Each of the multiple choice questions was worth 2 points. There were 38 questions, which means that there were 76 points possible for this section. You were required to do 6 out of the 10 short answer questions. Each was worth 6 points, for 36 possible points. Thus, the total number of points possible was 112.
To figure out your grade, add up the total number of points in both the multiple choice and short answer section, divide by 1.19 (or divide by 112 and multiply by 100), and then add 4.
1 point - (There is a temperature inversion), where the temperature
at the surface is just below freezing and the temperature of the
atmosphere above is above freezing.
2 points - As snow falls from above, it reaches a layer where the
temperature is greater than 0 degrees C which causes the snow to melt.
As it reaches the surface, the temperature is now below freezing,
causing the liquid water droplets to become supercooled. If the
inversion layer is shallow enough such that freezing does not occur in
the atmosphere.
1 point - When the droplet hits the earth, it freezes on contact.
1 point - One reason why freezing rain is dangerous. For example, black ice.
1 point - Another reason freezing rain is dangerous. For example, freezing rain is heavy and can cause power lines to snap.
2 point - A cloud is air that contains a visible mass of tiny water
droplets and/or ice crystals (that are above the earth's surface)
1.5 point - Clouds typically form when an air parcel is cooled such
that the saturation mixing ratio of water is equal to the mixing ratio
(or equivalently the relative humidity becomes 100%).
1.5 point - This usually occurs through lifting of a parcel which decompresses the air parcel which causes it to cool.
1 point - It is necessary that cloud condensation nuclei be present.
2 points - When an air parcel is lowered in the atmosphere, its temperature is increased.
1 point - This is because of compressional heating (higher pressures at lower altitudes).
1 point - In the presence of a cloud, the change of temperature with height is lessened.
2 points - This is due to the latent heat of evaporation need to evaporate the cloud.
1 point - Air generally flows from west to east at Oregon's latitude range.
1 point - When moist air from the Pacific hits the Western slope of the Cascades, it is forced to rise.
1 point - This rising causes the air to cool and water to condense.
1 point - As the air continues to rise and condense, droplets grow large enough to fall as rain.
1 point - The air parcel on the Eastern side of the mountains will have less liquid water to evaporate when decending.
1 point - This means when the parcel reaches the ground it will be
warmer than on the Western side, and contain less water and thus will
also have a small relative humidity.
1.5 point - As a thunderstorm develops, the small cloud droplets
collide to form larger droplets which fall out of the storm when the
droplets are large enough to overcome the updrafts in the storm, they
fall.
1.5 points - As they fall (below cloud base), they evaporate into the surrounding air.
1 point - This causes the air to cool which makes the air dense which causes the air to sink.
1 points - As this air hits the surface, it spreads out horizontally into a gust front.
1 point - If the thunderstorm is over mountains, the air further increases in speed as it flows down the mountain slope.
2 points - The simple argument for why global warming will result in
stronger hurricanes is global warming increases sea surface
temperatures worldwide, which increases the fuel or energy source for
tropical storms.
2 points - Another explanation for the relatively active Atlantic
hurricanes is that we are in a natural cycle where the SST of the
Atlantic oscillates over decades.
2 points - These could both be true because the first is a trend in the
hurricane strenths while the second is a cyclical process, and there is
no reason to think that they both couldn't happen at the same time.
1 point - During an el nino, there is a warming in the Central and Eastern Pacific Ocean.
1 point - A la nina means there is a cooling in the Eastern Pacific Ocean.
1 point - When the Eastern Pacific is warmer than average it creates
more wind shear in the Western Atlantic Ocean and less in the eastern
Pacific.
1 point - A la nina means there is less wind shear in the Atlantic and more in the eastern Pacific.
1 point - Because hurricanes need little to no wind shear to form and
grow, during a la nina it is expected to see a larger number of
Atlantic hurricanes (and fewer east Pacific hurricanes).
1 point - Since a la nina is forcast for this year, expect an above
average Atlantic hurricane season (and fewer eastern Pacific
hurricanes).
2 points for each reason. Examples include little media attention because it is not exciting, disproportionately affect weaker and less visible people (such as the elderly, homeless, and poor), there is no physical damage, and it is difficult to attribute a cause of death to a heat wave.
2.5 points - The National Lightning Detection Network is a group of
sensors located throughout the United States that detect lightning.
1 point - It is run from Tucson.
2.5 points - Examples of an industry that uses it would be insurance and air traffic control.
1 point for each similar feature and difference. Similarity examples include lower pressure systems, rotating systems, both have high wind speeds (but tornadoes can have higher wind speeds), worst damage is on right side. Dissimilarities include relative size, duration, location (land vs ocean), source region, tornadoes can get to 300 mph whereas hurricanes are less than 200 mph. Hurricanes can generate tornadoes.