Weather and Climate
Mock Exam
Course Introduction
This course offers a comprehensive introduction to the fundamental principles of weather and climate, exploring the dynamic processes that govern the Earth's atmosphere. Students will examine atmospheric composition, energy balances, and the physical mechanisms driving weather patterns, storms, and climate variability. The course also addresses global climate systems, the impact of human activities on climate change, and methods used for weather forecasting and climate modeling. Through lectures, case studies, and hands-on activities, students will gain an understanding of both short-term atmospheric phenomena and long-term climate trends, equipping them with the knowledge to assess the challenges posed by a changing climate.
Recommended Textbook
Meteorology Today An Introduction to Weather Climate and the Environment 2nd Edition by C.
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Chapter 1: Earth and Its Atmosphere
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Q1) How much oxygen occupies a volume of air near the Earth's surface?
A)21%
B)43%
C)78%
D)84%
Answer: A
Q2) Which of the following is the name for the electrified region of the upper atmosphere?
A)stratosphere
B)ionosphere
C)mesosphere
D)thermosphere
Answer: B
Q3) Which of the following methods do scientists use to determine air temperature in the thermosphere?
A)use of radiosondes
B)observation of changes in satellite orbits
C)use of temperature probes in orbiting satellites
D)direct measurement in manned, high-altitude balloons
Answer: B
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Chapter 2: Energy: Warming Earth and the Atmosphere
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Q1) Of the following measurements, which is the longest?
A)3000 micrometres
B)25 mm
C)2 cm
D)10<sup>-3</sup> m
Answer: A
Q2) Which of the following is the range of wavelengths corresponding to the maximum amount of radiation emitted by the Earth?
A)0.5 micrometre 10 micrometers
B)1 micrometre 1 micrometer
C)10 micrometres 30 micrometers
D)30 micrometres 0.5 micrometers
Answer: C
Q3) In what ways is the atmospheric greenhouse different from an agricultural greenhouse?
Answer: Answers may vary.
Q4) 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: Answers may vary.
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Chapter 3: Seasonal and Daily Temperatures
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Q1) In most areas, which of the following times of the day is warmest about 5 metres above the ground?
A)around noon
B)in the afternoon between 3:00 and 5:00 p.m.
C)in the early evening after 6:00 p.m.
D)just before sunset
Answer: B
Q2) Explain why it is possible for the night-time minimum to occur as much as 30 minutes after the sun has risen.
Answer: Answers may vary.
Q3) Assuming a base temperature of 18°C, how many cooling degree-days are there for a day with a maximum temperature of 35°C and a minimum temperature of 18°C?
A)10
B)8.5
C)7.5
D)5.5
Answer: C
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Chapter 4: Atmospheric Humidity
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Q1) Which of the following amounts is the water vapour pressure that occurs when water vapour comprises 3.5 percent of an air parcel whose total pressure is 100 kPa?
A)103.5 kPa
B)35 kPa
C)96.5 kPa
D)3.5 kPa
Q2) How can you heat air without decreasing its relative humidity?
Q3) Which of the following statements explains why night-time temperatures rarely drop below the dew-point temperature?
A)The ground releases sensible heat stored during daytime.
B)Saturation vapour pressures always increase at night.
C)The dew will absorb all the heat.
D)At saturation, latent heat of condensation is released into the air.
Q4) Does lowering the temperature in your home during the winter cause the relative humidity to increase or decrease? Why? What physiological effects might you experience during both humid and dry conditions?
Q5) In terms of the air temperature and water vapour content, explain how the relative humidity normally changes during a 24-hour day.
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Chapter 5: Condensation: Dew, Fog, and Clouds
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Q1) When viewed from the surface, which of the following cloud types are associated with the smallest individual cloud elements (that is, puffs)?
A)cirrocumulus
B)stratocumulus
C)altocumulus
D)cumulus
Q2) Which of the following terms describes a situation in which clouds cover between four-tenths and five-tenths of the sky?
A)broken
B)obscured
C)scattered
D)overcast
Q3) At which of the following altitudes is the base of an altostratus or altocumulus cloud generally found at middle latitudes?
A)between 60 and 2,000 m
B)between 2,000 and 7,000 m
C)between 7,000 and 13,000 m
D)above 13,000 m
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Chapter 6: Stability and Cloud Development
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Q1) What types of clouds might you see form when a cold mass of air moves over warmer water?
Q2) Based on atmospheric stability considerations, do you think it would be best to burn agricultural debris in the early morning or the afternoon?
Q3) Which of the following terms refers to clouds such as alt°Cumulus and cirr°Cumulus that develop vertical, tower-like extensions?
A)castellanus
B)rotors
C)billows
D)pileus
Q4) Which of the following gives the name for the rate at which the temperature changes inside a rising (or descending) parcel of moist air?
A)latent heat release rate
B)saturated adiabatic lapse rate
C)dry adiabatic lapse rate
D)environmental lapse rate
Q5) List and explain the four pr°Cesses that cause rising air motions in the atmosphere.
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Chapter 7: Precipitation
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Q1) At which of the following air temperatures is aircraft icing most severe?
A)1°C
B)-5°C
C)-12°C
D)-18°C
Q2) Which of the following conditions are necessary for falling snowflakes to survive in air with temperatures much above freezing?
A)unsaturated air and wet-bulb temperature above freezing
B)unsaturated air and wet-bulb temperature at or below freezing
C)saturated air and wet-bulb temperature above freezing
D)saturated air and wet-bulb temperature at or below freezing
Q3) Which of the following describes the most common snow condition that produces a creaking sound when someone is walking on snow?
A)old snow when the air temperature is above -10°C
B)old snow when the air temperature is near freezing
C)new snow when the air temperature is below -10°C
D)new snow when the air temperature is near freezing
Q4) Does the heaviest snowfall occur on an unusually cold night or a night when the temperature is just a little below freezing? Explain.
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Chapter 8: Air Pressure and Winds
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Q1) On an upper-level chart, which of the following is indicated by a ridge?
A)average heights
B)higher than average heights
C)a region with calm winds
D)lower than average heights
Q2) Which of the following is an accurate statement about the frictional force?
A)It accelerates winds near the surface.
B)It is zero at the equator.
C)It varies depending on the nature of the Earth's surface.
D)It is roughly the same up to an altitude of 5 km.
Q3) Which of the following describes the relation on an upper-level chart between air temperature and pressure?
A)Changing air temperature is normally associated with low pressure.
B)Constant air temperature is normally associated with low pressure.
C)Warm air is normally associated with high pressure.
D)Cold air is normally associated with high pressure.
Q4) Explain why it is often windy at the beach. What forces are responsible, and how do beachfront conditions differ from conditions farther inland?
Q5) Under what conditions (if any) might you record a station pressure of 750 hPa?
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Chapter 9: Wind: Small-Scale and Local Systems
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Q1) Which of the following is the name for an abrupt change in wind speed or wind direction?
A)an air pocket
B)squall
C)wind shear
D)flurry
Q2) How might knowledge of the direction of the prevailing wind at a given location be used in landscape design or the design of an energy efficient home?
Q3) Where does clear air turbulence occur most often?
A)near a boundary of high wind shear
B)near a boundary of low-pressure gradient forces
C)near a boundary of low wind shear
D)near a boundary of high-pressure gradient force
Q4) Which of the following is the major cause of land breezes?
A)the rapid heating and cooling of water relative to land
B)the flow of air down mountain slopes
C)cool air flowing onshore during the day
D)air flowing offshore that develops at night as the land cools
Q5) Will a valley breeze or a mountain breeze produce clouds? Explain.
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Chapter 10: Wind: Global Systems
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Q1) What is the polar jet stream and where is it found? Does the position of the polar jet stream change during the year?
Q2) Which of the following terms refers to a condition where the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean turns cooler than normal?
A)El Niño
B)Southern Oscillation
C)La Niña
D)Ekman Spiral
Q3) According to the three-cell general circulation model, which of the following can be expected at the equator?
A)strong horizontal pressure gradients
B)doldrums
C)high winds
D)a ridge of high pressure
Q4) Which of the following is a correct statement about ocean currents?
A)They are warmest in the mid-latitudes.
B)They are typically colder than the water 1 km below.
C)They are not involved in La Niña events.
D)They initiate Ekman spirals.
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Chapter 11: Air Masses and Fronts
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Q1) Which of the following characterizes stationary fronts?
A)They are often associated with cloud cover.
B)They occur within a single air mass.
C)They occur when two cold fronts meet.
D)They move at the same speed as cold fronts.
Q2) Which of the following terms refers to a cold front that moves into the Maritimes from the east or northeast?
A)oceanic front
B)"back door" cold front
C)nor'easter
D)cold-occluded front
Q3) At which of the following positions is heavy snow most likely falling?
A)1
B)2
C)3
D)4
Q4) Describe some of the changes in weather conditions (winds, temperature, clouds, precipitation, pressure changes) you can observe as a cold front approaches and passes through your location.
Q5) What types of weather changes accompany the passage of a dryline?
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Chapter 12: Middle-Latitude Cyclones
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Q1) Which of the following describes the warm conveyor belt?
A)It is very dry.
B)It has few clouds associated with it.
C)It contains stratospheric ozone.
D)It rises above the warm front.
Q2) When making a weather forecast, which kind of chart is more important: a surface chart or a 500 hPa chart? Why?
Q3) Which of the following terms is true about middle-latitude cyclones in North America?
A)They travel from east to west.
B)They are less intense in the winter months.
C)They travel from south to north.
D)Their storm tracks shift to the south in winter, and to the north in summer.
Q4) Which of the following terms is used when a middle-latitude storm system develops or strengthens?
A)cyclogenesis
B)frontolysis
C)convergence
D)divergence
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Chapter 13: Weather Forecasting
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Q1) Which of the following defines a sonic boom?
A)It is a form of lightning.
B)It is produced by static electricity in the atmosphere.
C)It is caused when an aircraft flies faster than the speed of sound.
D)It occurs with lightning.
Q2) Where is Canada's tornado alley located?
A)southern Ontario
B)southern Quebec
C)southern Alberta
D)southern Manitoba
Q3) Which of the following is a typical diameter of a tornado?
A)2500 metres
B)50 metres
C)250 metres
D)1000 metres
Q4) The region of greatest tornado activity shifts northward from early spring to summer. Why does this occur?
Q5) List and describe the sequence of events that occur during a cloud-to-ground lightning discharge.
Page 15
Q6) Explain the significance of CAPE to forecasting severe thunderstorm development.
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Chapter 14: Thunderstorms
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Q1) In what ways are weather conditions in the tropics and at middle latitudes different?
Q2) Which of the following is an accurate statement about the eyewall of a hurricane?
A)It contains strong thunderstorms.
B)It forms after the hurricane has made landfall.
C)It makes up the inner portion of the eye.
D)It is located on the outside of spiral rain bands.
Q3) Which of the following describes how a strong trade wind inversion relates to the development of a hurricane?
A)It is conducive to development of an easterly wave
B)It is not related to the location of a subtropical high.
C)It is not relevant to the development of a hurricane.
D)It is not conducive to development of a hurricane.
Q4) When are names given to storms that form in the tropics?
A)when they become fully developed hurricanes
B)when they reach tropical storm strength
C)when their rotation becomes visible on a satellite photograph
D)when they approach to within 250 km of land
Q5) Why can't hurricanes form in the middle latitudes?
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Chapter 15: Tornadoes
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Q1) Which of the following terms refers to a wind that changes direction in a counterclockwise sense with increasing height?
A)backing wind
B)meridional wind
C)veering wind
D)Ekman spiral
The following questions refer to the above illustration of a middle-latitude cyclone.The dashed lines show the positions of the fronts six hours ago.
Q2) Which of the following is currently a problem with modern-day weather predictions?
A)There are regions of the world where observations are sparse.
B)Computer forecast models make assumptions about the atmosphere that are never correct.
C)Computer models inadequately interpret the influence of the surface on the weather. D)The distance between grid points on some models is too small to pick up storm systems.
Q3) List some of the factors that affect the accuracy of atmospheric models.
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Chapter 16: Hurricanes
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Q1) Which of the following factors are represented by the "P" and "E" in Thornthwaite's P/E ratio?
A)potential sunlight and energy
B)precipitation and energy (available)
C)potential sunlight and evaporation
D)precipitation and evaporation
Q2) In which of the following climates does the thawing of an upper layer of permafrost most likely occur?
A)humid subtropical climate
B)polar ice cap climate
C)polar tundra climate
D)humid continental climate with warm summers
Q3) Which of the following climate types normally has the largest annual range in temperature?
A)humid subtropical climate
B)subpolar climate
C)polar ice cap climate
D)tropical climate
Q4) What meteorological information is the primary basis for climate classification using the Köppen system?
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Chapter 17: Earths Changing Climate
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Q1) Which of the following accurately compares CO2 levels during cold glacial periods and warm interglacial periods?
A)CO2 levels of cold glacial periods were about the same as warm interglacial periods.
B)CO2 levels of cold glacial periods were more variable than warm interglacial periods.
C)CO2 levels of cold glacial periods were higher than warm interglacial periods.
D)CO2 levels of cold glacial periods were lower than warm interglacial periods.
Q2) Compared to a period when the Earth's orbital tilt has an intermediate value, which of the following statements probably refers to a period when the Earth's orbital tilt is at a minimum?
A)There would be a greater likelihood of glaciers at high latitudes.
B)There would be more seasonal variations at middle latitudes.
C)There would be more seasonal variations between summer and winter.
D)Less snow would probably fall during the winter in the polar regions.
Q3) What is meant by the term positive feedback? What role could positive feedback play in the atmospheric greenhouse effect? Would this enhance or reduce global warming? What is an example of a "negative feedback" mechanism?
Q4) In what ways might climate change benefit the planet?
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Chapter 18: Global Climate
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Q1) Where is the greatest concentration of pollutants likely found?
A)in layer A
B)above layer A
C)in layer B
D)in layer C
Q2) Which of the following situations probably results in a fairly long period of polluted conditions?
A)persistent winds
B)subsidence inversion
C)radiation inversion
D)overcast skies
Q3) Which of the following gases will replace oxygen in the blood pigment hemoglobin and thereby reduce the transport of oxygen to the brain?
A)carbon dioxide
B)carbon monoxide
C)methane
D)sulphur dioxide
Q4) Explain how ozone can have both a beneficial and a detrimental role in the Earth's atmosphere.
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Chapter 19: Air Pollution
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Q1) Which of the following terms relates to a wet-looking road surface on a clear, hot, dry day?
A)inferior mirage
B)superior mirage
C)diffraction
D)scintillation
Q2) Which of the following describes the cause of a mirage?
A)thin layer of moist air near the ground
B)reflection of light from a hot surface
C)bending of light by air of different densities
D)scattering of light by air molecules
Q3) What produces a sundog? Where and at what time of day might you try to see a sundog?
Q4) On a summer evening at middle latitudes, twilight adds about how much time to the length of daylight?
A)2 minutes
B)5 minutes
C)30 minutes
D)2 hours
Q5) Using a diagram, show why an inferior mirage produces an inverted image.
Page 21
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