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120 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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What is barometric pressure?
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the pressure exerted by atmosphere at a given point
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What does it mean when there is more air above an area?
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the barometric pressure is higher
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How is barometric pressure a good forcasting tool?
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it changes with local weather conditions
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What does high barometric mean?
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usually fair weather
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What does low barometric pressure mean?
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usually bad weather
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What does rising barometric pressure mean?
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turning into good weather
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What does decreasing barometric pressure?
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turning into bad weather
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What are white puffy clouds called?
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cumolous clouds
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What do cumulous clouds indicate?
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fair weather
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What are the clouds called high in the sky?
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cirrus
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What is a thermometer?
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a weather tool that measures temperature
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What is a wind vane?
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Measures the direction of the wind
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What is a anemometer?
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Measures the wind speed
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What is a barometer?
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a weather tool that predicts weather
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What are clouds?
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masses of tiny water droplets
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What do cummulus clouds look like?
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look layer-like and low
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What do cirrus clouds look like?
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curled and feathery
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What do stratus clouds look like?
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layer-like
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What does nimbus mean?
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a rain cloud
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What is a front?
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a boundary between two masses of different density, moisture or temperature
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What are watches?
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conditions make it possible for hazurdous weather to happen but has not been seen
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What are warnings?
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the conditions already exist and has been spotted
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What is El Nino?
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weather pattern related to the temperature of the water in tropical Pacific Ocean
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How does the sun have an affect of making clouds?
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It warms the ground so the water in the ground starts evaporation
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What are storms?
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violent disturbances in the atmosphere
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What happens to the air pressure when a storm happens?
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it suddenly changes
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When air pressure rapidly changes what happens? (answer is not storms)
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it causes rapid air movement
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What type of clouds are in thunderstorms?
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cumilonimbus
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What type of air collides to make a thunderstorm?
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warm air is forced into cold air
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What is thunder?
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heated air expands and explodes
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What is lightning?
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an electrical discharge between clouds
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What is the positive source for lightning?
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the earth
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What is the negative source for lightning?
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the cloud
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How long do tornadoes last?
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max of 30 sec
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What are tornadoes?
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rapidly whirling winds that are usually very brief
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Where do hurricanes form?
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over warm water and as a low pressure zone
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Where do hurricanes get their energy?
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from humid air at the oceans surface
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What degrees is the earth tilted on its axis?
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23.5 degrees
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Are you pointed away or to the sun during summer?
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to
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What season is it when you are tilted toward the sun?
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summer
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What season is it when you are in the process of going away from the sun?
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fall
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What season is it when you are away from the sun?
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winter
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What season is it when you are in the process of going toward he sun?
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spring
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If the earth did not turn what would happen?
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we would not have multiple seasons
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In the norhern hemisphere is the north pole pointed away or toward the sun in December?
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away
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What happens when less light reaches?
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low temperatures and short days
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Which direction does the north pole turn when it is in winter?
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toward the sun
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When in summer where is the sun?
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about straight above
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What is a solar eclipse?
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when the sun gets in the way of the moon
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What is a lunar eclipse?
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when the moon gets in the way of the sun
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What day is the sun the highest in the northern hemisphere?
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June 21st
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Where is the sun exactly overhead in the northern hemisphere?
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Tropic of Cancer
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What day does autumn begin?
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Sept 21st
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What day does winter begin
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December 21st
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What is dew point?
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the amount of moisture in the air
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Whichcan hold more water vapor, warm air or cold air?
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warm air
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Where does most of the water in he atmosphere com from?
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evaporation
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What happens when warm air with water vapor begin to cools?
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they form droplets, condensation
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What does the air feel like when it has droplets?
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"saturated"
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What is it calles when the air has droplets?
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the dew point
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What makes air humid?
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when the dew point and temperature are close
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Why do you feel humid?
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The water vapor makes it hard to perspire
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Name one cause of weather?
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heat of the sun
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What is climate?
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overall weather of an area, determined by temperature and rainfall
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Why does latitude influence climate?
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higher the latitude the lower average temperatures
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Why do higher latitude have lower average temperatures?
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the equator is zero degrees, there it is the hottest, as you move up and down the laditde degrees change and you get closer to the north and south pole therefore it will colder
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How does altitude have to do the influence of climate?
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the higher you go ABOVE SEA LEVEL the colder it gets
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Why does higher altitude have a lower temperature?
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the higher you get, the more cloud cover you get
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What are Continental Climates?
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climates that have a large range of yearly temperatures
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What are Maritime Climates?
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climates that have a small range of yearly temperatures
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Why the farther away from the sea you have a different variety of temperatures?
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the fronts from both direction meet towards the middle and it provides changes in pressure which changes the temperature
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Why the closer to the sea you have a smaller variety of temperatures?
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there is more of a wind chill coming from the ocean that doesnt change the temperature it just feels like it is cold. You are away from the fronts.
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What are prevailing winds?
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prevail winds are winds that make the west coast have cool summers and mild winters and the east coast have cold winters and hot summers
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What is topography?
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It is when mountains block winds.
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What are ocean currents?
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warm currents bring warm temperatures and cold currents bring cold tempeatures
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Why does weather occur?
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Weather occurs due to density (temperature and moisture) differences between one place and another
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What is the movement os mass from the sun called?
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The movement of mass ejected from the Sun is known as the solar wind
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What is troposphere?
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a lower part of the atmosphere where weather mostly occurs
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Why does the temperature get cooler?
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the lower the sun angle is, which causes those locations to be cooler due to the indirect sunlight
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How long do thunderstorms last?
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How long do thunderstorms last?
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We can predict the weather-- can we predict the climate?
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NOAA successfully predicted the 1997-98 El Nino event
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How many categories are there to describe the intensity of hurricanes?
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Five
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What is advection?
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Transport of an atmospheric property by the wind
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What is an Aurora Borealis?
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The luminous, radiant emission from the upper atmosphere over middle and high latitudes, and centred around the earth's magnetic poles. These silent fireworks are often seen on clear winter nights in a variety of shapes and colours
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What is condensation?
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The physical process by which vapour becomes liquid or solid; the opposite of evaporation
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What is a dopplar radar?
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Radar that can measure radial velocity, the instantaneous component of motion parallel to the radar beam
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What is fog?
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A cloud based at the earth's surface consisting of tiny water droplets or, under very cold conditions, ice crystals or ice fog; generally found in calm or low wind conditions. Under foggy conditions, visibility is reduced to less than one kilometer
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What is freezing rain?
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Rain which freezes on impact to form a coating of ice upon the ground and on the objects it strikes. A freezing rain warning is usually issued when slippery driving and walking conditions are expected, and/or when freezing rain may damage trees, power lines, or other structures
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What is frost?
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Water vapor which deposits directly as a solid on a surface colder than the surrounding air and which has a temperature below freezing. It is not frozen dew. A Killing Frost is a frost severe enough to end the growing season
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What is greenhouse effect?
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The greenhouse effect is the name applied to the process which causes the surface of the earth to be warmer than it would have been in the absence of an atmosphere because it receives energy from two sources: the sun and the atmosphere. Radiation is not trapped,and the atmosphere does not behave as a greenhouse and the greenhouse gasses do not behave as a blanket ~ the name "greenhouse effect" is somewhat of a misnomer
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What is hail?
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Precipitation in the form of lumps of ice associated with thunderstorms. Hail size usually ranges from that of a small pea to the size of cherries, but has been observed as large as oranges. Hail occurs most frequently during the summer when thunderstorm activity is at a peak. Extensive damage in the agricultural industry is caused each vear by hailstorms
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What is humidity?
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Generally, a measure of the water vapor content of the air. Popularly, it is used synonymously with relative humidity
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What is a jet stream?
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Relatively strong winds concentrated in a narrow stream in the atmosphere, normally referring to horizontal, high-altitude winds. The position and orientation of jet streams vary from day to day. General weather patterns (hot/cold, wet/dry) are related closely to the position, strength and orientation of the jet stream (or jet streams). A jet stream at low levels is known as a low-level jet
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Who is a meteoroligist?
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A person who studies meteorology. There are many different paths within the field of meteorology. For example, one could be a research meteorologist, radar meteorologist, climatologist, or (my personal favourite) operational meteorologist
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What is mist?
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Consists of microscopic water droplets suspended in the air which produce a thin greyish veil over the landscape. It reduces visibility to a lesser extent than fog
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What is ozone?
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A pungent-smelling, slightly bluish gas which is a close chemical cousin to molecular oxygen. About 90% of the earth's ozone is located in a natural layer far above the surface of the globe, in a frigid region of the atmosphere known as the stratosphere. Here in this outer region it protects the earth and its inhabitants from the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiation from the sun
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What is precipitation?
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The precipitation of water from the atmosphere in the form of hail, mist, rain, sleet, and snow. Deposits of dew, fog, and frost are excluded
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What is a rainbow?
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Rainbows occur when sunlight is refracted and then reflected by raindrops. The raindrops act like a prism, breaking the light into the colours of a rainbow, with red on the outer, and blue on the inner edge. On occasion the light can be reflected from both the front and back of the raindrops and two rainbows are visible, with the colour bands in the second opposite to those in the primary rainbow. Rainbows can be seen when the sun is shining and the air contains water spray or raindrops. This condition occurs frequently during or immediately following showers. Rainbows are always observed in the portion of the sky opposite the sun. The sun, the observer's eye, and the centre of the rainbow arc always fall on a straight line
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What is a rain gauge?
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An instrument used to measure rainfall amounts
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What is relative humidity?
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A ratio, expressed in percent, of the amount of atmospheric moisture present relative to the amount that would be present if the air were saturated. Since the latter amount is dependent on temperature, relative humidity is a function of both moisture content and temperature. As such, relative humidity by itself does not directly indicate the actual amount of atmospheric moisture present
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What is a stratocumulus cloud?
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Low-level clouds, existing in a relatively flat layer but having individual elements. Elements often are arranged in rows, bands, or waves. Stratocumulus often reveals the depth of the moist air at low levels, while the speed of the cloud elements can reveal the strength of the low-level jet
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What is a cirrocumulous cloud?
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Thin clouds that appear as small "cotton patches."
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What is a cirrostratus cloud?
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Thin white clouds that resemble veils
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What is a altocumulous cloud?
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Gray or white layer or patches of solid clouds with rounded shapes
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What is and altostratus cloud?
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Grayish or bluish layer of clouds that can obscure the Sun
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What is a stratocumulous cloud?
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Rounded cloud masses that form on top of a layer
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What is a nimbostratus cloud?
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Dark, gray shapeless cloud layers containing rain, snow, and ice pellets
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What is a pyrocumulous cloud?
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is a dense cumuliform cloud associated with fire or volcanic activity
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What are contrails?
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Long, narrow, ice-crystal clouds that form behind jet planes flying at high altitudes in below-freezing temperatures. They result from the condensation of water vapor remaining in jet exhaust
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What is a drought?
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A period when a region has a lack of rainfall. Droughts can affect a fairly small area for a season or an entire continent for years. Too little rainfall can cause shortages in the water supply, destroy crops, and cause widespread hunger. Droughts also dry up soil, which then gets picked up by the wind and causes dust storms
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What is erosion?
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The wearing away of the Earth’s surface by the action of the sea, running water, moving ice, precipitation or wind
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What is a flash flood?
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Sudden flooding that occurs when floodwaters rise swiftly with no warning within several hours of an intense rain. They often occur after intense rainfall from slow moving thunderstorms. In narrow canyons and valleys, floodwaters flow faster than on flatter ground and can be quite destructive
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What is global warming?
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The theory that increased concentrations of greenhouse gases are causing the Earth’s surface temperature to warm
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What is a hygrometer?
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An instrument that measures the water vapor content of air or the humidity
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What is and Indian Summer?
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A warm, tranquil spell of weather in the autumn, especially after a period of cold weather. The term is used most often in the Midwest and New England
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What is a La Nina?
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A widespread cooling of the surface waters of the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean. It’s the opposite of El Niño
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What is monsoon?
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A seasonal wind, found especially in Asia that reverses direction between summer and winter and often brings heavy rains
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What is a Saffir-Simpson Scale?
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A hurricane intensity scale that relates hurricane damage to wind speeds and central air pressures
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What is sleet?
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Solid precipitation in the form of ice pellets form when raindrops, originating in warmer air aloft, freeze as they fall through subfreezing air near the surface of the Earth
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What is smog?
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It’s visible air pollution in urban areas. It looks like dirty fog in large cities
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