EXAM 3

Which of the following states has the highest average wind power class over the largest area?

Colorado

The tropical atmospheric circulation associated with rising winds along the ITCZ and descending air in the subtropics are called

Hadley cells

Warm ocean currents _____

are warmer than the surrounding water

Which areas of Earth experience the most precipitation?

areas near the ITCZ

During the day along the coast, the wind tends to blow toward the ________ because ________

land; land heats more rapidly than water

Between 20° to 35° north and 20° to 35° south are

the world's arid and semi-arid desert regions

What are the variations in temperature and salinity that affect deep ocean currents?

thermohaline circulation

The winds converging at the equatorial low are known as

trade winds

Where surface water is swept away from a coast, ________ occurs, bringing cold, nutrient rich waters to the surface.

upwelling

The dominant surface winds from the subtropics to high latitudes are the

westerlies

A monsoon climate is characterized by ________ summers and ________ winters

wet; dry

Which of the following statements regarding the effect of terrain features on wind power potential is correct?

Colorado's wind power potential is highest in the Rocky Mountains

_______ currents are circular movements of rising and descending air

Convectional

Seasonally shifting wind systems associated with the annual cycle of returning precipitation are known as

monsoons.

The polar high pressure cells

produce the weak, variable polar easterlies

Monsoonal winds are

regional wind systems that seasonally vary

Which of the following is associated with the Sahara and the Arabian Deserts?

subtropical high pressure

Calm winds associated weak pressure gradient and the vertical ascent of air in the ITCZ are known as

the doldrums

What two features are many of Earth's deserts associated with?

the subtropical highs and cool ocean currents found along the west coasts of continents

Surface ocean currents _____

are influenced by Coriolis effect, are driven by winds, from large rotating gyres in the major ocean basins

The loss of heat from the ocean surface, resulting in a lowered temperature, causes ocean water to become __________.

denser

The Aleutian low and Icelandic low are

dominant in the winter and weaken or disappear in the summer

Which of the following factors best explains the areas of high-speed winds seen in the Santa Ana Wind Speeds layer?

downslope winds

When would you expect the low-pressure cell over Greenland to be most developed?

during the Northern Hemisphere winter

During the winter, the Bermuda high migrates to the ________ and becomes the ________

east; Azores high

Ocean frontal systems that spin off from currents such as the Gulf Stream, akin to atmospheric storms, are known as __________.

eddies

Which of the following primary pressure areas are produced by thermal factors, rather than dynamic factors?

equatorial low and polar high

Cool ocean currents ______

generally flow from high latitudes towards the equator

One of the world's most powerful currents, located off the east coast of the United States, is the __________.

gulf stream

A large system of rotating ocean currents, usually driven by the major wind belts, is called a(n) __________.

gyre

The El Niño-Southern Oscillation

is a periodic shift of high and low pressure zones over the western and eastern Pacific, respectively, usually occurring every 2 to 12 years.

The area of conflict between colder and warmer air masses in the subpolar region

is termed the polar front

Fluctuations in the flow of the Gulf Stream current result in curving loops of water known as __________.

meanders

Land to sea breezes (local winds) occur during ________

nighttime

The Gulf Stream transports warm water into the __________.

north atlantic

Sea to land breezes blow in an _______ direction

onshore

The subtropical gyres _______

play a large role in climate

Which of the following forces works to create cyclonic and anticyclonic wind circulation patterns?

pressure gradient, Coriolis effect, surface friction

The western side of subtropical high pressure cells

produces surface winds that pass over warm ocean currents

Deep ocean currents _______

result from changes in water density (due to temperature and salt content)

What are the persistent surface winds that flow in the lower latitudes?

trade winds

On Earth between 30° and 60° north, winds flow from the ________ as they flow out of the ________ pressure zone toward the ________ pressure zone.

west-southwest; subtropical high; subpolar low

Which of the following is associated with a La Niña-ENSO Phase?

wetter conditions throughout Indonesia, the South Pacific and northern Brazil

Which of the following is not important in shaping ocean currents?

land-sea breezes

Based on your knowledge of the general circulation of the atmosphere and the data in the Fukushima layer, which of the following coordinate locations was in the highest risk area for downwind radiation contamination in the days after the March 2011 event?

37 N, 153 E

Based on the clues in the images contained in the Sea Breeze Land Breeze folder, which of the following statements is most accurate?

A sea breeze with relatively low pressure onshore and relatively high pressure offshore is present.

Based on the topography of the region surrounding the Highway 9 placemark, which of the following statements is most accurate?

Alma experiences mountain breezes from the north while Blue River experiences mountain breezes from the south.

The El Niño-Southern Oscillation is associated with the following except

cooler than normal ocean along the west coast of South America

Which of the following statements best compares wind circulation patterns and mean January temperatures?

Cold air associated with the high pressure over central Asia blows in a clockwise (anticyclonic) direction.

A deep and powerful southward subsurface current that flows under the Gulf Stream in the North Atlantic is the __________.

Canary Current

Which natural climate oscillation produces warm and cold phases near the west coast of South America?

ENSO

Which of the following major bodies of water has the highest human impact, as indicated by the data in the Human Impacts folder?

East China Sea

Equatorial currents that are part of the subtropical gyres flow ___. Equatorial counter currents between the gyres flow ___ .

East to west; west to east

Based on the general circulation pattern shown in the Current Labels folder, which of the following currents is most likely a cold-water current?

West Australia

How does wind generally move?

From areas of higher atmospheric pressure toward areas of lower atmospheric pressure

The current in the northwestern part of the North Atlantic Subtropical Gyre that transports warm water toward the North Atlantic is called the __________.

Gulf Stream

What causes friction forces?

Interaction between wind and surround atmosphere

Which association between atmospheric circulation and mean temperatures in July is correct?

Low pressure and warm temperatures associated with the intertropical convergence zone over South Asia

Which of the following cities would most likely experience the effects of the ITCZ in December?

Lusaka, Zambia

Which of the following states has the highest wind power class for offshore wind?

Massachusetts

Some regions have great utility-scale potential, while others have good household-scale potential. Which of the following regions is correctly matched with its wind power potential?

Massachusetts: utility-scale production offshore, household-scale potential inland

Which is true of upper atmospheric circulation?

Middle and upper tropospheric circulation is an important component of the atmosphere's general circulation.

On Earth between 30° north latitude and the equator, winds flow from the ________ as they flow out of the ________ pressure zone toward the ITCZ.

NE; subtropical high

Which temperature anomalies in the United States are correctly matched with La Niña and El Niño years?

North Dakota experiences negative temperature anomalies during La Niña years and positive temperature anomalies during El Niño years.

Which natural oscillation in global circulation is associated with shifts in patterns of sea surface temperatures, air pressure, and winds between the northern and tropical western Pacific?

Pacific Decadal Oscillation

Santa Ana winds

create wildfire conditions by bringing heat and dryness as they flow southwest.

________ are waving undulations within the upper-air westerly wind flow.

Rossby waves

What component of global circulation is most responsible for the prevailing winds in this region?

Southeast Trades

Which statement accurately describes surface ocean currents?

Surface ocean currents are driven by frictional drag from winds.

Which of the following statements is best supported by the evidence in the Depth folder?

The Arctic Ocean is generally the shallowest of the world's four major ocean basins.

How does the location of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCS) change over time?

The ITCZ migrates south of the equator in Northern Hemisphere winter and north of the equator in Northern Hemisphere summer.

What causes the pressure gradient force?

The difference in atmospheric pressure from on location to another

What causes the Coriolis force?

The earth's rotation

Which of the following is true of India's weather patterns?

The shifting of the intertropical convergence zone and upper air circulation brings heavy precipitation in summer from June to September.

Of the following statements, which most accurately explains the relationship between wind and pressure patterns and the average annual precipitation in particular regions?

The trade winds converge toward the intertropical convergence zone, producing average precipitation totals that generally exceed 60 inches a year over northern South America.

Which of the following is true of thermohaline circulation?

Thermohaline currents are deep currents caused by differences in temperature and salinity.

Which of the following is false regarding the jet streams?

They have no known effect on surface weather systems.

What conditions are found under the intertropical convergence zone?

Warm surface air is converging and rising

How would wind move if Coriolis and friction forces did not exist?

Wind would move directly from areas of high atmospheric pressure to areas of low atmospheric pressure

How would wind move if pressure gradient and Coriolis forces did not exist?

Wind would not move

How would wind move if pressure gradient and friction forces did not exist?

Wind would not move

The western intensification causes water to pile up ________, forcing water to flow ________ in strong currents.

against eastern shore of continents; northward and southward

In the Northern Hemisphere, ocean currents move ________ about high-pressure cells; in the Southern Hemisphere ocean currents move ________ about high-pressure cells.

clockwise; counterclockwise

The polar high pressure system is best characterized as

cold and dry with weak anticyclonic high pressure

When a meander from the Gulf Stream pinches off into the warm water south of the current, the eddy is called a __________.

cold-core eddy or ring

The Intertropical convergence zone is characterized by

convergence and uplift of warm surface air

During the day, air above sea is _______ than it is above land

cooler

The most prominent movement in the upper-level westerly geostrophic wind flows are the

jet streams

Based on the data in the Human Impacts folder, which of the following statements is not supported?

In terms of impacts near Italy, the Tyrrhenian Sea has relatively higher levels of impacts compared to the Adriatic.

How does the Coriolis force deflect objects in the atmosphere, relative to their original paths?

To the right in the Northern Hemisphere and to the left in the Southern Hemisphere

Which of the following phenomena occur in the tropical South Pacific Ocean during ENSO?

Trade winds of the South Pacific weaken and may even reverse direction, a low-pressure system forms over the eastern South Pacific, upwelling of colder ocean waters slows down near the South American coast

What drives Hadley cell circulation?

heating from the Sun

Where are Hadley cells found?

in the atmosphere near the equator

Sea-breezes

involve onshore (toward the land) air flows that develop in the afternoon

Mountain and valley breezes

involve warm air rising upslope during the day, creating an area of low pressure; at night it is reversed with a low pressure area forming on the valley floor.

Which of the following is not associated with the Asian monsoon pattern?

summer low pressure zones over the ocean and high pressure zone over land

Thermohaline circulation in the ocean is driven primarily by differences in __________ and __________ among water masses.

temperature; salinity