Science Test 7, Chapter 7

Question 1

The outermost layer of the atmosphere is the

Answer 1

exosphere

Question 2

Air flowing up a mountain’s slope due to differences in temperature and pressure is a(n) ____ wind.

Answer 2

anabatic

Question 3

What type of wind occurs when dense, cold air flows from higher to lower elevations due to gravity?

Answer 3

fall wind

Question 4

What very dry and often dusty wind blows in Southern California?

Answer 4

Santa Ana

Question 5

Which layer of the atmosphere ‘‘bounces’’ certain types of radio waves back toward the ground?

Answer 5

ionosphere

Question 6

Heat transfer by electromagnetic waves is

Answer 6

radiation

Question 7

Heat transfer by moving currents of hot air is

Answer 7

convection

Question 8

A cool, gentle wind that blows from the land to the sea is a

Answer 8

land breeze

Question 9

What is the most powerful and dangerous form of UV radiation?

Answer 9

UVC

Question 10

What type of radiation causes tanning and sunburns?

Answer 10

UVB

Question 11

Which layer of the atmosphere is characterized by high temperatures?

Answer 11

thermosphere

Question 12

The most abundant gas in the homosphere is

Answer 12

nitrogen

Question 13

The process in which the temperature of a gas rises as the gas is compressed with no heat is lost is ___ heating.

Answer 13

adiabatic

Question 14

The coldest point in the atmosphere is the

Answer 14

mesopause

Question 15

What marks the upper boundary of the thermosphere?

Answer 15

thermopause

Question 16

Which of the following statements is false?

Answer 16

Insolation warms water more quickly than it warms land.

Question 17

Winds that reverse their direction from season to season are called

Answer 17

monsoons

Question 18

A warm, dry wind that travels down a slope is a

Answer 18

foehn

Question 19

Label each convection cell beside the corresponding number.

Answer 19

polar cell, Ferrel cell, Hadley cell

Question 20

Upper troposphere waves that play a large part in the formation of cyclones and anticyclones are called

Answer 20

Rossby waves

Question 21

The four main factors that affect insolation are __, __, ___, and Earth’s distance from the sun.

Answer 21

Cloud cover, length of daytime, angle of the sun’s rays

Question 22

The scientific name for the northern and southern lights is

Answer 22

auroras

Question 23

The layer of the atmosphere that acts as a ‘‘shield’’ to protect the earth’s surface is the

Answer 23

ozone layer

Question 24

least understood layer of the atmosphere

Answer 24

mesosphere

Question 25

the atmosphere’s ‘‘weather layer’’

Answer 25

troposphere

Question 26

strong, steady winds but few changes of weather

Answer 26

stratosphere

Question 27

portion of the earth’s magnetic field that is affected by the solar winds

Answer 27

magnetosphere

Question 28

What term refers to the decimal equivalent of solar radiation that an object reflects?

Answer 28

albedo

Question 29

What is the blanket of gases that surrounds our planet?

Answer 29

atmosphere

Question 30

What is a circulating spiral of wind around a low-pressure system?

Answer 30

cyclone

Question 31

What term refers to the amount of energy available to hear the earth’s land, water, and air?

Answer 31

energy budget

Question 32

Name the process that traps heat in the earth’s atmosphere.

Answer 32

greenhouse effect

Question 33

What beltlike regions surround the earth and trap particles from the solar wind?

Answer 33

Van Allen radiation belts

Question 34

regions of high pressure and gentle wind at 30* north and south latitude

Answer 34

horse latitudes

Question 35

surface winds that blow from high-pressure regions toward the equator

Answer 35

trade winds

Question 36

equatorial zone where sailing ships were often left without wind

Answer 36

ITCZ

Question 37

high-altitude wind in a narrow, meandering band

Answer 37

jet stream

Question 38

A circulating spiral of wind around a high-pressure system is called a ____

Answer 38

anticyclone

Question 39

Atmospheric pressure at sea level is ___ pounds per square inch.

Answer 39

14.7

Question 40

Extremely powerful radiation that comes from deep space is ____

Answer 40

cosmic rays

Question 41

The most important greenhouse gas is ____

Answer 41

water vapor

Question 42

The region in which a magnet affects other objects is the _____

Answer 42

magnetic field

Question 43

The lower layer of the atmosphere is the ____

Answer 43

homosphere

Question 44

Explain what the Coriolis effect is and why it occurs.

Answer 44

• The Coriolis effect is the way in which the earth’s rotation causes a change in the course of the winds.
• One factor that causes the Coriolis effect is inertia, the tendency for matter to stay at rest if at rest or to continue moving if in motion. Inertia makes an object tend to keep the same condition of motion with which it started out.
• Another factor that causes the Coriolis effect is that objects on the earth’s rotating surface travel at different speeds depending on their distance from the axis.
• The combined effect of these two factors causes an apparent shift in the earth’s winds as they move north and south.