Exam 8: Air Pressure and Winds

In the tropics, daily (diurnal) fluctuations of pressure appear to be due primarily to the absorption of solar energy by ozone in the upper atmosphere and by water vapor in the lower atmosphere.

A geostrophic wind is a wind that results from a balance between the ____ force and the ____ force.​

Explain why obtaining the correct air pressure of a mercury barometer is not simple.

​In middle latitudes, surface pressure changes are primarily the result of large high- and low-pressure areas that move toward or away from a region.

Describe how the wind blows around highs and lows aloft and near the surface (a) in the Northern Hemisphere and (b) in the Southern Hemisphere.

The Coriolis force acts at a ____ degree angle to the wind​.

To correctly monitor horizontal changes in air pressure, the most important correction for a mercury barometer is the correction for​

The angle at which surface winds cross isobars is to a large degree dependent on the roughness of the terrain. ​

Isobaric surfaces are ____ in warm, less-dense air and ____in cold, more-dense air.​

Which of the following produces the strongest Coriolis force?​

If Earth were not rotating, how would the path of a satellite traveling from north to south around Earth be observed from the surface.

Suppose you deflate a bicycle tire by depressing the air valve. Why does air rush out of the tire? After the air stops rushing out of the tire, is the tire empty? Explain your answer.

​The Coriolis force is the force that causes the wind to blow.

On an upper-level chart the wind tends to be​

In middle latitudes, when an area of high pressure approaches a city, surface pressure usually ____. When it moves away, pressure usually ____.

A ridge on an upper-level isobaric chart indicates​

​Flights from San Francisco to New York City take, on average, about 30 to 45 minutes less than the return flights.

The force that would cause a stationary parcel of air to begin to move horizontally is called the​

​Hydrostatic equilibrium does not exist in violent thunderstorms and tornadoes, where the air shows appreciable vertical acceleration.

The most common type of home barometer is called the ____________________ barometer.