Midterm Spring 2000

  1. What is the numerical value of the Environmental Lapse Rate (ELR) in degrees Celsius per kilometer of rise in altitude?
  2. If the temperature at sea level is 30°C, what is the temperature at the tropopause, 16 km up in the atmosphere (use the ELR for this calculation).
  3. Calculate the albedo for a cloud that receives 25 units of solar energy and reflects 20 units of that solar energy.
  4. What is the name of the layer of the atmosphere where the top of a cumulonimbus anvil head cloud stops rising and spreads out?
  5. What is the name of the layer of the atmosphere in which ozone is found?
  6. What is the name of the cloud type seen on the right?altocumulus01.jpg (24595 bytes)
  7. From where does the water come that appears on the outside of a cold can of soda that is sitting outside on a warm day?
  8. What is the temperature at which water freezes in Celsius?
  9. What is the word for "cloud" in your first language?
  10. What does the word "nimbus" refer to in weather and climate class?
  11. In terms of energy and the atmosphere, what do carbon dioxide, water vapor, methane, and ozone all do?
  12. In our insolation diagram 100 units of sun energy enters the atmosphere.  The atmosphere, however, temporarily stores 160 units of sun energy, 60% more than is put in by the sun. What is the name for this effect?
  13. Why does the above effect occur?
  14. What are the colors of the sun as seen in a rainbow in English?
  15. What is the word for rainbow in your first language?
  16. What is the numerical value of the Dry "Air" (Adiabatic) Lapse Rate in degrees Celsius per kilometer of rise in altitude?
  17. If an empty glass is chilled in the refridgerator and then taken out of the refridgerator here on Pohnpei, will water appear on the cold glass?
  18. A parcel of air at 30°C rises 1 km above the ground, cooling at the Dry Air Lapse Rate.   What is the temperature of the parcel of air at 1 km above the ground?
  19. The same parcel as in question 4 saturates at that 1 km point above the ground, producing a cloud, and continues to rise to a height of 3 km above the ground, cooling now at the Saturated Air Lapse Rate.  What is the final temperature of the air parcel at 3 km above the ground?
  20. What is unique about the updraft in a supercell storm cloud?
  21. If a cumulonimbus cloud has no supercooled water, can thunder occur?
  22. Is the bottom of a lightning producing cumulonimbus cloud usually positively or negatively charged?
  23. What is the word for lightning in your language?
  24. What is the word for thunder in your language?
  25. If you feel your hair prickle and stand up during a lightning storm, what should you do?
  26. Why don't tropical rain storms produce a lot of lightning and thunder?
  27. In which direction do tornadoes spin in the Northern hemisphere?
  28. On the Fujita-Pearson Tornado intensity scale, which is more intense, an F1 or an F5 tornado?
  29. What is a funnel cloud?
  30. Which of the following places has the most tornadoes: Texas, Alaska, Hawaii, Pohnpei?
  31. What is a dust devil?
  32. If the wind is from the northeast during a tropical storm, in what direction is the center of the tropical storm?
  33. If the wind is from the South during a typhoon in Chuuk, is the storm likely to be coming towards Chuuk or moving away from Chuuk?
  34. What is the name for the spreading top of the cloud seen at the right?cb_anvilenhanced.jpg (11517 bytes)
  35. Draw a sketch of the airflow patterns inside a cumulonimbus cloud.  Be sure to include the major air flows and the direction of travel of the cumulonimbus cloud.
  36. Draw a labeled diagram of a cirrus cloud explaining why they have that distinctive comma shape.
  37. Extra credit: What is the word for "rolling thunder" in your language (not thunder, but the travelling thunder we talked about in class)?

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