Weather and Climate

Question 1

What is weather?

Answer 1

A description of short-term conditions of the atmosphere at a particular time and place.

Question 2

What are different examples of weather conditions?

Answer 2

Temperature, humidity, precipitation, air pressure, wind speed, and cloud cover.

Question 3

What is temperature?

Answer 3

How fast air particles are moving.

Question 4

What is humidity?

Answer 4

The measure of the amount of water vapor in the air.

Question 5

What is air pressure?

Answer 5

The force of air pushing onto an object.

Question 6

How does air pressure flow?

Answer 6

From high pressure to low pressure.

Question 7

What is the movement of air relating to pressure difference?

Answer 7

Wind.

Question 8

What happens as the air pressure difference increases?

Answer 8

The faster and stronger the wind is.

Question 9

Where do high pressure systems form?

Answer 9

A high pressure system forms when air sinks towards the surface.

Question 10

Where do low pressure systems form?

Answer 10

A low pressure system forms when warm, less dense air rises from the Earth’s surface.

Question 11

What conditions form at a high pressure system?

Answer 11

High pressure systems usually bring clear skies and calm or gentle winds.

Question 12

What conditions form at a low pressure system?

Answer 12

Low pressure systems usually bring clouds and rain if the air rises and cools enough.

Question 13

What is an air mass?

Answer 13

An air mass is a large body of air that has similar temperature.

Question 14

How do air masses form?

Answer 14

They develop when Earth’s surface air stays in one region for many days, weeks.

Question 15

What causes air masses to move?

Answer 15

They move because of pressure differences.

Question 16

What happens when two air masses collide?

Answer 16

The warmer air mass will rise over the cooler air mass.

Question 17

What is a boundary between two air masses known as?

Answer 17

A front.

Question 18

What causes surface currents in the ocean?

Answer 18

When prevailing winds move ocean water.

Question 19

What is the rain shadow effect?

Answer 19

When an area has a body of water on one side, which makes it more fertile than the other which would be less fertile. Prevailing winds move moist air toward the mountains. As moist air rises, it condenses into precipitation—Rain Shadow Effect.

Question 20

What is climate?

Answer 20

The average weather conditions in an area over a long period of time.

Question 21

What do most climate graphs include?

Answer 21

Average monthly rainfall and temperature data.

Question 22

What happens to energy that enters the Earth system when the sun is shining?

Answer 22

Some of the energy is reflected and some is absorbed.

Question 23

What is albedo and how does it relate to temperature?

Answer 23

How much sunlight a surface reflects. It relates because albedo can determine the temperature based off of solar radiation.

Question 24

How does the color of the surface affect albedo?

Answer 24

The darker the color of the surface, the less albedo.

Question 25

Where does sunlight intensify the greatest?

Answer 25

At the equator.

Question 26

What types of differences do temperature differences lead to?

Answer 26

Air pressure differences.

Question 27

What are prevailing winds?

Answer 27

Winds that move in one specific direction.

Question 28

How does elevation influence temperature?

Answer 28

As elevation increases, temperature decreases.

Question 29

How does water absorb energy differently than land?

Answer 29

Water keeps the climate mild but land keeps it more hotter.

Question 30

How do temperatures in coastal areas differ from inland areas?

Answer 30

Coastal areas are cooler.

Question 31

How does precipitation change in places near bodies of water?

Answer 31

There would be an increase in precipitation near bodies of water.

Question 32

What effect do tall mountains have on climate?

Answer 32

Tall mountains can yield different climates on both sides of the mountain.

Question 33

Where did derecho get its name from?

Answer 33

From the Spanish word straight because the damage would usually occur in a straight line.

Question 34

What caused the staggering number of deaths in the 1972 blizzard of Iran?

Answer 34

A blizzard.

Question 35

Why do you think power outages are so common in ice storms?

Answer 35

Because the weight of the ice snaps the power lines.

Question 36

How do wildfires lead to firestorms?

Answer 36

Firestorms occur when heat from a wildfire creates its own wind system.

Question 37

What is deforestation?

Answer 37

The removal of trees from land.

Question 38

What happened in Brazil that made it more prone to wildfires?

Answer 38

Between January—November 2020, over 44,000 wildfires erupted.

Question 39

What is particulate matter?

Answer 39

Tiny particles in the air.

Question 40

How much particulate matter is safe?

Answer 40

20 micrograms per cubic meter is considered safe. ## Footnote There was 999 micrograms per cubic meter during the 2021 Beijing Dust Storms.

Question 41

What causes bomb cyclones to intensify very quickly?

Answer 41

Because of the rapid drop in pressure.

Question 42

What 2 ways does carbon dioxide mainly get produced/released into our atmosphere?

Answer 42

Produced when animals breathe out commonly released from the burning of fossil fuels

Question 43

What impact has global warming had on glaciers, and in turn, sea levels?

Answer 43

caused glaciers around the world to begin melting the meltwater from glaciers raises the sea levels

Question 44

What is a drought? Explain the process of desertification.

Answer 44

long periods of time with low rainfall desertification is when an area's climate changes and causes it to turn into a desert

Question 45

What impact has climate change had on our planet's biosphere?

Answer 45

lead to animals migrating to other areas in search of resources those animals who cannot migrate or adapt to the new conditions will die and possibly go extinct

Question 46

Explain how different regions may be impacted differently. Give an example.

Answer 46

different regions experience a range of changes to weather patterns hurricanes along the east coast of the US have become more frequent and stronger due to rising ocean temperatures

Question 47

What are clean energy sources?

Answer 47

sources of energy that do not release greenhouse gases

Question 48

Give some examples of clean energy sources.

Answer 48

Solar wind hydroelectric geothermal nuclear tidal energy

Question 49

Explain the impact that using energy efficiently can have. What are some ways we can be efficient with our energy?

Answer 49

using energy in smart ways can decrease the amount needed using energy efficient appliances, cars, lights, and factories

Question 50

What is carbon capture? Explain how this technology works.

Answer 50

to remove carbon dioxide from emissions and even from the atmosphere turn coal into a synthetic that allows for the removal of heavy metals and other pollutants before burning the remaining fuel to generate electricity. Then, they will take the sported carbon dioxide and pump it offshore to be buried beneath the ocean.

Question 51

Explain how pollen can be used as evidence about ancient climates.

Answer 51

every plant has a unique form of pollen if you find a pollen fossils, then you will know what plant it comes from certain plants are in certain climates

Question 52

Explain how analyzing tree rings can help provide evidence for past climate.

Answer 52

tree rings relate to year and time the heavier the rain, the thicker the ring

Question 53

What are ice cores, and how do they help scientists learn about climate factors from the past.

Answer 53

cores where we drill in the ice form deep inside glaciers looking at them can determine weather factors air, pollen, seeds, organisms, and other things trapped in ice

Question 54

How has continental drift impact our planet?

Answer 54

contents shifts- latitude changes also ocean currents also change, along with winds precipitation patterns

Question 55

What is a Milankovitch Cycle, and how does earth's position influence its climate?

Answer 55

the shape of the earth's orbit around the sun varies each year the closer to the sun- the hotter it is

Question 56

What is an Ice Age?

Answer 56

a time period when global temperatures are low enough that glaciers grow out form the poles and can cover much of Earths' surface

Question 57

What effect do volcanic eruptions have on our planet's climate?

Answer 57

the ash and the dust (aerosols) goes into the air, blocks the sun and cools down the planet