted by the Coriolis Effect? MARK ALL THAT APPLY. (2)
The flight paths of airplanes
The route Ms. Sabo drives to work
The path Ms. Kase rides her bike on the weekends
The navigational plans of cruise ships
What cause large circular ocean currents, like the Atlantic gyre? MARK ALL THAT APPLY.
Hurricanes
Global winds
Tornadoes
This is the temperature at which the air can no longer hold all the water vapor present and condensation outpaces evaporation is called
Low pressure systems
Dew point
Cold front
When warm air is pushed upward quickly, that warm air condenses, usually resulting in severe weather. What type of front causes this to occur?
A warm front
A cold front
Dew point front
The rate of evaporation will increase when:
Air pressure increases or temperature decreases
Air pressure increases or temperature increases
Air pressure decreases or temperature increases
Which of the following correctly describes the relationship between pressure & wind?
Cold fronts moving in result in high pressure and light wind.
High pressure systems result in circulating air that creates clouds.
The lower the pressure, the stronger the wind.
Which of the following conditions is NOT necessary for rain to fall?
The dew point temperature has been reached.
Dust is present as a site for water condensation.
Large cumulonimbus (storm) clouds must develop.
Why don’t hurricanes often form along the equator?
The warm ocean water is not deep enough.
The Coriolis Effect is minimal along the equator, so there is a lack of rotating winds.
The equatorial waters are too warm for hurricanes to form.
Which of the following best explains how the changes in the polar jet stream are impacting the United States?
The strengthening of the jet stream creates a wavier jet stream that moves in and out of the United States, causing excessive precipitation.
The speeding up of the jet stream causes cold air to rise toward the poles and warm air to sink towards the United States.
Seasonal shifts of the jet stream towards the poles results in significantly hotter and drier summers.
If I was sailing from the northwest coast of Africa to the east coast of South America, which global winds would I be relying on to get me there?
The polar easterlies
The prevailing westerlies
The trade winds
The effect that is responsible for the habitable temperatures that are found on Earth is called:
the Coriolis effect
the Latitude effect
the Greenhouse effect
Since the industrial revolution, rising levels of this gas have significantly contributed to the phenomenon known as global warming. What is this gas?
Carbon dioxide
Water vapor
Methane
Which of the following statements is TRUE regarding tornadoes? MARK ALL THAT APPLY. (2)
Tornadoes form as rotating winds surround a low pressure system.
Tornadoes are only called tornadoes when they touch the ground and are called funnel clouds when they are in the air.
Tornadoes are extremely easy to predict.
Which of the following statements is TRUE regarding hurricanes?
Hurricanes form as rotating winds surround a low pressure system.
Hurricanes form over cold ocean water.
Hurricanes frequently form at the equator.
A large circular pattern of surface ocean currents.
Gyre
Global wind cells
Corellis Effect
The general term for the 3 major convection currents in each hemisphere that play a large role in shaping the Earth’s weather patterns.
Westerlies
Global Wind Cells
Trade Winds
Winds that move fast around the globe from west to east very high in the atmosphere, due to temperature differences between different regions of the globe.
Polar Easterlies
Gyre
Jet Stream
The major winds that are near the equator.
Coriolis Effect
Westerlies
Trade Winds
The reason an airplane is deflected to the right when flying in the Northern hemisphere.
Polar Easterlies
Coriolis Effect
Global Wind Cells
The major winds that affect the United States.
Coriolis Effect
Westerlies
Polar Easterlies
Lines that measure the distance from the equator are known as lines of
latitude
degrees north
longitude
Lines that range from 1 to 179 east or west on our global coordinate system are known as Lines that range from 1 to 179 east or west on our global coordinate system are known as
lines of latitude
lines of longitude
Tropic of Cancer
The prime meridian can be found at
0 degrees latitude
0 degrees longitude
23.5 degrees N
