Weather And Climate

Question 1

What is weather

Answer 1

The state of the troposphere at a given place and time

Question 2

What is climate

Answer 2

The expected pattern of weather in a region over an average year

Question 3

What is a thermometer

Answer 3

The instrument used to measure temperature (C)

Question 4

What is a barometer

Answer 4

The instrument used to measure air pressure (millibars)

Question 5

What is an anemometer

Answer 5

The instrument used to measure wind speed (knots, km/h)

Question 6

What is a wind vane

Answer 6

The instrument used to measure the wind direction (compass, degrees)

Question 7

What is a rain gauge

Answer 7

The instrument used to measure precipitation (mm)

Question 8

What is used to measure visibility

Answer 8

Visibility meter (km)
How far ahead we can see

Question 9

What are some of the elements of weather

Answer 9

Temperature
Precipitation
Relative humidity
Cloud cover
Wind speed/ direction
Visibility
Pressure
Sunlight hours
Lightning
UV index
Pollution index

Question 10

what is air pressure

Answer 10

the weight of the air

Question 11

Why are there two containers in the rain gauge

Answer 11

To prevent evaporation in the inner container. The air space between the containers insulates

Question 12

Which container has the scale to measure the rainfall

Answer 12

The inner container

Question 13

Why is there a funnel in the rain gauge

Answer 13

It directs rain to the inner container and it reduces evaporation. The top or lip of the funnel should be a strong sharp edge, to have an exact collecting area at the top of the gauge.

Question 14

why is cold air heavier

Answer 14

because the molecules are closer together therefore denser

Question 15

what is specific heat capacity

Answer 15

the amount of energy required to raise one gram of a substance by 1C

Question 16

what are the three types of rainfall

Answer 16

convectional rainfall
relief rainfall
frontal rainfall

Question 17

describe convectional rainfall

Answer 17

• energy from the sun heats the ground
• the warm ground heats a shallow layer of the air above. moisture on the ground is evaporated
• warm, moist pockets of air (convection currents) rise rapidly
• raising air cools, condenses and forms clouds
• precipitation occurs

Question 18

describe relief rainfall

Answer 18

• warm moist air from the Atlantic Ocean rises up over mountains
• warm air rises, it cools and condenses to form clouds
• precipitation occurs
• once the air has passed over the mountains, it descends and warms. This creates drier conditions known as a rain shadow

Question 19

describe frontal rainfall

Answer 19

• cold air meets warm air in a ‘weather front’
• warm air rises, so when it bumps into the cold air, it rises above it
• it eventually cools and forms clouds
• precipitation occurs

Question 20

what is windward side

Answer 20

the side of the mountain when the wind hits

Question 21

what is leeward side

Answer 21

the side of the mountain away from the wind

Question 22

what is a front

Answer 22

a boundary between warm and cold air

Question 23

why are there sand dunes in hot deserts

Answer 23

A desert is a ‘‘deserted’’ place. A ‘‘hot’’ desert is a tropical desert. It is acid, which means it has a maximum of 250mm of precipitation per year. There are no clouds so it gets very hot during the day and very cold during the night. Rocks expand and contract every day causing gradual disintegration.

eg Sahara desert

Question 24

why are deserts around the tropics

Answer 24

During the day the Equator absorbs a lot of heat and the air warms up. The hot air rises, containing the water vapour. As it rises, it cools and diverges as it drops on the side of the Tropics. This removes all the moisture in the air. Making the deserts hot.

Question 25

what are the 4 layers of an ERF

Answer 25

at 40m height= emergents
at 30m height= canopy
at 15m height= under-canopy
at 0-5m height= shrub layer

Question 26

characteristics of ERF

Answer 26

• over 2000mm of precipitation
• low range of temperature 26-28C
• no seasons, hot and wet year round
• high humidity, 75-80%

eg. amazon in south America, new guinea, south-east Asia, Zaire basin

Question 27

reasons of deforestation

Answer 27

• land for industry
• government
• land for agriculture
• land for settlements
• hydroelectric power reservoirs
• timber
• kapok stuffing
• paper
• roads/ transport

Question 28

deforestation leads to

Answer 28

• less O2 and more CO2
• global warming
• less translocation
• drought
• erosion
• fires