Weather & Climate Flashcards

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1
Q

What is climate?

A

Climate is the average cause or condition of the weather or a place usually over a period of years determined by temperature, wind velocity, and precipitation.

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2
Q

What is Atmosphere?

A

Atmosphere is the layer of air that surrounds the earth

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3
Q

What types of gases are in the atmosphere? Name all five.

A

Nitrogen, oxygen, argon, carbon dioxide, and hydrogen.

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4
Q

What gas is the most abundant in the atmosphere?

A

Nitrogen

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5
Q

What are the five layers of the atmosphere? In order from earth to space

A
Troposphere
Stratosphere
Mesosphere
Thermosphere
Exosphere
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6
Q

What happens as altitude increases?

A

Pressure decreases

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7
Q

What is the atmospheric pressure in sea level?

A

1000 millibars, or 1 atmosphere

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8
Q

Why is the atmosphere divided into 5 layers?

A

The atmosphere is not uniform, and its properties change with altitude.

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9
Q

What atmosphere is closest to the earth?

A

Troposphere

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10
Q

What is the height of the troposphere?

A

0 to 10 km

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11
Q

What are the characteristics of the troposphere? Name all 3

A

All weather occurs in that atmosphere, more than half the air is in the layer, and the temperature drops as the altitude increases.

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12
Q

What is the height of the stratosphere?

A

10-50 km

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13
Q

For the stratosphere, as the altitude increases, the temperature…

A

The temperature increases

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14
Q

Characteristics of Stratosphere, name the two

A

Protective ozone layer is above of this atmosphere, and rivers of air called jet streams can be found at the base of this layer

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15
Q

What is OZONE?

A

Ozone is a gaseous layer in the upper stratosphere that protects the Earth from harmful ultraviolet radiation. At lower levels, ozone becomes a major pollutant.

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16
Q

What is the symbol for Ozone?

A

O3

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17
Q

What is SMOG?

A

Pollution formed by the interaction of pollutants and sunlight (photochemical smog), usually restricting visibility, and occasionally hazardous to health.

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18
Q

What is the height for mesosphere?

A

50-90km

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19
Q

For the mesosphere, as the altitude increases, the temperature…

A

Decreases

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20
Q

Characteristics of the mesosphere, name 3

A

Coldest layer of the atmosphere, Meteors burn in this layer, radio waves reflected

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21
Q

Hieght of the thermosphere

A

90-300km

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22
Q

For the thermosphere, as the altitude increases, the temperature…

A

Increases

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23
Q

4 Characteristics of the themosphere

A

Hottest layer, auroras occur in this layer, ionosphere is found here which is the component that creates auroras

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24
Q

How do CFCs deplete the ozone layer?

A

It gets mixed with the lower atmosphere and keeps rising up, past the ozone layer, and UV light reacts with it. It creates O3 and chlorine destroys ozone molecules.

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25
Q

What products are responsible for damaging the ozone layer?

A

Pesticides, aerosol cans, refrigirators, ACs, fire fighting equipments, and solvents.

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26
Q

What are cirrus clouds?

A

Clouds that are high, wispy clouds made of ice. Even in the summer, these clouds are made of ice because it is cold high in the troposphere.

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27
Q

What does cirrus mean?

A

Curls

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28
Q

What are cumulus clouds?

A

Large clouds that sometimes looks like huge puffs of cotton. Sometimes, these clouds look like animals of familiar things at low to middle altitude.

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29
Q

What does cumulus mean?

A

Heap

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30
Q

What is weather?

A

Weather is the state of the atmosphere with respect to heat or cold, wetness or dryness, calm or storm, and clearness or cloudiness.

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31
Q

What are cumulonimbus clouds?

A

Cumulonimbus clouds often produce lighting and thunder. These clouds get dark gray and rain or hail falls from them.

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32
Q

What are stratus clouds?

A

Clouds that are made up of low layers of clouds that usually cover the whole sky and block out the sun. These clouds bring gray overcast days.

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33
Q

What does stratus mean?

A

Stretched out

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34
Q

Cirrus

A

High

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35
Q

Alto

A

Middle

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36
Q

Stratus

A

Low

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37
Q

What are warm fronts?

A

Warm air slides over departing cold or large bands of precipitation from. Cold air and warm air slide over each other, and cold air stays in the bottom and holds the ground because its denser.

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38
Q

What are cold fronts?

A

When cold air pushes under a warm air mass. Warm air rises quickly - narrow bands of violent storms form. Cold air pushes the warm air and does whatever it wants, and thunderstorms are more likely because it’s rapid.

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39
Q

How do cold fronts get diminished?

A

By thermal energy from the sun

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40
Q

What are occluded fronts?

A

Two air masses merge and face warm air between them to rise quickly. Strong winds and heavy precipitation will occur.

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41
Q

What are stationary fronts?

A

Warm or cold front STOPS MOVING. Light wind and precipitation may occur accros the front boundary.

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42
Q

What are tornadoes?

A

Tornadoes are a low pressure storm that usually from over land

43
Q

How many tornadoes are reported in the US?

A

In an average year, around 800 are reported.

44
Q

What are tornadoes defined as?

A

Tornadeos are defined as a violently rotating column of air extending from a thunderstorm from the ground. The roatating column is called the vortex.

45
Q

When is the vortex visible?

A

The vortex is only visible when debris and dirt gets carried away by the wind.

46
Q

When do tornadoes form?

A

Tornadoes form during summer and spring, from April to June at COLD FRONTS.

47
Q

Where do tornadoes form?

A

Tornadoes form in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Illinois, and parts of Florida. The border is the Rocky Mountains.

48
Q

What is the average mph for tornadoes?

A

10-20mph

49
Q

What is the average duration of tornadoes?

A

5 min.

50
Q

What natural disasters are not weather related?

A

Earthquakes and Tsunamis

51
Q

What is a WATCH?

A

Conditions are favorable for tornado to develop

52
Q

What is a WARNING?

A

Tornado has been spoted.

53
Q

What scale is used to classify tornadoes?

A

The Enhanced Fujita Scale

54
Q

What is EF-0?

A

Light damage, 65-85 mph, and can cause some damage to siding and shingles.

55
Q

What is F-1?

A

Moderate damage, 86-110 mph, considerable damage, but still repairable.

56
Q

What is an EF-2?

A

COnsiderable damage, 111-135 mph, single wide homes destroyed, can shift off foundation, softwood trees debarked, flagpoles collapse.

57
Q

What is an EF-3?

A

Severe damage, 136-165 mph, hardwood trees debarked, all but small portions of houses destroyed

58
Q

What is an EF-4?

A

Devastating damage, 166-200mph, complete destruction

59
Q

What is an EF-5?

A

Incredible damage, 200+ mph, significant damage.

60
Q

What are hurricanes?

A

Low pressure systems that form over warm, tropical waters near the equator.

61
Q

What latitude to hurricanes form in?

A

5-20 degrees north latitude, and they almost never occur in the south.

62
Q

What are hurricanes called in the atlantic?

A

Hurricanes

63
Q

What are hurricanes called in the Pacific?

A

Typhoons

64
Q

What are hurricanes called in the Indian Ocean?

A

Cyclones

65
Q

What is the average of hurricanes?

A

350 miles across

66
Q

What is the lowest barometric pressure ever recorded with any storm?

A

950 mb

67
Q

What creates rapid, inward spiraling of winds in a hurricane?

A

Huge air pressure difference

68
Q

When do hurricanes die down?

A

When it travels over land or cold water

69
Q

When is hurricane season?

A

Fall, June-November

70
Q

Where do winds begin in fronts?

A

High pressure and ends at low pressure

71
Q

What controls wind?

A

Pressure

72
Q

Low pressure equals…

A

Precipitation and cloud cover

73
Q

What number do isobars go by?

A

4

74
Q

How do you find barometric pressure in millibars?

A

Look at the first digit.IF that number is 4 or less, put a ten in front and put a decimal point before the last digit.
IF the first number is 6 or more, then put a 9 in front and put a decimal point before the last digit.

75
Q

How do you graph isotherms?

A

By 10s

76
Q

What is a thermometer?

A

A thermometer takes the average thermal energy

76
Q

What is a barometer?

A

A barometer takes pressure

76
Q

What is a doppler radar?

A

A doppler radar records precipitation

76
Q

What is a weather buoy weather balloon?

A

It takes datat from the atmosphere

76
Q

What is a hygrometer/psychometer

A

Measures water vapor of the atmosphere

77
Q

What is an anemometer?

A

It measures wind speed

78
Q

What is a rain gauge?

A

A rain gauge is a type of instrument which is used to gather and measure the amount of liquid precipitation over a period of time

79
Q

What is a wind vane?

A

Measures direction of wind

80
Q

What is a wind sock?

A

A windsock is used to indicate wind direction and relative wind speed.

81
Q

What is a weather satellite?

A

It is used to monitor the weather and climate of the earth.

82
Q

What is evaporation?

A

Evaporation is when water evaporates from the surface into vapor

83
Q

What is condensation?

A

Condensation is when vapor condensates into small droplets of water and/or ice

84
Q

What is precipitation?

A

When water, hail, sleet, or ice fall to the surface.

85
Q

What is runoff

A

Water which runs along the surface into a collection of other water

86
Q

Groundwater?

A

Water found beneath earth’s surface

87
Q

What is the Coriolis effect?

A

When storm swirls clockwise in the southern hemisphere, but counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere

88
Q

What is humidity?

A

The amount of water vapor in the atmosphere?

89
Q

What are isotherms?

A

A line on a map that connects points with the same range of temperature at a given time

90
Q

What are isobars?

A

A line on a map that connects points with same atmospheric pressure at a given time

91
Q

What is the cause of global warming?

A

Carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel

92
Q

What is extreme weather caused by?

A

Global warming

93
Q

What is maritime?

A

Coming from ocean, humid, low pressure

94
Q

What is Polar?

A

Cold, coming from the poles high pressure

95
Q

What is tropical?

A

Warm, coming from equatorial region, low pressure

96
Q

What is continental?

A

Coming from land, dry, high pressure

97
Q

What types of extreme weather are there?

A

Blizzard, Tropical storms, hurricane, and tornado

98
Q

When a large and a rapidly moving cold air mass runs into a slow moving warm air mass, the result is a/an _______________.

A

Cold Front

99
Q

When air pressure rapidly falls or decreases to 29 inches, what weather change usually occurs?

A

Thunderstorm