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65 questions
Which type of UV radiation is only partially absorbed by the ozone layer, allowing some of it to reach the earth's surface?
UVA
UVB
UVC
UVD
How does air normally move in the atmosphere?
low pressure to high pressure
high altitude to low altitude
high pressure to low pressure
low altitude to high altitude
What name is given to the upper atmosphere because of its distinct layers?
heterosphere
troposphere
mesosphere
homosphere
What is the normal value of atmospheric pressure at sea level?
6.9 millibars
14.7 millibars
1013 millibars
110,000 millibars
Which temperature layer of the atmosphere contains the ozone layer?
thermosphere
stratosphere
stratopause
tropopause
Which type of current causes most of the earth's weather?
conduction current
convection current
radiation current
electromagnetic current
What is the coldest point in the atmosphere?
turbopause
tropopause
stratopause
mesopause
At what point on the earth's elliptical orbit does Earth receive the greatest amount of insolation?
solhelion
perihelion
aphelion
epithelion
What global winds occur at the earth's surface in high latitudes?
prevailing westerlies
polar easterlies
jet streams
trade winds
What portion of Earth's magnetic field stretches away from the sun?
magnetopause
magnetobelt
magnetoline
magnetotail
Which atmospheric layer is the least understood?
mesosphere
stratosphere
stratopause
tropopause
What is the most important and abundant greenhouse gas?
oxygen
water vapor
carbon dioxide
nitrogen
Why is afternoon usually the warmest part of the day?
Trapped heat remains in the atmosphere.
The sun is almost directly overhead.
Earth does not radiate heat during the day.
Afternoon clouds warm the ground.
Why does a compass always point north?
The compass points toward the North Star.
The compass points toward Earth's magnetic poles.
The compass points away from the equator.
The compass points away from Earth's core.
Why do cyclones in the Southern Hemisphere rotate the opposite direction from cyclones in the Northern Hemisphere?
The earth's tilt bends the winds in different directions.
The earth's tilt changes the amount of insolation.
The Coriolis effect changes the amount of insolation.
The Coriolis effect bends the winds in different directions.
The U.S. government broadcasts the official time for the country using a shortwave radio station in Colorado. How can there broadcasts be heard throughout the Lower Forty-Eight United States?
Radio waves follow the curve of the earth.
Radio waves can travel an unlimited distance.
Radio waves bounce off the ionosphere.
radio waves travel in a straight line.
At the equator, air rises and begins traveling outward, toward the poles. Why does this air sink back to Earth long before it reaches the poles?
The air is heated by high temperatures at high altitudes.
The air is heated by compression as it rises.
The air is cooled by expansion as it rises.
The air is cooled by low temperatures at high altitudes.
The area where the solar wind interacts with Earth's magnetic field is the ______________.
The amount of energy available to heat Earth's land, water, and air is called Earth's ____________.
The upper-troposphere waves associated with the polar front jet stream are called _________waves.
The shield that protects the earth from harmful ultraviolet radiation is the __________ layer.
The process in which the temperature of a gas rises as the gas is compressed with no heat lost is called ________ heating.
Auroras that occur in southern latitudes are called aurora _______________.
High-altitude winds that are concentrated in narrow, meandering bands of rapidly moving air are called _____________.
downslope wind caused by cooling air near a slope
fall wind
forest breeze
katabatic wind
land breeze
wind that occurs when a large amount of dense, cold air spills over a mountain range
fall wind
forest breeze
katabatic wind
land breeze
wind that occurs when warm air over open terrain rises, drawing cooler air from under trees
forest breeze
land breeze
sea breeze
katabatic wind
cool, gentle wind blowing in from the water to the land
sea breeze
land breeze
forest breeze
fall wind
What unit is used to measure the amount of energy something gains, loses, or uses in one second?
What effect causes wet and dry seasons through a seasonal change in wind direction?
What feature marks the bottom of the mesosphere?
What is the transfer of heat by direct contact?
What winds were named because they consistently allowed ships to make a quick passage across the ocean?
During the day, both land and water heat up from sun exposure. How does the heating of water and land compare?
Water heats faster than land.
Water heats slower than land.
Water heats at the same rate as land.
The comparison depends on land color.
What causes the plasma in the ionosphere?
cosmic rays
magnetic radiation
ultraviolet radiation
radio waves
If all factors except the type of surface are the same, which of the following surfaces would you expect to warm most quickly during the day?
sandy beach
freshly plowed field
ice-covered plateau
grassy plain
What doughnut-shaped regions surround the earth and trap particles from the solar wind?
pressure belts
particle radiation belts
Van Allen radiation belts
solar wind belts
How are convection currents produced on a global scale at the equator and poles?
equal cooling
unequal cooling
equal heating
unequal heating
What form of heat transfer heats cool air in contact with warm ground?
relocation
convection
radiation
conduction
What transfers heat in the process of radiation?
radio waves
ether waves
heat waves
electromagnetic waves
What is the solar energy that reaches the surface of the earth called?
insolation
solar power
energy buget
albedo
What two gases help give the earth a mild and stable climate?
nitrogen and carbon dioxide
nitrogen and oxygen
carbon dioxide and water vapor
oxygen and water vapor
What is the outermost temperature layer of the atmosphere?
stratosphere
troposphere
thermosphere
exosphere
What is one of the two factors that cause the Coriolis effect?
inertia
albedo
Earth's orbit
convection currents
What temperature layer of the atmosphere is at the bottom of the heterosphere?
turbosphere
thermosphere
stratosphere
mesosphere
What direction does an anticyclone revolve in the Southern Hemisphere?
clockwise
back-and-forth
vertically
counterclockwise
What causes the Intertropical Convergence Zone?
high pressure
low pressure
high winds
no winds
If all other factors were equal, which of the following locations would you expect to have the highest air pressure?
Death Valley (86 m below sea level)
Lake Superior (183 m above sea level)
Dead Sea (414 m below sea level)
Mount Everest (8848 m above sea level)
Which of the following is required for monsoons to form?
Land at very different eleations.
Land near a large body of water.
Land at nearly constant elevation.
Land far from large bodies of water.
What causes anabatic winds?
Heated air near a mountain slope rises
Heated air near the shore flows inland.
Cooled air near the shore flows to the sea.
Cooled air near a mountain slope sinks.
51._________
52. _____________
53. ____________
A horizontal movement of air caused by a transfer of heat is a __________.
A warm, dry wind that travels down a mountain slope is called a _________.
The steady change in atmospheric temperature with altitude is the atmosphere's temperature _____________.
The weather layer of the atmosphere is the ____________.
The ratio of the solar radiation reflected by an object to the solar radiation that strikes it is the object's ___________.
Regions of high pressure and gentle winds at about 30°north and south latitude are __________________.
Would the layer above the tropopause have its temperature rise with altitude if there were no oxygen in the atmosphere? Why or why not?
No; this layer is heated by the vibration of heated oxygen molecules.
No; this layer is heated by the chemical reaction of oxygen molecules.
Yes; this layer is heated by rising heat from Earth's surface.
Yes; this layer is heated by particles entering the ionosphere.
A weather map of North America shows a large area with winds rotating clockwise. Is this a high or a low? How do you know?
low, because outward-flowing winds rotate clockwise
low, because inward-flowing winds rotate clockwise
high, because outward-flowing winds rotate clockwise
high, because inward-flowing winds rotate clockwise
Leila lives in the tropics. Shortly after dark one night, she saw a reddish glow on the horizon, which she thought was an aurora. How do you know Leila's conclusion is incorrect?
Solar-wind particles enter Earth's atmosphere only at high latitudes.
Warm temperatures prevent the atmosphere from changing colors.
Auroras are only seen near the middle of the night.
Auroras always appear high in the sky.
Large wildfires often produce wind systems around themselves. What direction do these winds blow? Why?
Winds blow toward the fire to replace rising hot air.
Winds blow toward the fire to replace rising cool air.
Winds blow away from the fire as cool air sinks.
Winds blow away from the fire as hot air sinks.
Which city would you expect to receive more insolation during the month of July: Lookout Mountain, Georgia (about 35°N), or Sydney, Australia (about 35°S)?
Sydney, because the earth is close to aphelion
Lookout Mountain, because the earth is close to aphelion
Sydney, because the sunlight is at a shallower angle
Lookout Mountain, because sunlight is at a steeper angle
How does adiabatic cooling help create high-altitude winds?
Sinking air cools as it expands and pushes air outward at high altitudes.
Sinking air cools as it contracts and draws air inward at high altitudes.
Rising air cools as it expands and pushes air outward at high altitudes.
Rising air cools as it contracts and draws air inward at high altitudes.
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