EOSC 114 Module 6 Exam Questions and Answers Already Passed

EOSC 114 Module 6 Exam Questions and Answers Already Passed Thunderstorm cloud type - Answers Cumulonimbus clouds - lightning and thunder strong updrafts, cloud base near ground and cloud top near troposphere What ways do thunderstorms typically move - Answers SW --> NE Mammatus clouds - Answers sometimes visible on underside of anvil clouds, beautiful but no clue of intensity of storms Saturation - Answers max amount of water vapour that air can carry at equilibrium - important for determining whether condensation occurs and latent heat is released into the thunderstorm Gas pressures - Answers gas molecules hit surfaces and exert pressure - force per unit area - pressure inserted by each gas is partial pressure - sum to give total pressure (P) the symbol for water vapours partial pressure is 'e' Mixing ratio - Answers ratio of mass (kg) of water vapour in that mixture, divided by mass (Kg) of all the other gases -> symbol r typically varies between 0-0.04kg water vapour/kg air typically between 0.004 and 0.015 never negative Relative Humidity - Answers Tells us how much water vapour is in the air, compared to the max amount that could be held - reported as percentage Dew Point Temperature - Answers cool air at constant pressure till water begins to condense out, that's the dew point temperature for saturated, it's just the temp it's at dew point depression - diff between air temp and dew point temp Stratiform Clouds characteristics - Answers layered, large horizontal extent (10s to 1000s of kms) - relatively thin (0.01-1km) -Formed by mostly smooth, horizontal winds, named by their altitude -Cloud base is not related to lifting condensation level (LCL) for these clouds Stratiform cloud examples - Answers -cirrus, cirrostratus, cirrocumulus (high altitude 10km) thin and made of ice crystals -Alostratus, altocumulus - medium altitudes, 5km , made of water droplets -Stratus, nimbostratus - low bases (0.1-2km) thick with widespread drizzle from the nimbostratus Cumuliform clouds characteristics - Answers look like popcorn, cotton balls, or cauliflower, significant vertical motion and turbulence and are often formed by air parcels rising from near the ground under the cloud -flat bases, at altitudes near theoretical LCL - often diameter is roughly equal to thickness cumuliform cloud examples - Answers named by size -Cumulus humilis - fair weather clouds, 1km in size -Cumulus mediocris - medium, 4km size -Cumulus congestus - towering, 7km Cumulonimbus - thunderstorms - 11km with precipitation Thunderstorm Cells stages - Answers each has a lifecycle 5-15 min stage 1 - cumulus phase - all updraft, no precipitation, no anvil stage 2 - mature stage - both up and down drafts (can be violent), precipitation, start of anvil with sharp or crisp outline stage 3 - dissipating stage - only downdrafts, weaker precipitation, large anvil with diffuse outline stage 4 - cold gust-front air plows under warmer humid boundary layer air - triggers updraft that can spawn new daughter thunderstorm = storm propagation orographic thunderstorms - Answers stay anchored over mountains for long time due to favorable wind shear that continually feeds storm with more fuel from boundary layer can cause dangerous flash floods that rush down mountain canyons Multicell storms - Answers many cells, most common type diff cells are in diff stages of life cycles flanking line of clouds sticking out from main updraft - new cells, as they grow, prevailing winds blow these into main updraft Squall lines - Answers heaviest rain cells merge in long narrow line -move toward east or southeast, even though individual storms within them are moving toward northeast -triggered along strong cold fronts or other strong air-mass boundaries air mass thunderstorms - Answers garden variety - pop up in scattered locations within a large air mass due to strong heating of ground by sun don't need to form along fronts or boundaries short lived super cell storms - Answers severe, long lasting, often rotating, having violent wind gusts, cause tornadoes and hail low precipitation, classic, or high precipitation. most dangerous - often consist of just one rotating cell can last 30+ min, favorable wind shear low altitude flow from SE, mid altitude flow from SW, and fast upper level from from west mesocyclone - Answers when whole supercell storm is rotating - visible as barrel shaped storngest tornadoes form from this disaster intensity scale for rainfall - Answers dBZ - quantifies rain rate over specific area stands for decibels of reflectivity (Z) - measure of how radar is reflected off water vapour - higher means more expected rain Net results on temp by evaporation and condensation - Answers evaporation = cools air condensation = warms air Suns energy - where does it go? - Answers 1) Much of the non-visible radiation from the sun energy is absorbed at the very top of the atmosphere where it heats the air - called thermosphere because it's so hot 2)Most UV light is absorbed at top of stratosphere by 'good' ozone layers - also becomes very hot from the energy 3)Remaining visible light can shine through non-cloudy non-polluted parts of bottom of atmosphere called troposphere (11km) with relatively little direct heating of air What happens to the sunlight that reaches the surface? - Answers some reflects back into space but some is intercepted by clouds before it reaches surface and scattered back to space