WX 201 Final Test Questions with 100%
Correct Answers
Thunderstorm
a storm containing thunder and lightning, often associated with gusty winds, heavy rain, and
hail
3 ingredients needed to form a thunderstorm
sustained convection, updrafts/rising motion, moisture, instability
Ordinary Thunderstorm
disorganized, short lived, less common to be severe
Ordinary Thunderstorm lifecycle
Cumulus, mature, and dissipating phases
Describe how weak vertical wind shear affects the life cycle of an ordinary
thunderstorm
weak vertical wind shear leads to a short lifespan due to upright updraft being killed off by its
own precipitation
Entrainment
The process of drier air incorporating itself into the cloud and inducing evaporation
Gust Front
known as an outflow bound, the downdraft rain spreading outward that can create more
storms (mini cold front)
Squall Line
, lines of multi cell thunderstorms that can extend for hundreds of kilometers
Describe the relationship between Bow Echoes and strong surface gusts of wind
Bow Echoes cause intense downdrafts, leading to powerful straight line winds
Derecho
long-lived storm that has destructive winds and fast moving rain showers
Mesoscale Convective Complex
cells organized into a large circular complex, large enough to cover an entire state, slow
moving, long lifecycle, typically nocturnal
Supercell Thunderstorm
long lived rotating thunderstorms that can spawn tornadoes, cause of rotation is vertical wind
shear
dentify where a tornado would likely form within a supercell thunderstorm.
Supercells with hooks will usually form the strongest tornadoes
Describe how strong vertical wind shear produces rotation in a supercell thunderstorm
creating a horizontal rolling motion in the atmosphere, which is then tilted vertically by the
storm's updraft
Shelf Cloud
Low level, horizontal cloud that comes before severe storms
Roll Cloud
Tube shaped clouds that appear to roll through the sky, formed along gust fronts
Correct Answers
Thunderstorm
a storm containing thunder and lightning, often associated with gusty winds, heavy rain, and
hail
3 ingredients needed to form a thunderstorm
sustained convection, updrafts/rising motion, moisture, instability
Ordinary Thunderstorm
disorganized, short lived, less common to be severe
Ordinary Thunderstorm lifecycle
Cumulus, mature, and dissipating phases
Describe how weak vertical wind shear affects the life cycle of an ordinary
thunderstorm
weak vertical wind shear leads to a short lifespan due to upright updraft being killed off by its
own precipitation
Entrainment
The process of drier air incorporating itself into the cloud and inducing evaporation
Gust Front
known as an outflow bound, the downdraft rain spreading outward that can create more
storms (mini cold front)
Squall Line
, lines of multi cell thunderstorms that can extend for hundreds of kilometers
Describe the relationship between Bow Echoes and strong surface gusts of wind
Bow Echoes cause intense downdrafts, leading to powerful straight line winds
Derecho
long-lived storm that has destructive winds and fast moving rain showers
Mesoscale Convective Complex
cells organized into a large circular complex, large enough to cover an entire state, slow
moving, long lifecycle, typically nocturnal
Supercell Thunderstorm
long lived rotating thunderstorms that can spawn tornadoes, cause of rotation is vertical wind
shear
dentify where a tornado would likely form within a supercell thunderstorm.
Supercells with hooks will usually form the strongest tornadoes
Describe how strong vertical wind shear produces rotation in a supercell thunderstorm
creating a horizontal rolling motion in the atmosphere, which is then tilted vertically by the
storm's updraft
Shelf Cloud
Low level, horizontal cloud that comes before severe storms
Roll Cloud
Tube shaped clouds that appear to roll through the sky, formed along gust fronts
