Exam 3

Tropical cyclones can be short or long-lived storms. Using the above figure of Hurricane Ike, how long was the storm rated a hurricane?

10 days

The Dry Climates (Group B) have less precipitation than evaporation. Dry climate zones cover about what percent of the world's land area?

26%

Climographs represent averaged weather data for what duration of time?

30 years

If we begin our journey at the coast (0 meters) where it is 26 degrees Celsius, what will the temperate be when we reach the upper limit of the Tierra Fria zone at 3000 meters if we use the ELR?

6.5 degrees Celsius

Which of the following statements is true? (select all that apply)

A Altitudinal zonation makes it possible to grow many different types of crops B Altitudinal zonation strongly influences the plants (and crops) that grow there C Plants that grow well in the temperate midlatitudes (e.g. Nebraska) can also thrive in the tropics if grown at higher elevations D Elevation plays a major role in a region's climate

Which of the following statements about midlatitudes cyclones are correct?

A The cold front advances faster than the center of the storm, and the warm front advances more slowly than the center B Surface winds move counterclockwise. C The entire cyclone moves from west to east. ALL OF THE ABOVE

Certain agricultural crops do better in certain altitudinal zones. In which zones does corn grow well? (select all that apply)

A Tierra Caliente B Tierra Templada C Tierra Fria

Tropical monsoon climates

A have a dry season that persists for at least one month. B have high average annual rainfall. C are produced by the movement of the ITCZ. D are most common along tropical coasts.

Why is warm, moist air considered the "fuel" for a hurricane?

Air cools as it rises. As air cools, water vapor will condense out as liquid water. Condensation releases heat, providing energy to the hurricane.

Why are nocturnal (nighttime) tornadoes so dangerous?

All of the above

Consider the climograph in Fig 3. Which month averages the most rainfall?

August

A transition zone in the atmosphere where an advancing cold air mass displaces a warm air mass.

Cold Front

Maritime Polar

Cold and humid air mass. forms over icy cold North Pacific and Atlantic oceans. brings fog, rain, and cool tempuratures to the West coast

Continental Polar

Cold dry air. forms usually over northern Canada and Alaska

Midlatitude cyclones in the United States rotate in which direction?

Counterclockwise

____ climates occupy the most extensive area of land on Earth.

Dry

Which of the following is true of the Mediterranean climate?

Dry summers and wet winters

Broadly define where the majority of Tropical climates are located using the above figure.

Equatorial regions

Which part of a hurricane consists of dry, descending air?

Eye

Long-lasting rainstorms occur when a cold air front encounters a receding warm air front.

False

The only source of flooding related to a hurricane is from excessive rainfall.

False

When a cold air front moves rapidly toward a warm air front, there isn't time to predict the light and longer-lasting rains that result from the warm air dissipating.

False

Which location experiences greater temperature variability over a year?

Houston, Texas

Which location is warmer in the month of August?

Houston, Texas

Type of climate s normally located along leeward lower east coast continents such as in southeast and central Argentina, Uruguay and south of Brazil, the southeast portions of east Asia, the southern United States, South Africa, and eastern Australia

Humid Subtropical Hot-Summer Climate

An intense cyclonic storm consisting of an organized mass of thunderstorms that develops over the warm oceans of the tropics.

Hurricane

Which storm systems usually creates the greatest damage?

Hurricanes

Which of the following is not true of tropical and subtropical hot desert climates?

In most years, they do not receive any precipitation.

6 Stages of Midlatitude Cyclones

Initial Condition Beginning Intensification Mature Dissipation

Which of the following is false regarding the tropical rain forest ecosystems?

Low-growing vegetation is dense to the forest floor.

Which location experiences a near absence of rain during the northern hemisphere winter months (D-M)?

Mangalore, India

A cylinder of cyclonically flowing air that form vertically inside a severe thunderstorm.

Mesocyclone

What are midlatitude cyclones?

Migrating low-pressure cells that move in the band of the westerlies

A transition zone in the atmosphere where an advancing cold air mass sandwiches a warm air mass between another cold air mass pushing the warm air into the upper atmosphere.

Occluded Front

What is occlusion in a midlatitude cyclone?

Occlusion is the process by which a cold front overtakes a warm front.

The highest frequency of tornadoes in the United States occurs in

Oklahoma

A rainshadow is most often associated with which atmospheric lifting mechanism?

Orographic

Which statement best describes why there are so many more tornadoes since the 1990s?

Population increases result in more tornadoes reported than before Technology allows for easier spotting with radar and easier confirmation with smartphones

How are rain patterns different near warm and cold fronts?

Rain near a cold front occurs over a smaller spatial area and is more intense than near a warm front

Where does rain occur in a warm front?

Rain occurs along and in front of a warm front.

Why does rain occur near a cold front?

Rising warm air cools, resulting in cloud formation and rain

Based on long-term hurricane data and the above figure, what is the date with the most storms?

September 10

(BLANK) is an increase in the height of the ocean's surface in the region beneath and around the eye of a hurricane.

Storm surge

Relatively rapid rise in the height of the ocean along a coastline.

Storm surge

What type of climate only found in the Northern Hemisphere because there is no large landmass at the same latitude in the Southern Hemisphere

Subarctic

Hurricane Ike made multiple landfalls. Which US state was the first impacted directly?

Texas

A storm that typically ranges in size from several kilometers (several miles) to over 50 kilometers (30 miles) in diameter created by the rapid lifting of moist warm air which creates a cumulonimbus cloud.

Thunderstorm

The highest number of tornadoes in the United States occurs in the southern plains, south of Lake Michigan, and west central Florida. This region of the United States is known as

Tornado Alley

Unlike the rest of the continental United States, South Florida is mostly classified as Am or ________.

Tropical Monsoon

What was the first stage of Hurricane Ike (and most tropical cyclones)?

Tropical depression

During this stage, there is little to no rotation associated with the storm.

Tropical disturbance

Storms are given a name once they exceed 38 mph sustained winds during this stage.

Tropical storm

All of the following names refer to tropical cyclones: cyclone, typhoon, hurricane, willy willy.

True

In addition to the dangers of flooding and wind speed from the hurricanes, tornadoes are also commonly associated with hurricanes.

True

Rainstorms are generally shorter when a cold air front comes in quickly and collides with a warm air front.

True

Violent weather are more commonly associated with a cold front.

True

When warm air collides with a cold air front, its slow journey up the slope of the cold air front causes longer rains.

True

Upward movement of air in the atmosphere.

Updraft

A transition zone in the atmosphere where an advancing warm air mass displaces a cold air mass.

Warm Front

What happens when air masses of different temperatures meet?

Well-defined boundaries form between the air masses

When do midlatitude cyclones stop producing storms?

When the cold front has completely taken over the warm front

Interpret the Am climograph for Miami, FL. Which of the following best describe the expected climate?

Winters are modestly cooler (~10-15 degrees) than summers and precipitation is limited during the winter months.

What is a tropical cyclone?

a low-pressure disturbance that develops over warm, tropical waters

orographic lifting

air forced to rise over a barrier, such as a mountain range.

Tundra climates

are found at both high latitudes and high altitudes.

Most warm air masses affecting North America

are moist

What are climate zones

areas that are divided by precipitation and temperature

A very cold and very dry airmass located over land.

cA

Which is the coldest air mass?

cA

A warm and dry airmass located over land.

cT

During the summer months, which is the warmest air mass?

cT

What is defined as the measure of the degree to which a region's climate typifies that of an interior of a large landmass?

continentality

Summer afternoon thundershowers in the southeastern United States are more than likely a result of

convection lifting.

Tropical rainforest climates are produced by

converging air near the equator

Continental Tropical

describing a warm, dry air mass that forms over land in tropical regions.

Maritime Tropical

describing a warm, moist air mass that is formed over the ocean in tropical areas

What is the condition of outside air at a certain time and place

elements of weather

The scale that correlates wind speed and structural damage in a tornado is the

enhanced Fujita scale.

The temperature curve on the climograph of a tropical rainforest climate will typically

fluctuate only slightly around 80 °F during the year.

Mid-latitude or (BLANK) cyclones are large traveling atmospheric cyclonic storms up to 2000 km (1250 mi) in diameter with centers of low atmospheric pressure.

frontal

What causes wind on top of hills and mountains

hot air raising while cool air sinks

Tropical storms officially become a (BLANK) when their sustained wind speed exceeds 119 kph (74 mph).

hurricane

Locations with the greatest average annual temperature variability are usually

in the interior of continents in the mid-latitudes.

Wave cyclones are most common

in the mid-latitudes.

Global circulation patterns of winds and ocean currents, which drive weather systems and, ultimately, climate patterns are created by?

latitudinal energy imbalance between tropical and polar regions.

Where are tropical cyclones found?

lower and middle latitudes

A cold air mass originating over an ocean is designated

mP

A cool and moist airmass associated with a coast.

mP

An air mass that forms over the southernmost portions of the Pacific ocean (near Antarctica) would be a ​[?] air mass:

mP (maritime Polar)

A warm and moist airmass associated with a coast.

mT

Which climate type is considered an arid climate in which the total annual precipitation is less than half the annual potential evapotranspiration?

midlatitude desert

Dry climates are most common

near areas of sub-tropical high pressure

Globally, the average rainfall is highest

near the equator.

"Cold and dry" temperature and precipitation patterns are characteristics of

polar climates.

"Hot and wet" temperature and precipitation patterns are characteristics of

rainforests in the equatorial tropics.

A climograph

shows the monthly precipitation and temperature for a location.

In the United States, mid-latitude cyclone development is usually the result of

the interaction of cP and mT air masses.

Climate is

the long-term atmospheric condition including extremes that may occur.

Tropical cyclones do not form exactly on the Equator because

there is no Coriolis force at the Equator.

Which climate has the highest mean annual temperature of any climate on Earth?

tropical desert

Tornadoes that travel across lakes or oceans are called

waterspouts