Question 1

Most atmospheric ozone occurs in which layer of the Earth's atmosphere?

Accepted Answer

A)  the mesosphere 
B)  the stratosphere 
C)  the thermosphere 
D)  the troposphere 
A)  the mesosphere 
B)  the stratosphere 
C)  the thermosphere 
D)  the troposphere

Question 2

The boundary between two bodies of air with differing characteristics (such as temperature,pressure,and relative humidity)is termed a ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  contact 
B)  front 
C)  jet stream 
D)  Gruber surface 
A)  contact 
B)  front 
C)  jet stream 
D)  Gruber surface

Question 3

As an air mass rises,it generally experiences ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  an increase in temperature because of adiabatic heating 
B)  a decrease in temperature because of adiabatic cooling 
C)  an increase in temperature because of increasing proximity to the Sun 
D)  no change in temperature 
A)  an increase in temperature because of adiabatic heating 
B)  a decrease in temperature because of adiabatic cooling 
C)  an increase in temperature because of increasing proximity to the Sun 
D)  no change in temperature

Question 4

High-pressure systems are associated with weather that is ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  cool and damp 
B)  extremely wet 
C)  warm and moist 
D)  clear and dry 
A)  cool and damp 
B)  extremely wet 
C)  warm and moist 
D)  clear and dry

Question 5

Which layer of the atmosphere has the lowest density?

Accepted Answer

A)  the mesosphere 
B)  he stratosphere 
C)  the thermosphere 
D)  the troposphere 
A)  the mesosphere 
B)  he stratosphere 
C)  the thermosphere 
D)  the troposphere

Question 6

The Earth has had three atmospheres since its formation 4.54 Ga ago.Contrast the Earth's first atmospheric gases with the Earth's current atmosphere.What gas,essential for life,was missing in the first atmosphere? What led to its emergence?

Accepted Answer

When the Earth first formed,4.56 Ga ago,

Question 7

Within the troposphere,what happens to pressure and temperature as elevation increases? Is the same true of all atmospheric layers?

Accepted Answer

Within the troposphere,pressure and temp

Question 8

The two main mechanisms of rain and snow formation within clouds are ________ and ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  evaporation; precipitation 
B)  collision and coalescence; precipitation 
C)  collision and coalescence; the Bergeron process 
D)  phase change; the Bergeron process 
A)  evaporation; precipitation 
B)  collision and coalescence; precipitation 
C)  collision and coalescence; the Bergeron process 
D)  phase change; the Bergeron process

Question 9

Incoming solar energy is known as ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  latent heat 
B)  coalescence 
C)  insolation 
D)  adiabatic heating 
A)  latent heat 
B)  coalescence 
C)  insolation 
D)  adiabatic heating

Question 10

Prevailing surface winds are named for the ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  latitudinal belt in which they form 
B)  direction from which they blow 
C)  direction to which they blow 
D)  level of the atmosphere in which they form 
A)  latitudinal belt in which they form 
B)  direction from which they blow 
C)  direction to which they blow 
D)  level of the atmosphere in which they form

Question 11

What is orographic lifting? How does this happen? What is the result?

Accepted Answer

Orographic lifting happens when moisture

Question 12

Winds form where ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  gravity pulls air masses downhill 
B)  pressure gradients exist 
C)  convective lifting occurs 
D)  the Coriolis effect is greatest 
A)  gravity pulls air masses downhill 
B)  pressure gradients exist 
C)  convective lifting occurs 
D)  the Coriolis effect is greatest

Question 13

Atmospheric convection of heat radiated from the Earth's surface and the variety of phenomena we call weather occur within which layer of the atmosphere?

Accepted Answer

A)  the mesosphere 
B)  the stratosphere 
C)  the thermosphere 
D)  the troposphere 
A)  the mesosphere 
B)  the stratosphere 
C)  the thermosphere 
D)  the troposphere

Question 14

The long-term buildup of oxygen in the Earth's atmosphere is a result of ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  volcanic outgassing 
B)  photosynthesis 
C)  limestone formation in the ocean 
D)  solar radiation splitting molecules of ozone in the stratosphere 
A)  volcanic outgassing 
B)  photosynthesis 
C)  limestone formation in the ocean 
D)  solar radiation splitting molecules of ozone in the stratosphere

Question 15

To an observer traveling outward from the Earth's surface into outer space,the temperature of the atmosphere ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  uniformly decreases because of atmospheric thinning 
B)  uniformly increases because of increasing proximity to the Sun 
C)  fluctuates depending on the atmospheric layer 
D)  remains relatively constant until the very edge of the atmosphere,where the observer would experience the very cold vacuum that is interplanetary space 
A)  uniformly decreases because of atmospheric thinning 
B)  uniformly increases because of increasing proximity to the Sun 
C)  fluctuates depending on the atmospheric layer 
D)  remains relatively constant until the very edge of the atmosphere,where the observer would experience the very cold vacuum that is interplanetary space

Question 16

Hurricanes pose extreme danger and can cause damage in numerous ways.Explain three ways in which hurricanes cause destruction.

Accepted Answer

Student answers should include three of

Question 17

The development of cyclones and anticyclones in high- and low-pressure regions is a result of the deflection of air currents by ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  solar wind 
B)  the stratosphere 
C)  the Coriolis effect 
D)  ion beams originating in the ionosphere 
A)  solar wind 
B)  the stratosphere 
C)  the Coriolis effect 
D)  ion beams originating in the ionosphere

Question 18

Because of the Coriolis effect,air that is spread northward from the equator is deflected ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  directly back to the equator 
B)  to the east 
C)  to the west 
D)  upward,to the tropopause 
A)  directly back to the equator 
B)  to the east 
C)  to the west 
D)  upward,to the tropopause

Question 19

Consult the figure below.During which part of the Earth's history was the oxygen saturation in the atmosphere highest?

Accepted Answer

A)  Cambrian and Ordovician 
B)  Carboniferous and Permian 
C)  Triassic and Jurassic 
D)  Tertiary and Quaternary 
A)  Cambrian and Ordovician 
B)  Carboniferous and Permian 
C)  Triassic and Jurassic 
D)  Tertiary and Quaternary

Question 20

In which layer of the atmosphere does temperature decrease with altitude because most of its heat is derived from the atmospheric layer immediately below it?

Accepted Answer

A)  the mesosphere 
B)  the stratosphere 
C)  the thermosphere 
D)  the troposphere 
A)  the mesosphere 
B)  the stratosphere 
C)  the thermosphere 
D)  the troposphere

Exam 20: An Envelope of Gas: the Earths Atmosphere and Climate

Most atmospheric ozone occurs in which layer of the Earth's atmosphere?

The boundary between two bodies of air with differing characteristics (such as temperature,pressure,and relative humidity)is termed a ________.

As an air mass rises,it generally experiences ________.

High-pressure systems are associated with weather that is ________.

Which layer of the atmosphere has the lowest density?

The Earth has had three atmospheres since its formation 4.54 Ga ago.Contrast the Earth's first atmospheric gases with the Earth's current atmosphere.What gas,essential for life,was missing in the first atmosphere? What led to its emergence?

Within the troposphere,what happens to pressure and temperature as elevation increases? Is the same true of all atmospheric layers?

The two main mechanisms of rain and snow formation within clouds are ________ and ________.

Incoming solar energy is known as ________.

Prevailing surface winds are named for the ________.

What is orographic lifting? How does this happen? What is the result?

Winds form where ________.

Atmospheric convection of heat radiated from the Earth's surface and the variety of phenomena we call weather occur within which layer of the atmosphere?

The long-term buildup of oxygen in the Earth's atmosphere is a result of ________.

To an observer traveling outward from the Earth's surface into outer space,the temperature of the atmosphere ________.

Hurricanes pose extreme danger and can cause damage in numerous ways.Explain three ways in which hurricanes cause destruction.

The development of cyclones and anticyclones in high- and low-pressure regions is a result of the deflection of air currents by ________.

Because of the Coriolis effect,air that is spread northward from the equator is deflected ________.

Consult the figure below.During which part of the Earth's history was the oxygen saturation in the atmosphere highest?

In which layer of the atmosphere does temperature decrease with altitude because most of its heat is derived from the atmospheric layer immediately below it?

Cosmology and the Birth of the Earth

Journey to the Center of the Earth

Drifting Continents and Spreading Seas

The Way the Earth Works: Plate Tectonics

Patterns in Nature: Minerals

Up From the Inferno: Magma and Igneous Rocks

Pages of Earths Past: Sedimentary Rocks

Metamorphism: a Process of Change

The Wrath of Vulcan: Volcanic Eruptions

A Violent Pulse: Earthquakes

Crags,cracks,and Crumples: Crustal Deformation and Mountain Building

Deep Time: How Old Is Old

A Biography of the Earth

Squeezing Power From a Stone: Energy Resources

Riches in Rock: Mineral Resources

Unsafe Ground: Landslides and Other Mass Movements

Streams and Floods: the Geology of Running Water

Restless Realm: Oceans and Coasts

A Hidden Reserve: Groundwater

Dry Regions: the Geology of Deserts

Amazing Ice: Glaciers and Ice Ages

Global Change in the Earth System

Introducing Rocks

a Surface Veneer: Sediments and Soils

the Rock Cycle in the Earth System

the Earths Interior, Revisited: Seismic Layering, Gravity, and the Magnetic Field

Memories of Past Life: Fossils and Evolution

Ever-Changing Landscapes and the Hydrologic Cycle

Prelude: and Just What Is Geology

Filters

The two main mechanisms of rain and snow formation within clouds are and .