quiz questions Flashcards
at which scale do cyclones, anticyclones, troughs and ridges occur?
synoptic scale
meridional flow is _________ while zonal flow is ___________.
north/south
west/east
four scales in order
planetary, synoptic, meso, micro
what area does the hadley cell cover?
just areas near the equator
the polar front
is a region marked by a sharp change in horizontal temp
winds in the upper atmosphere are westerly where?
both the northern and southern hemisphere
westerly winds in the upper atmosphere at mid-latitudes in the northern hem
are the reason most mid latitude storms move from west to east
ferrel cell is associated with
mid latitudes
what are jet streams?
bands of high speed wind found at elevations of 9-15 km
where are the two main hemispheric jet streams located?
between 50 and 60 degrees latitude and 30 degrees latitude
what are rossby waves
major undulations in the path of a jet stream
how can the jet stream return to normal zonal flow after rossby waves build?
separation of a mass of cold air from the jet stream
the northeast trade winds
are the result of air flowing from the subtropical high to the ITCZ
PGF is stronger at which mb level?
- 800
- 900
- 950
- 700
700
air mass source regions are least likely to be found here
middle latitudes
most air masses in the central part of the US are either
continental polar or maritime tropical
between a cold front and a warm front we find
warm moist and unstable air mass
which airmass is responsible for bringing virtually all of the moisture that impacts the US east of the rocky mountains?
maritime tropical
which of the fronts do not separate tropical from polar air?
occluded
which of the fronts move with the greatest velocity?
cold front
drylines in the US typically have what air?
typically have continental air to the west
according to the polar front theory midlatitude cyclones form along a boundary
separating polar air and warmer air to the south
by the end of the forecast period, where should the max divergence at 500mb take place?
downstream from the trough axis, from minnesota to colorado
which mb level does a midlatitude cyclone follow? what speed?
500mb, half the speed
in the conveyor belt model, this belt enters the storm flowing westward toward the surface cyclone
cold conveyor belt
cyclogenesis begins when
cold air begins to advance southward and warm air goes north
where is cyclogenesis most likely to occur?
in regions of strong temp contrasts or where topographic features disrupt the normal airflow
the warm sector between the warm and cold fronts is characterized by
clear conditions
earth vorticity
is a function of latitude
the formation of a mesocyclone requires
vertical wind shear
an outflow boundary is
All of the below:
- the leading edge of cold air from a thunderstorm downdraft
- a favorable place for future severe storm development, esp if two intersect
- can be seen clearly on radar images
common doppler radar associated with supercell is the
hook echo
air mass thunderstorms
extinguish themselves through the formation of extensive downdrafts
tornados
are associated with cumulonimbus clouds
not significant in explaining why the US has so many tornados
cold ocean current on the west coast
how many times greater is the pressure gradient of the tornado vs its core from the cyclone and an anticyclone
5000 times greater
tropical storms in the east pacific
generally move westward
hurricanes
are smaller than mid-latitude cyclones
hurricanes have
no fronts
a hurricane is almost symmetric in shape because
a hurricane has only warm air
a hurricane typically
has temps near its center that are much higher than surrounding temps
the strongest winds in a hurricane occur
in the eyewall
hurricanes are
warm core systems with high pressure aloft
horizontal air flow in a hurricane is
counterclockwise at the surface, clockwise aloft
the strongest rainfall within a hurricane occurs
in the eyewall
air _______ inside the eye of a hurricane
sinks and warms adiabatically
order in size: hurricane, thunderstorm, tornado, mid-latitude cyclone
mid-latitude cyclone, hurricane, thunderstorm, tornado
an easterly wave is
a favorable area for hurricane development
Hurricanes gain most of their energy from
latent heat released by condensation
absence of coriolis
prohibits hurricane formation at the equator
the reason why almost all hurricanes form in equatorial region:
largest source of warm water
hurricane’s greatest threat to life and property
storm surge
you would most likely expect a rain shadow
east side of the cascade mountains in the PNW
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
absolutely unstable air
The lower atmosphere is most likely to have the steepest environmental lapse rate at this time.
mid-day
Cumuliform clouds
typically have higher water content than stratiform clouds
Collision-coalescence is the predominant cause of precipitation in this region.
the Tropics
In middle latitudes, rain
usually begins as snow
