Chapter 17: Weather and Climate

Hurricanes

________ are tropical storms that cover vast areas and last for days.

Photosynthetic Organisms

________ use carbon dioxide and produce almost all the oxygen in the atmosphere.

Water Vapor

________ and carbon dioxide are examples of greenhouse gases.

Convection

________ transfers thermal energy by movement of air from place to place.

Cirrus

________ clouds form at heights above 6, 000 m and are made of ice crystals.

Lithosphere

The ________ is the solid Earth, including its soil, rocks, and mantle.

direction of airflow

The ________ is also affected by Earths rotation.

Large Eruptions

________ can produce droplets of sulfuric acid in the stratosphere that reflect incoming solar radiation.

Cryosphere

The ________ is frozen water in snow, ice, and glaciers.

Temperature

________ decreases with height in the troposphere up to the tropopause.

Ultraviolet Rays

The ozone layer shields Earth from ________ that can harm living organisms.

Greenhouse Effect

________: The emission of infrared waves by gases in Earths atmosphere.

Maritime Air Masses

________ are moist because they originate over the oceans.

Biosphere

________: all living organisms and the environments in which they live.

Downdrafts

________ can result in a form of severe weather called downbursts.

Antarctica

The concentration of springtime ozone over ________ has decreased over the past several decades.

Hydrosphere

The ________ is liquid water in oceans, lakes, rivers, soil, and underground.

Tornadoes

________ are intense, short- lived, localized storms in the mid- latitudes.

Seasonal Changes

________ are smallest near the equator and become greater with increasing latitude.

Latent Heat

________: the thermal energy released when water changes state from a gas to a liquid, or from a liquid to a solid.

Thunderstorm

A(n) ________ can form when moist air rises high in the atmosphere.

Energy

________ from the Sun evaporates water from Earths surface.

Jet Streams

________: control many weather processes, such as storm development.

Westerlies

________: winds that blow from the west in middle latitudes.

Weather Fronts

________: associated with low pressure systems.

La Niña

________: occurs when trade winds in the Pacific are unusually strong and equatorial oceanic surface temperatures are colder than normal.

tall cumulonimbus cloud

A(n) ________ produces a thunderstorm.

El Niño

________ can dramatically alter global weather patterns.

Clouds

________ form when water vapor cools and condenses to form droplets of water.

Global Warming

________: An increase in the average global temperature.

Sea Breeze

________: blows from the water toward the land in the afternoon, when the land is warmer than the water.

Troposphere

a layer extending about 12 km, on average, above Earths surface; temperature normally decreases with height

Temperature Inversion

When temperature increases with height

Greenhouse Effect

The emission of infrared waves by gases in Earths atmosphere

Latent Heat

the thermal energy released when water changes state from a gas to a liquid, or from a liquid to a solid

Westerlies

winds that blow from the west in middle latitudes

Jet Streams

control many weather processes, such as storm development

Weather Fronts

associated with low pressure systems

Biosphere

all living organisms and the environments in which they live

Maritime Climate

A climate that is strongly affected by an ocean

Continental Climate

A climate that is not directly affected by an ocean

Sea Breeze

blows from the water toward the land in the afternoon, when the land is warmer than the water

Global Warming

An increase in the average global temperature

El Niño

the warming of the Pacific Ocean off the coast of western South America that occurs every 3 to 10 years

La Niña

occurs when trade winds in the Pacific are unusually strong and equatorial oceanic surface temperatures are colder than normal