Vocabulary
Air
Air Masses
Severe Weather/Climate
Weather Forecasts
100
What measures the amount of rain?
rain gauge
100
Which layer of atmosphere do most weather conditions happen
troposphere
100
When two fronts collide what usually follows?
precipitation
100
Which type of severe weather is formed by a column of wind lifted up on one end by upward winds adn pressed down on the other end by downward winds?
tornado
100
What do the H and L on weather maps represent?
High and Low pressure
200
What is a circular current of air?
convection current
200
What happens to air pressure as you move from the troposphere to the stratosphere?
Air pressure decreases
200
In which direction do winds usually blow over the United States?
west to east
200
Hurricanes get their energy from _________. a. cool ocean waters b. warm ocean waters c. increasing land temperatures d. decreasing land temperatures
b. warm ocean waters
200
Which weather instrument is used to measure wind speed?
Anemometer
300
What do you call a large body of air with generally the same temperature and moisture.
air mass
300
What causes convection currents?
different air temperatures
300
What causes precipitation at fronts? a. rising cold air b. rising warm air c. increasing air pressure d.increasing temperature
b. rising warm air
300
The Gulf Stream and the North Atlantic Drift are two warm ocean currents that stem from the Gulf of Mexico and head toward Europe. How do these currents affect the weather in Europe?
They cause the temperatures to be warmer than they normally would.
300
A forecaster is determining the climate of an area. Which of the following would be most helpful in figuring that out? a. average yearly precipitation b. today's atmospheric pressure c. temperature changes in one month d. the number of fronts in the area last week
a. average yearly precipitation, climate is an average of weather over a long period of time.
400
Define climate
the average of weather conditions over many years
400
List in order the five layers of the atmosphere
troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere, exosphere
400
Describe how the air moves during a cold front and what might occur after a cold front moves in.
The cold air collides with the warm air and the warm air is forced sharply upwards at a steep angle. The warm air rising so quickly causes clouds to form and condense, they become heavy and release precipitation that is heavy and short.
400
Describe two possible events that might cool a climate.
sun producing less energy, volcanic eruption, meteorite or asteriod striking the air causing dust and particles to block the sun
400
Draw an example of what cold and warm fronts look like on weather maps.
cold front: blue line with triangles pointing down. warm front: red lines with half circles pointing upward
500
Define front
The boundary where two air masses meet
500
Describe how convection currents form where land and water meet.
When air has different temperatures, convection currents form. The cool air, which is heavier than warm air, will sink and the warm air will rise. Wind occurs as air moves from an area of high air pressure to an area of low air pressure.
500
List the four common air masses, their characteristics and where they originate from.
maritime polar: cold and moist, from oceans near the poles maritime tropical: warm and moist, from oceans near the equator continental polar: cold and dry, from the land near the poles continental tropical: warm and dry, from the land near the equator
500
Explain how mountains can affect the climates on either side of them differently.
If a mountain range is near an ocean, the side of land near the ocean will have more moisture because moist air blows in from the ocean and is forced to rise by the mountains causing it to condense and create precipitation. The land on the other side of the mountain will be much drier because the air has lost its moisture creating a rain shadow.
500
List four of the seven parts of a weather system
temperature, moisture, air pressure, precipitation, wind speed, and wind direction
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