Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

Science 1206 > Weather Dynamics > Flashcards

Weather Dynamics Flashcards

You may prefer our related Brainscape-certified flashcards:
Biology 101 flashcards
1
Q

What factors affect our weather patterns(global and local)?

A 
Global
-global warming
-ocean currents
-air masses 
- seasons/angle of sunlight
-earths rotation
-latitude 
longitude
-air pressure
Local 
Elevation/topography 
-prolixity to water
-distance inland
-vegetation
-cloud cover
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

Weather dynamics

A

The study of how water and air cause weather patterns

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

Weather
Versus
Climate

A

Weather-the short range forecast, daily patterns

Climate- long term seasonal trends averaged from annual data

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

Atmosphere

A

Air

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

Hydrosphere

A

All the water

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

Lithosphere/geosphere

A

Earth

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

Geography

A

The study of oceans, continents, countries, ocean currents ,& air currents

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

Longitude

A

Vertical lines on maps/globes that show our position East or West of the Prime Meridian

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

Latitude

A

Horizontal lines on the maps/globes that show our position North or South of the equator

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

Arctic circle

A

66.5 North, most northern latitude to receive Sun rays on December 21st

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

Antarctic Circle

A

66.5 S, lost Southern latitude to receive suns rays on June 21st

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

Tropic of Cancer

A

23.5N, most Northern latitude to receive Sun’s vertical rays on June 21st

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

Tropic of Capricorn

A

23.5 S, most Southern latitude to receive the Sun’s vertical Rays on December 21st

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

Tell the three global regions

A

Polar region- area between the Arctic circle line & North Pole & Antarctic Circle and South Pole

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

Midlatitude Region

A

Area between the circle lines and the tropics lines

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

Tropical region

A

Area between the two Tropic lines

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

Radiation

A

The transfer of energy in the form of waves
-this type of energy can travel through a vacuum(empty space) as opposed to through a medium (solid, liquid, gas).
Examples of radiation include UV, visible light, gamma rays

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

Electromagnetic spectrum

A

The complete set of radiation waves that can travel through empty space

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

Conduction

A

The transfer of energy through the collision of particles through solids
Occurs in conductive materials (ex. Metals)
Small role in weather, bigger role in surface heating

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

Convection

A

The transfers of the energy by the vertical movement of particles in fluids(liquids or gases)
Fluids are considered liquids or gases
-important for weather patterns

21
Q

Advection

A

The transfer of energy by horizontal movement of particles in fluids
Important for weather patterns

22
Q

The albedo effect

A

Refers to albedo= an objects ability to reflect light
Light coloured objects have a high albedo
Dark coloured objects have a low albedo

23
Q

Heat sink

A

Any object or material that absorbs energy and becomes warmer
A good heat sink is one that heats up slowly absorbing a large amount of heat before it heats up (such as water)
A poor heat sink is one that increases its temperature quickly when exposed to even a small amount of heat, but it loses heat just as quickly such as what happened with rocks, soils, or sand

24
Q

Heat capacity

A

A measure of the amount of heat energy required to raise the temperature of a substance by 1degree Celisus
Water= high heat capacity, meaning needs to absorb a lot of heat to increase in temperature
Metals = low heat capacity, increase temp quickly with relatively small amount of heat

25
Q

Some notes

A

The earth rotates on its axis in a COUNTERCLOCKWISE direction

  • the earth orbits around the sun elliptically and is titled at an angle of 23.5
  • the earths orbit around the sun takes approximately 365.25 days
  • changes in the intensity of the suns Rays due to the daily and annual rotations gives us seasons
26
Q

Solstice

A

Points when the poles are titled at their maximum toward or away from the sun

27
Q

Equinox

A

Sun’s Rays stele Earth surface directly at Equator

Day and night of roughly equal length everywhere on earth

28
Q

Summer solstice

A

Northern hemisphere at maximum tilt toward sun, June 21st is the longest day of the year

29
Q

Winter solstice

A

Northern hemisphere at maximum tilt away from the sun, December 21st is the shortest day of the year

30
Q

Vernal Equinox ( Spring Equinox)

A

Marks the first day of Spring in the Northern Hemisphere( around March 21st

31
Q

Autumnal Equinox

A

Marks the first day of fall in the northern hemisphere (around September 21)

32
Q

Atmosphere

A

The blanket of air and water vapour that surrounds the earth
- it is 500km thick 78% N, 21% O and some trace elements ( H20, Ar, CO2)

33
Q

What are the layers of the atmosphere

A

Troposphere
- 8-16 km altitude, Mayer closest to earths surface- this layer is the most dense,meaning it contains the most particles. Weather occurs in this layer. Temperature ranges from 20to -50 degrees C- the tropopause is on the upper end of this layer

Stratosphere
16-50km altitude
- very dry temperature average is 10 degrees C

Exosphere
Outer layer converging with space
Thin layer made up mostly of H and He particles
- this layer contains ozone, responsible for absorbing UV radiation from the Sun,supersonic jets fly in this layer

Mesosphere
50-80 altitude
Temperature average is -75 degrees C

Thermosphere
80-500km altitude
Temperature average is 30 degrees Celsius
Molecules and ions have high energy bc they are absorbing powerful waves from the sun
On earth, we can see the Aurora Borealis in the Northern Hemisphere and the Aurora Australis in the Southern Hemispehere

34
Q

Auroras

A

The sun ejects ionized particles into space that travel to the earth. Earths magnetic field deflects these particles toward the poles, creating massive magnetic storms. The vibrate and when they return to the original state, light is emitted

35
Q

How does the atmosphere support life?

A
  • molecules such as O2,N2,H20,CO2 needed to support life processes
  • ozone(O3) needed to absorb harmful UV Rays
  • water cycle necessary to replenish water in atmosphere, land, water bodies
  • protection from meteors
  • maintenance of ideal temperature
  • moves energy around the earth
36
Q

Atmospheric pressure

A

The pressure that air particles exert as gravity pulls them toward the centre of the earth.
Air pressure is greatest at sea level where the air is most sense
- air pressure decreases with altitude

37
Q

Pressure gradient

A
  • a factor that affects air pressure whether air is rising or falling
  • pressure gradient is a measure of these changes in air pressure over set distance
  • pressure gradients can be vertical or horizontal
38
Q

Why is the study of weather important to our lives

A
  • planning ahead(being prepared)(ex for travel, recreational activity, work)
  • safety and engineering( ex creating weather resistant structures)
  • economy( ex careers in meteorology & sciences)
  • science( researching weather patterns and interactions
39
Q

horizontal pressure gradients

A

horizontal pressure gradients can be shown on a map by joining points of equal atmospheric pressure in concentric”circles”.
-they can be used to predict high and low pressure areas and direction and strength of winds

low wind speed= lines far apart
high wind speed= lines close together

40
Q

barometer

A

(aneroid barometer) measures air pressure. Air pressure is measured in kilo pascals( note 1kPa = 1000 Pa)
low pressure system = less than 101.3 kPa and is a sign of poor weather
high pressure system = greater than 101.3 kPa and is a sign of good weather
& normal pressure system = 101.3 kPa

41
Q

wind

A

the movement of air in the atmosphere
some winds are local(occurring in fairly small regions),others are prevailing( affecting larger regions around the world)

42
Q

The coriolis effect

A

the change of direction of a moving object in a constantly rotating system.The rotation of the earth deflects moving air and water to the right of its initial direction in the Northern Hemisphere(opposite in the southern hemisphere)

43
Q

what are the prevailing winds in the northern hemisphere

A

-these winds help distribute energy and moisture around the globe

the prevailing winds are the

  • Polar Easterlies ( Cold easterly winds that blow from the poles to 60 degrees)
  • Mid Latitude Westerlies (warm,moist winds that blow from the west, NL is affected by these)
  • North Trade Winds ( winds that blow toward the Equator)
44
Q

jet streams

A
  • fast moving rivers of air that race across the high altitude sky,sometimes at speeds as high as 400km/h
  • occur about 7000m up in the upper regions of the troposphere.
  • they consist mostly of westerly winds and are caused by strong differences in pressure and temperature
  • air at the equator is thicker and moves from high to low
  • jets streams can be thousands of miles long ,hundreds of miles wide,but only a mile of so deep.
  • pilots can reduce flight time by hitching a ride on a jet stream
  • long lines of clouds often indicate the presence of a jet stream

( note: when the jet stream is above us NL has warmer weather, and when the jet stream is below NL, we have colder weather

45
Q

the water cycle

A

(aka the hydro logical cycle )
Water is cycled through the air,land and water bodies
the important processes in the water cycle aree
-Evaporation(liquid to gas)
-Condensation(gas to liquid)
-transpiration( evaporation from leaves of plants)
-sublimation- solid to gas
-deposition-gas to solid
-infiltration- water seeps into the ground
-precipitation-rain,snow,hail,sleet

46
Q

what causes ocean currents?

A 
convection currents
winds across oceans
earths rotation 
shape of the continents
heat capacity of water
amount of salt in oceans
47
Q

clouds

A

are a collection of water droplets that has become dense enough to be visible. Water evaporates and cools as it rises and condenses into clouds
- clouds are important indicators of weather patterns

48
Q

what are the three types of cloud formation

A
  1. Convection Clouds
    - form when warm air rises near heated surfaces on earth
    - as this warm air rises in heat,it expands and carries water vapour into the atmosphere
    - the water vapour cools in the upper atmosphere,forming a convection cloud
    - convection clouds are often “puffy”
  2. Orographic clouds
    - orthographic clouds result from warm,moist air ascending up a mountain forming cloud on the unwind slope as the temperature decreases
    - thus,the near side of the mountain has precipitation and the far side of the mountain is often dry.
  3. Frontal clouds
    - form when two air masses of different temperatures meet.
    - warm air masses generally are less dense and contain more moisture than cold air masses,thus when the two air masses meet the warmer one begins rising over, or being pushed upward and over
    - the rising air cools and condenses forming a frontal cloud
    - the leading edge where the two air masses meet is called a front
49
Q

naming clouds

A

BASED ON SHAPE

  • cumulus clouds ,”pile”, “heap”,referring to a tall cloud
  • stratus clouds,from stratum or layer,referring to low level layered clouds

BASED ON PRECIPITATION
-Nimbus clouds,form the term meaning “rain”,referring to rain bearing clouds

BASED ON ALTITUDE

  • Low level(0-2000) : No prefix
  • Medium level ( 2000-5000: Alto
  • High level ( 5000m+): Cirrus

Science 1206 (5 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2024 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions