Atmosphere and Weather

Question 1

What is the atmosphere?

Answer 1

volume of gases, water vapor, and airborne particles enveloping Earth

Question 2

Is the atmosphere stable or unstable and why?

Answer 2

Unstable because heated from below

Question 3

Where is most of the mass of the atmosphere (what level)?

Answer 3

Troposphere

Question 4

What are the 4 levels of the atmpsphere?

Answer 4

troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere

Question 5

What are the 3 zones in between the levels of the atmosphere?

Answer 5

tropopause, stratopause, mesopause

Question 6

What is weather?

Answer 6

state of atmosphere at a specific time

Question 7

What is climate?

Answer 7

long-term statistical sum of weather in an area

Question 8

What are the 2 main components of the air?

Answer 8

Nitrogen (78%), Oxygen (21%)

Question 9

Why does warm air rise and cool air sink?

Answer 9

Warm air is less dense

Question 10

Humid air is ____ dense than dry air

Answer 10

less, it sinks

Question 11

Why is air less dense at higher altitudes?

Answer 11

There is less pressure the higher you go so air is less dense

Question 12

Air ____ as it expands and ____ as it is compressed

Answer 12

cools, warms

Question 13

What happens if condensed water vapor coalesce to a large enough mass in the sky?

Answer 13

precipitation

Question 14

What is the difference between shortwave and longwave radiation?

Answer 14

shortwave comes from the sun, longwave goes from earth out

Question 15

What is the global heat budget?

Answer 15

The earth is in heat equilibrium because the amount taken in is equal to the amount leaving

Question 16

Why does shortwave radiation vary with latitude?

Answer 16

The tilt of the earth’s axis spreads the light over the poles and there is a direct hit with little spreading by the equator

Question 17

What causes convection currents?

Answer 17

rising warm air and descending cool air circulates

Question 18

What is the coriolis effect?

Answer 18

The deflection of objects (or air currents) to one side moving from the equator either north or south
cannonball example

Question 19

Which direction is the curve in the different hemispheres?

Answer 19

North: counterclockwise
South: clockwise

Question 20

What is the ITCZ

Answer 20

InterTropical Convergence Zone
the area where the northeast and the southeast trade winds converge

Question 21

What are Hadley, Ferrel, and Arctic cells?

Answer 21

areas of convection currents. each hemisphere has one of each
hadley: 0-30
ferrel 30-60
arctic: top and bottom of the earth

Question 22

What are the doldrums?

Answer 22

low pressure winds at equator

Question 23

What are the horse latitudes?

Answer 23

high pressure at 30°

Question 24

What are the strong and dependable winds that are horizontal air movement between the cells?

Answer 24

trade winds; 15°, westerlies; 45°

Question 25

What is the monsoon?

Answer 25

pattern of wind circulation that changes with the season
wet summers, dry winters

Question 26

What is the cause of monsoons?

Answer 26

in spring, land heats more quickly than ocean
air above land rises, cool air from ocean flows toward low pressure created by rising air over land
moist cool air heats and rises, vapor condenses, rains

Question 27

What are sea breezes/land breezes and why are they caused?

Answer 27

land heats, air rises creating low pressure zone
breeze from the ocean blows toward low pressure zone
sea breeze
Land breeze occurs at night

Question 28

What is a cyclone?

Answer 28

large rotating masses of low-pressure air in which winds converge and ascend

Question 29

What is an air mass?

Answer 29

large body of air with nearly uniform temperature,
humidity (density) throughout

Question 30

What are storms?

Answer 30

regional atmospheric disturbances characterized by strong winds and (potentially) precipitation

Question 31

What is a front?

Answer 31

the boundary between air masses
can be cold or warm

Question 32

What are extratropical cyclones?

Answer 32

snow storm
form between the Ferrel cell and the Polar cell (polar front)
occur in winter when temperature and density differences between air masses is greatest

Question 33

What are tropical cyclones?

Answer 33

hurricanes or typhoons if winds 74+ mph
masses of warm, humid, rotating air

Question 34

What is a storm surge?

Answer 34

the mass of water driven by the storm
low atmospheric pressure at storm center (the eye) produces a dome of water
water height increases when waves and winds ramp the water mass on shore