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Atmospheric Circulation

Total questions: 20

Worksheet time: 10mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

What part of the atmosphere features convection cells, wind, clouds, and weather?

a)

the thermosphere

b)

the stratosphere

c)

the mesosphere

d)

the troposphere

2.

What is the name of the effect whereby moving air and water currents bend to the right in the Northern hemisphere because of Earth's rotation?

a)

Hadley

b)

Coriolis

c)

Cumulonimbus

d)

Convection

3.

Hadley, Ferrel, and polar are the names of

a)

bears

b)

feuding Kentucky families

c)

atmospheric circulation cells

d)

cloud types

4.

Currents of circulating air or other fluid caused by differences in temperature

a)

Jet streams

b)

Trade winds

c)

Coriolis

d)

Convection

5.

Air that is warmer than the air surrounding it

a)

rises

b)

sinks

c)

stays where it is

6.

Air that is cooler than the air surrounding it

a)

rises

b)

sinks (descends)

c)

stays where it is

7.

Rising air leads to ____ pressure at ground level

a)

High

b)

Low

8.

Descending air leads to ____ pressure at ground level

a)

High

b)

Low

9.

Regions of low pressure are

a)

Stable with little air movement; air masses form here

b)

Unstable, with air movement, changing conditions, and precipitation

10.

Regions of high pressure are

a)

Stable with little air movement; air masses form here

b)

Unstable, with air movement, changing conditions, and precipitation

11.

Fast-flowing currents of air high in the troposphere are

a)

Hadley cells

b)

Jet streams or "atmospheric jets"

c)

Trade winds

d)

Altostratus

12.

The jet streams

a)

All flow in the same direction, from west to east

b)

Flow in different directions depending if they are north or south of the equator

c)

Flow in different directions depending if they are above rising or falling air

d)

All flow in the same direction, from east to west

13.

Winds blow

a)

From regions of high pressure to regions of low pressure

b)

From regions of low pressure to regions of high pressure

c)

In ways that are impossible to predict

d)

Always from north to south

14.

What is the effect of global circulation on temperatures around the Earth?

a)

global atmospheric circulation does not affect temperature

b)

global atmospheric circulation makes hot places hotter and cold places colder

c)

global circulation moderates temperatures, warming the poles and cooling the equator

d)

temperatures change in a random fashion

15.

The trade winds are

a)

The area close to the equator where rising air leaves ships stranded

b)

Wind belts north and south of the equator, blowing from the northeast and southeast

c)

Prevailing west winds in the mid latitudes

d)

Extremely cold air blowing down from the poles

16.

Westerlies are

a)

People who traveled Westward in the pioneer days

b)

People from the coastal states of California, Oregon, and Washington

c)

Prevailing winds at the mid latitudes (the Ferrel cells)

d)

Fast-moving currents of air high in the troposphere

17.

What is the engine that drives atmospheric circulation?

a)

Rotation of the Earth

b)

Earth's magnetic field

c)

Heating near the equator by direct sunlight

d)

Currents in the oceans

18.

Air masses stay in their source region for a long time. Most of them form

a)

Near the tropical or polar highs, where high pressure makes the atmosphere stable

b)

Near the equator where air is rising and the atmosphere is unstable

c)

They can form anywhere on Earth

d)

Near the polar front where air is rising and the atmosphere is unstable

19.

Air masses take on the temperature and humidity of their

a)

destination

b)

wherever they are

c)

upper atmosphere

d)

source region

20.

Air masses can be

a)

A few feet across

b)

a few miles across

c)

a few dozen miles across

d)

hundreds or over a thousand miles across