NATS 101 Final Exam
Study Outline
(click here
to download in
Microsoft WORD format)
Final Exam: Fri., May 6,
10:30 am - 12:30 pm, ILC 140
Reviews:
Wed.,
May
4, 10 - 10:50 am, ILC 140
Thu., May 5, 2 pm -
4
pm, EDUC 353
1. Composition of
the atmosphere: N2, O2, H2O,
Ar, and CO2. H2O and CO2 are main
greenhouse gases. Importance of water vapor. Carbon dioxide cycle (how
is CO2 added to and removed from the air). Concern over
changing concentration of CO2 and other greenhouse gases
& climate change. Atmospheric evolution (what important
atmospheric gas didn't come from volcanoes?)
2. Air Pollution: Carbon
monoxide
(CO) - incomplete combustion, early morning and wintertime pollutant.
Surface inversion layers. Sulfur dioxide (SO2) - London type
smog, acid
rain. Tropospheric ozone - key component of photochemical smog or Los
Angeles type smog, summertime afternoon pollutant.
3. Stratospheric ozone: natural
production and destruction of ozone in the ozone layer, destroyed by
CFCs
4. Mass, weight, density,
pressure:
gravity
pulls
downward
on
a
mass producing weight. Pressure is a
measure of the weight of the air above. Mercury barometer. Typical sea
level pressure values and units. Air pressure and air density
(mass/volume) both decrease with increasing altitude.
5.
Layers
in
the
atmosphere:
troposphere, tropopause, and stratosphere. Temperature inversion
(stable air layer).
6. Ideal gas law: How are P,
N,
V,
T, and density related? Temperature and density usually change in a way
that keeps pressure constant. Vertical forces on air parcels, free
convection. Archimedes law.
7. Surface weather maps:
Station
model notation, average and usual range of sea level pressure values,
isobars
and isotherms, winds around highs and lows. Symbols used for cold,
warm, stationary, and occluded fronts. Cyclones and anticyclones,
convergence and divergence, rising and sinking air, pressure gradient
and wind speed.
8. Upper level maps: constant
pressure charts with height contours, ridges and
troughs (warm and cold air below). Winds blow parallel to the
contours and from west to east.
9. Energy and temperature:
temperature
is
a
measure
of
average
kinetic
energy.
Temperature
scales.
Delta
T
and
Delta
E relationship, specific heat
10. Energy transport:
conduction,
convection, latent heat (names of various phase changes, is energy
absorbed or given off).
11.
Electromagnetic (EM) radiation:
static electricity and electric fields, wavelength, frequency, and
energy.
EM spectrum -
UV, visible, and IR light.
12. Rules
governing the emission
(kind and
amount) of radiation.
13. Energy balance on
the earth
with and without an atmosphere. Selective absorption of radiation by
earth's atmosphere. Greenhouse gases and greenhouse effect. Effects of
clouds on daytime and nighttime temperatures.
14.
Controls
of
temperature:
effects of latitude, land/ocean,
altitude on annual mean temperature and temperature range.
Hottest and coldest locations
on earth.
15. Seasons: dates and
orientation
of earth on the solstices and equinoxes. Factors affecting the arrival
of sunlight energy at the ground.
16. Humidity:
saturation,
humidity
variables - mixing ratio, saturation mixing ratio, relative humidity
and dew point temperature. Rain shadow effect, heat index, Dew and
frost. Cloud condensation nuclei
17 Identifying and naming clouds:
ten
cloud
types, key words. Satellite photographs of clouds.
18. Formation of precipitation:
collision coalescence process and ice crystal process.
Types of precipitation: rain,
drizzle, snow, graupel, hail, sleet, freezing rain, virga. Radar.
19. Newton's 1st law of
motion.
Forces that determine surface and
upper level winds: PGF, Coriolis force, friction. Rules for
direction and strength.
20. Upper level winds: winds
blow
parallel to contours. Northern and
southern hemispheres, net inward force needed for spinning motion..
Surface winds: northern and
southern hemisphere, convergence and divergence, rising and sinking
motions.
21. Thermal Circulations and the
3-cell model: land and sea breezes, global scale pressure
belts and winds
22.
Thunderstorms: air
mass
(3-stage life cycle) and severe (tilted updraft). Gust front, shelf
cloud, mammatus cloud, wind shear, microburst, anvil cloud.
23. Tornadoes: general
characteristics, life cycle, Fujita scale. Mesocyclone and wall cloud,
hook echo on radar.
24. Lightning: thunderstorm
charge
structure, intracloud and cloud-to-ground lightning (stepped leader,
return stroke, multiple strokes), lightning safety, distance to a
lightning strike.
25.
Hurricanes (typhoons and cyclones):
Formation (where and when). Eye, eye wall, spiral rain bands, low
pressure & converging winds at surface, high pressure &
diverging winds aloft. Stages of storm development. Storm surge and
hurricane damage,
Saffir-Simpson scale. Naming hurricanes. Click here for a
detailed
study guide.
Note:
The final exam usually consists of 50+ multiple choice, word
choice, fill-in-the-blank style questions (like those on this
semester's quizzes). The final will include:
15 questions from this semester's 5 quizzes (4 quizzes +
practice quiz)
10 questions (at least) from the Fall
2003
final
exam
5 questions about hurricanes.