GEOG 1300 - Final Exam Questions
With Accurate Answers
Weather - ANSWER the condition of the atmosphere at a specific time and place
Climate - ANSWER the accumulation of daily and seasonal weather events over a long
period of time
List seven common weather elements - ANSWER • 1) Air temperature
• 2) Air pressure
• 3) Humidity
• 4) Clouds
• 5) Precipitation
• 6) Visibility
• 7) Wind
What is the primary source of energy for the Earth's atmosphere? - ANSWER • The
sun's radiation
Explain the concept of air pressure in terms of the weight of air above some level. Why
does air pressure always decrease with increasing height? - ANSWER • the pressure
exerted by the mass of air above a given point
• air pressure always decreases with increasing height because as we climb in
elevation, fewer air molecules are above us
• rapidly decreases at first, then slower at higher levels
At what height in the atmosphere do we find the highest pressure? - ANSWER • Sea
level; 14.7 pounds/square inch
What is the standard atmospheric pressure at sea-level in millibars? - ANSWER •
1013.25 mb
What is the lapse-rate? - ANSWER • The rate at which an atmospheric variable (usually
temperature) decreases with height
,On the basis of temperature, list the layers of the atmosphere from lowest (closest to
the ground) to highest? - ANSWER • Troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere,
thermosphere
Which layer of the atmosphere contains all of the weather we experience? - ANSWER •
Troposphere
Which two layers of the atmosphere contain most of the atmosphere's mass? -
ANSWER • Troposphere and stratosphere
11. Why has the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increased over the
past 100 years? - ANSWER • Use of fossil fuels and deforestation
12. In what atmospheric layer do we find the greatest concentration of ozone, the so-
called ozone layer? - ANSWER • Stratosphere
13. How does the ozone layer protect life on Earth? - ANSWER • Shields plants,
animals, and humans from the sun's harmful ultraviolet rays
14. What season of the year is it in January in the Northern Hemisphere? What season
of the year is it in January in the Southern Hemisphere? - ANSWER • Winter
• Summer
15. What units are used to measure temperature? Given a temperature in degrees
Farenheit how do we convert it to degrees Celsius? - ANSWER • Kelvin, Fahrenheit,
and Celsius
• °C = 5/9 (°F-32)
16. Given a distance in kilometers, how do we convert it to miles? - ANSWER • one km
equals 0.62137119 miles
17. What are the two most abundant gases in the atmosphere and what percentage of
the atmosphere's volume do they occupy? - ANSWER • Nitrogen = 78%, oxygen = 21%
18. Which atmospheric gas has the most variable concentration from place to place and
from time to time? - ANSWER • Water vapor
19. What are aerosols? Give some examples of how they get into the atmosphere. -
ANSWER • Tiny suspended solid particles (dust, smoke, etc.) or liquid droplets that
enter the atmosphere from either natural or human (anthropogenic) sources, such as
the burning of fossil fuels; sulfur-containing fossil fuels, such as coal, produce sulfate
aerosols; smoke from forest fires; ash from volcanoes
20. On a weather map, what are lines that connect places that have the same pressure
called? how about lines that connect places that have the same temperature? -
ANSWER • Same pressure = isobars
,• Same temp = isotherm
21. In what general direction does midlatitude weather tend to move? Eastward or
westward? - ANSWER • West to east (eastward)
22. Describe some of the features observed on a weather map. - ANSWER • Red letter
L = region of low atmospheric pressure, center of midlatitude storm
• Large blue letter H = regions of high atmospheric pressure, called highs or
anticyclones
• Circles = other individual weather stations or cities where observations are taken
• Lines that parallel the wind and extend outward from the center of the station = wind
direction
• Barbs = wind speed
• Front = heavy, colored line
• Blue line with arrowheads pointing in direction of movement = cold front
• Red line with half circles showing its direction of movement = warm front
• Purple line with alternating arrowheads and circles = occluded front (cold air catches
warm front)
23. Rank the following storms in size from largest to smallest: hurricane, tornado,
midlatitude cyclonic storm, thunderstorms. - ANSWER • Midlatitude cyclonic storm,
hurricane, thunderstorm, tornado
24. How does the temperature of the air vary as you go higher in the troposphere? How
about the stratosphere? - ANSWER • Troposphere = temperature decreases as you
move away from Earth
• Stratosphere = temperature increases as you move higher
25. What are the three mechanisms for heat transfer in the atmosphere? - ANSWER •
Conduction, convection, and radiation
26. Explain how heat is transferred in our atmosphere by a) conduction, b) convection,
and c) radiation. - ANSWER • A) Conduction = the transfer of heat by molecular activity
from one substance to another, or through a substance; heat always moves from
warmer to colder regions; air is a poor conductor of heat
• B) Convection = transfer of heat by a mass movement of a fluid; happens naturally in
the atmosphere; air near surface of Earth gets hot, rises, cooler at top falls; any air that
rises will expand and cool, and any air that sinks is compressed and warmed; called
convective circulation
• C) Radiation = energy transferred from the sun to earth through electromagnetic
waves
27. Which of the mechanisms for heat transfer in the atmosphere involves the
movement of mass in a fluid? - ANSWER • Convection
, 28. By which mechanism does heat from the sun reach the Earth? - ANSWER • Radiant
energy (radiation)
29. Which has the highest temperature, the Earth or the Sun? - ANSWER • Sun
30. What variable determines the type and amount of radiation that a body emits? -
ANSWER • The object's temperature
31. Which emits more radiation, the Earth or the Sun? Why? - ANSWER • The sun is a
giant fusion reactor that is many times the mass of the Earth. The only radiation emitted
by the earth would be from the heat of the molten core, the living organisms and the
heat from the sun that has been absorbed and/or reradiated by the earth.
32. In what portion of the electromagnetic spectrum does the Sun emit most energy? -
ANSWER • Visible light
In what portion of the electromagnetic spectrum does the Earth emit most energy? -
ANSWER • Infrared wavelengths
34. What part of the radiation spectrum can our eyes see? - ANSWER • Visible light
35. When we see the moon, are we seeing radiation emitted by the moon? If not, what
are we seeing? - ANSWER • No, we are seeing light from the sun reflected off of the
moon
36. When we see the sun, are we seeing radiation emitted by the sun? If not, what are
we seeing? - ANSWER • Yes
37. What are evaporation, condensation, melting, freezing, sublimation, and deposition?
- ANSWER • Evaporation = liquid to gas
• Melting = solid to liquid
• Freezing = liquid to solid
• Sublimation = solid to gas
• Deposition = gas to solid
38. What is latent heat? Can we measure its effect with a thermometer? - ANSWER •
The heat that is either released or absorbed by a unit mass of a substance when it
undergoes a change of state, such as evaporation, condensation, or sublimation
• It cannot be measured with a thermometer
39. What is sensible heat? Can we measure its effect with a thermometer? - ANSWER •
The heat we can feel and measure with a thermometer
• Yes we can
With Accurate Answers
Weather - ANSWER the condition of the atmosphere at a specific time and place
Climate - ANSWER the accumulation of daily and seasonal weather events over a long
period of time
List seven common weather elements - ANSWER • 1) Air temperature
• 2) Air pressure
• 3) Humidity
• 4) Clouds
• 5) Precipitation
• 6) Visibility
• 7) Wind
What is the primary source of energy for the Earth's atmosphere? - ANSWER • The
sun's radiation
Explain the concept of air pressure in terms of the weight of air above some level. Why
does air pressure always decrease with increasing height? - ANSWER • the pressure
exerted by the mass of air above a given point
• air pressure always decreases with increasing height because as we climb in
elevation, fewer air molecules are above us
• rapidly decreases at first, then slower at higher levels
At what height in the atmosphere do we find the highest pressure? - ANSWER • Sea
level; 14.7 pounds/square inch
What is the standard atmospheric pressure at sea-level in millibars? - ANSWER •
1013.25 mb
What is the lapse-rate? - ANSWER • The rate at which an atmospheric variable (usually
temperature) decreases with height
,On the basis of temperature, list the layers of the atmosphere from lowest (closest to
the ground) to highest? - ANSWER • Troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere,
thermosphere
Which layer of the atmosphere contains all of the weather we experience? - ANSWER •
Troposphere
Which two layers of the atmosphere contain most of the atmosphere's mass? -
ANSWER • Troposphere and stratosphere
11. Why has the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increased over the
past 100 years? - ANSWER • Use of fossil fuels and deforestation
12. In what atmospheric layer do we find the greatest concentration of ozone, the so-
called ozone layer? - ANSWER • Stratosphere
13. How does the ozone layer protect life on Earth? - ANSWER • Shields plants,
animals, and humans from the sun's harmful ultraviolet rays
14. What season of the year is it in January in the Northern Hemisphere? What season
of the year is it in January in the Southern Hemisphere? - ANSWER • Winter
• Summer
15. What units are used to measure temperature? Given a temperature in degrees
Farenheit how do we convert it to degrees Celsius? - ANSWER • Kelvin, Fahrenheit,
and Celsius
• °C = 5/9 (°F-32)
16. Given a distance in kilometers, how do we convert it to miles? - ANSWER • one km
equals 0.62137119 miles
17. What are the two most abundant gases in the atmosphere and what percentage of
the atmosphere's volume do they occupy? - ANSWER • Nitrogen = 78%, oxygen = 21%
18. Which atmospheric gas has the most variable concentration from place to place and
from time to time? - ANSWER • Water vapor
19. What are aerosols? Give some examples of how they get into the atmosphere. -
ANSWER • Tiny suspended solid particles (dust, smoke, etc.) or liquid droplets that
enter the atmosphere from either natural or human (anthropogenic) sources, such as
the burning of fossil fuels; sulfur-containing fossil fuels, such as coal, produce sulfate
aerosols; smoke from forest fires; ash from volcanoes
20. On a weather map, what are lines that connect places that have the same pressure
called? how about lines that connect places that have the same temperature? -
ANSWER • Same pressure = isobars
,• Same temp = isotherm
21. In what general direction does midlatitude weather tend to move? Eastward or
westward? - ANSWER • West to east (eastward)
22. Describe some of the features observed on a weather map. - ANSWER • Red letter
L = region of low atmospheric pressure, center of midlatitude storm
• Large blue letter H = regions of high atmospheric pressure, called highs or
anticyclones
• Circles = other individual weather stations or cities where observations are taken
• Lines that parallel the wind and extend outward from the center of the station = wind
direction
• Barbs = wind speed
• Front = heavy, colored line
• Blue line with arrowheads pointing in direction of movement = cold front
• Red line with half circles showing its direction of movement = warm front
• Purple line with alternating arrowheads and circles = occluded front (cold air catches
warm front)
23. Rank the following storms in size from largest to smallest: hurricane, tornado,
midlatitude cyclonic storm, thunderstorms. - ANSWER • Midlatitude cyclonic storm,
hurricane, thunderstorm, tornado
24. How does the temperature of the air vary as you go higher in the troposphere? How
about the stratosphere? - ANSWER • Troposphere = temperature decreases as you
move away from Earth
• Stratosphere = temperature increases as you move higher
25. What are the three mechanisms for heat transfer in the atmosphere? - ANSWER •
Conduction, convection, and radiation
26. Explain how heat is transferred in our atmosphere by a) conduction, b) convection,
and c) radiation. - ANSWER • A) Conduction = the transfer of heat by molecular activity
from one substance to another, or through a substance; heat always moves from
warmer to colder regions; air is a poor conductor of heat
• B) Convection = transfer of heat by a mass movement of a fluid; happens naturally in
the atmosphere; air near surface of Earth gets hot, rises, cooler at top falls; any air that
rises will expand and cool, and any air that sinks is compressed and warmed; called
convective circulation
• C) Radiation = energy transferred from the sun to earth through electromagnetic
waves
27. Which of the mechanisms for heat transfer in the atmosphere involves the
movement of mass in a fluid? - ANSWER • Convection
, 28. By which mechanism does heat from the sun reach the Earth? - ANSWER • Radiant
energy (radiation)
29. Which has the highest temperature, the Earth or the Sun? - ANSWER • Sun
30. What variable determines the type and amount of radiation that a body emits? -
ANSWER • The object's temperature
31. Which emits more radiation, the Earth or the Sun? Why? - ANSWER • The sun is a
giant fusion reactor that is many times the mass of the Earth. The only radiation emitted
by the earth would be from the heat of the molten core, the living organisms and the
heat from the sun that has been absorbed and/or reradiated by the earth.
32. In what portion of the electromagnetic spectrum does the Sun emit most energy? -
ANSWER • Visible light
In what portion of the electromagnetic spectrum does the Earth emit most energy? -
ANSWER • Infrared wavelengths
34. What part of the radiation spectrum can our eyes see? - ANSWER • Visible light
35. When we see the moon, are we seeing radiation emitted by the moon? If not, what
are we seeing? - ANSWER • No, we are seeing light from the sun reflected off of the
moon
36. When we see the sun, are we seeing radiation emitted by the sun? If not, what are
we seeing? - ANSWER • Yes
37. What are evaporation, condensation, melting, freezing, sublimation, and deposition?
- ANSWER • Evaporation = liquid to gas
• Melting = solid to liquid
• Freezing = liquid to solid
• Sublimation = solid to gas
• Deposition = gas to solid
38. What is latent heat? Can we measure its effect with a thermometer? - ANSWER •
The heat that is either released or absorbed by a unit mass of a substance when it
undergoes a change of state, such as evaporation, condensation, or sublimation
• It cannot be measured with a thermometer
39. What is sensible heat? Can we measure its effect with a thermometer? - ANSWER •
The heat we can feel and measure with a thermometer
• Yes we can
