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Questions
on Quiz #1 will come
from topics on this study guide together with material on the Practice
Quiz Study Guide. Be sure also to review the
questions on the Practice Quiz.
Pts. totals below are approximate.
Ideal Gas Law (15 pts).
This is
a
microscopic-scale explanation of air pressure. Two equations:
P = N k T / V & P = (rho) R
T
N is the number of air molecules in
a
volume V, T is temperature and rho
is density. R and k are both constants (you can pretty much
ignore them). You
should be able to determine what will happen to the
pressure in a rigid container or something flexible like a balloon if
you change
the variables in the
equation above. What variables could you change together in such
a way
that the pressure
would stay constant?
Sample
questions
Quiz #1: 16 Final
Exam: 22
Upward and
downward forces (5 pts). acting on air parcels (the
strength of one of the forces depends on the air inside the parcel, the
other on the air outside the parcel). These two forces are usually in
balance. What happens to the balance when you warm or cool a parcel of
air? Basically you should be able to explain why a balloon of hot
low density air rises and a balloon of cold high density air
sinks.
Archimedes
Law (5 pts).
An
object immersed in a fluid (this can be a liquid like water or a gas
like air)
experiences an upward bouyant force that is equal to the weight of the
fluid displaced by the object. Basically objects that are less
dense that the fluid around them float, objects that are denser than
the fluid surrounding them sink. What causes the upward bouyant
force (it's the same upward force mentioned in the section above).
Layers of the
atmosphere (20 pts).
Troposphere: lowest layer in the
atmosphere, decreasing temperature with increasing altitude (why is
the warmest air found near the ground), contains most of the water
vapor and clouds, can be unstable (strong vertical air motions
possible). Tropopause. Stratosphere: there's an isothermal layer and
a temperature inversion layer (what causes air to warm in the
stratosphere), stable layer, contains the ozone layer. Approximate
altitudes of these layers. Units: meters, kilometers, feet, miles.
Sample questions (from the Fall 2000 Quiz Packet) Practice Quiz: 8?, 16
Quiz
#1: 13, 14, 17,
EC2
Final Exam: 19
Station
model notation (20 pts).
How and where are the following weather variables plotted: cloud cover,
temperature, dew point temperature (typical values for
Tucson), wind direction and speed, common weather symbols (rain, snow,
fog, rain shower, thunderstorm, tropical storm and hurricane),
pressure. Units. After pressure is measured, what important
adjustment
is made before the pressure is plotted on the surface map? Why is that
necessary? Average and typical range of sea-level pressure values.
Surface weather maps
(55 pts).
A new map is prepared hourly. What
time zone or time reference is used? 24-hour clock. Isobars and
isotherms. Small
horizontal
differences in pressure cause the wind to blow. Air motions around high
and low pressure centers (northern hemisphere). Strong and weak
pressure gradients. Convergence and divergence. Rising and sinking air
motions. How do wind motions around highs and low affect the
temperature pattern? Cold fronts and warm fronts (where is the warm and
cold air, what direction are the fronts moving).
Upper level charts(this material won't be on the quiz).
Ridges
(warm air below) and troughs (cold air below). Winds blow parallel to
contour lines and from west to east. How can upper level convergence
or
divergence
affect
surface
pressure
(what
would
cause
surface
pressure to increase or
decrease)? Is upper level convergence or divergence needed to
cause a middle latitude storm to
intensify?
The Haury Bldg. is also called the Anthropology Bldg.
The Mon. review is nominally for the MWF class but T Th people are
welcome to attend (some of the material being reviewed may not yet have
been covered in class). The Wed. review is for the T Th section
(the MWF class will already have taken their quiz)