What is air pressure?
The weight of air above a given point on Earth's surface
Which of the following forces affects the movement of air in and around high- and low-pressure areas?
All of the above
Which of the following statements regarding the illustration below is correct?
Wind speeds near the high-pressure area (H) are lighter and milder than wind speeds near the low-pressure area to the right that are stronger
Which of the following areas is characterized by rain throughout the year and is associated with tropical rain forests?
Intertropical Convergence Zone near the equator
Which of the following statements DOES NOT apply to trade winds?
Utilized by ancient mariners sailing from North America to Europe
Why are the regions, including deserts, near subtropical highs dry?
Air aloft sinks downward, undergoes compression, and heats up
The following satellite image shows a band of heavier rainfall that coincides with the __________
Intertropical Convergence Zone
Where are the polar jet streams located?
Near the subpolar low-pressure cells near 60 degrees north and south latitudes where cold and warm air masses meet
Rising air along the ITCZ, once aloft, moves towards the poles because of...
Temperature differences between the equator and poles
Which of the following statements is correct regarding Mountain-Valley breezes?
During the day, valley air heats rapidly and rises upslope. At night, mountain air cools quicker and moves downslope into the valley.
Monsoonal rains on the continent of India...
Are greatest during the summer
Which of the following statements does NOT apply to the Pacific Decadal and North Atlantic oscillations?
Occur locally over land only during the summer months
Which of the following statements does NOT apply to pressure surfaces?
Vertical surface where two contrasting air masses meet
What two factors will cause seawater to increase in density and therefore sink?
Cooler temperatures and increased salinity
Which of the following LEAST LIKELY affects the circulation patterns of surface water in the oceans?
Seawater evaporation
Which of the following statements about deep-ocean water is FALSE?
Circulation patterns are in the form of gyres within ocean basins
Where is most of the Freshwater on Earth stored?
Ice and glaciers
What is Relative Humidity?
Mass of water vapor in air divided by the mass of water vapor that the air can hold
What is the following figure showing?
The warmer the air, the lower the relative humidity
With regard to the following illustration, at what stage is latent heat released and its value negative?
Water vapor condenses into liquid water
What happens to an air parcel that ascends from near the ground surface to higher altitudes?
Air parcel expands and cools at higher altitudes
What is the following illustration demonstrating?
Adiabatic heating
Which of the following conditions results in a stable atmosphere?
Rising air parcel has a higher adiabatic rate than the environmental lapse rate
The conditions below will result in clear skies and stagnant air.
False
The picture below is an example of ____________ clouds.
Cumulus
Valley fog forms when...
Cool, dense air settles in a valley
The average rate at which ascending, water-saturated air cools by expansion is called the ______________.
Moist adiabatic rate
An air mass classified as maritime polar (mP) will most likely be...
Moist and cold
An occluded front forms when...
Two bodies of cold air collide, forcing the warm air between them to rise so that the latter is no longer in contact with the ground
Which of the following statements regarding storm tracts is FALSE?
Average storm tracts shift northward into Canada during the winter and southward into the U.S. during the summer
Strong thunderstorms, lightening and tornadoes are usually associated with...
Cumulonimbus clouds
The figure below illustrates the formation of a ____________
Tornado/mesocyclone
Which of the following statements is NOT one of the steps leading to hurricane formation?
Strong wind aloft shears off the top of the developing cyclone
For the following illustration of the Hydrologic Cycle, what do the yellow arrows represent?
Evaporation
Most runoff on land occurs in the subsurface as groundwater.
False
What percentage of water evaporated over land and water eventually ends up as precipitation?
100%
What is potential evapotranspiration?
Amount of water that would evaporate and transpire under optimum (saturated) moisture conditions
In the water balance equation, actual evapotranspiration (ACTET) is equal to...
Potential evapotranspiration (POTET) minus deficit (DEFIC)
For the following figure of the water budget for Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, the blue curve represents precipitation, the orange curve potential evapotranspiration (POTET), and the green curve actual evapotranspiration (ACTET). During what time of year is th
June and July
With regard to soil-moisture storage, what happens to excess moisture (known as gravitational water) that cannot be held in the soil?
Excess moisture percolates downward to the deeper groundwater zone
Which of the following statements about groundwater is FALSE?
Groundwater only consists of subsurface water that occurs above the water table
Which of the following statements about groundwater is TRUE?
Groundwater flows from areas of recharge to discharge
__________ is a measure of how readily groundwater flows through soil, sediment, and bedrock.
Permeability
Which of the following has the highest porosity and would therefore make the best aquifer?
Gravel
In order for an aquifer to be an artesian system and supply well-water to the surface without pumping, the aquifer must be _________ and ______________.
Inclined/bounded above and below by aquicludes
If groundwater was excessively pumped by wells over a long period of time, which of the following would most likely result?
Land subsidence
Which of the following processes LEAST-LIKELY influence Earth's climate system?
Groundwater flow
Which of the following tropical climates receives the LEAST amount of annual rainfall?
Savanna
A continental-arctic (cA) air mass that is very cold and dry would most-likely be characterized by a ___________ climate.
Tundra
Most of the Gulf coastal region, including Houston, is characterized by a ____________ climate
Humid subtropical
The climograph below most likely reflects a ____________ climate.
Tropical monsoon
The climograph below most likely reflects a _________ climate.
Subtropical hot desert
Which of the following is NOT associated with El Nino?
Increased upwelling of deep ocean water along the west coast of South America
Which of the following satellite images depicts La Nina? Note that the white and red colors indicate warmer surface water while purple and blue indicates cooler surface water.
b.
The following computer models calculate future rates of global warming based on our continued use of ____________
Fossil fuels
Climatologists attempt to predict future climate changes using __________
Computer models known as General Circulation Models