Exam 1 study

Question 1

What are the three main chemicals in our atmosphere?

Answer 1

Nitrogen, oxygen, and water vapor

Question 2

What are two sources for CO2 on earth?

Answer 2

humans, forest fires, volcanos

Question 3

What are two sinks for CO2 on earth?

Answer 3

Oceans, plants

Question 4

Define density

Answer 4

Mass of a substance in a given space

Question 5

Define Pressure

Answer 5

the force exerted by a substance over a given area

Question 6

Why does pressure drop as you go up in the atmosphere?

Answer 6

Less weight. There are more molecules within the same size volume of air near earths surface

Question 7

Name the four layers of the atmosphere from lowest to highest

Answer 7

Troposphere
Stratosphere
Tropopause 
Mesosphere 
Thermosphere

Question 8

Temperature —– in the troposphere and —– in the stratosphere

Answer 8

decreases, increases

Question 9

Whats the difference between weather and climate?

Answer 9

Weather is the state of the atmosphere at a given time and place
climate is the long term average of weather at a given location

Question 10

What happens at absolute zero?

Answer 10

Absolute zero is the temperature at which molecular motion stops. this is the coldest temperature possible (-459F)

Question 11

What temperature does water freeze in Celsius?

Answer 11

0degrees

Question 12

What temperature does water freeze in Fahrenheit ?

Answer 12

32 degree

Question 13

What temperature does water freeze in Kelvin?

Answer 13

273 K

Question 14

What is the most plentiful greenhouse gas?

Answer 14

Water vapor

Question 15

What are the greenhouse gases from most plentiful to least?

Answer 15

Water vapor, CO2, Methane, nitrosoczide, ozone, CFCs

Question 16

What percentage is nitrogen in the atmosphere?

Answer 16

78%

Question 17

What percentage is oxygen in the atmosphere?

Answer 17

21%

Question 18

What percentage is water vapor in the atmosphere?

Answer 18

0-4%

Question 19

50% of the atmosphere resides below how many miles and kilometers ?

Answer 19

3.4 miles, 5.5 KM

Question 20

99% of the atmosphere is below how many miles and kilometers?

Answer 20

19 miles and 31 KM

Question 21

What are the two main units of pressure in meteorology?

Answer 21

Millibars (mb) and hectopascal (hPa)

Question 22

What are the four layers of the atmosphere from lowest to highest?

Answer 22

Troposphere, stratosphere, tropopause, mesosphere, thermosphere

Question 23

When water changes phases it releases or absorbs what kind of heat?

Answer 23

latent heat

Question 24

What are the three methods for heat transfer in the atmosphere?

Answer 24

conduction, convection, and radiation

Question 25

What is conduction?

Answer 25

heat transferred between substances that are touching

Question 26

What is convection?

Answer 26

transfer of heat by movement of a fluid or atmosphere

Question 27

What is radiation?

Answer 27

energy that travels in the form of waves

Question 28

Where is radiation visible?

Answer 28

0.4 - 0.7 micrometers

Question 29

UV radiation is considered ___ radiation and infrared radiations is considered___ radiation

Answer 29

Shortwave, Long wave

Question 30

Describe the greenhouse effect

Answer 30

Selective absorbers in the atmosphere allow shortwave radiation to pass through the atmosphere, but some absorb some of long wave radiation emitted by the earth

Question 31

Why do we have seasons?

Answer 31

Changes in the amount of solar radiation received at the surface. Earth is titled on its axis, this causes seasonal changes in the angle the sun strikes the surface and the length of daylight

Question 32

How does the day heat up?

Answer 32

Radiation, conduction, convection, heat transfer

Question 33

How does the night cool down?

Answer 33

Radiational cooling: the ground and air above cool by radiating infrared energy Conduction, forced convection

Question 34

What is the prefix for a low cloud?

Answer 34

Stratus

Question 35

What is the prefix for a middle cloud?

Answer 35

Alto

Question 36

What is the prefix for a high cloud?

Answer 36

cirro

Question 37

What is the suffix for layer clouds?

Answer 37

Stratus

Question 38

What is the suffix for puffy clouds?

Answer 38

cumulus

Question 39

What is the suffix for wispy clouds?

Answer 39

Cirrus

Question 40

What is the suffix for rain clouds?

Answer 40

Nimbus

Question 41

What is the average air pressure at sea level?

Answer 41

1013.25 mb

Question 42

What is lapse rate?

Answer 42

the rate at which temperature decreases with increased height

Question 43

What is sensible heat?

Answer 43

The heat we can feel, sense, and measure with a thermometer

Question 44

What is latent heat?

Answer 44

The heat energy required to change a substance from one state to another

Question 45

What is a selective absorber?

Answer 45

An object that only absorbs radiation at certain wavelengths

Question 46

What happens to solar radiation that enters the top of the atmosphere?

Answer 46

Absorbed, scattered, and reflected

Question 47

What is albedo?

Answer 47

The percent of radiation reflected by a surface

Question 48

What is earths albedo?

Answer 48

30%

Question 49

When is summer solstice?

Answer 49

June 21st

Question 50

When are the equinoxes?

Answer 50

March 20, September 22

Question 51

When is winter solstice?

Answer 51

21 december

Question 52

What are the ingredients for a really cold night?

Answer 52

Long night, light or calm winds, dry atmosphere, no clouds, snow

Question 53

What are the controls of temperature?

Answer 53

latitude, land and water distribution, ocean currents, elevation

Question 54

what is isotherm?

Answer 54

The line connecting points with equal temperature

Question 55

what is specific heat?

Answer 55

the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one gram of a substance by one degree Celsius

Question 56

What is humidity?

Answer 56

The amount of water vapor in the air

Question 57

What is relative humidity?

Answer 57

a measure of how close the air is to being saturated, the ratio of the amount of water vapor actually in the air to the maximum amount of water vapor required for saturation at that particular temperature

Question 58

what is dew point temperature?

Answer 58

the temperature to which air would have to be cooled for the air to become saturated