Earth Science Final
Beach sediments constantly move.
True
Burning fossil fuels like petroleum and coal release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
True
Rime is produced by supercooled fog.
True
Rip currents are dreaded by surf swimmers everywhere. The standard recommendation for swimmers is if you get caught in a rip current, swim parallel to the shore.
True
The Coriolis Effect is due primarily to the Earth's rotation.
True
The Earth would not be habitable planet without the greenhouse effect.
True
The combustion of ________ has added great quantities of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere.
fossil fuels
The ________ climate is located on the eastern sides of continents, in the 25- to 40-degree latitude range.
humid subtropical
In the past approximately 100 years, global temperatures have ________.
increased by nearly 1°C
Earth's low-latitude deserts and steppes coincide with the ________ pressure belts.
subtropical high
Relative humidity is a measure of ________.
the ratio of the water vapor in the air to the amount of water vapor that it would take to saturate the air.
The variations in temperature are less extreme in the Southern Hemisphere than in the Northern Hemisphere because ________.
there is more water in the Southern Hemisphere
Condensation nuclei, tiny particles of matter in the air, are important because ________.
they provide a surface for water molecules to form on
Tornadoes and hurricanes are associated with high-pressure zones.
False
When the Moon is in the first- or third-quarter position, a spring tide will occur.
False
Air pressure is higher near Earth's surface and decreases with altitude.
True
An EF-1 tornado is capable of considerable roof damage.
True
An EF-3 tornado has faster wind speeds than a Category 3 hurricane.
True
Which one of the following is the most abundant gas in the atmosphere?
Nitrogen
In the Northern Hemisphere, tornadoes are most frequent during the ________.
April-June period
The more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, the lower the average global temperature.
False
The ocean shoreline is generally a stable platform on which structures can safely be built.
False
Ocean currents are driven primarily by gravitation attraction of the Earth, Moon, and Sun.
False
Storm surges are worst when the continental shelf is deep.
False
The Gulf Stream current flows along the Pacific coast of the US.
False
If the maximum temperature for a particular day is 26°C and the minimum temperature is 14°C, the daily mean would be ________.
20°C
On the average, how much of the Sun's energy that is intercepted by Earth is reflected back to space?
30%
A parcel of unsaturated air has a temperature of 0°C as it crosses a mountain range at 3000 meters. If it descends, what will its temperature be when it reaches sea level?
30°C
If you live in southwestern North America and are experiencing drought conditions, what do you hope will happen?
A La Niña period will begin.
This term is used to describe clouds found in the middle height range.
Alto
Why is it warmer in most of Europe than in northern California even though both are on the east side of an ocean and Europe is at higher latitude than California?
California is affected by a cold offshore current, whereas Europe has the warm north Atlantic current, the continuation of the Gulf Stream.
A halo around the Sun or Moon indicates that this cloud type is present.
Cirrostratus
A wind shift from south or southwest to northwest is commonly associated with the passage of a ________ front.
Cold
How does snow vary with temperature?
Cold snow is powdery and light, while warm snow is moist.
Hail is most commonly associated with ________.
Cumulonimbus
Thunder and lightning are associated with these clouds.
Cumulonimbus
What stage of thunderstorm development has strong updrafts?
Cumulus stage
Which one of the following statements is true about the equinoxes?
Days and nights are equal in length everywhere.
Which of the following sources is the largest greenhouse gas emission in the US?
Energy/Electricity
If stormy weather were approaching, the pressure tendency would probably be ________.
Falling
A neap tide has the greatest daily tidal range (biggest change between high and low tides).
False
A roof with dark shingles with have a higher albedo than a roof with lighter-colored shingles.
False
A water molecule is made of 2 oxygen atoms and 1 hydrogen atom.
False
Before humans evolved, there was no greenhouse effect.
False
Chicago, IL is currently in the E climate zone.
False
Earth is the only planet that experiences the greenhouse effect.
False
Earth's revolution refers to the movement of Earth on its axis; Earth's rotation refers to the movement of Earth around the sun.
False
Why does the Florida peninsula experience the greatest frequency of midafternoon thunderstorms of any place in the United States?
It gets winds blowing from the oceans on both sides and they collide in the middle of Florida and rise to generate thunderstorms.
Why is the Santa Ana wind a danger signal in southern California?
It is a warm, dry wind that can quickly dry out brushlands and spread fires.
If you live on the east coast of Florida or the Gulf Coast, why might you hope for an El Niño year?
It will decrease the probability of tropical cyclones.
What type of tide occurs when the Sun, Moon, and Earth form a right triangle in space?
Neap
A dark gray cloud that blankets the sky and often generates precipitation is called ________.
Nimbostratus
You are watching the local weatherman on TV. You live in mid-latitudes in North America, and the weatherman says that winds high in the atmosphere are blowing toward the northwest. Is this normal?
No, Northern Hemisphere winds aloft always move from west to east because of the Coriolis force.
Which of the following is NOT a method for stabilizing a shoreline?
Spit
Ozone is found mainly in the ________.
Stratosphere
The subarctic climate is often called the ________ climate.
Taiga
Why do humid tropical regions have only small variations in temperature throughout the year?
The location of this climatic region is limited to an area where the solar radiation does not vary significantly.
The lowest layer of the atmosphere is the ________.
Troposphere
When prevailing winds blow from onshore to offshore, what generally happens?
The winds cause offshore surface water to flow away from shore, forcing deeper water to rise to the surface
Carbon Dioxide concentrations in Earth's atmosphere have increased rapidly since the Industrial Revolution.
True
Cold fronts move faster than warm fronts.
True
Deforestation plays a major role in climate change.
True
El Nino is associated with warmer water currents than normal.
True
Florida is a great example of a depositional shoreline.
True
Frontal wedging plays a major role in producing clouds and precipitation in the midwestern portion of the US.
True
Global mean temperature is now higher than at any time in at least the past 500 to 1000 years.
True
Hurricanes are more common in Florida than California because of the warmer water temperatures and prevailing wind direction.
True
If the air temperature is at the dew point, then the relative humidity is near 100%.
True
La Nina brings colder than average temperatures.
True
Lake-effect snow is caused by cP air masses.
True
Methane is a greenhouse gas.
True
Tornadoes of F1 to F2 in strength account for most of the tornadoes observed.
True
Tropical cyclones, which are called hurricanes in the Atlantic, are called ________ in the western Pacific
Typhoons
A weather system is moving from west to east. You look at a weather map and see that you are in an area of closely spaced isobars with the center just to your east, but the spacing of the isobars increases away from you. What would you forecast for wind conditions?
Winds will decrease.
You are swimming with your buddies on a beach in the surf. You leave your cooler and supplies on the beach, and after a half hour you swim back to shore, but your stuff isn't there. You look along the beach and see your cooler 200 m down the beach. How did that happen?
You and your buddies were affected by the longshore current and drifted with it along the coast.
If you live in the Midwestern United States or Canada and you experience several days of winter temperatures below -20°C with clear weather, you are undoubtedly experiencing ________.
a Continental Polar air mass
Hurricane Sandy produced some of the greatest destruction along the New Jersey coast in communities situated along narrow strips of land between the beach and a coastal lagoon to the west. These communities were vulnerable because they were built on a low-lying landscape of ________.
a barrier island
We are likely to have our highest relative humidity ________.
about sunrise
A sandbar that completely crosses a bay, sealing it off from the open ocean is a ________.
baymouth bar
The air masses that have the greatest influence on weather conditions in the central United States are ________.
cP and mT
In the Northern Hemisphere, winds associated with a high pressure system blow ________.
clockwise and outward from the center
In the Southern Hemisphere, the winds associated with a low pressure system blow ________.
clockwise and toward the center
Low air pressure systems are usually associated with ________.
converging air, precipitation, and high pressure aloft
A place located along a windward coast will probably have ________.
cooler summer temperatures than an inland location at the same latitude
Lightning is most prominent in ________.
cumulonimbus clouds
On the AVERAGE, for every 1 km increase in altitude in the troposphere, the air temperature ________.
drops about 6.5˚C
This pressure zone is associated with abundant precipitation and warm temperatures.
equatorial low
Water is unique because ________.
it exists in three different states at normal conditions in the earth's atmosphere
Carbon dioxide is an important influence on climate because ________.
it passes incoming short wavelength solar radiation, but it absorbs some longer wavelength outgoing earth radiation
Fast moving currents of air found near the top of the troposphere are called ________.
jet streams
Hurricanes generally are ________.
larger than tornadoes smaller than mid-latitude cyclones areas of heavy rainfall and strong winds
The differences in summer and winter temperatures are greatest for locations ________.
near the Poles
Which one of the following are the three most abundant gases in the dry atmosphere?
nitrogen, oxygen, argon
If you go to a beach in the continental United States and you are standing on a long, flat strand of sand, and you look away from the open ocean and see only a few low sand dunes and then a large, open waterway, where are you?
on a barrier island on the Florida Gulf Coast
Irregular heating of the air can produce thermals, which are ________.
pockets of warm air that rise
The Montreal Protocol is a UN agreement that is intended to ________.
reduce CFCs in the atmosphere
Which one of the following statements is not true of tornadoes?
usually occur along the warm front of a mid-latitude cyclone
The eye of a hurricane is ________.
warmer than the rest of the storm
The main difference between weather and climate is that ________.
weather is the daily variations that actually occur at a location and climate is the general pattern of weather over time
Most of the United States is situated in which zone of prevailing winds?
westerlies
The major difference in vegetation between the different humid tropical (A) regions is that ________.
wet tropical regions have rain forests, and tropical wet and dry regions have grasslands
The climate in which temperatures average 25˚C or more each month and total precipitation for the year is high is the ________ climate.
wet tropics
Compared to places at lower elevations, highland climates are usually cooler and ________.
wetter
