Physical Geography
Mock Exam
Course Introduction
Physical Geography examines the natural processes and features that shape the Earth's surface, including landforms, climate, vegetation, soils, and water bodies. This course explores the dynamic interactions between the atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, and biosphere, providing an understanding of weather patterns, geological activity, and environmental changes. Students will analyze how these physical systems influence and are influenced by human activity, and develop skills in spatial analysis and interpretation of maps, images, and geographic data. Through lectures, case studies, and hands-on activities, learners will gain a comprehensive foundation in the principles and significance of physical geography.
Recommended Textbook
Extreme Weather and Climate 1st Edition by C. Donald Ahrens
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15 Chapters
633 Verified Questions
633 Flashcards
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Chapter 1: The Turbulent Atmosphere
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Sample Questions
Q1) Water vapor shows more variation from place to place and from time to time than any other atmospheric gas.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q2) The word "weather" is defined as:
A)the average of the weather elements.
B)the climate of a region.
C)the condition of the atmosphere at a particular time and place.
D)any type of falling precipitation.
Answer: C
Q3) The earth's atmosphere is divided into layers based on the vertical profile of:
A)air pressure.
B)air temperature.
C)air density.
D)wind speed.
Answer: B
Q4) Why is there very little water vapor above the tropopause?
Answer: no answer
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Chapter 2: Energy That Drives the Storms
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Sample Questions
Q1) Energy of motion is also known as:
A)dynamic energy.
B)kinetic energy.
C)sensible heat energy.
D)static energy.
E)latent heat energy.
Answer: B
Q2) During an equinox,the days and nights are of equal length except at the poles.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q3) If you want to keep an object cool while exposed to direct sunlight,you should:
A)put it inside a brown paper bag.
B)wrap it in black paper.
C)wrap it in aluminum foil with the shiny side facing inward.
D)wrap it in aluminum foil with the shiny side facing outward.
Answer: D
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Chapter 3: Temperature and Humidity Extremes
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39 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following statements is/are true?
A)If you travel from Dallas,Texas to St.Paul,Minnesota in January,you are more likely to experience greater temperature variations than if you make the same trip in July.
B)Annual temperature ranges tend to be much greater near the ocean than in the middle of the continent.
C)If two cities have the same mean annual temperature,then their temperatures throughout the year are quite similar.
D)all of the above are true
Answer: A
Q2) A clear,calm,dry winter night would be ideal conditions for a strong radiation inversion.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q3) At any given time,one-fourth of the earth is illuminated by the sun.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
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5
Chapter 4: Condensation in the Atmosphere
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Sample Questions
Q1) Infrared satellite images are computer-enhanced to:
A)increase the contrast between specific features in the picture.
B)show where thick clouds with cold tops are located.
C)show where clouds with tops near the freezing level are located.
D)all of the above
Q2) Mammatus clouds form in descending air.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Suppose the sky is covered with stratus clouds.How might you determine whether middle or high clouds are also present?
Q4) Light or moderate-but-steady precipitation is most often associated with __________ clouds.
A)nimbostratus
B)cirrostratus
C)cirrocumulus
D)cumulonimbus
Q5) List the main types of fog.Then briefly explain how each one forms.Where might you expect each of these different types of fog to form?
Q6) In what ways are the formation of fog and clouds similar and different?
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Chapter 5: Clouds and Stability
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Sample Questions
Q1) The most latent heat would be released in a __________ parcel of __________ saturated air.
A)rising,warm
B)rising,cold
C)sinking,warm
D)sinking,cold
Q2) Explain how lifting an air layer can steepen the environmental lapse rate and make the layer more unstable.
Q3) Based on atmospheric stability considerations,do you think it would be best to burn agricultural debris in the early morning or in the afternoon?
Q4) Subsidence increases stability.
A)True
B)False
Q5) What types of clouds might you expect to see form when a cold mass of air moves over warmer water?
Q6) An air parcel that is warmer than its surroundings will rise.What force accounts for this upward motion?
Q7) List and explain the four processes that cause rising air motions in the atmosphere.
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Chapter 6: Precipitation Extremes
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which type of precipitation would most likely form when the surface air temperature is slightly below freezing and the air temperature increases as you move upward away from the ground?
A)freezing rain
B)hail
C)rain
D)snow
E)drizzle
Q2) Rain which falls from a cloud,but evaporates before reaching the ground is called virga.
A)True
B)False
Q3) In the midlatitudes,most rain results from melted snow that formed from the ice crystal process.
A)True
B)False
Q4) The first raindrops to reach the ground at the beginning of a rain shower are often very large.Explain why this is so.
Q5) What is the main difference between a raindrop and a cloud droplet?
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Chapter 7: Atmospheric Motions
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Sample Questions
Q1) On an isobaric surface,
A)altitude is constant.
B)temperature is constant.
C)pressure is constant.
D)both a and c
Q2) Low __________ on a constant height chart corresponds to low __________ on a constant pressure chart.
A)pressures,pressures
B)pressures,heights
C)heights,pressures
D)heights,heights
Q3) The _________ force is the force that causes the wind to blow.
A)Coriolis
B)pressure-gradient
C)friction
Q4) Explain why closely-spaced contour lines on an upper-level isobaric chart are associated with fast winds.
Q5) What differences might you expect to see between the weather conditions depicted on the surface in your city and at the 500 mb level above your city?
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Chapter 8: Wind Systems
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Sample Questions
Q1) You are hiking on a mountain trail at sunrise when you smell the smoke from cooking bacon.You can't see where the smoke is coming from.Would you expect the camp to be above you or below you on the mountain? Explain.
Q2) The wind belt found on the poleward side of the polar front is called the doldrums.
A)True
B)False
Q3) In terms of the three-cell general circulation model,the driest regions of the earth should be near:
A)the equator and the polar regions.
B)the equator and 30<sup>o</sup> latitude.
C)the equator and 60<sup>o</sup> latitude.
D)30<sup>o</sup> latitude and 60<sup>o</sup> latitude.
E)30<sup>o</sup> latitude and the polar regions.
Q4) Which of the following conditions favor the development of dust devils?
A)hot,moist days
B)hot,dry days
C)cold,moist days
D)cold,dry days
Q5) Will a valley breeze or a mountain breeze produce clouds? Explain.
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Chapter 9: Air Masses and Fronts
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Sample Questions
Q1) Before the passage of a cold front the pressure normally __________,and after the passage of a cold front the pressure normally __________.
A)drops,drops
B)drops,rises
C)rises,rises
D)rises,drops
Q2) Which of the following statements is most plausible?
A)In winter,cP source regions have higher temperatures than mT source regions.
B)In summer,mP source regions have higher temperatures than cT source regions.
C)In winter,cA source regions have lower temperatures than cP source regions.
D)In summer,mT source regions have lower temperatures than mP source regions.
E)All the statements are equally plausible.
Q3) Compared to an mP air mass,mT air is colder and drier.
A)True
B)False
Q4) A dryline is a stalled cold front.
A)True
B)False
Q5) What types of weather changes accompany the passage of a dryline (dew point front)?
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Chapter 10: Mid-Latitude Cyclonic Storms
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Sample Questions
Q1) A lee-side low forms on the downwind side of a mountain.
A)True
B)False
Q2) For a surface storm system to intensify,the upper-level low (or trough)should be located to the __________ of the surface low.
A)north
B)south
C)east
D)west
Q3) Describe or illustrate the various phases in the life cycle of a middle latitude storm according to the polar front theory.
Q4) Strong storms that develop over water,poleward of the polar front,are called:
A)nor'easters.
B)upslope lows.
C)lee-side lows.
D)polar lows.
E)none of the above
Q5) What is cyclogenesis? List some of the regions in the United States where cyclogenesis is common.
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Chapter 11: Thunderstorms
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Sample Questions
Q1) Severe thunderstorms are capable of producing:
A)large hail
B)tornadoes
C)flash floods
D)all of the above
Q2) The appearance of a downdraft marks the end of the mature stage of a thunderstorm.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Thunder will not occur:
A)without lightning
B)in wintertime thunderstorms
C)in thunderstorms over the ocean
D)when a thunderstorm is producing precipitation
Q4) A Mesoscale Convective Complex is actually:
A)a rapidly rotating tornado cyclone inside a massive thunderstorm
B)another name for a suction vortex
C)a complex display of lightning from distant thunderstorms
D)a family of tornadoes that do a great deal of damage
E)individual thunderstorms that grow into a large,long-lasting weather system
Page 13
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Chapter 12: Tornadoes
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Sample Questions
Q1) Even if distinctive features that might indicate a tornado are observed on radar,a tornado must be observed visually before a tornado warning is issued.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The funnel cloud characteristic of a tornado is principally formed by:
A)condensation of water vapor in air drawn into the low pressure core of the tornado.
B)dust and dirt picked up from the atmosphere.
C)clouds being funneled by downward air currents coming out of a cumulonimbus cloud.
D)water drawn up from the sea surface into the cloud.
E)gaseous products from intense lightning activity within the tornado.
Q3) Which of the following factors is most important in determining the strength of a tornado?
A)diameter.
B)air temperature.
C)duration.
D)central pressure.
Q4) Where does the energy contained in a tornado come from?
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Chapter 13: Hurricanes
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Sample Questions
Q1) The main source of energy for a hurricane is the:
A)upper-level jet stream.
B)rising of warm air and sinking of cold air in the vicinity of weather fronts.
C)warm ocean water and release of latent heat of condensation.
D)ocean currents and tides.
Q2) How might the path of a hurricane,moving toward the west from Africa,be affected by the Bermuda High as the hurricane approaches the United States?
Q3) Although much is not yet understood about hurricanes,meteorologists have a reasonably complete understanding of how hurricanes form.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Computer models of hurricanes almost always agree on their predictions of a hurricane's movement and evolution.
A)True
B)False
Q5) On the Saffir-Simpson scale a category 5 storm would indicate a very strong hurricane.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 14: Weather Forecasting
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Sample Questions
Q1) The greatest improvement in forecasting skill during the past 30 years has been made in forecasting severe storm warnings for hurricanes and tornadoes.
A)True
B)False
Q2) About how far apart do you think weather observing stations should be in order to accurately depict a middle latitude storm and to be able to forecast the storm's movement?
Q3) Low 1000-500 mb thicknesses correspond to cold air,while high thicknesses correspond to warm air.
A)True
B)False
Q4) What type of forecast method do you think would be most appropriate for a short range (6 to 12 hours),a medium range (24 to 48 hours),a long range (5 to 10 days),or a seasonal (3 month)forecast?
Q5) Weather forecast that predicts that the future weather will be the same as the present weather is called a persistence forecast.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 15: The Earths Changing Climate
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following has been used to reconstruct past climates?
A)analysis of air bubbles trapped in ice
B)study of documents describing floods,droughts and crop yields
C)the ratio of oxygen 18 to oxygen 16 in the shells of marine organisms
D)study of geologic formations
E)all of the above
Q2) What are meant by the terms positive and negative feedback mechanisms? Give an example of a process that would be considered a positive feedback mechanism during a period of warming on the earth.Can you think of a negative feedback mechanism?
Q3) Where is the Sahel located? Is this a region of scarce,variable or abundant rainfall? Describe the biogeophysical feedback mechanism whereby a reduction in surface vegetation might cause a reduction in precipitation amounts.
Q4) Explain how analysis of glacial and polar ice cores provide important clues about past climate.
Q5) The earth has been in a warming trend for
A)more than 100 years
B)more than 500 years
C)more than 1000 years
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