Climatology Exam 1

Question 1

Definition of climatology

Answer 1

the study of long-term weather patterns over a long period of time. every 30 years, currently 1990-2020

Question 2

interactions

Answer 2

things on earth, like oceans and ice can influence temp and albedo

Question 3

meteorology

Answer 3

the study of weather on a day-to-day basis. different as meteorology is short-term while climatology is long-term

Question 4

improvements

Answer 4

we now have global climate models, earth simulation models. uses super computers

Question 5

consider 3 key properties of the climate

Answer 5

normals: anticipated circumstances
extremes: anything outside of the normals (record high/low)
frequency: how often events happen

Question 6

scales of climate

Answer 6

microscale: scales very small in length. ex. wind moving something
mesoscale: kilometers. ex. thunderstorms and tornadoes
synoptic: thousands of kilometers. ex. hurricanes
planetary: global. ex. jet streams, ocean currents

Question 7

subfields of climatology

Answer 7

boundary layer, urban climatology, hydroclimatology, regional climatology, paleo climatology, bio climatology, applied climatology

Question 8

statistics and records

Answer 8

can use averages. daily mean temp can provide a good indicator as to what the temp actually feels like for the day. extremes are usually given as reference points, watching over time is important

Question 9

why is climate important?

Answer 9

climate change visibility started around the 1980s. much earlier than that though. has sweeping effects now.

Question 10

biases

Answer 10

instruments (difference in materials influencing measurements), urbanization (place where taking these measurements), spatial (depends on where data collection sites are and when), time (reliable climate records only go back to the 1880s)

Question 11

what keeps the atmosphere in place?

Answer 11

the second law of thermodynamics. energy flows from high to low concentrations. 99% of the time the atmosphere is at hydrostatic equilibrium. main gases are 74% nitrogen, 25% oxygen, 1% trace gases. the atmosphere has mass (5.0 x 10^18 kg), air is constantly moving and has evolved over time.

Question 12

about stars

Answer 12

after the big bang (approx. 15 billion years ago), elements went flying in every direction (mostly hydrogen). gravity compressed hydrogen into stars. stars would explode releasing heavier elements. our solar system likely formed around 5 billion years ago.

Question 13

origins of the atmosphere

Answer 13

dust and debris gathered in balls orbiting the sun. the atmosphere consisted of mostly light and inert gases. how did we get the atmosphere we have today?

Question 14

composition of atmosphere

Answer 14

primarily nitrogen and oxygen (both diatomic gases). nitrogen has an extremely long residence time in the atmosphere of 16.25 million years. the length of time a molecule remains in the atmosphere.

Question 15

carbon dioxide

Answer 15

key greenhouse gas. helps with the greenhouse effect which keeps our planet habitable

Question 16

greenhouse gases

Answer 16

water vapor, relatively unchanged since early times. carbon dioxide, primitive atmosphere had a lot of CO2, may have kept planet warm during faint sun period.

Question 17

atmospheric structure

Answer 17

the atmosphere is composed of several layers. each layer has different properties that distinguish it from the others. some are warm, others are cold. lapse vs inversion. pauses separate the layers and are named based on the layer you are leaving (tropopause, stratopause, mesopause)

Question 18

milankovic cycles

Answer 18

first proposed by milutin milankovic around 1920. long-term climate.

obliquity: tilt of earth upon axis
eccentricity: shape of earth’s orbit
precession: the wobble of the earth about its axis

Question 19

how does latitude affect climate?

Answer 19

solar angle differs

Question 20

attenuation

Answer 20

the depletion of solar rays by interacting with more atmosphere or aerosols. winter days. path length ex. flashlight, bath signal. less energy reaching the surface. earth’s shape promotes attenuation.

Question 21

continentality

Answer 21

your location based on your surrounding area such as bodies of water or expanses of land

Question 22

ideal gas law

Answer 22

PV = nRT. this formula is used to represent any “ideal gas”, ideal meaning all collisions between molecules are elastic and no exchange of energy. the atmosphere is assumed to be an ideal gas.

Question 23

wind

Answer 23

transfer of atmospheric mass

Question 24

pressure gradient force

Answer 24

initially causes air motion to due pressure inequalities across the horizontal. right angles to isobar. think of it as a ramp. determines intial speed and direction

Question 25

coriolis effect

Answer 25

the force caused by differences in the earth's angular velocity. aka its rotation. this is relative to the vertical. changes direction of wind. function of speed and latitude.

Question 26

centrifugal force

Answer 26

apparent force on an object moving along a curved trajectory. sometimes thought of as intertia. think of air moving north or south from the equator. this allows tornadoes to maintain their spin. attempts to pull air back to original path before deflection, function of speed and curvature.

Question 27

friction

Answer 27

force of opposition that works to decrease the speed of moving objects. only matters near the surface. slows the air reducing speed and direction.

Question 28

vertical motio

Answer 28

air moves in vertical too. hydrostatic equilibrium (gravity pushes an air parcel down, working against PGF to achieve this balance

Question 29

topography

Answer 29

effects on climate. the arrangement of the natural and artificial physical features of an area. lack of atmpsphere can cause numerous health problems. high diurnal temp ranges.

Question 30

orographic effect

Answer 30

topography can also effect precipitation. rain shadow effect

Question 31

oceans

Answer 31

oceans cover abt 70% of earth. recall that water is a fluid just like air. instead of prevailing winds, we have ocean currents

Question 32

surface currents

Answer 32

the oceanic surface currents are driven primarily by overlaying winds. drift currents. what determines the path of these currents? the circulation is called gyres.

Question 33

ocean moement

Answer 33

the ocean can be thought of as a stationary fluid. when the wind blows over water force is exerted on the water. water begins to move and is deflected by coriolis force. difference comes in depth. deflection occurs only in a few meters thickness of water. contributes to eckman spiral

Question 34

eckman spiral

Answer 34

spiral of water motion downward to a depth of around 100 m. party responsible for upwelling. eckman pumping.

Question 35

upwelling

Answer 35

cold water brought up from deep ocean. nutrient rich. results from eckman spiral and good for fishing industries

Question 36

downwelling

Answer 36

reverse of upwelling. winds push water against continent and then forced to sink

Question 37

stability

Answer 37

vertical motion is supressed, high pressure. common along eastern ocean margins (west sides of continents), pleasant temps, abundant sunshine, little precipitation

Question 38

instability

Answer 38

vertical motion is promoted, low pressure, common along western ocean margins (east sides of continents), have abundant precipitation

Question 39

thermohaline circulation

Answer 39

deep ocean currents affect the climate, the thermohaline circulation is one such deep current,. in respinse to changes in temp and salinity. Through this deep-water conveyor system huge amounts of energy are capable of moving from one part of the world to another •Energy is capable of altering the climate Medieval climate anomaly, little ice age

Question 40

global warming impacts

Answer 40

through this deep-water conveyer system huge amounts of energy are capable of moving from one part of the world to another. energy is capable of altering the climate. medieval climate anomaly

Question 41

medieval climate anomaly

Answer 41

temps were higher than average

Question 42

little ice age

Answer 42

below average global temps

Question 43

ENSO

Answer 43

El nino southern oscillation. affects global weather in a profound way. can bring drought or flood conditions

Question 44

el nino

Answer 44

anamolous warm SSTs develop off the western coast of south america and extend into the equatorial pacific. period of 3-7 yearss. trade winds weaken and warm water does not move. usually manifests around december.

Question 45

la nina

Answer 45

anomalous cool SSTs develop off the western coast of south america and extend into the equatorial pacific. period of 3-7 years. trade winds are stronger due to enhanced pressure graidnet. la nina enhances upwelling. double dip la nina this year.

Question 46

La nada

Answer 46

recent years have yielded the term la nada for neutral conditions

Question 47

walker circulation

Answer 47

an index was devised to determine the strength of ENSO. TO calculate you take the SLP at TAHITI and subtract the SLP at DARWIN. negative = el nino positive = la nina near 0 = la nada

Question 48

historical observations of enso

Answer 48

most accounts of historical enso events come from spanish explorers in the 1500s. it wasnt until the 1800s when these events were chronicled in greater detail by historians, explorers, geographers, and pirates

Question 49

el nino termination

Answer 49

upon reaching the eastern boundary the warm pool splits into 3 primary comonents equatorial rosby wave: wave that sloshes back westward, typically reaching starting point in 6 to 8 months ending el nino coastal kelvin waves: small warm water pools that migrate north and south along the americas an el nino event usually lasts between 10-14 months.

Question 50

global effects

Answer 50

during el nino low pressure near south america alters the circulation. this is separate from the low of el nino. this secondary low causes a strengthening of high pressure on the eastern side of south america. drought in amazon

Question 51

global effects of enso

Answer 51

pressure systems are switched in southern africa. SW = wet conditions SE = drought eastern indonesia and northern australia experience drought during this time as well

Question 52

effects of enso in the USA

Answer 52

enso is most impactful during the cool seasons. southern and central us precip. and sw temps are tied to el nino. kelvin wave displaces the california current and destabilizes coastal areas.

Question 53

ENSO relationship to global warming?

Answer 53

since 1970 the frequency of an enso event is 2.8 years compared to 4.7 longterm. reverse may be true as well. higher incidence of warm enso events may be forcing higher global temps. seems plausible given the lag in heating of the ocean and the high heat storage capabilities.

Question 54

pacific decadal oscillation (PDO)

Answer 54

an oceanic phenomenom that is linked to enso strength and frequency. has a warm and cold phase but a regime lasts 20-30 years. if enso and PDO are in phase, effects are strengthened. if out of phase, effects are dampened.

Question 55

atlantic multidecadal oscillation (AMO)

Answer 55

similar to pdo with warm and cool waters that generally switch every 15-30 years. tied to tropical cyclone frequency. positive: more hurricanes negative: less hurricanes

Question 56

arctic oscillation

Answer 56

discovered in 1998. hemispheric oscillation. positive: strengthening of polar vertex, lower pressure negative: weakening polar vertex, higher pressure positive has strong winds to keep cold air from penetrating south.