Question 1

The wind chill index

Accepted Answer

A) fails to account for a human body's sensible heat loss and the potential warming effect of sunlight on the body 
B) accounts for a human body's sensible heat loss and also the potential warming effect of sunlight on the body 
C) accounts for a human body's sensible heat loss but not the potential warming effect of sunlight on the body. 
D) is always less than the temperature, even when there is no wind.

Question 2

The reason that the daily maximum temperature is after the maximum solar heating is because:

Accepted Answer

A) the Sun has more energy when shining from the west. 
B) the atmosphere is "thinner" in the afternoon. 
C) there is a thermal "lag" in the heating of the atmosphere. 
D) None of the above. There is no relationship between the maximum amount of sunshine and the time of maximum daily temperature.

Question 3

On which of these dates would the earth have the most energy available?

Accepted Answer

A) perihelion 
B) summer solstice 
C) aphelion 
D) vernal equinox

Question 4

List three absorbers of solar radiation in the atmosphere.

Accepted Answer

The answer of List three absorbers of solar radiation in...

Question 5

Which of the following is NOT a warm current?

Accepted Answer

A) North Equatorial current 
B) South Equatorial current 
C) Gulf Stream 
D) Falkland current

Question 6

Latent heat:

Accepted Answer

A) has only small effects on the atmosphere. 
B) is the same for all substances undergoing the same phase change. 
C) is more important for the atmosphere when released through evaporation rather than through melting. 
D) is the amount of heat needed to raise one kilogram of a substance by one degree Celsius.

Question 7

How does a greenhouse work,and why is the analogy of the earth's atmosphere to a greenhouse imperfect?

Accepted Answer

The answer of How does a greenhouse work,and why is...

Question 8

Insolation reaching the surface of the earth:

Accepted Answer

A) is all absorbed by the earth. 
B) represents about 50 percent of the amount that was at the top of the atmosphere. 
C) is unaffected by Earth's albedo. 
D) has not yet been affected by backscattering.

Question 9

A "greenhouse" works because:

Accepted Answer

A) of the difference in the solar constant. 
B) short wave lengths of energy pass through the glass but longer ones can't. 
C) the windows of the greenhouse only allow green light wavelengths to pass through. 
D) all greenhouses face south and into the maximum angle of solar energy.

Question 10

This thin region near the ground,the ________,is heated by conduction from the earth's surface.

Accepted Answer

The answer of This thin region near the ground,the ________,is...

Question 11

Greenhouse gases:

Accepted Answer

A) keep the earth at a comfortable temperature. 
B) did not exist in significant concentrations until the coming of the Industrial Age. 
C) are good absorbers of shortwave radiation. 
D) cause the earth to have much wider swings in daily temperature ranges than if the gases were not present.

Question 12

This works primarily on shorter-wavelength radiation:

Accepted Answer

A) Rayleigh scattering. 
B) Mie scattering. 
C) nonselective scattering. 
D) infrared absorption.

Question 13

Absorption:

Accepted Answer

A) is performed quite well by the atmosphere for visible wavelengths. 
B) is done to differing degrees by different gases. 
C) does not prevent most ultraviolet light from reaching Earth's surface. 
D) is typically greater in desert areas than in humid areas.

Question 14

How much more solar radiation is available for the Earth on the perihelion than the aphelion?

Accepted Answer

A) no difference 
B) 1% 
C) 7% 
D) 15%

Question 15

Most of the radiant energy emitted by Earth is in the form of ________ radiation.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Most of the radiant energy emitted by...

Question 16

Give one example of how a meteorologist would use a thermodynamic chart to make a weather forecast.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Give one example of how a meteorologist...

Question 17

Summer days are longest in which city?

Accepted Answer

A) Houston, TX 
B) Chicago, IL 
C) Los Angeles, CA 
D) Atlanta, GA

Question 18

Ocean currents are generated by:

Accepted Answer

A) the rotation of the earth. 
B) the gravitational attraction of the Moon. 
C) the gravitational attraction of the continents. 
D) the drag of wind blowing across the water's surface.

Question 19

Why is the sky blue?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Why is the sky blue?...

Question 20

Temperature is typically determined __________ by

Accepted Answer

A) directly; measuring the heat content of air molecules 
B) directly; measuring of the speed of air molecules 
C) indirectly; measuring the effect that temperature has on other materials 
D) indirectly; measuring the evaporation of fluid inside a thermometer

Exam 3: Energy Balance and Temperature