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Questions and Answers
What is the typical diameter range of hail pellets?
What is the typical diameter range of hail pellets?
Where does hail formation commonly occur?
Where does hail formation commonly occur?
What is the general water equivalent ratio for snow to water?
What is the general water equivalent ratio for snow to water?
Which method is NOT used to measure snowfall?
Which method is NOT used to measure snowfall?
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What process leads to the formation of rime on surfaces?
What process leads to the formation of rime on surfaces?
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What type of instability occurs when the environmental lapse rate is greater than the dry adiabatic rate?
What type of instability occurs when the environmental lapse rate is greater than the dry adiabatic rate?
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What are condensation nuclei, and where are they typically found?
What are condensation nuclei, and where are they typically found?
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Which type of cloud is characterized by its high, white, and thin appearance?
Which type of cloud is characterized by its high, white, and thin appearance?
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What is the primary product of adiabatic cooling in the atmosphere?
What is the primary product of adiabatic cooling in the atmosphere?
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What characterizes clouds that often appear towering in shape?
What characterizes clouds that often appear towering in shape?
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Which atmospheric condition occurs when the atmosphere is stable for an unsaturated parcel of air but unstable for a saturated parcel?
Which atmospheric condition occurs when the atmosphere is stable for an unsaturated parcel of air but unstable for a saturated parcel?
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What factors primarily determine the type of clouds that develop and the intensity of precipitation?
What factors primarily determine the type of clouds that develop and the intensity of precipitation?
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Which of the following surfaces can serve as potential condensation surfaces?
Which of the following surfaces can serve as potential condensation surfaces?
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What defines saturated air?
What defines saturated air?
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How is relative humidity expressed?
How is relative humidity expressed?
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Which statement about vapor pressure is true?
Which statement about vapor pressure is true?
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What happens to relative humidity when the temperature of air decreases?
What happens to relative humidity when the temperature of air decreases?
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What is dew point temperature?
What is dew point temperature?
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Which method can change relative humidity without adding moisture?
Which method can change relative humidity without adding moisture?
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What occurs as air cools below the dew point?
What occurs as air cools below the dew point?
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Which measurement compares the mass of water vapor in the air to dry air?
Which measurement compares the mass of water vapor in the air to dry air?
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What is the main result of orographic lifting?
What is the main result of orographic lifting?
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What role does frontal wedging play in air movement?
What role does frontal wedging play in air movement?
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What characterizes stable air?
What characterizes stable air?
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Which of the following conditions describes absolute stability?
Which of the following conditions describes absolute stability?
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What happens to air during localized convective lifting?
What happens to air during localized convective lifting?
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What is a common outcome of absolute instability?
What is a common outcome of absolute instability?
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Which of the following best describes the effect of stable air on cloud formation?
Which of the following best describes the effect of stable air on cloud formation?
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What typically characterizes a rainshadow desert?
What typically characterizes a rainshadow desert?
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What type of clouds are classified as high clouds?
What type of clouds are classified as high clouds?
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What is true about low clouds?
What is true about low clouds?
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Which type of fog forms due to the Earth's surface cooling rapidly during cool, clear nights?
Which type of fog forms due to the Earth's surface cooling rapidly during cool, clear nights?
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Which cloud type is known to produce rain showers and thunderstorms?
Which cloud type is known to produce rain showers and thunderstorms?
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What causes advection fog to form?
What causes advection fog to form?
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Which of the following best describes clouds classified as middle clouds?
Which of the following best describes clouds classified as middle clouds?
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What type of fog is created when humid air moves up a slope?
What type of fog is created when humid air moves up a slope?
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Which type of cloud typically indicates rainy weather?
Which type of cloud typically indicates rainy weather?
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Study Notes
Humidity
- Humidity is a measure of the amount of water vapor in the air.
- Saturated air is air filled with water vapor to its capacity.
- Capacity is temperature dependent, warm air has a higher capacity for water vapor.
Measuring Humidity
- Mixing ratio is the mass of water vapor in a unit of air compared to the remaining dry air.
- It’s often measured in grams per kilogram.
- Relative humidity is the ratio of the air's actual water vapor content to the amount required for saturation at that temperature and pressure.
- Relative humidity is expressed as a percentage.
- Saturated air has 100% relative humidity.
- Relative humidity can be changed by adding or removing moisture to the air.
- It can also be altered by changing the air temperature; lowering the temperature raises the relative humidity.
Dew Point Temperature
- The temperature at which a parcel of air needs to be cooled to reach saturation.
- Condensation occurs when the air cools below the dew point resulting in dew, fog, or cloud formation.
- Water vapor requires a surface to condense on for these formations to occur.
Processes that Lift Air
- Orographic lifting happens when elevated terrain acts as a barrier to air flow, resulting in rain shadow deserts.
- Frontal wedging occurs when cool air acts as a barrier to warm air, a process involved in mid-latitude cyclones.
- Air convergence, where air flows together and rises, is also a cause of lifting.
- Localized convective lifting occurs due to unequal surface heating which causes pockets of air to rise due to buoyancy.
Stability of Air
- Stability of air determines the type of clouds formed and precipitation intensity.
- Stable air resists vertical displacement because it's cooler and denser than the surrounding air, making it want to sink.
- Absolute stability occurs when the atmospheric lapse rate is less than the wet adiabatic rate.
- Stable air often results in widespread clouds with little vertical thickness and light to moderate precipitation.
- Absolute instability occurs when rising air is warmer and less dense than the surrounding air, causing it to continue rising until it reaches an altitude with the same temperature.
- It occurs when the environmental lapse rate is greater than the dry adiabatic rate.
- Absolute instability results in towering clouds.
- Conditional instability occurs when the atmosphere is stable for an unsaturated parcel of air but unstable for a saturated parcel.
Condensation and Cloud Formation
- Condensation is when water vapor in the air transitions into a liquid forming dew, fog, or clouds.
- Condensation requires a surface to occur on.
- Condensation nuclei, such as dust, smoke, and ocean salt crystals, help with condensation in the atmosphere.
- Clouds are made of tiny water droplets or ice crystals.
- Clouds are classified based on form, height, and development.
- Three basic cloud forms are cirrus (high, thin, white), cumulus (globular masses often associated with fair weather), and stratus (sheets or layers covering a large portion of the sky).
Height-Based Cloud Classification
- High clouds are above 6000 meters (examples: cirrus, cirrostratus, cirrocumulus).
- Middle clouds are between 2000 to 6000 meters (examples: altostratus, altocumulus).
- Low clouds are below 2000 meters (examples: stratus, stratocumulus, nimbostratus).
- Clouds of vertical development, like cumulonimbus, extend from low to high altitudes and can produce rain showers and thunderstorms.
Fog
- Fog is a cloud at or near the ground and is considered an atmospheric hazard.
- Most fog forms due to radiation cooling or movement of air over a cold surface.
Fog Types
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Fogs caused by cooling:
- Advection fog forms when warm moist air moves over a cool surface.
- Radiation fog forms when the earth’s surface cools rapidly during cool, clear, calm nights.
- Upslope fog. Humid air moving up a slope undergoes adiabatic cooling, leading to the formation of fog.
Precipitation
- Hail is formed in large cumulonimbus clouds with violent up- and downdrafts.
- Hail forms when layers of freezing rain are caught in up- and downdrafts within the cloud, forming concentric shells.
- Hail falls to the ground when it becomes too heavy.
- Rime forms on cold surfaces due to freezing of supercooled fog or cloud droplets.
Measuring Precipitation
- Rain is the easiest form of precipitation to measure with standard rain gauges that utilize funnels and measuring tubes.
- Snow is measured by depth and water equivalent, with a general ratio of 10 snow units to 1 water unit.
- Radar is used to measure the rate of rainfall.
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Description
Explore the essential concepts of humidity with this quiz, focusing on the measurement, significance, and factors affecting humidity levels. Understand concepts like relative humidity, dew point temperature, and their practical implications in meteorology.
