Physical Geography
Pre-Test Questions
Course Introduction
Physical Geography is the study of the natural processes and features of the Earths surface, encompassing landforms, climate, vegetation, soils, and hydrology. This course explores the dynamic interactions between the atmosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere, providing students with an understanding of how physical environments are formed and transformed over time. Through the examination of topics such as weather systems, river dynamics, mountain building, and ecosystem patterns, students gain insight into the spatial variations and environmental challenges that shape the planets landscapes.
Recommended Textbook
Atmosphere An Introduction to Meteorology 12th Edition by Frederick K. Lutgens
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16 Chapters
1763 Verified Questions
1763 Flashcards
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Chapter 1: Introduction to the Atmosphere
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Sample Questions
Q1) The ions in the ionosphere come primarily from oxygen and nitrogen.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q2) The approximate altitude of auroral displays is:
A)above 1000 km.
B)80-400 km.
C)above 500 km.
D)about 50 km.
E)below 30 km.
Answer: B
Q3) The aurora borealis will most likely be stronger:
A)when there is a lot of solar flare activity.
B)above the South Pole.
C)nearest the equator.
D)when there are few ions in the ionosphere.
Answer: A
Q4) List four of the basic elements of weather and climate.
Answer: temperature-humidity-clouds-precipitation-air pressure-wind speed-wind direction
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Chapter 2: Heating Earths Surface and Atmosphere
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113 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Part of the cause of the greenhouse effect is the near ________ of the atmosphere to solar radiation.
Answer: transparency
Q2) During the spring equinox in the northern hemisphere,the circle of illumination passes directly through the: A)equator.
B)Tropic of Capricorn. C)poles.
D)Tropic of Cancer.
Answer: C
Q3) The transfer of heat through matter by molecular collisions is called: A)conduction.
B)radiation. C)convection.
Answer: A
Q4) The equator receives vertical rays from the Sun year 'round. A)True
B)False
Answer: False
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Chapter 3: Temperature
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Sample Questions
Q1) The city with the HIGHEST average annual cooling degree-days between 1971 and 2000 was:
A)St.Louis,MO.
B)Tucson,AZ.
C)Boston,MA.
D)Washington,D.C.
E)Miami,FL.
Answer: E
Q2) The seasonal shift of isotherms is greater over the continents than over the ocean.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q3) Land cools more slowly than water during autumn because the land has a smaller specific heat value.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q4) What season (winter or summer)is the Northern Hemisphere experiencing? Answer: winter
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Chapter 4: Moisture and Atmospheric Stability
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111 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The wet adiabatic lapse rate is greater than the dry adiabatic lapse rate.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The instrument consisting of a wet bulb thermometer and a dry bulb thermometer is termed a ________.
Q3) Clear skies are associated with subsidence or sinking motion.
A)True
B)False
Q4) What is the most frequent cause of the air becoming saturated?
Q5) A stable atmosphere is one in which:
A)clouds are forming.
B)upward vertical motions are resisted.
C)rising bubbles of air accelerate upward.
D)temperatures are adiabatic.
Q6) As liquid water is evaporated into the atmosphere,heat energy is:
A)absorbed by the remaining liquid.
B)given off by the water vapor.
C)released by the evaporating water.
D)absorbed by the evaporating water.
E)absorbed by the surrounding air.
Page 6
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Chapter 5: Forms of Condensation and Precipitation
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Sample Questions
Q1) A cumulus cloud is recognized mainly by its:
A)obvious vertical dimension.
B)darkness or color.
C)association with high winds.
D)layered structure.
E)precipitation.
Q2) Supercooled water is water which is:
A)part liquid and part solid.
B)a special form of ice.
C)still liquid at temperatures below 0°C.
D)of a slightly different chemical nature than ordinary.
E)produced from dry ice.
Q3) Where are lenticular clouds most likely to form?
A)over oceans
B)along coastlines
C)to the lee of mountains
D)in desert regions
Q4) Lenticular clouds form most frequently on the windward sides of mountains.
A)True
B)False
Page 7
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Chapter 6: Air Pressure and Winds
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Sample Questions
Q1) A steep pressure gradient:
A)produces light winds.
B)produces strong winds.
C)is only possible in the tropics.
D)would be depicted by widely spaced isobars.
Q2) Anticyclonic flow is:
A)associated with low pressure.
B)associated with storms and rainy conditions.
C)associated with air converging at the surface.
D)in the opposite direction of Earth's rotation.
Q3) Horizontal wind motion can help cause vertical air motion.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Identify the choice above that represents low pressure center.
A)graph a
B)graph b
C)graph c
D)both a and b
E)none of these
Q5) What is a wind rose?
Page 8
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Chapter 7: Circulation of the Atmosphere
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121 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The United States is completely unaffected by monsoons.
A)True
B)False
Q2) When reading maps showing the distribution of pressure aloft,high contour readings indicate low pressure and low contour readings indicate high pressure.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Synoptic scale circulations are of what size,approximately?
A)under 1 km
B)between 1 and 100 km
C)between 100 and 5000 km
D)between 1000 and 40,000 km
Q4) Which of the following is a characteristic of deserts located near cold ocean currents?
A)They are often cool and shrouded in fog.
B)They often have unstable atmospheric conditions.
C)They tend to be warmer than inland deserts.
D)They receive more rain than other deserts.
Q5) Name the two latitude zones where precipitation is most abundant.
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Chapter 8: Air Masses
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Sample Questions
Q1) When an air mass is warmer than the surface over which it is moving,its lower layers are chilled.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The ________ air mass often originates as a different air mass in Siberia and is subsequently altered.
A)mP
B)mT
C)cP
D)cT
Q3) Name the three air mass types most important for the continental U.S.
Q4) Which air mass is unstable in the winter but stable in the summer?
A)cP
B)mT
C)mP
D)cT
Q5) Siberian Express weather events are generally confined to Alaska and western Canada.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 9: Weather Patterns
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Sample Questions
Q1) Speed divergence helps maintain surface lows.
A)True
B)False
Q2) A trough aloft is generally associated with:
A)cyclonic flow at the surface.
B)convergence of the jet steam.
C)clear skies.
D)anticyclonic flow at the surface.
Q3) Ridges and troughs are features of the upper level wind pattern.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Long lasting,steady rainfall
Q5) If a warm front is approaching,you can expect:
A)falling temperatures.
B)rising temperatures.
C)clearing skies.
D)calm winds.
Q6) Surface winds for an anticyclone are convergent.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 10: Thunderstorms and Tornadoes
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following statements is not true of tornadoes?
A)generally move from the southwest toward the northeast
B)usually occur along the warm front of a midlatitude cyclone
C)most common in the Midwest and Great Plains
D)associated with cumulonimbus clouds
E)occur most frequently in the spring of the year
Q2) The vast majority of cyclones are hurricanes and tornadoes.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Why is so-called 'heat lightning' not associated with thunder?
Q4) The feature identified by Letter D is:
A)the gust front
B)a cold front
C)the storm's anvil
D)experiencing very calm conditions
Q5) The airflow pattern aloft is not usually related to severe thunderstorm development.
A)True
B)False
Q6) What are the three stages in the development of a thunderstorm?
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Chapter 11: Hurricanes
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104 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) When a hurricane moves onto land,it declines in intensity.Which of the factors listed below contribute to this loss of punch?
A)friction
B)lack of warm,moist air
C)heating from below by the land surface
D)both friction and the lack of warm,moist air
Q2) What type of clouds is most common in a hurricane?
A)cumulonimbus
B)cirrus
C)nimbostratus
D)stratus
Q3) Which scale number(s)of hurricanes do only minimal or moderate damage?
A)4 and 5
B)3 only
C)2 and 3
D)4 only
E)1 and 2
Q4) Most North Atlantic hurricanes eventually swing northward.
A)True
B)False
Page 13
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Chapter 12: Weather Analysis and Forecasting
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Sample Questions
Q1) Long-range forecasting employs this method: ________.
Q2) The forecasts for local and regional weather are produced by:
A)Weather Forecast Offices.
B)National Cyclone Center.
C)State Weather Forecast Offices.
D)National Centers for Environmental Prediction.
Q3) Nowcasting:
A)is not very useful for predicting thunderstorms and tornadoes.
B)makes extensive use of radar and geostationary satellites.
C)makes little use of numerical data.
D)is primarily used for making long-range forecasts for large regions.
Q4) Pacific storms move toward Alaska more during the cold months than the warm months.
A)True
B)False
Q5) The primary purpose of a radiosonde is:
A)to acquire data about conditions in the upper atmosphere.
B)to report data about surface conditions at an automated weather station.
C)to compile data from thousands of automated weather stations into one file.
D)to calculate numerical predictions of weather.
Page 14
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Chapter 13: Air Pollution
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Sample Questions
Q1) During the Great Smog of 1952,visibility at Heathrow Airport remained above 0.5 mile despite the high levels of air pollution.
A)True B)False
Q2) As many as 12,000 people may have died as a direct or delayed result of the Great Smog of 1952..
A)True B)False
Q3) When air pollution episodes occur they generally result from a dramatic increase in the output of pollutants.
A)True
B)False
Q4) The largest single source of materials causing acid rain is residential heating furnaces.
A)True B)False
Q5) There are no natural sources of air pollution. A)True B)False
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Chapter 14: The Changing Climate
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Sample Questions
Q1) What influence does the reduction in water evaporation noted in the question above have upon temperatures in a city?
Q2) What is the current axial tilt of the earth?
A)23.5 degrees
B)21.5 degrees
C)24 degrees
D)45 degrees
Q3) According to glacial ice records,the Earth was significantly cooler between 10,000 and 40,000 years ago than it is today.
A)True
B)False
Q4) If a volcanic eruption produces a climate impact that lasts for a year or longer,the most likely culprit is:
A)ash suspended in the atmosphere.
B)the state of the climate at the time of the eruption.
C)aerosols produced by sulfur dioxide emitted from the volcano.
D)a high volume of debris ejected during the eruption.
Q5) Why is the idea of plate tectonics only considered for climate changes that occur over very long periods?
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Chapter 15: World Climates
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which pair of elements is the most important in a climatic description?
A)wind and pressure
B)cloud cover and humidity
C)temperature and precipitation
D)precipitation and pressure
E)pressure and temperature
Q2) The tropical rain forest is characterized by:
A)deciduous trees.
B)a great diversity of plant species.
C)wet winters and dry summers.
D)the dominance of conifers.
E)a complete lack of sunshine.
Q3) The latitude of a place is important for its climate since latitude determines:
A)Sun radiation receipt.
B)elevation.
C)temperature.
D)distance from the Sun.
Q4) The best known system for determining world climate patterns is the ________.
Q5) Permanently frozen subsoil characteristic of the tundra is termed ________.
Page 17
Q6) List four of the major controls that determine the climate of a place.
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Chapter 16: Optical Phenomena of the Atmosphere
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Sample Questions
Q1) ________ light allows you to see yourself in a mirror.
A)Reflected
B)Refracted
C)Iridescent
D)Infrared
Q2) Iridescent clouds form most often with cumulonimbus clouds.
A)True
B)False
Q3) In terms of the process of formation,which one of the following optical phenomena is unlike the other three?
A)sun dog
B)halo
C)mirage
D)solar pillar
Q4) When light encounters a rough surface,the rays will strike the surface at ________ angle(s),which tends to ________ the light rays.
A)one;limit
B)different;limit
C)one;scatter
D)different;scatter
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