Energy in Earth's Atmosphere
The 3 forms of radiation are
infrared, visible light, and ultraviolet light
What is temperature and how is it measured?
Temperature is the average amount of energy of motion of each particle of a substance. It is measured using a thermometer.
What is wind
the horizontal movement of air from an area of high pressure to low pressure
What is humidity
a measure of the amount of water vapor in the air
What are the 5 types of precipitation
rain, sleet, hail, snow, freezing rain
The sky looks blue because of
scattering
3 ways heat can be transferred and what each does
radiation, conduction, convection
How is wind related to air temperature and air pressure
wind moves from high pressure to low pressure and differences in air temp are due to different pressures
What process is involved in cloud formation
condensation
compare and contrast freezing rain and sleet
sleet comes out of the clouds frozen
freezing rain freezes when it hits the ground
Longest wavelength of radiation?
Shortest wavelength of radiation?
infrared, ultraviolet
When you walk barefoot on hot sand, heat is transferred to your feet from the sand by radiation
True or False ( if false what makes it true)
False: conduction
Its fairly warm, but chilly outside. Why?
What two conditions are needed for clouds to form
1. air must be cooled to dew point
2. particles must be present in air
How do hailstones become so large in cumulonimbus clouds?
the stones are tossed up and down in the clouds. As they move through the cold regions of the clouds, additional ice layers are added to the stones
Why are sunsets red?
At sunrise and sunset, sunlight travels through a greater thickness of the atmosphere. The atmosphere scatters more light from the blue end of the spectrum. The remaining light is mostly red and orange.
What is the major way that heat is transferred in the troposphere
convection currents
Describe what causes local winds?
unequal heating of Earth's surface within a small local area
name and describe each type of cloud
cumulus, stratus, cirrus
A thunderstorm produces precipitation in the form of ice particles that are about 6 mm in diameter. What type of precipitation would this be?
hail
Explain what happens to most of the sunlight that reaches Earth
It is absorbed by the atmosphere or by Earth's surface
How do the 3 types of heat transfer work together to heat the troposphere?
The sun transfers heat to Earth by Radiation. As Earth warms, it radiates heat to the atmosphere and conducts heat to gas molecules near the surface. This heat is transferred throughout the troposphere by convection
name and describe each major global wind belt
trade winds
prevailing westerlies
polar easterlies
Classify each of the following cloud types as low-level, medium level, or high level: altocumulus, altostratus, cirrostratus, cirrus, cumulus, fog, nimbostratus, and stratus
low level: fog, cumulus, stratus, and nimbostratus
medium level: altocumulus and altostratus
high level: cirrostratus and cirrus
How does the funnel in a rain gauge increase the accuracy of the measurement
The funnel allows the rain gauge to collect a greater depth of water, so the rainfall can be measured more easily and accurately