WX 301 Exam 2 Questions and Answers 100% Pass

WX 301 Exam 2 Questions and Answers 100% Pass pressure gradient - the amount of pressure change occurring over a given distance Pressure Gradient Force (PGF) - the force resulting from a pressure gradient -always oriented perpendicular to the isobar and points torwards lower pressure -only force to generate the wind Coriolis effect - The effect of Earth's rotation on the direction of winds and currents. which direction does the wind go in the north hemisphere because of coriolis effect - right which direction does the wind go in the south hemisphere because of coriolis effect - left what is the effect of the coriolis effect at the poles and equator - equator= 0 wind poles= strongest winds the wind vectors depend on which forces: - -Pressure force gradient -corolios effect -centrifugal force -friction 2COPYRIGHT © 2025 BY BRITTIE DONALD, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED the geostrophic wind - Results from balance between the pressure gradient forces and the coriolis force. faster the height contours, the faster the GW geostrophic wind direction - -if your back is to the wind, low pressure is to the left -paralells the isobars centrifugal force - an apparent force that acts outward on a body moving around a center rotation, as an object moves in a circular path subgeostrophic - flow occurs around Low pressure areas supergeostrophic - flow occurs around High pressure areas atmoshperic boundary - 1-2km above the surface How does friction affect wind direction? - converges around low areas of pressure -divergent around high areas of pressure convergent - coming together, piling up divergent - variant, moving apart how to calculate winds aloft with winds over 99knts - add 50 degrees to the wind direction add 100 knots to speed When more air mass is leaving a location than entering, we refer to this as: - divergence Which force is significant only near the surface and disrupts geostrophic balance causing the wind to blow across the isobars towards lower pressure? - friction 3COPYRIGHT © 2025 BY BRITTIE DONALD, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Friction at the surface of a low pressure system causes winds to slow and: - converge into the low creating upward vertical motion. Winds within the base of a trough tend to be: - subgeostrophic thickness - height difference between two pressure levels -bigger thickness, warmer air thermal wind relationship - if the tempatures are the same there is no wind -the bigger the difference the stronger the wind Jet streams are - are "ribbons" of fast winds in the upper troposhpere at both sub- tropical and mid latitudes polar jet stream - jet streams caused by strong horizontal tempatures gradients -strongest when/where the horizontial gradients are