ESS55: EARTH S ATMOSPHERE / Homework #4 / (due 5/1/2014)

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1 ESS55: EARTH S ATMOSPHERE / Homework #4 / (due 5/1/2014) Name Student ID: version: (1) (21) (41) (2) (22) (42) (3) (23) (43) (4) (24) (44) (5) (25) (45) (6) (26) (46) (7) (27) (47) (8) (28) (48) (9) (29) (49) (10) (30) (50) (11) (31) (12) (32) (13) (33) (14) (34) (15) (35) (16) (36) (17) (37) (18) (38) (19) (39) (20) (40)

2 2 ESS55: EARTH S ATMOSPHERE / Homework #4 / (due 5/1/2014) 1. Net convergence of air would cause surface pressure to and net divergence would cause surface pressure to. a. increase, decrease b. increase, increase c. decrease, decrease d. decrease, increase 2. If the earth's gravitational force were to increase, atmospheric pressure at the ground would a. increase. b. decrease. c. remain the same. d. cause the atmosphere to expand vertically. 3. The surface pressures at the bases of warm and cold columns of air are equal. Which of the following statements is not correct? a. Pressure will decrease with increasing height at the same rate in both columns. b. The cold air is denser than the warm air. c. Both columns of air contain the same total number of air molecules. d. The weight of each column of air is the same. 4. The surface pressures at the bases of warm and cold columns of air are equal. Air pressure in the warm column of air will with increasing height than in the cold column. a. decrease, more rapidly b. decrease, more slowly c. increase, more rapidly d. increase, more slowly 5. Suppose a parcel of air has a given temperature, pressure, and density. If the parcel's size remains the same while its temperature increases, then the air pressure inside the parcel will a. decrease. b. decrease to but not lower than 1,000 mb. c. increase. d. remain constant. 6. Suppose a very cold parcel of air at 5.5 km (18,000 feet) is compared to a similar (but warm) parcel of air at sea level. Which of the following would be true? a. The parcel at sea level has higher pressure and higher density. b. The parcel at sea level has lower pressure and higher density. c. The parcel at sea level has lower pressure and lower density. d. The parcel at sea level has higher pressure and lower density. 7. If two air parcels at sea level have the same size but different temperatures, the colder parcel of air will have a. a higher pressure but the same density as the warm parcel. b. the same pressure but lower density than the warm parcel. c. the same pressure but higher density than the warm parcel. d. a lower pressure but the same density as the warm parcel. 8. Which of the following relationships best describes the gas law?

3 3 a. Pressure is proportional to density times temperature. b. Density is proportional to pressure times temperature. c. Temperature is proportional to density times pressure. d. Temperature times pressure times density remains constant. 9. The scale on an altimeter indicates altitude, but an altimeter actually measures a. temperature. b. density. c. pressure. d. humidity. 10. The unit of pressure most commonly found on a surface weather map is a. inches of mercury. b. millibars or hectopascals. c. pounds per square inch. d. atmospheres. 11. Which of the following instruments measures pressure? a. barometer b. thermometer c. radiometer d. hygrometer e. densitometer 12. A station at an altitude of 900 m (about 3,000 feet) above sea level measures an air pressure of 930 mb. Under normal conditions, which of the values below do you think would be the most realistic sea level pressure for this station? a. 840 mb b. 930 mb c. 1,020 mb d. 1,830 mb 13. To correctly monitor horizontal changes in air pressure, the most important correction for a mercury barometer is the correction for a. temperature. b. altitude. c. density. d. gravity. 14. Lines connecting points of equal pressure are called a. isobars. b. millibars. c. contours. d. isotherms. e. a coordinate grid. 15. Pressure changes a. more rapidly in the horizontal direction than in the vertical. b. more rapidly in the vertical direction than in the horizontal. c. at the same rate in the horizontal and vertical directions. d. more rapidly in the vertical over land than over the ocean.

4 4 16. On an isobaric surface, a. altitude is constant. b. temperature is constant. c. pressure is constant. d. a and c 17. Low on a constant height chart corresponds to low on a constant pressure chart. a. pressures, pressures b. pressures, heights c. heights, pressures d. heights, heights 18. On a 500 millibar chart, are drawn to represent horizontal changes in altitude which correspond to horizontal changes in pressure. a. contour lines b. isobars c. isotherms d. isotachs 19. The contour lines drawn on a 500 mb chart are lines of constant a. pressure. b. altitude. c. density. d. wind direction. 20. Warm air aloft is associated with constant pressure surfaces that are found at altitude than normal and than normal atmospheric pressure aloft. a. higher, higher b. higher, lower c. lower, higher d. lower, lower 21. On an upper-level chart, normally we find warm air associated with pressure, and cold air associated with pressure. a. high, high b. high, low c. low, low d. low, high 22. A surface low pressure center is generally associated with on an upper level isobaric chart. a. a trough b. a ridge c. zonal flow d. convergence 23. On an upper-level chart the wind tends to blow a. at right angles to the isobars or contour lines. b. parallel to the isobars or contours. c. at an angle between 10 and 30 to the contours and towards lower pressure. d. at constant speed.

5 5 24. A ridge on an upper-level isobaric chart indicates a. higher-than-average heights. b. lower-than-average heights. c. average heights. d. a region with calm winds. 25. On an isobaric weather chart, the spacing of the height contours indicates the magnitude of the pressure gradient force. a. true b. false 26. During a reversible adiabatic process, the pressure gradient force is parallel to the isobars. a. true b. false 27. The Coriolis force is the force that causes the wind to blow. a. true b. false 28. Which of the following forces does not have a direct effect on horizontal wind motions? a. pressure gradient force b. frictional force c. gravitational force d. Coriolis force 29. Which of the following can influence wind direction? a. Coriolis force b. pressure gradient force c. centripetal force d. all of the above 30. Which of the following forces cannot act to change the speed of the wind? a. pressure gradient force b. frictional force c. Coriolis force d. none of the above 31. The amount of pressure change that occurs over a given horizontal distance is called the a. pressure tendency. b. Coriolis parameter. c. pressure gradient. d. potential gradient. e. slope. 32. Which of the statements below is not correct concerning the pressure gradient force? a. The PGF points from high to low pressure in the Northern Hemisphere. b. It is non-existent at the equator. c. It can cause the wind to speed up or slow down. d. The PGF points from high to low pressure in the Southern Hemisphere. 33. The pressure gradient force is directed from higher pressure toward lower pressure a. only at the equator.

6 6 b. at all places on earth except for the equator. c. only in the Northern Hemisphere. d. only in the Southern Hemisphere. e. at all places on earth. 34. The force that would cause a stationary parcel of air to begin to move horizontally is called the a. Coriolis force. b. pressure gradient force. c. centripetal force. d. frictional force. 35. Which of the following produces the strongest Coriolis force? a. fast winds, low latitude b. fast winds, high latitude c. slow winds, low latitude d. slow winds, high latitude 36. The is an apparent force created by the earth's rotation. a. pressure gradient force b. Coriolis force c. centripetal force d. gravitational force 37. The Coriolis force is the result of a. wind. b. rotating earth. c. day/night temperature contrasts. d. gravitational force exerted by the moon as it orbits the earth. e. the poles being colder than the equator. 38. Which statement below is not correct concerning the Coriolis force? a. It causes the winds to deflect to the right in the Northern Hemisphere. b. It is strongest at the equator. c. It can cause winds to change direction, but not to increase or decrease in speed. d. It deflects winds in opposite directions in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. 39. If the earth stopped rotating, which of the following would not be true? a. Surface winds would below from high toward low pressure. b. There would still be a Coriolis force. c. There would still be a pressure gradient force. d. There would still be a gravitational force. 40. Suppose that the winds aloft are geostrophic and blowing from the north. Low pressure is located to the a. north. b. south. c. east. d. west. 41. If directly above you at 10,000 feet the wind is blowing from the south, then it is a good bet that at 10,000 feet, the center of lowest pressure is of you, while the center of highest pressure is of you.

7 7 a. west, east b. south, north c. east, west d. north, south 42. The vertical pressure gradient force is directed a. downward. b. upward. c. horizontally. 43. The winds aloft in the middle latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere generally blow a. from west to east. b. from east to west. c. from north to south. d. from south to north. 44. A surface low pressure area that moves from south to north directly east of your home would most likely produce winds that shift from a. S to SE to E. b. SE to E to SW. c. N to NE to E. d. W to NW to N. e. NE to N to NW. 45. The wind around a surface low pressure center in the Southern Hemisphere blows a. counterclockwise and outward from the center. b. counterclockwise and inward toward the center. c. clockwise and outward from the center. d. clockwise and inward toward the center. 46. Surface winds blow across the isobars at an angle due to a. the Coriolis force. b. the pressure gradient force. c. the frictional force. d. the centripetal force. 47. If, at your home in the Northern Hemisphere, the surface wind is blowing from the northwest, then the region of lowest pressure will be to the of your home. a. north b. south c. east d. west 48. Winds blow slightly inward a. around surface low pressure centers in the Northern Hemisphere only. b. around surface low pressure centers in the Southern Hemisphere only. c. around surface low pressure centers in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. d. at the poles in both hemispheres. 49. The wind around a surface high pressure center in the Northern Hemisphere blows a. counterclockwise and outward from the center. b. counterclockwise and inward toward the center.

8 8 c. clockwise and outward from the center. d. clockwise and inward toward the center. 50. We can generally expect the air to be above areas of surface low pressure and above areas of surface high pressure. a. rising, rising b. rising, sinking c. sinking, sinking d. sinking, rising