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Physical Geography > Unit 2: Chapters 5, 6, 7 > Flashcards

Unit 2: Chapters 5, 6, 7 Flashcards

Q's 1 - 86 are from the study guide. 87 - 115 are from the first video sheet and 116 - 134 are from the second video sheet. Let's get A's!

1
Q

What is standard atmospheric pressure?

A

14.7 lbs per square inch

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2
Q

What are the four ways standard atmospheric pressure can be expressed?

A

14.7 lbs per square inch
1013.25 millibars / hectopascals
101.325 kilopascal
?

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3
Q

How is pressure gradient calculated?

A

It is the relative closeness of isobars, indicating the horizontal rate of pressure change; the slope

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4
Q

What is an isobar?

A

lines of equal pressure

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5
Q

What is the coriolis effect?

A

deflection acts at 90 degrees from the direction of movement – to the right in the Northern Hemisphere and the left in the Southern Hemisphere.

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6
Q

How does coriolis force affect circulation around Northern Hemisphere High Pressure?

A

circulates clockwise

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7
Q

How does coriolis force affect circulation around Northern Hemisphere Low Pressure?

A

circulates counterclockwise

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8
Q

How does coriolis force affect circulation around Southern Hemisphere High Pressure?

A

circulates counterclockwise

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9
Q

How does coriolis force affect circulation around Southern Hemisphere Low Pressure?

A

circulates clockwise

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10
Q

Where on earth is there no coriolis effect?

A

The Equator

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11
Q

Be able to locate the position of the major wind and pressure belts that make up global circulation.

A 
from top to bottom:
polar high 
polar easterlies
polar low
westerlies
subtropical high
trade winds
equatorial low
trade winds
subtropical high
westerlies
polar low
polar easterlies
polar high
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12
Q

Name the pressure belts and wind systems starting at the North Pole and working towards the South Pole.

A 
polar high 
polar easterlies
polar low
westerlies
subtropical high
trade winds
equatorial low
trade winds
subtropical high
westerlies
polar low
polar easterlies
polar high
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13
Q

How do pressure gradients affect the strength of the wind?

A

Closer isobars = stronger winds. Pressure of high to low creates wind

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14
Q

What causes monsoons?

A

Winter shift in intertropical convergence zone produces shift in trade winds location

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15
Q

Why is it dry in India and SE Asia during the winter?

A

thermally induced systems, outblowing dry

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16
Q

Why is it very wet in India and SE Asia during the summer?

A

monsoons

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17
Q

Be able to explain the cause of land breezes.

A

Nocturnal cooling over the land causes high air pressure there, a condition that creates an offshore flow of air.

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18
Q

Be able to explain the cause of sea breezes.

A

Land rapidly heats during the day, heating the air above. Air expands and rises, creating low pressure that attracts surface breezes from over the adjacent water body.

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19
Q

Be able to explain the cause of mountain breezes.

A

at night, the heat is quickly los from the face of the slope and cooled air flows downwards

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20
Q

Be able to explain the cause of valley breezes

A

warned air rises, creating a low-pressure cell and cooler air flows into the low pressure area

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21
Q

What is a katabatic wind?

A

spilling of air downslope, originate in cold upland areas and cascade toward lower elevations under the influence of gravity
ex. antarctica whipping winds off of icy cliffs

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22
Q

What is a Santa Anas wind?

A

high speeds, high temp, extreme dryness

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23
Q

What is the hydrolic cycle?

A

evaopration, condensation, precipitation

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24
Q

Know how temperature affects evaporation

A

high temp = high evaporation

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25
Know how humidity affects evaporation
warm air prompts evaporation
26
Know how turbulence affects evaporation
more wind = more evaporation
27
Be able to define absolute humidity
mass of water vapor in a g / m^3
28
Be able to define specific humidity
amount of water vapor per unit weight of air
29
Be able to define relative humidity
how dense air is, how filled is the air with water vapor. water vapor / water vapor capacity
30
Define the relationship between temperature and holding capacity for water vapor in the atmosphere
an inverse relationship as temperature increases the capacity decreases
31
As temperature increases, what happens to the holding capacity of the atmosphere?
warmer temperatures = increasing holding capacity
32
What does the saturation curve indicate?
as temperature increases, so does holding capacity
33
How does the relative humidity change with regard to daily changes in temperature?
as temperature increases, relative humidity increases
34
How is relative humidity computed?
( actual water vapor / capacity ) x 100
35
What information is needed in order to calculate relative humidity?
actual water vapor and capacity
36
What is meant by Condensation level?
altitude by which condensation begins
37
What is meant Dew Point?
temperature at which water droplets begin to form
38
What is an air mass?
a large, variable parcel of air that is distinct from others.
39
Know the origin and characteristics of a cT air mass
continental tropical - hot and dry
40
Know the origin and characteristics of a mT air mass
maritime tropical - hot and wet
41
Know the origin and characteristics of a cP air mass
continental polar - cold and dry
42
Know the origin and characteristics of a mP air mass
maritime polar - cold and wet
43
Know the origin and characteristics of a A air mass
arctic - cold and dry
44
What is albedo?
rate at which light is reflected
45
Be able to describe the characteristics of a warm front
warm air ascends over cold air with temperature decreasing as air rises
46
Be able to describe the characteristics of a cold front
advancing cold air, lower portion moves slower than upper portion
47
Be able to describe the characteristics of an occluded front
2 cold air masses meet and push warm air up
48
Be able to describe the characteristics of a stationary front
no precipitation neutral front - no displacement
49
Be able to diagram a typical mid-latitude cyclone with associated air masses and fronts
circular air masses, warm air rises from southeast, cold air comes from south and northeast and north and west
50
Be able to identify in a mid-latitude cyclone the warm sector
Approaching from the east, into occluded front
51
Be able to identify in a mid-latitude cyclone the cold air
Approaches from the west, completes circle
52
Be able to identify in a mid-latitude cyclone the cool air
Approaches from the North East
53
Be able to identify in a mid-latitude cyclone the area of low pressure
------------------------------------------------------
54
Be able to identify the circulation pattern around a N.H. High pressure cell.
right
55
Be able to identify the circulation pattern around a S.H. High pressure cell.
left
56
Be able to identify the circulation pattern around a N.H. Low pressure cell.
left
57
Be able to identify the circulation pattern around a S.H. Low pressure cell.
right
58
Be able to characterize the general circulation within a mid latitude cyclone in the Northern Hemisphere.
Moves west to east, counterclockwise. | Warm front advances, cold front advances even faster than warm front
59
Be able to describe the general prevailing direction of movement of a mid latitude cyclone in the Northern Hemisphere.
west to east
60
Be able to characterize the typical life cycle of a mid latitude cyclone in the Northern Hemisphere.
cold and warm front meet, going opposite directions, warm front shifts, pushing the cold front to fill the spaces and complete a circle. Both fronts combine: occluded front.
61
Be able to explain how hurricanes develop.
low pressure in trade wind flow
62
What causes hurricanes to intensify?
warming water, updrafts suck in more
63
What causes hurricanes to weaken?
land masses, cooling
64
What is the primary season for hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean?
June 1st to November 30th
65
Why do hurricanes weaken as they draw near the equator?
there's no coriolis effect
66
In what general latitudes are easterly waves found?
Between 5 and 30 degrees latitude.
67
Be able to describe the weather associated with an easterly wave?
cloudiness and thunderstorms
68
What area of the world has the most tornadoes?
Tornado Alley, US
69
Where is “tornado alley” located in the U.S.?
between the Rocky and Appalachian mountains
70
What is the most active season for tornadoes in this region?
Spring
71
What month of the year is the peak hurricane season for the U.S.?
May
72
What is the World’s highest wind speed record?
231 mph
73

| Where was World’s highest wind speed recorded?

| Mount Washington, New Hampshire

74
What is radiational cooling?
The loss of heat from the surface of the earth into the atmosphere.
75
Where does it usually get coldest at night in hilly regions?
------------------------------------------------------
76
What direction do High Pressure systems rotate in the Northern Hemisphere?
------------------------------------------------------
77
What direction do Low Pressure systems rotate in the Northern Hemisphere?
------------------------------------------------------
78
What direction do High Pressure systems rotate in the Southern Hemisphere?
------------------------------------------------------
79

| What direction do Low Pressure systems rotate in the Southern Hemisphere?

| clockwise

80
Why does rising air usually result in low pressure at the surface?
The low pressure fills the open space as warm air rises
81
Why does sinking air usually result in high pressure at the surface?
warmer air causes more pressure, so the it is pushing the cold / low pressure out
82
What is the Hydrologic Cycle?
evaporation, condensation, precipitation
83
Why don’t hurricanes ever cross the equator?
the coriolis effect doesn't exist at the equator, so hurricanes dissapate
84
How does hail form?
in a cumulonimbus cloud as a result of great instability and strong vertical air currents. Lower part must be warmer than freezing, while the upper part is below freezing.
85
What occurs in a thunderstorm to cause lightning?
negative charge attracts positive charge to earth's surface
86
World-wide, why does more evaporation occur over water than over land?
water covers more surface than land?
87
Where was the world's highest wind speed recorded?
Mt. Washington, NH
88
How fast was the record highest wind?
231 mph
89
Where is the world's highest average wind speed?
Coast of Antarctica
90
How fast is the world's highest average wind speed?
40 mph
91
Where is the iciest place on earth?
Antarctica
92
What percentage of the world's fresh water is held in the ice of Antarctica?
more than 90%
93
Where is the Coldest place on earth?
Vostok, Russia
94

| What was the record temperature set in Vostok on August 24th, 1960?

| -126.9 degrees F

95
What is the average annual precipitation in Antarctica?
5 inches of ice
96
Where in the northeast U.S. did one of the worst blizzards on record occur?
New York
97
What was the date of the New York blizzard, classified as one of the worst on record?
March 11, 1888
98
Where on earth do the greatest annual number of thunderstorms occur?
Australia / Indonesia
99
On average, how many days of the year do thunderstorms occur in Australia and Indonesia?
322
100
Where is "lightening alley" in the U.S.?
Florida
101
Where and what date did the world's largest hailstone fall?
Coffee Hill, Kansas on September 3, 1970
102
In 1974, how many tornadoes were counted during a "super outbreak" of tornadoes in the central U.S.?
148
103
Prior to Katrina, what hurricane was the costliest hurricane in American history?
Andrew in 1992
104
What U.S. city suffered the greatest loss of life from a hurricane?
Galveston, Texas
105

| On what date did the hurricane hit Galveston, Texas?

| September 8th, 1900

106
Where and how hot was the hottest air temperature recorded?
The Sahara Desert - 136 degrees F in the shade
107
The highest sustained temperature was recorded over a four hour period in Death Valley. What was the temperature?
134 degrees F
108
What was the greatest rate of evaporation in Death Valley? (This is voer a year, not 24 hours). How much was evaporated
150 inches
109
Where is the driest place on earth?
Atacama Desert, Chile
110
How much precipitation per century occurs in the driest place on earth?
1 inch per 100 years.
111
Where is the world's foggiest place?
Newfoundland
112
On average, how many days of fog does Newfoundland receive annually?
206
113
On average, how much rain does Mt. Waialeale, Kauai receive each year?
39 feet, 11 inches, which dropped by 2.5 feet
114
What place in India holds the world record fror the rainiest year on record?
Cherrapunjee (Meghalaya)
115
How much rainfall was received during this record setting year of 1861?
72 feet 8 inches in 6 months, 86 feet 9 inches in 1 year
116
Where is the driest place on earth?
Atacama Desert, Chile
117
How large is the Atacama Desert?
600 miles by 100 miles, which is the size of Iowa
118
What is the average rainfall per year in the Atacama Desert?
less than 1 mm per year, 3/100ths of an inch per year
119
What key latitude passes through the driest desert
Tropic of Capricorn
120
What is the single most important clue to the development of the Atacama desert?
Bend of boulders - gypsom
121
How old is the desert based on dating a special rock layer?
150 million years old
122
What was the Atacama Desert before it became a desert?
a seabed
123
What does the geyser field around El Tatio indicate?
a body of hot rock underneath El Tatio
124
What was responsible for the building of the mountains that surround the desert?
pacific plate forcing itself beneath South America
125
Chiquicamata is the world's largest...
open pit copper mine
126
What cold ocean current contributes to the dryness of the desert?
humbolt current
127
How cold is the water in the Humbolt current?
55 degrees F
128
How does the cold current interact with the hot descending air to form a temperature inversion?
The hot air keeps cold air down
129
What does helium 3 indicate about the rocks found in the Quebrada Aroma region of the desert?
the longer the rock has been exposed to cosmic and solar radiation
130
When did the Andes Mountains get high enough to create a rain shadow effect that blocked virtually all of the moisture that could come from the east?
10 million years ago
131
What was found at Guanaqueros that challenged the thinking that the desert had been a desert for millions of years?
tools several ancient civilizations sustained
132
Dr. Claudio Latorre discovered what critical piece of evidence that showed that parts of the desert (Guanaqueros) had been wet as recently as 11,000 years ago?
Wetland-freshwater microscopic organisms
133
Where did the water come from and why didn't it cover all of the desert (Guanaqueros)?
heavy rain from the Andes
134
What discovery by Dr. Alfonso Davila has lead NASA to use this region (Guanaqueros) as a test area for the discovery of life on mars?
2005 - bacterial life in rocks
135
What type of atmospheric condition provides the fastest radiational cooling?
Clear sky's, low humidity - these mean rapid radiational cooling

Physical Geography (5 decks)

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