Chapter 1: Weather Variables

Question 1

A variable means?

Answer 1

Variable means that the value can change.

Question 2

What is Meteorology?

Answer 2

is study of the atmosphere and the processes that cause what we refer to as “weather.”

Question 3

The atmosphere…

Answer 3

contains matter a mixture of gas molecules, small, suspended particles of solid, liquid and falling precipitation. It contains energy (heat) and is in motion.

Question 4

Matter, energy, and low motion what?

Answer 4

obey conservation laws. Applying these laws to the atmosphere require us to observe and measure weather variables.

Question 5

What is climate

Answer 5

is the synthesis of weather. It Is concerned with averages and extreme of weather.

Question 6

what is Kinetic energy

Answer 6

is energy of motion. A measure of the average kinetic energy is temperature.

Question 7

What is Heat?

Answer 7

is the amount of energy which flows between bodies (or air parcels from warm to cold. Results in temperature changes.

Question 8

What is energy?

Answer 8

is not created nor destroyed but only transferred between locations or transformed between different types of energy.

Question 9

Galileo created the thermometer in what year?

Answer 9

It was in 1593.

Question 10

When was Fahrenheit’s scale created?

Answer 10

It was in 1714

Question 11

When was Celsius’ scale created?

Answer 11

It was in 1736

Question 12

When was Kelvin’s scale created?

Answer 12

It was in 1848

Question 13

What are the different the types of Thermometers

Answer 13

• Liquid in glass
• Bi metallic strip
• Thermistor
• Radiometer

Question 14

At the Surface….

Answer 14

the temperature is measured in the shade at a heigh of 2 meters above a vegetated surface.

Question 15

Stevenson screen protects thermometer from what?

Answer 15

Direct heating by the Sun

Question 16

When was Torricelli’s barometer created?

Answer 16

It was in 1643

Question 17

Measures atmosphere pressure…

Answer 17

the weight of the overlaying atmosphere

Question 18

Sea Level Pressure is

Answer 18

it is 103.25 hPa or 29.92 in of Hg

Question 19

A Typical range of sea level pressure is

Answer 19

it is 980-1030 hPa.

Question 20

Hectopascals (hPa) and millibars (mb) are what?

Answer 20

equal and used interchangeably.

Question 21

What are the different types of Barometers?

Answer 21

• Mercury – most accurate
• Aneroid – small, partially, evacuated chamber.

Question 22

• Matter (mass) cannot be?

Answer 22

created nor destroyed it can only flow into or out of the system or be transformed within the system/

Question 23

What is density?

Answer 23

mass/volume

Question 24

Density is…

Answer 24

Density is approximated by measurements of temperate and pressure using the Ideal Gas Law.

Answer 25

Links pressure, density, and temperature.

p= pR_dT where p is pressure is density, and T is temperature in Kelvins.

R_d is the dry air gras constant.

Question 26

Density is a what?

Answer 26

it is mass (kg) per unit. Volume (m^3)

Question 27

Due to compressibility…

Answer 27

near surface air is denser than that above.

Question 28

What is pressure?

Answer 28

*Pressure at a particular altitude depends only on the mass of air above that altitude.
*Pressure decreases with height in a non-linear fashion because air is compressible.
*in meteorology we refer to standard pressure levels.

Question 29

Pressure is.

Answer 29

is a result of the atmosphere’s mass.

Question 30

While Pressure decreases vertically.

Answer 30

but not at a constant rate.

Question 31

What is wind?

Answer 31

• The flow of air/
• A vector with both magnitude and direction.
• Wind Vane: Direction from which the wind is coming.
• Anemometer: speed m/s, knots, or mph.
• Wind is not continuous but rather gusty due to the effects of turbulence. Report sustained (average) wind as well as the gusts in a one-minute period.