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62 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
What is air pressure?
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The weight of air above a given point on Earth's surface
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Which of the following forces affects the movement of air in and around high- and low-pressure areas?
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Pressure gradient force
Coriolis force Gravitational force Friction force On TEST: All of the above |
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Which areas is characterized by rain throughout the year and is associated with tropical rain forests?
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Intertropical Convergence Zone near the equator
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Which of the following statements DOES NOT apply to trade winds?
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Utilized by ancient mariners sailing from North America to Europe
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Why are the regions, including deserts, near subtropical highs dry?
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Air aloft sinks downward, undergoes compression, and heats up
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Where are the polar jet streams located?
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Near the subpolar low-pressure cells near 60 degrees north and south latitudes where cold and warm air masses meet
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Describe Westerlies
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Westerlies occur at more northern (or southern) latitudes than the trade winds
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Describe Subtropical Highs
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Occur close to 30o north and south latitudes
Downwelling air is dry due to Worlds largest deserts are there |
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What is Intertropical Convergence Zone
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When Rising air generates band of low pressure
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What is Polar front?
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the area of contrast between cold and warm air masses
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Rising air along the ITCZ, once aloft, moves towards the poles because of?
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Temperature differences between the equator and poles
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Describe Mountain-Valley breezes
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During the day, valley air heats rapidly and rises upslope. At night, mountain air cools quicker and moves downslope into the valley.
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Monsoonal rains on the continent of India are?
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Are greatest during the summer
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Which of the following statements does NOT apply to the Pacific Decadal and North Atlantic oscillations?
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Occur locally over land only during the summer months
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Which of the following statements does NOT apply to pressure surfaces?
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Vertical surface where two contrasting air masses meet
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What two factors will cause seawater to increase in density and therefore sink?
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Cooler temperatures and increased salinity
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Which of the following LEAST LIKELY affects the circulation patterns of surface water in the oceans?
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Seawater evaporation
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Which of the following statements about deep-ocean water is FALSE?
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Circulation patterns are in the form of gyres within ocean basins
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Where is most of the Freshwater on Earth stored?
CH5 |
Ice and glaciers
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What is Relative Humidity?
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Mass of water vapor in air divided by the mass of water vapor that the air can hold
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What is Specific Humidity
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Mass of water vapor per kilogram of dry air
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What is Dew Point?
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Temperature at Which Water Vapor Begins to Condense
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What is Vapor Pressure?
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The Amount of Pressure Exerted By Water Vapor in the Atmosphere
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What is true about Air temperature and Relative Humidity?
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The warmer the air, the lower the relative humidity
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What happens to an air parcel that ascends from near the ground surface to higher altitudes?
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Air parcel expands and cools at higher altitudes
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at what stage is latent heat released and its value negative?
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When Water vapor condenses into liquid water
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What is Adiabatic process
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The warming and cooling rates for a parcel of expanding or compressing air
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Describe a condition which results in a stable atmosphere?
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Rising air parcel has a higher adiabatic rate than the environmental lapse rate
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Describe Cumulus clouds?
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– Low-level puffy clouds
– Composed of water droplets – Associated with fair weather |
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Describe Cirrus Clouds
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- Cirrus are high altitude clouds
- Composed of ice crystals - Wispy forms - Often associated with an oncoming storm |
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Describe Nimbostratus clouds
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yield precipitation and Showers typically fall as drizzling rain
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When does Valley fog form?
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when Cool, dense air settles in a valley
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What is Moist adiabatic rate?
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when the average rate at which ascending, water-saturated air cools by expansion
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What is Environmental lapse rate?
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Actual lapse rate for air at a particular place and time
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What is Dry adiabatic rate?
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the rate at which “dry” air cools by expansion or heats by compression
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What is Normal lapse rate?
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Average decreasing temperature with increasing altitude
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An air mass classified as maritime polar (mP) will most likely be?
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Moist and cold
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When does An occluded front form?
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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
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When does Warm fronts form?
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When Warm low density air pushes cold dense air
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When does Cold fronts form?
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When Cold dense air pushes low density warmer air
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When does Stationary Front form?
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When Cold arctic air penetrates into continental interior and meets warm
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Which statements regarding storm tracts is FALSE
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Average storm tracts shift northward into Canada during the winter and southward into the U.S. during the summer
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Describe Cumulonimbus clouds
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Strong thunderstorms, lightening and tornadoes
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What does NOT lead to hurricane formation?
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Strong wind aloft shears off the top of the developing cyclone
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Most runoff on land occurs in the subsurface as groundwater. T or F
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FALSE
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What percentage of water evaporated over land and water eventually ends up as precipitation?
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100%
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What is potential evapotranspiration?
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Amount of water that would evaporate and transpire under optimum (saturated) moisture conditions
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In the water balance equation, actual evapotranspiration (ACTET) is equal to?
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Potential evapotranspiration MINUS deficit
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what happens to excess moisture that cannot be held in the soil?
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Excess moisture percolates downward to the deeper groundwater zone
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Which statement about groundwater is FALSE?
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Groundwater only consists of subsurface water that occurs above the water table
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Whats true about groundwater
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Groundwater flows from areas of recharge to discharge
- occurs in pore spaces of soil - important source of freshwater - can be contaminated easily |
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What is a measure of how readily groundwater flows through soil, sediment, and bedrock?
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Permeability
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What has the highest porosity and would therefore make the best aquifer?
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Gravel
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In order for an aquifer to be an artesian system and supply well-water to the surface without pumping, the aquifer must be WHAT?
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Inclined AND bounded above and below by aquicludes
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If groundwater was excessively pumped by wells over a long period of time, which of the following would most likely result?
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Land subsidence
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Which process is LEAST-LIKELY to influence Earth's climate system?
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Groundwater flow
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Which tropical climates receives the LEAST amount of annual rainfall?
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Savanna
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A continental-arctic (cA) air mass that is very cold and dry would most-likely be characterized by WHAT climate
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Tundra Climate
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Most of the Gulf coastal region, including Houston, is characterized by WHAT Climate?
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Humid subtropical Climate
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What is NOT associated with El Nino?
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Increased upwelling of deep ocean water along the west coast of South America
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computer models calculate future rates of global warming based on our continued use of WHAT?
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Fossil fuels
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Climatologists attempt to predict future climate changes using WHAT?
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Computer models known as General Circulation Models
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