The Nature of Storms

Practice Test
      
  1.How hot is the air heated by lightning?  
  a.   30 000[superscript degrees] C  
  b.   100 000 000 [superscript degrees] C  
  c.   1 000[superscript degrees] C  
  d.   300[superscript degrees] C  
      
  2.Large, rotating, low-pressure storms are called __________.  
  a.   hail storms  
  b.   tropical cyclones  
  c.   storm surge  
  d.   tornadoes  
      
  3.What type of weather phenomenon is shown in the figure?



 
  a.   a sea breeze  
  b.   a cyclone  
  c.   a conduction cell  
  d.   a supercell  
      
  4.Which is NOT a characteristic of the Fujita tornado intensity scale?  
  a.   duration  
  b.   wind speed  
  c.   destruction  
  d.   size of funnel cloud  
      
  5.The table shows the water level of the Green River during a thunderstorm. If the flood plain is 3.8 meters, when would this river have flooded?

Time 10:00 A.M. 11:00 A.M. NOON 1:00 P.M. 2:00 P.M. 3:00 P.M.
Water Level (m) 3 3.1 3.4 4.0 5.0 5.2


 
  a.   just after 1:00 p.m.  
  b.   just after noon  
  c.   just after 10:00 a.m.  
  d.   just after 11:00 a.m.  
      
  6.What type of thunderstorms are tornadoes associated with?  
  a.   air-mass thunderstorms  
  b.   supercells  
  c.   sea-breeze thunderstorms  
  d.   frontal thunderstorms  
      
  7.What type of thunderstorm is caused by advancing cold and warm fronts?  
  a.   sea-breeze thunderstorms  
  b.   frontal thunderstorms  
  c.   air-mass thunderstorms  
  d.   cloud condensing thunderstorms  
      
  8.What causes the air of a tropical storm to rotate?  
  a.   funnel clouds  
  b.   supercells  
  c.   strong downbursts  
  d.   the Coriolis effect  
      
  9.What is the wind-chill factor?  
  a.   the length of a cold wave  
  b.   the phenomenon of heat loss from human skin due to wind and temperature  
  c.   the freezing point of water  
  d.   the point at which human skin will become frostbitten  
      
  10.Where do the disturbances that cause tropical storms originate?  
  a.   near the Gulf Stream  
  b.   tornado alley  
  c.   the ITCZ or from tropical waves  
  d.   the Pacific Ocean only  
      
  11.What atmospheric condition increases the likeliness of a flood?  
  a.   stronger downbursts  
  b.   condensation of updrafts  
  c.   friction between updrafts and downdrafts  
  d.   weak, upper-atmospheric current that moves storms slowly  
      
  12.What type of weather potentially is created by the phenomenon shown in the figure?  
  a.   a hurricane  
  b.   a typhoon  
  c.   a thunderstorm  
  d.   a tornado  
      
  13.This table shows the Fujita Tornado Intensity Scale. According to this table, what causes the damage during a tornado?

Rank Category Path of Destruction Wind Speed (mph) Duration
F0 and F1 Weak up to 3 miles 60-115 1-10 minutes
F2 and F3 Strong 15+ miles 110-205 20 minutes or longer
F4 and F5 Violent 50+ miles more than 200 1 hour or longer


 
  a.   floods  
  b.   wind  
  c.   hail  
  d.   rain  
      
  14.What are tropical cyclones that form in the Pacific Ocean called?  
  a.   funnel clouds  
  b.   downdrafts  
  c.   typhoons  
  d.   tornadoes  
      
  15.Which is NOT a stage of a thunderstorm?  
  a.   cumulus stage  
  b.   dissipation stage  
  c.   mature stage  
  d.   condensing stage  
      
  16.What is the calm center of a hurricane called?  
  a.   funnel cloud  
  b.   downburst  
  c.   eye  
  d.   eyewall  
      
  17.What type of clouds produce thunderstorms?  
  a.   cumulus  
  b.   cumulonimbus  
  c.   cirrus  
  d.   stratus  
      
  18.What causes thunder?  
  a.   falling precipitation  
  b.   condensation of updrafts  
  c.   the expansion and contraction of the air heated by lightning  
  d.   friction between updrafts and downdrafts in a cumulonimbus cloud  

 
   
McGraw-Hill / Glencoe
The McGraw-Hill Companies