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WorksheetsAOS 3 Midterm Practice
Total questions: 89
Worksheet time: 3hrs 44mins
The atmosphere is a mixture of …….
particulate matter and water
Gas molecules, small particulates, moisture
Moisture and gas molecules only
Precipitation and air
Technological advances in computer hardware and software ...
occurred long before the landmark achievements of early meteorologists.
have had a huge impact on our ability to understand and predict the weather.
are essentially irrelevant to meteorology
have had little effect on our ability to understand and predict the weather.
Radiosondes …
have been used by the National Weather Service since the mid-1800s
measure the intensity of rainfall
allow us to measure weather conditions in the upper atmosphere
use the Doppler effect to observe severe storms
A network of surface and upper-air observations is crucial to meteorological understanding because
organized weather systems often cover large areas
most of the atmosphere is close to the surface
states and countries rarely share weather observations
modern computers cannot predict weather in other states.
The invention of the telegraph in the mid-1800s improved weather forecasting because
an instrument for measuring temperature had not yet been invented
computers hadn't been invented yet
the location and movement of weather conditions could be tracked
radiosondes carried telegraph instruments to multiple locations
According to the scientific method, a hypothesis
must be phrased in highly technical jargon
must have already been tested in previous experiments
must lead to predictions
must always be understandable to the layperson
The yellow arrows in this image demonstrate that
hypotheses must always be revised at least once.
experiments must always be performed at least three times
the scientific method is not a rigid process
the analysis must always be performed by at least two different scientists
Atmospheric motions are mostly horizontal because
gravity restricts vertical motions.
the oceans restrict vertical air motions
the atmosphere is very heavy.
its shallowness doesn't allow large vertical motions.
The troposphere
is thicker in summer
often disappears near the poles in winter.
is thinnest at the tropics
maintains a relatively constant temperature
Which of the following will increase given an increase in pressure?
both mass and volume
density
volume
Mass
Which of the following are used to identify places of equal atmospheric pressure?
isotherms
isohyets
Isobars
Isotachs
Wind direction is properly referred to as
the direction the wind is blowing toward
the direction the wind is blowing from
Radiation, as an energy transfer mechanism, is especially important because
all of the above
everything radiates
radiation energy can travel without an intervening medium.
radiation provides us with visible light
Your hand feels cold when you hold a cold can of soda. Energy is being transferred from your hand to the can by
Conduction
Convection
Radiation
Warm air rises. This is an example of energy transfer by
Conduction
Convection
Radiation
Weather, Climate or Both?: January is usually Omaha's coldest month
Weather
Climate
Both
Much of central Australia is desert
Weather
Climate
Both
I am moving to southern Arizona because it is warm and sunny.
Weather
Both
Climate
The high this afternoon was 25°C.
Climate
Weather
Both
Tuesday afternoon a tornado touched down in Iowa.
Weather
Both
Climate
Thursday's low of -20°C is the coldest temperature ever recorded for that city.
Weather
Both
Climate
Wisconsin had an unseasonably large snowstorm last week.
Weather
Climate
Both
The relationship between air pressure and elevation is nonlinear because
the equation of state is an exponential function
air pressure changes with elevation
air is compressible
there is no clear relationship between temperature and elevation.
Horizontal pressure changes are ________ than vertical pressure changes.
None of the above. There are no horizontal pressure changes
about the same
Greater than
Less than
According to the Ideal Gas Law, the pressure will increase if
the air density increases while the temperature decreases
the air density and the temperature are held constant
the air density increases while the temperature is held constant
the air density and temperature decreases
According to the equation of state p = pRT
an increase in density requires a decrease in pressure but not temperature
an increase in density requires a decrease in both pressure and temperature
an increase in density requires an increase in both pressure and temperature
an increase in density requires an increase in pressure or a decrease in temperature or both.
Consider a closed container filled with air at a fixed temperature. Suppose we double the number of molecules inside the container and keep the temperature the same. What can we say about the changes in pressure and density in the container?
Density will be reduced by half and pressure will double.
Density will double and pressure will be reduced by half.
Density and pressure will both double.
Density will remain constant and pressure will double.
Density will double and pressure will not change.
Consider a closed container filled with air at a fixed pressure. Suppose we double the number of molecules inside the container and keep the pressure the same. What can we say about the changes in temperature in the container?
It is not possible to decide without knowing the original temperature.
Temperature will half.
Temperature will double.
Temperature will remain constant.
Regarding isobars, it is true that
they depict areas having the same barometer reading.
their spacing indicates the strength of the pressure gradient.
you will not find them on Canadian pressure charts.
they are drawn at 10 mb intervals in the United States.
Hydrostatic equilibrium occurs when
large air masses are moving either up or down.
the force of gravity and the vertical pressure gradient have equal value and oppose each other.
the force of gravity and the vertical pressure gradient both act to push air upward.
the force of gravity and the vertical pressure gradient both act to push air downward.
The heights of the 500 mb surface in air column A is 5700 meters and 5640 meters in air column B. Choose the best answer from the following.
the temperature in air column A is higher while the density is lower
the temperature in air column A is lower
the temperature in air column B is higher
the wind is stronger in column A
If a column of air is heated, it will
contract
Become more dense
have a lower pressure at its base.
have a smaller vertical pressure gradient.
At an altitude of 5640 m in the figure, there is
a horizontal pressure gradient directed from right to left.
no vertical pressure gradient.
a horizontal pressure gradient directed from left to right.
no horizontal pressure gradient.
The Coriolis Effect is zero at
the Poles.
The upper atmosphere
Sunrise
The equator
This is the layer in the atmosphere where friction is important in determining wind speed.
hydrosphere
planetary boundary layer.
Thermosphere
Ionosphere
This prevents wind from following the direction of the horizontal pressure gradient force.
friction with the ground
the earth's magnetic field
the Coriolis effect
interaction with the solar wind
This occurs around a high-pressure system when the Coriolis effect exceeds the pressure gradient force, causing air to turn.
geostrophic flow
non-gradient flow
subgeostrophic flow
supergeostrophic flow
Winds along the ridge axis are
slower than geostrophic because a decreased Coriolis force is required to turn the winds to the right.
faster than geostrophic because an increased Coriolis force is required to turn the winds to the right.
slower than geostrophic because an increased Coriolis force is required to turn the winds to the right.
faster than geostrophic because a decreased Coriolis force is required to turn the winds to the right.
Sea-level pressure is used instead of surface air pressure on weather maps for which of the following reasons?
Hint 1.
As the name implies, sea-level pressure is the pressure that would exist if the particular surface location was at sea level.
Because only sea-level pressure can be measured with an aneroid barometer
Because sea-level pressure is always greater than surface air pressure
To correct for the effect of altitude
Because using sea-level pressure is traditional
If the pressure gradient force exactly balances the Coriolis force above the boundary layer, which of the following is the result?
Hint 1.
The boundary layer is not at the surface; it is in the upper-level of the atmosphere. Therefore, friction is not playing a role.
The air moves to the left in the Northern Hemisphere
The air accelerates
The air remains stationary
A geostrophic wind occurs
What are enclosed areas of high pressure marked by roughly circular isobars or height contours called?
Hint 1.
For the purposes of this question, the location does not matter; the question is asking what they are called, not what they would be called from a specific location.
Anticyclone
Trough
Ridge
An upper-level horizontal pressure gradient
Which of the following describes the reason why Hurricane Isabel is a low pressure system?
Hint 1. What is a low pressure system?
A low pressure system is a weather system that typically produces precipitation. It also rotates a certain
direction in the Northern Hemisphere and the opposite direction in the Southern Hemisphere
It is rotating counterclockwise.
It is rotating clockwise.
It is producing fair weather.
It is rotating anticyclonically.
Which of the following would most likely happen to Hurricane Isabel if it were to approach the equator?
Hint 1. Is there anything special about the equator?
Which particular force doesn’t occur at the equator?
Hurricane Isabel would weaken dramatically.
Nothing would have happened to Hurricane Isabel.
Hurricane Isabel would have became stronger.
Hurricane Isabel would have started rotating clockwise.
Which of the following is most likely why Hurricane Isabel’s wind speed decreases after it makes landfall?
Hint 1. What is there more of over land than over water?
Think about what particular force exists on both land and water but is far more prevalent on land.
an increase in counterclockwise rotation
an increase in precipitation rates
an increase in air pressure
Friction
When an air parcel moves north in the Northern Hemisphere, it gets deflected to its right due to the Coriolis force. What is the reason for this deflection?
The parcel is moving away from the axis of rotation of the planet, so it must spin faster to conserve angular momentum
The parcel is moving toward the axis of rotation of the planet, so it must spin faster to conserve angular momentum
The parcel is moving toward the axis of rotation of the planet, so it must spin slower to conserve angular momentum
The parcel is moving away from the sun, so its getting darker
In the video “A Year of Weather” from lecture 01, we observed a lot more swirling motion in the high latitudes than near the equator. What could be a reason for that?
The Coriolis force is larger in the high latitudes.
The atmosphere is not as deep in the high latitudes.
Pressure gradient forces are stronger in the high latitudes.
The Coriolis force is larger near the equator.
An updraft is a region of _______ air where clouds are likely to form. In an updraft we typically have that the vertical pressure gradient force is ________ then the gravitational force.
sinking / larger
rising / smaller
rising / larger
sinking / smaller
If the wind is parallel to the isobars, we can say that
the wind is being influenced by frictional forces.
the wind could be geostrophic, supergeostrophic or subgeostrophic.
the wind is not being influences by Coriolis force.
the wind is in geostrophic balance.
If we hypothesize that pressure gradient forces are the only forces driving horizontal winds in the upper atmosphere, what would be an observation that proves our hypothesis to be wrong?
Winds blow mostly from the Equator towards the poles in the upper atmosphere.
Winds are mostly parallel to isobars in the upper atmosphere.
Winds are mostly perpendicular to isobars in the upper atmosphere.
Winds are very weak in the upper atmosphere.
Water is unique because
its coefficient of expansion as it freezes is linear.
it exists in all three states naturally at the same time.
it can be forced through pipes at considerable pressure
it vaporizes at a very low temperature.
Advection fog
occurs when warm air passes over a cool surface
the result of adiabatic cooling.
rarely travels more than 100 meters from its point of origin
is responsible for the Tule fog of the Central Valley of California.
When air within a cloud begins to sink, it
cools at the dry adiabatic lapse rate.
cools at the saturated adiabatic lapse rate.
warms at the dry adiabatic lapse rate.
warms at the saturated adiabatic lapse rate
If air starts out with a temperature of 18°C with a dew point of 10°C, an ascent of ________ is necessary for the air to become saturated.
1200 m
1000 m
800 m
500 m
Saturation
requires the presence of other gases besides water vapor.
is a state of disequilibrium.
occurs even when there are still substantial fluctuations in the concentration of water vapor above the surface.
occurs when the condensation rate equals the evaporation rate
Frost forms on your windshield through which process?
Melting
Deposition
Freezing
Condensation
Saturation vapor pressure is dependent upon this variable.
air pressure
time of day
air composition
Temperature
Vapor pressure is
typically measured in millipascals in the United States.
a common part of weather reports.
independent of temperature.
the part of atmospheric pressure due to water vapor.
When the relative humidity is 100 percent
water will condense out of the air
evaporation ceases
the specific humidity is greater than the saturation specific humidity
the saturation specific humidity is greater than the specific humidity.
The dew point
can be higher than the current air temperature
can be used with air temperature to indicate the value of relative humidity.
is not a very effective indicator of water vapor content
is high when there is little water vapor in the air.
As the temperature increases, generally, the relative humidity
is unaffected.
is erratic
decreases
increases
This is not one of the three processes for saturating air with water vapor.
adding water vapor to the air
mixing cold air with warm, moist
increasing the carbon dioxide content of air
lowering the temperature to the dew point
When the atmosphere contains more moisture than theoretically possible, the condition of ________ results.
curvature captivity
heterogeneous nucleation
nuclei exclusion
supersaturation
Diabatic processes
do not always conform to the Second Law of Thermodynamics.
add or remove energy from a system.
occur when rising air expands and cools without gaining or losing energy.
are the primary force behind cloud formation
Adiabatic processes
are usually not reversible.
often involve changes both in temperature and pressure.
occur with the addition or loss of energy.
are relatively uncommon in the atmosphere.
Which of the following best describes the process in which water droplets form onto hygroscopic particles?
Hint 1.
Dust and insects are sometimes referred to as 'aerosols.'
Sublimation
Deposition
Heterogeneous nucleation
Homogeneous nucleation
What will be the temperature of an unsaturated parcel of air at an altitude of 410 meters if it has a temperature of 10 degrees Celsius at the surface?
Hint 1. What is an adiabatic process?
An adiabatic process occurs when there is a temperature change, but there is no heat added or removed.
5.9 degrees Celsius
14 degrees Celsius
10 degrees Celsius
0 degrees Celsius
Which of the following best describes the lifting condensation level (LCL)?
Hint 1.
Adiabatic processes govern the LCL.
The altitude at which clouds begin to form in a rising parcel of air
The height at which an air parcel is warmer than its surroundings
The maximum height to which air parcels can rise
The point in which cloud formation stops
Which of the following is the relative humidity of an air parcel with a vapor pressure of 8 mb and a saturation vapor pressure of 16 mb?
50 percent
0.5 percent
16 percent
5 percent
Suppose we increase the temperature of an air parcel without changing its mass of water vapor. The air parcel is not saturated. We can say that:
Its dew point temperature will increase.
Its vapor pressure will not change.
Its dew point temperature will not change
It may reach saturation.
During Santa Ana winds, air blos from the high deserts towards Los Angels. Suppose the mass of water vapor in the air does not change between the desert and L.A.
The relative humidity in L.A. will be lower than in the desert.
The relative humidity in L.A. will be higher than in the desert
The relative humidity will be the same because the amount of water vapor has not changed
This occurs when a mountain range forces air to rise.
frontal lifting
orographic lifting
convergence
localized convective lifting
The most common mechanism of cloud formation is
mixing warm moist air with cold air
lowering the air temperature to the dew point by adiabatic cooling of rising air.
both adding water vapor to the air and mixing warm moist air with cold air.
adding water vapor to the air
You would most likely expect a rain shadow on the
west side of the Andes.
east side of the Cascade Mountains in the Pacific Northwest.
west side of the Coast Range in California
west side of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
This type of air will keep rising after an initial upward push.
statically neutral air
statically unstable air
statically stable
none of these types of air rises on its own following an initial lift nor sinks back to its original level
When the environmental lapse rate exceeds both the dry adiabatic lapse rate and the wet adiabatic lapse rate of a parcel of air, that air parcel contains
conditionally unstable air.
absolutely stable air.
absolutely unstable air.
air that cannot reach the lifting condensation level.
The lower atmosphere is most likely to have the steepest environmental lapse rate at this time.
Midnight
Sunset
Mid-day
Sunrise
This is the most important mechanism for stopping the rise of unstable air parcels.
encountering a layer of stable air
entrainment
reaching the lifting condensation level
friction
Clouds that are high and are always composed entirely of ice crystals are
Cirrus
Nimbus
Alto
Thunderheads
Cumuliform clouds
typically have higher water content than stratiform clouds
have very weak vertical velocities within them
are typically much wider than they are tall.
form in absolutely stable air conditions.
Collision-coalescence is the predominant cause of precipitation in this region.
the Tropics
mid-latitudes
subpolar latitudes
above the Arctic Circle
The process by which supercooled water droplets freeze onto falling ice crystals is called
aggregation
cold-cloud condensation
riming
Bergeron bonding
The collision-coalescence process
is dependent upon the different downward velocities of different-sized droplets
explains the formation of snow better than it explains the formation of rain.
is most frequent in cold clouds
is most common at high latitudes
Aggregation
is another term for riming.
is the first step of the Bergeron process.
is facilitated by a thin coating of water on ice crystals.
works best when the cloud temperature is -10 degrees Celsius or colder.
Which of the following cloud constituents would have the highest terminal velocity?
hailstones
raindrops
ice crystals
condensation nuclei
The most important principle underlying the Bergeron process is this.
The bottom part of the cloud where the process is taking place must be warmer than 0 degrees Celsius.
For a given temperature, the saturation vapor pressure of ice is less than that for supercooled water.
Large drops fall faster than smaller drops.
Aggregation takes place more rapidly than accretion
Lake-effect snowfall
is most common in late winter.
requires the presence of stable air.
requires that the lake be relatively warm
extends for up to 100 miles south of the lake
In middle latitudes, rain
is incapable of turning to sleet.
is formed by the collision-coalescence process
is less common than in high latitudes
usually begins as snow.
Snow results from all of the following processes, except
Riming
Aggregation
Coalescence
Deposition
Precipitation falling through this temperature profile will arrive to the surface as
Snow
Rain
Freezing rain
Sleet
