Exam 7: Atmospheric Disturbances

A(n) ________ is an upward-looking Doppler radar which is used to sense wind speed and direction at various levels in the atmosphere.

Which type of cloud is associated with a thunderstorm?

In a midlatitude anticyclone, where are the strongest winds usually found?

Easterly waves occasionally intensify into hurricanes.

Of those below, the coldest, driest ones are termed ________.

The ________ is the most dangerous feature of a hurricane.

Explain how midlatitude cyclones are associated with midlatitude anticyclones.

Rain clouds associated with a cold front can be found hundreds of kilometers ahead of the front.

How would you know that a new air mass had passed over your location in the last couple of hours?

The beginning of a middle latitude cyclone is known as ________.

To be officially considered a hurricane, sustained wind speed must be at least 119 kilometers per hour (74 mph).

Which of the following rarely affects North America?

Hurricanes have their greatest wind speeds within the eyewall.

An average air mass is on the order of ________ kilometers in diameter.

Of the weather disturbances explained in the textbook, ________ affect weather over the greatest area at any one time.

The 1-5 scale rating hurricane intensity is the ________ Scale.

Tornadoes contain extreme pressure gradients. They are thought to be on the order of ________ millibars from the outside to the inside of the storm.

As a rule, thunderstorms are unknown poleward of ________ latitude.

Which of the following represents a typical count of confirmed tornadoes for a year in the United States?

With a series of sketch maps, draw and then describe the beginnings, maturity, and "death" of a midlatitude cyclone.