Test 8, Chapter 8 Flashcards
considered a high-level cloud.
cirrostratus
considered a mid-level cloud.
nimbostratus
cooling air becomes saturated at a temperature called the
dew point
what type of drought occurs when precipitation cannot supply enough moisture to the ground to support an area’s crops?
agricultural drought
what type of drought is based on a water shortage’s effect on people?
socioeconomic drought
which type of cloud forms a flat, gray layer of heavy clouds not far above the ground?
stratus
which type of front forms when a warm air mass moves into a region occupied by a cold air mass
warm front
which type of front forms a Y shape
occluded front
precipitation made of ice crystals that fall to the ground is called
snow
which type of air mass brings cool, wet weather
maritime polar
which type of air mass brings warm, moist weather
maritime tropical
the process of a liquid becoming a gas is
evaporation
when the temperature of air rises, relative humidity will
decrease
the year-round atmospheric conditions typical of a certain place are its
climate
the movement of water from the earth’s surface, into the air, and back to the surface is the ____ cycle.
water
an almond-shaped cloud is a
lenticular cloud
An ____ air mass brings very cold and dry weather
arctic
a low that forms along a front is called a
frontal cyclone
which type of front forms when two air masses push against each other but neither advances?
stationary
what is a mixture of smoke and fog called
smog
what is the amount of water vapor in the air called
humidity
what phenomenon occurs when an area receives an abnormally low amount of precipitation over a long period
drought
what is rain that freezes before it hits the ground
sleet
what is the study of weather and of the atmospheric conditions that produce weather
meteorology
what phenomenon occurs when an air mass remains stationary over a region for a long time
air-mass weather
list the 3 factors that affect the density of an air mass
temperature, humidity, pressure
a substance going from a solid to a liquid is
melting
water vapor in the air that touches the ground and turns to ice is
frost
water vapor in the air that touches the cooler ground and turns to a liquid is
dew
ice crystals in clouds that grow large enough to fall to the ground are
snowflakes
layered balls of ice are called
hailstones
white, billowy clouds that resemble piles of cotton puffs are
cumulus
what type of fog is found along the slopes of mountains
upslope fog
drops of liquid water that have a diameter of 0.5 millimeter or greater and fall from the clouds to Earth are called
rain
snowflakes with white, feathery branches forming a leaf-or star-shaped pattern are
dendrites
air that is completely full of water vapor and can hold no more is considered
saturated
the most frequent type of cloud is the
stratocumulus
Which of the following is true?
A cloud forms when a body of rising air reaches the dew point.
Clouds consist of tiny ice crystals or droplets of liquid water.
Most clouds result from adiabatic cooling of moist air.
all of them are true
The ratio comparing the actual humidity to the humidity of saturated air under the same conditions is
relative humidity
A large body of air with relatively uniform properties is an
air mass
Airborne water vapor cannot turn into liquid without a small particle called a
condensation nucleus
The 3 major factors that determine the earth’s weather are
heat energy, uneven distribution of heat energy, and water vapor
A thick, brownish haze that results from complex molecules released into the air by vehicles and some factories and plants is
photochemical smog
List & explain the 2 processes that form rain.
Bergeron process (cold-cloud) - water vapor in portions of a cloud below freezing crystallizes around freezing nuclei. The ice crystals absorb water vapor from the cloud and stick to each othr, growing large enough to be snowflakes. The snowflakes fall through the cloud, melting in warmer air near the ground to form rain. Collision-coalescence process - larger-than-normal condensation nuclei in regions of the cloud above freezing cause the formation of giant cloud droplets, which grow larger by colliding with smaller droplets. When they become too big to remain suspended in the air, the droplets fall to the earth as rain.
