Introduction to Environmental Studies Solved Exam Questions
Course Introduction
Introduction to Environmental Studies explores the complex interactions between humans and the natural environment, introducing students to key concepts in ecology, sustainability, and environmental policy. The course examines pressing environmental challenges such as climate change, resource depletion, pollution, and biodiversity loss, while considering the scientific, economic, ethical, and social dimensions of these issues. Through case studies and interdisciplinary approaches, students gain foundational knowledge and critical thinking skills necessary to understand the relationships between society, policy, and the planets ecosystems and to evaluate potential solutions to contemporary environmental problems.
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Meteorology Today An Introduction to Weather Climate and the Environment 10th Edition by C.
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Chapter 1: Earth and Its Atmosphere
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Q1) In the middle latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere,surface winds tend to blow ____ and ____ around an area of surface low pressure.
A) clockwise;inward
B) clockwise;outward
C) counterclockwise;inward
D) counterclockwise;outward
Answer: C
Q2) The rate at which temperature decreases with increasing altitude is known as the A) temperature slope.
B) lapse rate.
C) sounding.
D) thermocline.
Answer: B
Q3) At night,when the weather is extremely cold and dry,
A) atmospheric pressure increases with increasing altitude.
B) atmospheric pressure remains constant with increasing altitude.
C) atmospheric pressure decreases with increasing altitude.
D) atmospheric pressure first increases,then decreases with increasing altitude.
Answer: C
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Chapter 2: Energy: Warming the Earth and the Atmosphere
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Q1) Describe the atmospheric greenhouse effect.Is there any difference between the way the atmospheric greenhouse effect works on a clear night and on a cloudy night?
Answer: no answer
Q2) Which of the following gases are mainly responsible for the atmospheric greenhouse effect in the earth's atmosphere?
A) oxygen and nitrogen
B) nitrogen and carbon dioxide
C) ozone and oxygen
D) water vapor and carbon dioxide
Answer: D
Q3) Sinking air warms by the process of A) compression.
B) expansion.
C) condensation.
D) friction.
Answer: A
Q4) Describe and give examples of the various ways that heat can be transported in the atmosphere.
Answer: no answer
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Chapter 3: Seasonal and Daily Temperatures
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Q1) On the summer solstice,the altitude of the noonday sun is highest
A) near the North Pole.
B) in the mid-latitudes of the northern hemisphere.
C) in the mid-latitudes of the southern hemisphere.
D) near the South Pole.
Answer: B
Q2) Many gardeners know that,when a frost is expected,plants can be protected by covering them with large plastic tubs.Explain why this is an effective way of protecting plants from frost.
Answer: no answer
Q3) Using sprinklers to prevent crop damage from cold air works best when A) the air is fairly humid.
B) the air is fairly dry.
Answer: A
Q4) At any given time,____ of the earth is illuminated by the sun.
A) one-fourth
B) one-third
C) one-half
D) two-thirds
Answer: C
5
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Chapter 4: Atmospheric Humidity
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Q1) If the air temperature in a room is 70°F,the saturation vapor pressure is 25 mb,the dew point temperature is 45°F,and the actual vapor pressure is 10 mb,then the relative humidity must be near ____ percent.
A) 15
B) 20
C) 35
D) 40
Q2) Evaporative coolers are primarily used in climates where the summers are
A) hot and humid.
B) hot and dry.
C) cold and humid.
D) cold and dry.
Q3) The dew point temperature is a measure of the total amount of water vapor in the air.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Why is perspiration an effective means of cooling human skin?
Q5) With the aid of a figure,illustrate and describe the circulation of water in the atmosphere (the hydrologic cycle).
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Chapter 5: Condensation: Dew, Fog, and Clouds
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Q1) Suppose the sky is covered with stratus clouds.How might you determine whether middle or high clouds are also present?
Q2) List the major height categories of clouds.What differences might you expect to find in the clouds that form at these different levels?
Q3) Under what conditions can a cloud form when air is sinking?
Q4) Even at high elevations where cirrus clouds are found,liquid water still exists in the clouds.
A)True
B)False
Q5) Which below is NOT a way in which a contrail may form?
A) from water vapor in the engine exhaust mixing with air
B) by air cooling as it passes over the aircraft's wings
C) due to heating of the air by the engine exhaust
D) all of the above
Q6) List one or more key identifying features for each of the ten basic cloud types.Which cloud types might have fairly similar appearances and thus be difficult to identify?
Q7) Would it be possible for rising air to remain cloud-free? If not,why not? If so,how?
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Chapter 6: Stability and Cloud Development
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Q1) Convective instability associated with severe thunderstorms and tornadoes can be brought on by
A) lifting a stable air layer whose surface is humid and whose top is dry.
B) forcing a layer of moist air to descend a mountain range.
C) heating the upper portion of an unsaturated layer of air.
D) all of the above
Q2) Does radiational cooling at the ground at night act to increase or decrease atmospheric stability?
Q3) Which of the following would increase the environmental lapse rate?
A) cold advection at higher altitudes
B) daytime solar heating
C) surface radiational cooling
D) all of the above
E) both cold advection at higher altitudes and daytime solar heating
Q4) A knowledge of air stability is important because
A) it determines the direction of movement of storms.
B) it determines the vertical motion of air.
C) it determines the movement of high pressure areas.
D) it determines seasonal weather patterns.
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Chapter 7: Precipitation
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Q1) A true blizzard is characterized by
A) low temperatures.
B) strong winds.
C) reduced visibility.
D) blowing snow.
E) all of these
Q2) The temperature at which you would expect a cloud to become completely glaciated is
A) 0 C (32 F).
B) -5 C (23 F).
C) -18 C (0 F).
D) -40 C (-40 F).
Q3) Which cloud would most likely produce drizzle?
A) stratus
B) cumulus
C) cumulus congestus
D) cirrostratus
E) cumulonimbus
Q4) Explain why it is possible for an ice crystal to grow in a cold cloud even though the supercooled water droplets surrounding the ice crystal do not.
Page 9
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Chapter 8: Air Pressure and Winds
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Q1) A surface low pressure area that moves from south to north directly east of your home would most likely produce winds that shift from
A) S to SE to E.
B) SE to E to SW.
C) N to NE to E.
D) W to NW to N.
E) NE to N to NW.
Q2) Which of the statements below is not correct concerning the pressure gradient force?
A) The PGF points from high to low pressure in the Northern Hemisphere.
B) It is non-existent at the equator.
C) It can cause the wind to speed up or slow down.
D) The PGF points from high to low pressure in the Southern Hemisphere.
Q3) Sketch the wind flow patterns around surface high and low pressure centers in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.
Q4) Explain briefly why upper-level winds at middle latitudes in the Northern Hemisphere blow from west to east.In what direction do upper level winds at middle latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere blow?
Q5) Under what conditions might a station pressure of 750 mb be observed?
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Chapter 9: Wind: Small Scale and Local Systems
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Q1) During the summer along the coast,a sea breeze is usually strongest and best developed
A) in the afternoon.
B) just after sunrise.
C) just before sunset.
D) just before noon.
E) around midnight.
Q2) Surface winds are generally strongest and most gusty
A) in the afternoon.
B) in the early morning.
C) around midnight.
D) just after sunset.
E) just before sunrise.
Q3) Clouds and precipitation are frequently found on the downwind side of a large lake.This would indicate that the air on the downwind side is A) converging and rising.
B) converging and sinking.
C) diverging and sinking.
D) diverging and rising.
Q4) Explain how Florida's sea breezes can increase the potential for wildfires.
Page 11
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Chapter 10: Wind: Global Systems
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Q1) The position of the Pacific high over the North Pacific Ocean shifts ____ in winter and ____ in summer.
A) northward,southward
B) southward,northward
C) eastward,westward
D) westward,eastward
Q2) The average winds aloft are strongest in
A) summer.
B) winter.
C) fall.
D) spring.
Q3) If you had to build a bridge linking South America to Africa,at what latitude would you build it? Why?
Q4) On a weather map of the Northern Hemisphere,one would observe the westerlies
A) north of the subpolar lows.
B) south of the tropical highs.
C) between the doldrums and the horse latitudes.
D) between the subpolar lows and the subtropical highs.
Q5) What occurs during a major El Niño event? How might this affect global wind and precipitation patterns?
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Chapter 11: Air Masses and Fronts
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Q1) During the winter as you travel toward a warm front,the most likely sequence of weather you would experience is
A) snow,freezing rain,hail,sleet.
B) rain,snow,sleet,freezing rain.
C) freezing rain,snow,sleet,rain.
D) snow,sleet,freezing rain,rain.
Q2) When warm and cold air masses collide,the warm air is forced upward.Why does this occur?
Q3) What type of clouds,if any,would you expect to see form when a cP air mass moves across warm water? Would conditions be any different when mT air moves across a cold land surface? Which types of clouds would form in this latter case?
Q4) A halo around the sun or moon indicates that rain may be on the way because the halo indicates
A) a cold front may be approaching.
B) a warm front may be approaching.
C) a sharp drop in atmospheric pressure.
D) a sudden rise in surface dew point temperature.
Q5) Why is the formation of air masses associated with high pressure systems rather than low pressure systems?
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Chapter 12: Middle-Latitude Cyclones
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Q1) The planetary vorticity of an air parcel moving from low toward high latitude in the Northern Hemisphere will
A) increase.
B) decrease.
C) remain constant.
D) change from positive to negative.
Q2) Developing low pressure areas generally have ____ air near the surface and ____ air aloft.
A) converging,diverging
B) diverging,converging
C) converging,converging
D) diverging,diverging
Q3) When making a weather forecast,which kind of chart is more important: a surface chart or a 500 mb chart?
Q4) Longwaves in the middle and upper troposphere usually have lengths on the order of
A) tens of kilometers.
B) hundreds of kilometers.
C) thousands of kilometers.
D) millions of kilometers.
Page 14
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Chapter 13: Weather Forecasting
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Q1) Describe four different types of weather forecasting methods and give an example of each.
Q2) Describe the relationship between dew point and minimum temperatures.
Q3) A comma cloud is
A) an organized band of clouds that looks like a comma on a satellite photograph.
B) a large cumulonimbus cloud whose anvil is in the shape of a comma.
C) a high wispy cirrus cloud that takes on the shape of a comma.
D) the spiraling arms of a hurricane.
E) a band of high cirrus clouds blown by the jet stream.
Q4) Which below is not a condition associated with an omega high?
A) It is in the shape of the Greek letter "omega."
B) It is known as a "blocking high."
C) It forms when the flow aloft is zonal.
D) It tends to persist in the same geographic area for many days.
Q5) Explain how observed teleconnection patterns can help in the preparation of a seasonal weather forecast.
Q6) Suppose a large anticyclone covered the eastern United States.What do you think the corresponding 500-mb chart would look like? Why?
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Chapter 14: Thunderstorms and Tornadoes
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Q1) What makes a tornado-producing thunderstorm different from other thunderstorms?
Q2) What is a squall line? Where would you expect squall lines to form?
Q3) The most frequent time of day for tornadoes to form is in the
A) early morning just after sunrise.
B) late morning just before noon.
C) evening just after sunset.
D) afternoon.
E) middle of the night.
Q4) The Enhanced Fujita Scale for classifying tornado strength is based on A) multiple damage indicators.
B) degree of damage.
C) atmospheric stability.
D) multiple damage indicators and the degree of damage.
E) none of the above
Q5) Compare some damaging straight-line winds with tornado winds.Which do you think are more destructive?
Q6) Where do thunderstorms form most frequently in the US? Why is this the case? Is this also where most tornadoes occur? Explain.
Q8) Do invisible tornadoes exist? Why or why not? Page 16
Q7) How does a supercell thunderstorm differ from a multicell thunderstorm?
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Page 17
Chapter 15: Hurricanes
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Q1) In a hurricane,the eye wall represents
A) the exact center of the storm.
B) the area of broken cloudiness at the center.
C) a region of light winds and low pressure.
D) a zone of intense thunderstorms around the center.
E) a layer of cirrus cloud in the center of the storm.
Q2) There is a limit to the intensity of hurricanes.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Which would you not expect to observe as the eye of a hurricane passes directly over your area?
A) an increase in surface temperature
B) a very low surface pressure reading
C) high winds
D) little or no precipitation
Q4) Computer models of hurricanes almost always agree on their predictions of a hurricane's movement and evolution.
A)True
B)False
Q5) Why can't hurricanes form in the mid-latitudes?
Page 18
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Chapter 16: Earths Changing Climate
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Q1) It is now known that,overall,clouds
A) have a net warming effect on climate.
B) have a net cooling effect on climate.
C) have no net effect on climate.
D) are the single most important feature in determining climate.
Q2) Ice cores record both the record of past temperatures and the causes of climate change.
A)True
B)False
Q3) What combination of the earth's orbital eccentricity,and precession and obliquity of the earth's axis would produce hottest summer temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere?
Q4) Discuss the significance of a predicted increase in global temperatures of 3<sup>o</sup>C,as opposed to a predicted increase of 1<sup>o</sup>C.
Q5) All atmospheric aerosols are injected directly into the earth's atmosphere by either natural or human-made sources.
A)True
B)False
Q6) What are some of the possible consequences of global warming?
Page 19
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Chapter 17: Global Climate
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Q1) Seattle,Washington (lat.47.5<sup>o</sup>N)has a coastal Mediterranean (Csb)climate.New York,New York (41<sup>o</sup>N)has a humid subtropical (Cfa)climate.What differences in climate would you expect to find between these two locations?
Q2) Which of the following is considered a climatic control?
A) ocean currents
B) intensity of sunshine and its variation with latitude
C) prevailing winds
D) altitude
E) all of the above
Q3) Discuss some of the factors that determine where the wettest places in the world are found.
Q4) Compare the climate of your town with that of another location at the same latitude,but in a different continent.Explain any similarities or differences.
Q5) The hottest places on earth are not found near the equator in tropical wet climates,but,rather,in arid climate regions.Why is this true?
Q6) What meteorological information is the primary basis for climate classification using the Köppen system?
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Chapter 18: Air Pollution
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Q1) How does Los Angeles-type smog differ from London-type smog?
Q2) The Los Angeles area has shown a steady decline in the number of unhealthful days due to ozone.
A)True B)False
Q3) Would highly polluted cities tend to have more clouds than less-polluted cities? Explain your answer.
Q4) Studies suggest that downwind of a large industrial area
A) average annual precipitation can increase.
B) higher surface temperatures are observed.
C) breezy conditions are frequently observed.
D) all of the above
Q5) Explain why locating industrial facilities on the perimeter of a city might not always prevent air pollution in the city.
Q6) Which of the following statements is not true of carbon monoxide (CO)?
A) It replaces oxygen in the blood's hemoglobin.
B) It is removed slowly from the atmosphere.
C) It is produced by the incomplete combustion of carbon-containing fuels.
D) Roughly half of the CO in the atmosphere is produced by automobiles.
Q7) Why doesn't an acidified lake look polluted?
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Chapter 19: Light, Color, and Atmospheric Optics
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Q1) What phenomena cause a road surface to appear to be wet on a hot,clear,dry day?
Why does the road appear to be wet? How would the road appear if it really were wet?
Q2) The sky will begin to turn milky white
A) when the concentration of ozone begins to reach dangerous levels.
B) when small particles such as dust and salt become suspended in the air.
C) when the relative humidity decreases below about ten percent.
D) on an oppressively hot day of the year.
Q3) Secondary rainbows occur when
A) two internal reflections of light occur in raindrops.
B) light refracts through ice crystals.
C) a single internal reflection of light occurs in raindrops.
D) light refracts through a cloud of large raindrops.
E) the sun disappears behind a cloud and then reappears.
Q4) If the temperature was constant in the lowest 1,000 meters of the atmosphere,conditions would be ____ for viewing a mirage.
A) good
B) excellent
C) average
D) poor
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