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Weather and Climate - Review
1. What is the difference between weather and climate?
-Weather: state of atmosphere at given time and place
-Climate: average atmospheric conditions for given time and place 2. What are the two main gasses that make up our atmosphere?
-Nitrogen (79%)
-Oxygen (20%) 3. What variable components make up our atmosphere and what role do they play in our weather?
-Water vapor: up to 4%, source of clouds & precipitation, greenhouse gas, absorbs & releases latent heat
-Aerosols: tiny liquid & solid particles, condensation nuclei for precipitation, scatter sunlight
-Ozone: O3, exists in stratosphere, absorbs UV 4. Name the layers of the earth’s atmosphere from the ground up, what is the relative temperature in each of these layers?
-troposphere (6.5*C decrease/km)
-stratosphere (constant till 20 km then increases)
-mesosphere (decreas, -90*C at top)
-thermosphere (increase to 1000*C) 5. What is the difference between the environmental and normal lapse rate?
-environmental: variable, measured at given time & place
-normal: average lapse rate & equals 6.5*C/km 6. Why does the temperature in the stratosphere increase?
-presence of O3 absorbing UV causes temp to increase 7. What is the ozone layer and why is it important?
-The ozone layer is a mixture of gasses that protects the earth from harmful rays from Sun such as UV. 8. Why is the earth warmer at the equator and cooler at the poles?
-The earth is tilted in its axis which causes:
-amount of direct sunlight changes
-height of sun over horizon at noon changes
-length of day changes
-amount of atmosphere the sunlight has to travel through changes 9. Define conduction, convection and radiation
-conduction: transfer of heat through matter by molecular activity
-convection: transfer of heat by mass movement or circulation
-radiation: transfer of heat through electromagnetic
-all objects radiate energy
-hotter objects emit more energy
-good absorbers are good emitters
-Earth’s surface is good absorber & emitter, gasses are selective emitters & absorbers 10. Discuss what happens to incoming solar radiation. Your discussion should include Reflection, scattering absorption and the planetary albedo
-reflection/redirection: radiation bounces back @ same angle & intensity, 30% solar radiation lost due to reflection
-Albedo: total amount of radiation reflected by a surface. Earth’s planetary albedo= 30%
-scattering/redirection: radiation is broken & sent in all directions, 50% of light on earth’s surface=scattered
-absorption: gasses are selective absorbers- N doesn’t absorb much, O2 & O3 absorb fairly well, atmosphere transmits most radiation including visible light & isn’t heated directly by Sun
-surface of earth absorbs incoming radiation then reemits it as heat 11. Discuss the factors that may control temperature locally.
-solar angle: the angle sunlight hits the earth at a certain location
-altitude: higher altitudes are cooler
-geographic position: windwa
-cloud cover 12. What role does water play in determining temperature and why?
-water is more thermally stable because specific heat of H2O is high, land surfaces are opaque, water mixes, evaporation cools water when it’s being heated.
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This intel was contributed by daria
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May, 2012
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