Download Skinner Chapter 12

Fall 20000
Lohrengel
Geology 1013 - Earth System Science
Chapter 12 - Study
Instructions:
Read each question carefully before answering. Work at a steady pace, and you should
have ample time to finish.
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1. Heat energy is a measure of the average kinetic energy (energy of
motion) of all the atoms in a body.
2. In the atmosphere, the amount of air per unit volume decreases with
increasing altitude.
3. Three gasesƒƒnitrogen, oxygen, and argonƒƒmake up 99.96 percent of
dry air by volume.
4. In the thermosphere, the outermost of the Earth's four thermal
layers, temperature increases with increasing altitude.
5. Ninety-nine percent of the mass of the atmosphere lies below an
altitude of 32 km (20 mi).
6. Among naturally occurring compounds, H 2O is the only one with the
ability to exist in three different physical statesƒƒsolid, liquid,
and gasƒƒat the surface of the Earth.
7. Warm air is denser than cold air.
8. When a parcel of dry air rises and expands adiabatically, the
temperature of the air increases.
9. Clouds form when air rises and becomes saturated in response to
adiabatic cooling.
10. A single raindrop contains about 1 million cloud droplets.
11. Which one of the following does not belong with the others?
a. cirrus
b. cirrocumulus
c. cirrostratus
d. stratocumulus
12. The rising of air that occurs when two flowing air masses of
different density meet is called
a. density lifting.
b. frontal lifting.
c. orographic lifting.
d. convergence lifting.
13. The rising of air that occurs when flowing air is forced upward as a
result of sloping terrain is called
a. density lifting.
b. frontal lifting.
c. orographic lifting.
d. convergence lifting.
14. Clouds consist of
a. water droplets and/or ice crystals.
b. water vapor only.
c. gases, primarily CO 2.
d. smoke and steam.
15. The three major gases that account for 99.96 percent of dry,
aerosol- free air are nitrogen, oxygen, and
a. carbon dioxide.
b. water vapor.
c. argon.
d. ozone.
16. Which one of the following does no belong with the others?
a. asthenosphere
b. stratosphere
c. troposphere
d. thermosphere
17. Individual puffy, cauliflower-shaped clouds with flat bases are
called ___________ clouds.
a. cumulus
b. stratus
c. nimbus
d. cirrus
18. Fine, wispy, filamentous clouds which form high in the troposphere
are called __________ clouds.
a. cumulus
b. stratus
c. nimbus
d. cirrus
19. The __________ is where most of the Earth's weather is generated,
where most clouds form, and where rain and snow develop.
a. troposphere
b. stratosphere
c. mesosphere
d. thermosphere
20. The atmosphere extends out to an altitude of about ____________ km.
a. 5
b. 50
c. 500
d. 5000
21. The formation of a more ordered liquid from a less ordered gas is
called
a. condensation.
b. sublimation.
c. evaporation.
d. precipitation.
22. Which one of the following is not one of the six changes of state
that occur in the compound H 2O at or near the surface of the Earth?
a. sublimation
b. deposition
c. condensation
d. melting
23. Air pressure is measured with a device called a
a. Bergeron column.
b. Pascal tube.
c. Torricelli flask.
d. barometer.
24. The mercury barometer was invented by
a. Evangelista Torricelli.
b. Blaise Pascal.
c. Tor Bergeron.
d. Alfred Wegener.
25. When air becomes saturated with water vapor,
a. ice crystals precipitate.
b. water condenses.
c. supercooled water droplets form.
d. Any of these can occur, depending on ambient conditions.
26. An essential criterion for a habitable planet is
a. the presence of oxygen in the atmosphere.
b. the presence of water vapor.
c. a comfortable ambient temperature, averaging between 6\C° and 27\C°C.
d. All of these are true.
27. Air pressure decreases with altitude, but the decrease is not linear
because of the
a. Bergeron process.
b. adiabatic lapse rate.
c. compressibility of air.
d. release of latent heat.
28. Scattering of sunlight in the atmosphere is caused by
a. clouds.
b. aerosols.
c. gas molecules.
d. All of these are true.
29. The sky appears blue because of
a. Rayleigh scattering.
b. the Bergeron process.
c. the planet's albedo.
d. the greenhouse effect.
30. Energy from the Sun that reaches the surface of the Earth is called
a. albedo.
b. solar energy.
c. the greenhouse effect.
d. insolation.
31. The two energy sources that drive the atmosphere are _______________
and __________________.
32. _________________ are tiny liquid droplets or tiny solid particles
that are so small they remain suspended in the air.
33. Energy from the Sun that reaches the surface of the Earth is called
_________________.
34. The lowest of the Earth's four thermal layers is the ______________.
35. A(n) ________________ is a helium- filled balloon used by
meteorologists to carry recording instruments high into the
atmosphere.
36. The temperature at which the relative humidity reaches 100 percent
and condensation begins is called the _________________.
37. A(n) ________________ process is a change in temperature that occurs
without the addition or subtraction of heat from an external source.
38. The way temperature changes with altitude in a rising or falling
mass of air is called the __________________.
39. Two rare kinds of clouds, called ________________ clouds and
_______________ clouds, form in the stratosphere and consist
entirely of tiny ice crystals.
40. As far as the weather is concerned, the three most important changes
of state of H 2O are _________________, _________________, and
________________.
41. What is the difference between weather and climate?
42. What is the difference between atmosphere and air?
43. What is the difference between temperature and heat?
44. What five atmospheric gases are commonly called the "greenhouse
gases"?
45. What are the five variables that meteorologists use to define the
weather (that is, the local state of the atmosphere)?
46. What two components of the Earth's atmosphere are highly variable
from place to place on the Earth's surface and from time to time in
the same place?
47. Name at least four types of solid aerosols that commonly occur in
the atmosphere.
48. What are the four things that can happen to sunlight when it enters
the Earth's atmosphere?
49. What is humidity? What is relative humidity, and what does it tell
scientists?
50. What does it mean when we say that water in clouds is sometimes
"supercooled"?
51. Explain how greenhouse gases work to keep the surface of the Earth
warm.
52. Why is the sky blue?
53. Explain how a simple mercury barometer works.
54. Describe the four principal forces that lead to the upward movement
of air.
55. Describe the processes leading to the formation of snow and rain.
56. Draw a neat, well- labelled diagram showing the four thermal zones of
the Earth's atmosphere and the variation of temperature with
altitude in the atmosphere.
57. How does dew form?
58. What is an adiabatic process, and how do adiabatic processes
influence the change of temperature associated with rising and
falling air in the atmosphere?
_____________________________________________
Fall 20000
Lohrengel
Geology 1013 - Earth System Science
Answer Key: Chapter 12 - Study
1. F
2. T
3. T
4. T
5. T
6. T
7. F
8. F
9. T
10. T
11. D
12. B
13. C
14. A
15. C
16. A
17. A
18. D
19. A
20. C
21. A
22. B
23. D
24. A
25. D
26. D
27. C
28. D
29. A
30. D
31. the Sun's heat...the Earth's rotation
32. Aerosols
33. insolation
34. troposphere
35. radiosonde
36. dew point
37. adiabatic
38. adiabatic lapse rate
39. nacreous...noctilucent
40. condensation...precipitation...evaporation
41. Weather is the state of the atmosphere at a given time and place.
Climate, on the other hand, is the average weather condition of a
place over a period of years. Weather is a short-term event, whereas
climate is a long-term one.
42. An atmosphere is the gaseous envelope that surrounds a planet or any
other celestial body. Air, by contrast, is the invisible, odorless
mixture of gases and suspended particles that surrounds the Earth.
Air is what makes up the Earth's atmosphere.
43. Heat or heat energy is the total kinetic energy (energy of motion)
of all the atoms in a substance, whereas temperature is a measure of
the average kinetic energy of all the atoms in a body.
44. The most important greenhouse gases are (1) carbon dioxide; (2)
methane; (3) ozone; (4) nitrous oxide; and (5) water vapor.
45. These five variables are used to define the state of the atmosphere:
(1) temperature; (2) air pressure; (3) humidity; (4) cloudiness; and
(5) wind speed and direction.
46. Aerosols and water vapor.
47. [Any four of]: Tiny ice crystals ; smoke particles from fires;
sea-salt crystals from ocean spray; dust stirred up by winds;
volcanic emissions; pollutants from industrial activities.
48. It can (1) pass through unchanged and be absorbed by land or sea;
(2) be reflected, uncha nged, back into space; (3) be scattered by
particles in the air; or (4) be absorbed by gases in the air.
49. Humidity is the amount of water vapor in the air. Relative humidity
is the ratio of the vapor pressure in a sample of air to the
saturation vapor pressure at the same temperature, expressed as a
percentage. Relative humidity compares the amount of water vapor
present in the air at a given temperature to the maximum possible
amount that the air could hold at the same temperature.
50. It means that water in clouds can sometimes be colder than 0\C°C
without being frozen.
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