Final Exam Answers

It is highly recommended that you have a printed version of this handout in front of you with your best answers already selected as you take your timed exam. It will help you immensely and is a great study tool. This exam is very close to the actual exam, and for that reason, an answer key will not be provided. Once you have opened the exam, the timer starts and you will have only 70 minutes to submit your answers.

Although this exam is an open notes exam, it is highly recommended that you use only a small index card to place notes on. This exam is timed and you will not have the luxury of time to look up all your answers after the exam has started. If you run out of time, you will not be able to go back and re-take the exam.

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1.	Mid-latitude cyclones
	a.  Lack a warm front and a cold front b. Are a type of hurricane c.  Are large high-pressure systems	d. Rotate counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere

2. If a warm front is approaching, you can expect after its passage
   1. Lower pressure Rising temperatures
   2. Higher pressure Both a and c
3. The continental U.S. lies within this wind belt.
   1. Westerlies Northerlies
   2. Polar Easterlies Trade Winds

4. The two properties that are relatively homogeneous (the same) at the same altitude in an air mass are
   1. Humidity and temperature Pressure and temperature
   2. Temperature and carbon dioxide None of these
5. If an air mass were designated with the letters “cA”, what kind of air mass would it be?
   1. Warm and moist air Cold and wet air
   2. Warm and dry air Very cold and dry air c. Cold and dry air
6. What force is ultimately responsible for the three cells of circulation we see in each hemisphere?
   1. Pressure Gradient Friction
   2. Coriolis None of these
7. The prevailing winds that blow between 30 and 60 degrees latitude are called:
   1. Westerlies Subtropical northerlies
   2. Polar easterlies e. None of these c. Trade winds
8. When warmer than normal water exists off the coast of Peru, we are said to have what is called:
   1. La Nina Polar easterlies
   2. El Nino Jet Stream c. Polar Front
9. An air mass that forms over the deserts is called?
   1. Maritime Tropical Continental Tropical
   2. Maritime Polar Continental Polar

10. Which of these is common for all types of fronts?
a.  Decreasing precipitation rates b. Lifting of cold air over warm c.  Divergence of surface winds 11. What does El Nino involve?	d. Light to calm winds e.  None of the above
a.  Warm water moves east along the equator b. Weakening of the trade winds	c.  Strengthening of the trade winds d. Both “a” and “b” e.  Both “a” and “c”

12. What is the stage of lightning called where electrons are making a path towards the earth’s surface?
    1. Downdrafts Thunder
    2. Updrafts Step-leader c. Return Stroke
13. If an air mass were designated with the letters “cT”, what kind of air mass would it be?
    1. Moist and warm air Moist and cold air
    2. Dry and warm air Very dry and cold air c. Dry and cold air
14. The location where warm air from the mid-latitudes converges with cold air from the poles is called:
    1. La Nina Polar Front
    2. El Nino Polar easterlies
15. What is the flash of light commonly associated with thunderstorms called?
    1. Downdrafts Thunder
    2. Updrafts Step-leader c. Return Stroke
16. Where does the majority of precipitation happen in a thunderstorm?
    1. Within the updrafts of a thunderstorm With lightning’s return stroke
    2. Within the downdrafts of a thunderstorm With the step-leader of lightning
17. What is the sound generated from violently expanding gasses in the atmosphere during a lightning event called?
    1. Downdrafts Thunder
    2. Updrafts Step-leader c. Return Stroke
18. A geostrophic wind that blows quickly due to a steep pressure gradient is called:
    1. La Nina Polar easterlies
    2. El Nino Jet stream c. Polar Front
19. When colder than normal water exists off the coast of Peru, we are said to have what is called:
    1. La Nina Polar easterlies
    2. El Nino Jet Stream c. Polar Front
20. Surface winds that blow from the poles to the lower latitudes are called:
    1. La Nina Polar easterlies
    2. El Nino Jet Stream c. Polar Front
21. The trade winds are:
    1. Easterly winds Southerly winds
    2. Westerly winds Northerly winds
22. The “Hadley Cell” is a cell of circulating air that circulates
    1. From the equator to the poles In the mid-latitudes
    2. In the tropics At the poles
23. If an air mass were designated with the letters “cP”, what kind of air mass would it be?
    1. Moist and warm air Moist and cold air
    2. Dry and warm air Very dry and cold air c. Dry and cold air
24. What is special about the tropics to have hurricanes develop only in that region?
    1. Stronger pressure gradients Coriolis is weaker
    2. Subsiding air currents Warmer water temperatures
25. At what time of day is an air-mass thunderstorm more likely to develop?
    1. midafternoon these storms are equally common
    2. midnight at all of these times
    3. midmorning
26. The terms leader, flash, and stroke are used when describing:
    1. a tornado the stages of a cumulonimbus
    2. the passage of a hurricane cloud during a thunderstorm
    3. squall line formation none of these
27. If an air mass were designated with the letters “mP”, what kind of air mass would it be?
    1. Moist and warm air Moist and cold air
    2. Dry and warm air Very dry and cold air c. Dry and cold air
28. Thunderstorms and large cumulus clouds are characteristic of
    1. isothermal lapse rates unstable air
    2. stable air all warm fronts
    3. all polar air masses
29. Which of the following is likely during the mature stage of a thunderstorm?
    1. lightning a, b, and c
    2. heavy precipitation none of these
    3. gusty winds
30. If an air mass were designated with the letters “mT”, what kind of air mass would it be?
    1. Moist and warm air Moist and cold air
    2. Dry and warm air Very dry and cold air c. Dry and cold air
31. Tornadoes and mid-latitude cyclones are similar in that:

1. both form in the trade-wind belt
2. both are most common and welldeveloped in the winter season

32. How are thunderstorms kept alive?
    1. Downdrafts
    2. Updrafts
    3. Return Stroke
33. both have areas of low pressure
34. both have conspicuous surface

fronts

1. Thunder
2. Step-leader

33. What causes the winds of a hurricane to be so fast?
    1. Weaker Coriolis force Very strong pressure
    2. Coupling with the jet stream gradient force
    3. Stronger Coriolis force
34. Which of the following can diminish the intensity of a hurricane?

a.    Moving over land b.    Decrease in large-scale flow aloft 35. Hurricanes are generally:	c.    Moving over cooler water d.    a, b & c
a.    smaller than mid-latitude cyclones b.    late summer and early fall storms	c.    areas of strong rainfall and winds d.    larger than tornadoes e.    all of these

36. Anthropogenic Carbon Dioxide stays in the atmosphere __________ years.
    1. 25 100
    2. 10 1000
37. Which country is the world leader in Carbon Dioxide emissions:
    1. India United States
    2. Russia China
38. Volcanic Ash released by a major volcanic eruption can cause the climate to:
    1. Cool Not change at all
    2. Warm

Please select “a” for True and “b” for False.

39. Cumulonimbus clouds are often associated with passing cold fronts.
40. Tornadoes are not classified as such until they touch the ground.
41. Maritime polar air masses commonly travel to the Pacific Northwest of the United States.
42. The trade winds from both hemispheres meet at the equator..
43. La Nina occurs after every El Nino event.
44. A mesocyclone is a type of tornado.
45. The terms “typhoon” and “cyclone” refer to the initial weaker stages in the development of a hurricane.
46. The earth is currently in the interglacial period of an ice age right now.
47. Earth’s tilt over geologic time has stayed at 23.5 degrees since it was created. It has not varied.
48. Relatively colder temperatures will prevail after the cold front passes.
49. The “flash” that happens during a lightning strike moves from the cloud to the ground.
50. Methane stays in the atmosphere only 10 years.