Study Quiz 4

Temperatures in a rising parcel of air are shown at various altitudes in the image above. Given that the dry adiabatic lapse rate is 10° C / 1 kilometer and the moist adiabatic lapse rate is 6° C / 1 kilometer, the data indicates that a cloud must have formed at:

1 kilometer.

What is associated with cumulonimbus clouds?

Stormy weather

We talked a lot about atmospheric stability in Lesson 8. Which of these weather conditions is likely if we had an "absolutely unstable" atmosphere on a hot and super humid day in mid-July at Disney World (Orlando, Florida)?

Strong Thunderstorms

A parcel's buoyancy is related to:

Temperature

What happens if the temperature of a parcel of air exceeds the temperature of its environment?

The parcel will being to rise

Which of the following was not one of the four major cloud-groups discussed in the textbook?

cap

In mid latitudes, which cloud will have the highest base?

cirrostratus

Which cloud type is composed of ice crystals and can cause a halo to form around the sun or moon?

cirrostratus

Cumulus congestus (towering cumulus) would refer to which of the clouds sketched below?

cloud b

Clouds can be formed through: [Select all that apply.]

convection due to surface heating forced lifting over terrain uplift along fronts

As Apollo 12 ascended into the atmosphere, the height of the surrounding clouds was noted to be about 12 kilometers (or 42,000 feet). A lightning strike was seen within these clouds, indicating that they must have been:

cumulonimbus

Which two clouds can produce precipitation?

cumulonimbus, nimbostratus

Pileus clouds are rare clouds that tend to "cap" a __________________ cloud.

cumulus

Cumulus congestus clouds are clouds that:

develop more as the day goes on

Precipitation from a stratus clouds is usually:

drizzle

As an air parcel reaches its coolest temperature, it begins to sink at what rate?

dry rate

As you rise up from the ground, you start as the _____________________ rate and reach the _____________________ rate after a certain altitude.

dry; moist

The atmosphere is normally most stable in the ____________ and most unstable in the ____________.

early morning; afternoon

Which of the following conditions would be described as the most unstable?

environmental lapse rate is 11° C per kilometer

The rate at which the actual air temperature changes with increasing height above the surface is referred to as the:

environmental lapse rate.

A neutral atmosphere always has clear conditions.

false

Air parcels cool as they rise at the same rate at the same elevations.

false

Air parcels have the same characteristics as the surrounding environments.

false

An anvil cloud forms when moist winds are deflected up and over the top of a developing cumulus congestus or cumulonimbus cloud.

false

Cumulonimbus clouds tend to develop if there is a deep unstable layer above the cloud base.

false

If a cloud appears bright white on visible imagery, then we know it is a thin cloud.

false

Snow is the only form of precipitation that doesn't form thanks to atmospheric instability.

false

Stability is a property of an air parcel, not of the atmosphere.

false

Stratus clouds are found near cirrus clouds up in the sky.

false

Stratus clouds are usually:

gray

On an infrared satellite image, low, warm clouds appear _____ and high, cold clouds appear _____.

gray; white

Cirrus clouds are composed primarily of:

ice particles

Contrails are formed by:

jet airplanes

Where would you expect to find a rain shadow?

leeward side of a mountain

Name the cloud feature labeled "c" in the image above.

lenticular

A "Low" cloud in would have a base that is:

less than 2000 meters.

Which of the environmental temperature profiles above indicates the most stable atmosphere?

line d

For clouds, height in the sky is broken down as all of these, except:

medium

The atmosphere becomes _____ stable as the surface air cools, the air aloft warms, or a layer of air sinks over a vast area.

more

The atmosphere is __________________ if an air parcel stays still.

neutral

Light or moderate-but-steady precipitation is most often associated with this type of cloud.

nimbostratus

Passive-cloud formation:

occurs in stable air.

Which best describes cumulus clouds?

puffy clouds

When the atmosphere is unstable, what is happening? Parcels of air are:

rising

What do you need for the moist adiabatic lapse rate?

saturated air

Stratus clouds are:

sheet like clouds

If an air parcel rises and cools at the same rate, or slower than the environmental lapse rate, what is going on in the atmosphere?

stability

If an air parcel is given a small push upward and it falls back to its original position, the atmosphere is said to be:

stable

Passive Cloud Formation happens in:

stable air

Which of these does NOT indicate active cloud formation?

stable air

A conditionally unstable atmosphere is _______ with respect to unsaturated air and _______ with respect to saturated air.

stable; unstable

What if the temperature of a parcel of air is the same as the temperature of its environment?

the parcel stays still

Which of the following is NOT primarily responsible for the development of the majority of clouds we see?

the tilt of the earth and rotation along its axis

You are a scientist interpreting satellite images of clouds to make observations about the weather in regions around the world. After observing a series of images, you notice that a cloud formation above Michigan appears white on visible imagery, gray in the infrared imagery, and white in the water vapor imagery. Using that information, you conclude that the cloud is:

thick, lower in the atmosphere, and high in water vapor content

Adiabatic warming occurs when an air parcel sinks.

true

Air parcels are 'bubbles of air' that (1) are flexible, (2) have impermeable surfaces, and (3) have a uniform temperature and moisture content.

true

Atmospheric stability is an indicator of what kind of cloud may form.

true

Cirrostratus clouds can cover a large portion of the sky despite being so thin.

true

Clouds are effectively suspended water droplets in the sky.

true

Cumulonimbus clouds can result in the famous "anvil-head" clouds.

true

Deep instability can lead to cumulonimbus development.

true

If cloud appears a bright white on the infrared imagery, it is cold at the cloud top and usually high in the atmosphere.

true

Nimbostratus clouds are stratus clouds that get broken up by lower level winds.

true

Positive buoyancy of an air mass can lead to instability.

true

Stability in clouds is an indicator of what kind of cloud may form.

true

The atmosphere can be stable for saturated air, but not for unsaturated air at the same time.

true

The environmental lapse rate is calculated outside of a parcel of air.

true

The shape of clouds forming is a sign of stability or instability in the atmosphere.

true

The stability of the atmosphere plays an important part in determining the vertical growth of cumulus clouds.

true

Mammatus clouds usually form __________________ a thunderstorm.

underneath

Which type of air parcel (unsaturated or saturated) loses temperature more quickly with elevation in the atmosphere?

unsaturated

What do you need for the dry adiabatic lapse rate?

unsaturated air

If a parcel is less dense than the environment, it will experience positive buoyancy and rise up in the air, and the atmosphere is said to be _________.

unstable

The atmosphere is __________________ if an air parcel accelerates upward.

unstable

A knowledge of air stability is important because it determines the:

vertical motion of air.

Cumulus and nimbus clouds are __________________________ clouds.

vertically developed

Stability in the atmosphere is determined by comparing the temperature of __________ to the temperature of __________.

a rising air parcel; its surrounding environment

The atmosphere is _______________ when the environmental lapse rate is smaller than the than the moist adiabatic lapse rate, or G < Gs < Gd.

absolutely stable

The atmosphere is _______________ when the environmental lapse rate is greater than the than the moist adiabatic lapse rate, or G > Gd > Gs.

absolutely unstable

Which of the following sets of conditions would produce a cumulus cloud with the lowest base?

air temperature 90° F, dew point temperature 60° F

The dry adiabatic lapse rate is __________ greater than the moist adiabatic lapse rate.

always

Name the cloud feature labeled "a" in the image above.

anvil

Clouds are classified by their:

appearance

The atmosphere is more stable if the air:

at higher elevations is warmed, or the air closer to the surface cool.

The air temperature in a rising parcel of saturated air decreases at the dry adiabatic rate, whereas the air temperature in a rising parcel of unsaturated air decreases at the moist adiabatic rate.

False

Stratus clouds could be mistaken for:

Fog that hasn't touched the ground

What kind of clouds are represented in the image above?

Nimbostratus

When the atmosphere is stable, what is happening?

Parcels of air are not rising

Which of these is NOT a major type of cloud?

Pyroclastic

An adiabatic process is one that occurs:

without transfer of heat or matter between a system and its surroundings.

If a parcel of unsaturated air with a temperature of 30° C rises from the surface to an altitude of 1,000 meters, the unsaturated parcel temperature at this altitude would be about:

10° C colder than at the surface.

The Moist Adiabatic Lapse Rate occurs at what rate?

6.0 degrees C per 1000 meters

High clouds are:

6000 - 18000 meters up.

It is a day outside that many people might describe as hazy: the sun is dimmed by a layer of grayish clouds and no shadows are present. What kind of clouds are probably in the sky?

Altostratus

On a hot and humid morning in southern Kansas in May, a bunch of calm, fluffy-looking clouds eventually precipitated into a massive anvil-shaped cloud by the middle of the afternoon. This cloud complex eventually dropped golf-ball sized hail, spawned an EF-2 tornado, and dropped about 1/2 an inch of rain per hour locally. What cloud class are we talking about here with this powerful storm?

Cumulonimbus

Instability can be seen as tall thunderclouds.

True

What does atmospheric stability concern?

Vertical motion in the atmosphere.

_________ images, which show sunlight reflected from a cloud's upper surface, can distinguish thick clouds from thin clouds.

Visible satellite