ESC 100 Unit 4 Test Study Guide 100%
Accurate!!
What is weather? - ANSWERSThe state of the atmosphere at a given time and place
What is climate? - ANSWERSThe average weather conditions in an area over a long
period of time
What are the basic elements measured regularly for weather and climate data? -
ANSWERSAir Temperatures
Humidity
Type/Amount of cloudiness
Type/Amount of precipitation
Air Pressure
Speed and direction of wind
What is the composition of dry air? - ANSWERSNitrogen (N2) = 78%
Oxygen (O2) = 21%
Argon (Ar) = 1%
And Tiny amounts of carbon dioxide, aerosols, etc
What range does water vapor have? - ANSWERSvaries between 0% and 4%
What are aerosols, and what do they do? - ANSWERSAerosols are tiny solid and liquid
particles in the air. They act as surfaces for water vapor to condense upon, Absorbs,
reflects, and scatters sunlight, and Produce optical phenomenon (red sunsets)
What is ozone? What is it made of? - ANSWERSOzone is three oxygen atoms bonded
together, Can occur as a pollutant in the low-levels
Where is the ozone layer located? What does it do there? Is ozone near the surface
helpful or harmful? Why? - ANSWERSIn the stratosphere (10 to 50 km up), it filters out
ultraviolet radiation, and the Ozone is good up high, bad nearby
What is air pressure? What is the value of sea level pressure in millibars? What
happens to pressure as you go up in the atmosphere - ANSWERSThe weight of the air
above, it can decrease exponentially with height
Sea level pressure is about 1000 millibars (14.7 pounds per square inch)
The higher you go in the atmosphere, the air pressure decreases.
, What is a lapse rate? - ANSWERSA lapse rate is the rate of temperature change with
height. The faster the temperature decreases with height, the "steeper" the lapse rate
and the more unstable the atmosphere becomes
What are the four layers of the atmosphere from the ground up? What happens to the
temperature in each layer? - ANSWERSTroposphere - lowest layer, temperature
decreases with height, weather (mixing) occurs here
Stratosphere - no mixing, ozone layer here, temperature increases with height
Mesosphere - coldest temperatures
Thermosphere - highest temperatures found here, but the air is too thin to feel hot
Temperature increases as you gain altitude in the stratosphere and the thermosphere.
Temperature decreases as you gain altitude in the troposphere and mesosphere (in a z
or zig-zag way)
What is rotation? Revolution? Why are the tropics hot and the poles cold? What causes
the seasons? - ANSWERSRotation: The Earth spinning on its axis once every 24 hours,
produces day and night cycle
Revolution: The Earth moving in its orbit around the sun at 70,000 mph
Most of the energy reaches the equatorial (Tropics) regions and the least energy
reaches the poles
Seasons are driven by the shifting of the altitude of the Sun during the day (when the
Earth's axis points toward the sun it causes Summer, and when the Earth's axis point
away from the sun it causes Winter)
What are the two equinoxes? - ANSWERSVernal or Spring (March 19th, 20th, or 21st)
and Autumnal (September 22nd or 23rd) Equinoxes: the Equator (zero latitude)
What are the two solstice? - ANSWERSSummer Solstice (June 21st - 22nd): Tropic of
Cancer, 23.5 degrees north latitude
Winter Solstice (December 21st- 22nd) : Tropic of Capricorn, 23.5 degrees south
latitude
What is the difference between heat and temperature? - ANSWERSHeat - Thermal
energy, the total amount of internal motions (kinetic energy) of atoms and molecules in
a substance
Temperature - the average kinetic energy of a material's atoms or molecules
What are the three means of heat transfer? Know an example of each. -
ANSWERSConduction: the transfer of heat through molecules to molecule contact
Hot spoon in a pot
Convection: the transfer of heat by mass movement or circulation within a fluid
Boiling pot of water
Radiation: the transfer of energy through electromagnetic waves
Sun's energy reaching Earth
Accurate!!
What is weather? - ANSWERSThe state of the atmosphere at a given time and place
What is climate? - ANSWERSThe average weather conditions in an area over a long
period of time
What are the basic elements measured regularly for weather and climate data? -
ANSWERSAir Temperatures
Humidity
Type/Amount of cloudiness
Type/Amount of precipitation
Air Pressure
Speed and direction of wind
What is the composition of dry air? - ANSWERSNitrogen (N2) = 78%
Oxygen (O2) = 21%
Argon (Ar) = 1%
And Tiny amounts of carbon dioxide, aerosols, etc
What range does water vapor have? - ANSWERSvaries between 0% and 4%
What are aerosols, and what do they do? - ANSWERSAerosols are tiny solid and liquid
particles in the air. They act as surfaces for water vapor to condense upon, Absorbs,
reflects, and scatters sunlight, and Produce optical phenomenon (red sunsets)
What is ozone? What is it made of? - ANSWERSOzone is three oxygen atoms bonded
together, Can occur as a pollutant in the low-levels
Where is the ozone layer located? What does it do there? Is ozone near the surface
helpful or harmful? Why? - ANSWERSIn the stratosphere (10 to 50 km up), it filters out
ultraviolet radiation, and the Ozone is good up high, bad nearby
What is air pressure? What is the value of sea level pressure in millibars? What
happens to pressure as you go up in the atmosphere - ANSWERSThe weight of the air
above, it can decrease exponentially with height
Sea level pressure is about 1000 millibars (14.7 pounds per square inch)
The higher you go in the atmosphere, the air pressure decreases.
, What is a lapse rate? - ANSWERSA lapse rate is the rate of temperature change with
height. The faster the temperature decreases with height, the "steeper" the lapse rate
and the more unstable the atmosphere becomes
What are the four layers of the atmosphere from the ground up? What happens to the
temperature in each layer? - ANSWERSTroposphere - lowest layer, temperature
decreases with height, weather (mixing) occurs here
Stratosphere - no mixing, ozone layer here, temperature increases with height
Mesosphere - coldest temperatures
Thermosphere - highest temperatures found here, but the air is too thin to feel hot
Temperature increases as you gain altitude in the stratosphere and the thermosphere.
Temperature decreases as you gain altitude in the troposphere and mesosphere (in a z
or zig-zag way)
What is rotation? Revolution? Why are the tropics hot and the poles cold? What causes
the seasons? - ANSWERSRotation: The Earth spinning on its axis once every 24 hours,
produces day and night cycle
Revolution: The Earth moving in its orbit around the sun at 70,000 mph
Most of the energy reaches the equatorial (Tropics) regions and the least energy
reaches the poles
Seasons are driven by the shifting of the altitude of the Sun during the day (when the
Earth's axis points toward the sun it causes Summer, and when the Earth's axis point
away from the sun it causes Winter)
What are the two equinoxes? - ANSWERSVernal or Spring (March 19th, 20th, or 21st)
and Autumnal (September 22nd or 23rd) Equinoxes: the Equator (zero latitude)
What are the two solstice? - ANSWERSSummer Solstice (June 21st - 22nd): Tropic of
Cancer, 23.5 degrees north latitude
Winter Solstice (December 21st- 22nd) : Tropic of Capricorn, 23.5 degrees south
latitude
What is the difference between heat and temperature? - ANSWERSHeat - Thermal
energy, the total amount of internal motions (kinetic energy) of atoms and molecules in
a substance
Temperature - the average kinetic energy of a material's atoms or molecules
What are the three means of heat transfer? Know an example of each. -
ANSWERSConduction: the transfer of heat through molecules to molecule contact
Hot spoon in a pot
Convection: the transfer of heat by mass movement or circulation within a fluid
Boiling pot of water
Radiation: the transfer of energy through electromagnetic waves
Sun's energy reaching Earth
