geo MCQ

The terms “climate” and “weather” are

Weather is short-term, whereas climate is long-term;

As one travels from sea level to the top of the atmosphere

Pressure and density decrease at an exponential rate;

Which of the following is true of atmospheric carbon dioxide?

None of the above are correct;

Stratospheric ozone

Consists of three bonded oxygen atoms (O₃), absorbs ultraviolet radiation, and is disrupted by CFCs;

Isoline (contour) maps

Can be used to show continuous variables like temperature, pressure, and elevation;

Which of the following is true of maps?

They can be used in meteorology to show the location of high and low pressure areas;

Aerosols

Include solid and liquid particles such as pollen, dust, sea salt, and pollutants that act as cloud nuclei;

The Earth has an atmosphere that extends hundreds of kilometers above the surface because

The planet has abundant gases from sources like volcanoes, photosynthesis, and respiration;

According to the ideal gas law

Pressure × Volume = n × R × Temperature (PV = nRT);

The average kinetic energy of molecules in a substance is known as

Temperature;

The primary mechanism through which the Earth receives heat energy from the Sun is

Radiation;

The greenhouse effect

Is caused by gases like CO₂, methane, and water vapor absorbing Earth’s longwave radiation and keeping the planet warmer;

has the highest specific heat of any common substance, meaning that a lot of energy is required to increase its ___.

Water, temperature;

As the temperature of an object increases

It radiates more and more energy;

Ice and snow reflect a large proportion of the solar radiation that strikes them, meaning that they have a high _.

They reflect solar radiation, meaning they have a high albedo;

Which of the following is true of electromagnetic radiation?

It can travel through space, includes many wavelengths, and is emitted by all objects above absolute zero;

The energy received from the sun is considered radiation, while the energy emitted by the earth is considered radiation.

Shortwave radiation from the sun and longwave radiation from the Earth;

Which of the following is true regarding the Earth's energy budget?

When the global energy budget is positive, the Earth's temperature increases;

Which of the following mechanisms transfer heat from the Earth's surface upward into the atmosphere?

Uplift of moist air, longwave radiation, and convection all transfer heat upward;

On average the Earth and its atmosphere reflect about of solar energy back to space, and absorb about of incoming radiation.

About 30% is reflected and 70% is absorbed;

San Francisco has lower summer highs than Fargo because

It is near the ocean, which moderates temperature (continentality);

The temperature at 40°N is hotter in the Summer Solstice than the Winter Solstice because

The Sun’s rays strike the Northern Hemisphere at a more direct angle in summer;

Daily temperature range usually increases with

Less cloud cover, greater distance from water, and less vegetation (none of the listed factors increase it);

The maximum diurnal (daily) temperature usually occurs

During the mid- to late-afternoon;

Seasons are primarily the result of

The tilt of the Earth’s axis;

In comparison to areas near the Poles, locations near the Equator tend to have

Smaller annual temperature variations;

On the days of the Equinoxes

Every place on Earth receives about 12 hours of daylight;

Vegetation cover tends to

Reduce the daily temperature range in an area;

Uneven heating of the Earth's surface over time and space is caused by

Earth’s rotation and revolution, its spherical shape, and differences in surface cover;

The wind chill factor and the heat index

Quantify how weather conditions feel to humans and depend on two atmospheric variables each;

The evaporation rate on a given day was higher in Detroit than in Cleveland because

Detroit had a higher temperature;

When the air temperature at the Earth’s surface decreases to the dew point

The air becomes saturated, condensation occurs, and relative humidity reaches 100%;

Once condensation and nucleation begin in clouds, precipitation requires

Cloud droplet growth;

In what way do clouds affect the Earth's energy budget?

They reflect solar radiation, absorb longwave radiation, and emit longwave radiation in all directions;

If the TV weather report states that the surface temperature is 16 °C and the dew point is 16 °C, the most likely driving hazard is

Fog;

During the evaporation of water

Sensible heat is absorbed from the air and stored as latent heat;

Atmospheric stability is assessed by

Comparing the adiabatic lapse rate with the actual environmental lapse rate;

The adiabatic lapse rate is

The rate of temperature change as air rises or sinks in the atmosphere;

Rising air cools at the moist/wet adiabatic lapse rate when

Condensation is occurring;

An unstable atmosphere is characterized by

Rising air, cloud formation, and convection;

If a parcel of dry air sinks 2000 m through the atmosphere

The air actually warms as it sinks;

The ratio of the amount of water vapor in the air to the total amount at saturation is known as

Relative humidity;

Moist air crossing a mountain range is likely to be

More humid on the windward side than on the leeward side;

The cloud type most closely associated with vertical development is

Cumulus;

The amount of water vapor needed to saturate air increases as

Temperature increases;

Clouds produce precipitation only when

Droplets grow large enough to overcome turbulence and friction to fall to Earth;

If the thermometer on your balcony reads −2 °C, possible precipitation forms include

Sleet, freezing rain, and snow;

San Francisco experiences so much advection fog because

Warm, moist air from the ocean is cooled to the dew point by cold Pacific waters;

Aggregation-accretion, collision-coalescence, and the Bergeron-Wegener process are all involved in

Cloud droplet growth;

A thunderstorm cloud, or “thunderhead,” is known as

A cumulonimbus cloud;