Chapter 2.1 Water in the air
what cloud produce thunderstorms
cumulonimbus clouds
How does water get from Earth's surface into the air?
through evaporation
A water droplet in a cloud becomes rain when its diameter increases to how many times its original size?
100
What are two ways in which air can become saturated?
Air can become saturated when water vapor is added to the air through evaporation. Air can also become saturated when it cools to its dew point. The dew point is the temperature at which a gas condenses into a liquid.
Why can hail become very large and heavy?
As hail falls, water drops coat it and another updraft of air can send the hail up again and the water freezes. This can continue until it is too heavy and falls.
Explain how you would use a wet-bulb thermometer and a dry-bulb thermometer to find the relative humidity.
The larger the difference between the two readings is, the less water vapor the air contains and thus the lower the humidity is.
What happens to the relative humidity if the amount of water vapor in the air stays the same but the air gets cooler?
The more water vapor there is in the air, the higher the relative humidity is.
What is water cycle?
Water cycle is the continuous movement of water from sources on earth's surface.
How does sleet form?
When rain falls through a layer of freezing air.
How does snow form?
When temperature are so cold that water vapor changes directly into a solid.
What happens to air's ability to hold water vapor as the air gets warmer?
When temperature falls, air has reduced capacity to hold water vapor, so water condenses.
Why do water droplets form on the outside of a glass of ice water?
air next to the glass becomes saturated cools below its dew point
What is the prefix for clouds at middle altitudes?
alto-
What is the prefix for clouds at high altitudes?
cirro-
What cloud is found at high altitudes and form when the wind is strong
cirrus cloud
Clouds form in the process of
condensation.
The change of state from a gas to a liquid is called
condensation.
What cloud have flat bottoms and often indicate fair weather?
cumulus clouds
What is the relative humidity of air that holds all the water it can at a given temperature?
dew point
When air cools to a temperature at which it is saturated, the air has reached its
dew point
What are two ways in which clouds are classified?
form (shape) altitude(height)
the amount of water vapor in the air
humidity
What is a cloud made of?
it is made of a collection of millions of tiny water droplets or ice crystals.
Cloud produce continuous rain
nimbostratus clouds
Water that returns to Earth in a liquid or solid form is?
precipitation
Rain, snow, sleet, and hail are all forms of
precipitation.
an instrument that measures relative humidity
psychrometer
the amount of water vapor in the air compared with the maximum it can hold at a given temperature
relative humidity
Water that flows across land and collects in rivers, streams, and the ocean is called
runoff
air that holds all the water it can at a given temperature
saturated
what cloud cover large areas and form in layers?
stratus clouds
The condition of the atmosphere at a certain time and place
weather
