Unit 6

Question 1

Temperature of the Troposphere?

Answer 1

 Temperature drops with height

 The surface is heat source meaning that the higher you go, the farther from the heat source

Question 2

Average Tropospheric Lapse Rate

Answer 2

6.5 Celsius per 1 km (3.5 F per 1000 ft)

“Average”- taking all locations at all different times of day to get the temperature

Question 3

Environmental Lapse Rate (ELR)

Answer 3

actual lapse rate at a given time and place

Question 4

Radiosonde/Rawinsonde

Answer 4

meteorological instruments are attached to balloons to measure ELR… Radio-gets wind while rawinsonde does not
-Cons: balloon can pop/never make it to the top of troposphere, or wind can move the balloon from place of measurement

Question 5

Parcel Theory

Answer 5

• explains how we get clouds/rain

- compare environmental lapse rate to that of an air parcel

Question 6

Air Parcel

Answer 6

theoretical bubble of air; poor conductor of heat

Question 7

Adiabatic

Answer 7

no exchange of heat

Question 8

when an air parcel rises…

Answer 8

it is going to EXPAND (as it rises, it expands and must use some energy to grow) & COOL

Question 9

when an air parcel sinks…

Answer 9

it COMPRESSES, and work is being done by the environment. This causes the temperature to INCREASE

Question 10

Dry adiabatic Lapse rate (DALR):

Answer 10

This lapse rate will be a constant number; 10 C per 1 km

Question 11

Saturated Adiabatic Lapse Rate (SALR)

Answer 11

This lapse rate is not a constant number

• <10 C per 1 Km
• Do NOT cool off as quickly as DALR

Question 12

Latent Heat

Answer 12

heat with a phase change; reason why SALR does not cool off as quickly as DALR

Question 13

Questions to ask…

Answer 13

• What am I looking at?
  
  • Which is cooling fast? (Environment or air parcel)
  • At the given height, will the parcel be warmer or colder?
  • Would the parcel be more dense or less dense than the environment?
  • Would the parcel rise or sink?
  • Is it stable or unstable?
  • What is the weather? Stable= blue skies

Question 14

Stable

Answer 14

parcel is cooling faster; the parcel is colder; dense; sinking

Question 15

Unstable

Answer 15

environment is cooling faster; the parcel is warmer; less dense; parcel will rise

Question 16

Conditionally unstable

Answer 16

If parcel is dry- environment is stable; If parcel is saturated- environment is unstable

Question 17

if the ELR is cooling/heating faster than both the DALR and SALR…

Answer 17

then it is NOT conditional

• ELR>DALR
• ELR

Question 18

As a parcel rises….

Answer 18

it passes the lifting condensation level and begins to measure through SALR; the water droplets it begins to spit out are the clouds which are built vertically

Question 19

dew point

Answer 19

is the temperature at which a cloud begins to form or switch from DALR to SALR

Question 20

Why do clouds stop building as they rise?

Answer 20

stop building once they encounter the tropopause because in the stratosphere temperature begins to rise

Question 21

when you skink parcel back to surface…

Answer 21

you use DALR and multiply by number of km object will drop. Then you add this temperature to the highest rise point

Question 22

temperature and height have what type of relationship?

Answer 22

direct; increasing temperature with height in environment