Exam 7: Atmospheric Motions

The contour lines drawn on a 500 mb chart are lines of constant:

Surface winds blow across the isobars at an angle due to the frictional force.

The Coriolis force is strongest at the equator.

On an isobaric surface,

Under what conditions (if any)might you record a station pressure of 750 mb?

What differences might you expect to see between the weather conditions depicted on the surface in your city and at the 500 mb level above your city?

The atmosphere around the earth would rush off into space if the vertical pressure gradient force were not balanced by:

Pressure changes:

Suppose you stand outside and feel a fresh breeze blowing against your face.Could this be a geostrophic wind? Explain.

The vertical pressure gradient force is directed downward.

The rate of the earth's rotation determines the strength of the pressure gradient force.

Explain why strong upper-level divergence will cause the pressure in the center of a surface low to decrease.

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

Suppose that the winds aloft are geostrophic and blowing from the north.With the same orientation of isobars at the surface,the winds would blow from the southeast.

Lines connecting points of equal pressure are called:

We can generally expect the air to be __________ above areas of surface low pressure and __________ above areas of surface high pressure.

Net convergence of air would cause surface pressure to __________ and net divergence would cause surface pressure to __________.

On an isobaric weather chart,the spacing of the height contours indicates the magnitude of the __________ force.

Which of the following forces can not act to change the speed of the wind?

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