Atmosphere
What makes a gas particle (air) move faster?
Higher temperatures
What does P stand for, when describing air masses?
Polar - cold air
Does hot air have higher or lower pressure than cold air?
Low pressure (particles are more spread out)
Hot, moist air rises - then condenses at cooler temperatures
In a weather station model, how do you know the wind direction and speed?
BONUS (+100): How do we know the how much cloud cover there is?
The tail is pointing in the direction of the wind, the flags on the tail tell how fast it is (1 tail = 10 mph, .5 tail = 5 mph)
BONUS (+100): The shaded circle - the more shaded = the more cloud cover
Why is it more difficult to breathe at higher altitudes?
BONUS (+100)
What causes this?
The air is less dense
BONUS (+100)
Gravity pulls gas particles closer to Earth
What does T stand for when describing air masses?
Tropical - warm air
How is wind created?
Higher pressure air moves into areas of low pressure (is sucked in, or pushed in)
What is a cloud called that holds rain?
Nimbus - (cumulonimbus, nimostratus, etc)
What is the difference between weather and climate?
Climate - our average conditions, based on location
What type of air holds more moisture, hot or cold air?
HOT - it is more spread out, so more water vapor particles can fit
What does c stand for, when describing air masses?
Continental - forms over land, holding dry air
Wind occurs, similar to convection currents, why is this?
Hot air rises, cold air sinks - when hot air reaches the top it cools, creating a cycle
What kind of clouds are formed from a cold front moving into a warm front?
BONUS (+100)
Why is this?
Cumulus cloud varieties
BONUS (+100)
Cold air quickly pushes warm air up and out of the way
After watching "The Day After Tomorrow" we learned about the effects of global warming. What is one cause of global warming (in real life)
BONUS (+100): What triggered the events in the movie?
Pollution, burning of fossil fuels, deforestation, etc.
BONUS (+100): melting of polar ice caps, causing an imbalance of salt water - affecting the North Atlantic Current
What is the layer of the atmosphere where clouds occur?
Troposhpere
What does m stand for, when describing air masses?
What factor decides if winds are strong?
The difference in high and low pressure:
Larger differences in pressure = Higher wind speeds
What types of clouds are formed by a warm front running into a cold front?
BONUS (+100)
Why is this?
Stratus and cirrus clouds
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Warm air slowly rises and cools over cold air
What causes a tornado?
Hot and cold air "chasing" each other - there must be a large difference in pressure systems that are mixing.
What is the layer of the atmosphere where airplanes fly (above the clouds)
A mass of air with similar properties that forms over a specific region
The bands of currents that occur in sections along our latitudes of Earth do not rotate in a straight direction (resulting in easterly and westerly winds). What effect describes that this is due to the spinning of the Earth.
The Coriolis Effect
Mid-latitude cyclone
How can a city prepare for an extreme event?
Have backup plans, roadways, personnel, and supplies, etc.