weather quiz Flashcards
water cycle
Liquid water evaporates into the air and becomes water vapor, condenses into liquid water, falls back down as precipitation
humidity
the measure of the amount of water vapor in the air
relative humidity
the percentage of water vapor in the air compared to the maximum amount of water vapor that the air can hold
psychrometer
a tool that measures relative humidity by being spun around and seeing the temperature difference between the wet bulb and dry bulb because of water evaporating from the wet bulb
dew point
the temperature at which condensation begins
cirrus
thin, wispy clouds very high in the atmosphere- indicate good weather
cumulus
cottony clouds that form kinda close to the ground- cumulonimbus are cumulus clouds that are very tall and mean thunderstorms
stratus
flat layer clouds that cover the whole sky- dull gray color- nimbostratus produces drizzle, rain or snow
nimbo
clouds that produce precipitation
evapotranspiration
plants opening up their pores and releasing water
precipitation
any form of water that falls from clouds and reaches Earth’s surface
freezing rain
raindrops fall as liquid, touch cold surface and freeze
snow
water vapor condenses to ice crystals when dew point is below freezing and fall as snow
sleet
raindrops fall through a layer of air below freezing and freeze
hail
ice pellets that are carried around in the air and gain a new layer of ice when it goes through a cold region
rain gauge
an open-ended tube that collects and measures rain
floods
an overflowing of water in a normally dry area
droughts
a long period of scarce rainfall or dry weather
maritime air mass
air mass that forms over oceans
continental air mass
air mass that forms over land
tropical air mass
warm air mass
polar air mass
cold air mass
cold front
cold air slides under warm air- heavy rain or snow, later brings cold, dry air
warm front
a fast, warm air mass passes over a slower, cold air mass- rain or clouds, later warm and humid
stationary front
opposite moving cold and warm air masses pass by each other- rain, snow, fog or clouds
occluded front
warm air mass is caught between 2 cold air masses, warm air mass is forced upwards- rain or snow
birth of a hurricane
- Intense equatorial sunshine
- Massive evaporation causes thunderstorms
- Intense convection takes place and creates T-storms
- T-storms organize and form squall line
- Squall lines turn into
a. Squall lines are long lines of storms, sometimes all the way across oceans - Squall line is altered (kink caused by outside weather forces)
- Low Air spins faster and faster
- Eye is created
life of a hurricane
Destroy many towns and cities, some hurricane paths are extremely unpredictable, will continue going until one of the following three ways slows it down, and eventually, stop it completely. The sun is the energy source. From there the sun energizes heat transfer, or convection, then a squall line.
death of a hurricane
- Cold water
- Land
- Cold (dry or wet) upper level winds
hurricane katrina
New Orleans has lake Pontchartrain to north, gulf to south, mississippi river running through
Katrina Moved slowly, winds went fast, this combo made for disaster
Superdome (football stadium) opened up for last act of shelter
10,000s decided to stay in New Orleans
Shifts to extremely rare Category 5 while on way to New Orleans
People did not follow through with promises, rescue teams never came, and many people died because of this. People got too scared off to help the others in need.
People in New Orleans knew levees needed repair, did nothing.
Too many people died
meteorologist
scientists who study and try to predict weather
winter storm
if air is below freezing all the way to the ground, precipitation will fall as snow, causing some places to get huge amounts of snow
thunderstorm
warm, humid air rapidly rises inside a cumulonimbus cloud
storm surge
a “dome” of water that sweeps across the coast where a hurricane lands
tornado
warm, moist air flows upwards, low pressure area forms, and the air begins to rotate
storm safety
Blizzard Safety: Find shelter from wind, do not go outside.
Thunderstorm Safety: Avoid places where lightning may strike. Avoid places that conduct electricity, such as metal objects and bodies of water.
Hurricane Safety: If you hear a hurricane warning, evacuate immediately
Tornado Safety: The safest place to be during a tornado is in a storm shelter or basement
