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Chapter 14: MET

Terms in this set (50)

All thunderstorms require:

a. hot, humid air
b. divergence of the air aloft
c. lifting along some barrier such as a mountain or front
d. surface heating
e. rising air
e. rising air
The initial stage of an ordinary thunderstorm is the:

a. mature stage
b. dissipating stage
c. cumulus stage
d. multicell stage
c. cumulus stage
Ordinary thunderstorms only last about one hour and begin to dissipate when:

a. lightning neutralizes all the electrical charge in the cloud
b. when all the precipitation particles in the cloud turn to ice
c. when the downdraft spreads throughout the cloud and cuts off the updraft
d. when solar heating at the ground begins to decrease
c. when the downdraft spreads throughout the cloud and cuts off the updraft
An ordinary thunderstorm is a:

a. thunderstorm that does not produce lightning or thunder
b. thunderstorm that has a tilted updraft and downdraft
c. scattered or isolated storm that is not severe
d. thunderstorm that does not produce hail
c. scattered or isolated storm that is not severe
Downdrafts spread throughout a thunderstorm during the ____ stage.

a. cumulus
b. dissipating
c. precipitating
d. developing
b. dissipating
An ordinary thunderstorm is most intense during the ____ stage.

a. mature
b. multicell
c. cumulus
d. dissipating
a. mature
The most likely time for an ordinary thunderstorm to form is:

a. just after sunrise
b. just before sunrise
c. around midnight
d. late afternoon
e. at noon
d. late afternoon
A supercell storm is:

a. a thunderstorm that produces several tornadoes
b. a thunderstorm that produces a category EF-5 tornado
c. a thunderstorm with an extremely large downburst
d. an enormous thunderstorm that lasts for several hours
d. an enormous thunderstorm that lasts for several hours
Severe thunderstorms are capable of producing:

a. large hail
b. tornadoes
c. flash floods
d. all of the above
d. all of the above
A Mesoscale Convective Complex is actually:

a. a rapidly rotating tornado cyclone inside a massive thunderstorm
b. another name for a suction vortex
c. a complex display of lightning from distant thunderstorms
d. a family of tornadoes that do a great deal of damage
e. individual thunderstorms that grow into a large, long-lasting weather system
e. individual thunderstorms that grow into a large, long-lasting weather system
Thunderstorms which produce tornadoes:

a. have very little cloud-to-ground lightning
b. have updraft velocities that exceed 100 miles per hour
c. have rotating updrafts
d. will not produce hail
c. have rotating updrafts
The leading edge of a thunderstorm's cold downdraft is known as a:

a. downburst
b. squall line
c. gust front
d. dry line
e. microburst
c. gust front
The main difference between a downburst and a microburst is:

a. duration
b. strength
c. size
d. altitude
c. size
The wind shear associated with several major airline crashes is believed to have been caused by:

a. microbursts
b. dry lines
c. the jet stream
d. mesocyclones
a. microbursts
A relatively narrow downburst, less than 4 kilometers wide, is called:

a. a microburst
b. a funnel cloud
c. a rain shaft
d. a narrow burst
e. a mesocyclone
a. a microburst
A group of thunderstorms which develop in a line one next to the other, each in a different stage of development, are called:

a. ordinary thunderstorms
b. a thunderstorm cluster
c. a multicell thunderstorm
d. mature thunderstorms
c. a multicell thunderstorm
A line of thunderstorms that forms ahead of an advancing cold front is called a:

a. roll cloud
b. squall line
c. wall cloud
d. gust front
e. dry line
b. squall line
On a surface weather map, this marks the boundary where a warm, dry air mass encounters a warm, moist air mass:

a. gust front
b. dry line
c. storm front
d. wall cloud
b. dry line
Most squall line thunderstorms form:

a. in advance of a cold front
b. along a cold front
c. behind a cold front
d. in advance of a warm front
e. along an occluded front
a. in advance of a cold front
Many flash floods are the result of thunderstorms that:

a. contain no lightning
b. form in a dry air mass
c. move slowly
d. have weak or non-existent downdrafts
c. move slowly
The greatest annual number of thunderstorms in the United States occurs in:

a. the Ohio valley
b. the Central Plains
c. the desert southwest
d. Florida
e. Texas
d. Florida
A discharge of electricity from or within a thunderstorm is called:

a. static electricity
b. lightning
c. a downburst
d. St. Elmo's fire
e. an atmospheric arc
b. lightning
Lightning may occur:

a. within a cloud
b. from a cloud to the ground
c. from one cloud to another cloud
d. all of the above
d. all of the above
Lightning discharges within a cloud occur ____ cloud-to-ground lightning.

a. more frequently than
b. less frequently than
c. about as frequently as
d. lightning cannot remain in the cloud, it must strike an object on the ground
a. more frequently than
In cloud-to-ground lightning, the stepped leader travels ____ and the return stroke travels ____ .

a. upward, upward
b. upward, downward
c. downward, upward
d. downward, downward
c. downward, upward
A second surge of electrons that proceeds from the base of a cloud toward the ground during cloud-to-ground lightning is called a:

a. return stroke
b. stepped leader
c. dart leader
d. downstroke
e. subsequent stroke
c. dart leader
Distant lightning that is so far away you cannot hear the thunder is called:

a. sheet lightning
b. heat lightning
c. false lightning
d. St. Elmo's fire
e. auroral lightning
b. heat lightning
A cloud-to-ground lightning discharge will sometimes appear to flicker. This is because:

a. you are able to see the separate steps of the stepped leader
b. you are able to distinguish separate return strokes
c. the bright light causes you to blink
d. of refraction caused by turbulent thunderstorm winds
b. you are able to distinguish separate return strokes
What would be the proper sequence of events in a lightning flash?

a. stepped leader, dart leader, return stroke, return stroke
b. return stroke, stepped leader, return stroke, dart leader
c. dart leader, return stroke, stepped leader, return stroke
d. stepped leader, return stroke, dart leader, return stroke
d. stepped leader, return stroke, dart leader, return stroke
Thunder is caused by:

a. the collision between two thunderstorms with opposite electrical charge
b. the rapid heating of air surrounding a lightning channel
c. the explosion that occurs when + and - charge collide and neutralize each other
d. turbulent wind motions inside the thunderstorm
b. the rapid heating of air surrounding a lightning channel
If you see a lightning stroke and then, 15 seconds later, hear the thunder, the lightning is about ____ miles away.

a. 45
b. 15
c. 5
d. 3
d. 3
Thunder will not occur:

a. without lightning
b. in wintertime thunderstorms
c. in thunderstorms over the ocean
d. when a thunderstorm is producing precipitation
a. without lightning
A tornado cloud that does not touch the ground is called:

a. a funnel cloud
b. a wall cloud
c. a roll cloud
d. a mesocyclone
a. a funnel cloud
A funnel cloud is composed primarily of:

a. cloud droplets
b. dust and dirt from the ground
c. raindrops
d. hail
e. ice crystals
a. cloud droplets
Which of the following statements about tornadoes is correct?

a. all tornadoes rotate in a counterclockwise direction
b. tornadoes never strike the same place twice
c. all tornadoes make a distinction roar
d. the United States has more tornadoes that any other country in the world
d. the United States has more tornadoes that any other country in the world
The funnel cloud characteristic of a tornado is principally formed by:

a. condensation of water vapor in air drawn into the low pressure core of the tornado
b. dust and dirt picked up from the atmosphere
c. clouds being funneled by downward air currents coming out of a cumulonimbus cloud
d. water drawn up from the sea surface into the cloud
e. gaseous products from intense lightning activity within the tornado
a. condensation of water vapor in air drawn into the low pressure core of the tornado
In a typical tornado the winds are usually not much more than ____ miles per hour.

a. 25
b. 50
c. 100
d. 200
c. 100
Which of the following factors is most important in determining the strength of a tornado?

a. diameter
b. air temperature
c. duration
d. central pressure
d. central pressure
The so-called "Tornado Alley" of the United States is located:

a. in Florida
b. in the Central Plains
c. in the Ohio Valley
d. in the middle Atlantic states
e. along the Gulf Coast
b. in the Central Plains
The most frequent time of day for tornadoes to form is in the:

a. early morning just after sunrise
b. late morning just before noon
c. evening just after sunset
d. afternoon
e. middle of the night
d. afternoon
In the United States, tornadoes are most frequent during the ____, and least frequent during the ____.

a. summer, fall
b. spring, winter
c. spring, fall
d. summer, winter
e. winter, fall
b. spring, winter
Which of the following regions would you expect to have the most tornadoes in the winter?
a.
southern Great Plains
b.
Oklahoma
c.
northern Great Plains
d.
southern Gulf States
d. southern Gulf States
The Fujita scale pertains to:

a. the size of a tornado producing thunderstorm
b. the amount of hail that falls from a mature thunderstorm
c. the size of the thunderstorm image on a radar screen
d. the strength of a tornado
d. the strength of a tornado
About two-thirds of all tornadoes fall into which of the following categories on the Fujita scale?

a. EF0 or EF1
b. EF2 or EF3
c. EF0 or EF5
d. EF4 or EF5
a. EF0 or EF1
Damage to structures inflicted by tornadoes can be caused by:

a. flying debris
b. the tornadoes high winds
c. the drop in air pressure as a tornado moves overhead
d. the drop in air pressure above a roof as high winds blow over it
e. all of the above
e. all of the above
After a tornado is spotted:

a. a tornado watch is issued
b. its direction of movement is carefully monitored by aircraft
c. a tornado warning is issued
d. hail begins to fall from the cloud
e. attempts may be made to change its direction of movement
c. a tornado warning is issued
A hook-shaped echo on a radar screen often indicates:

a. a thunderstorm with very frequent lightning
b. a developing hurricane
c. the possible presence of a tornado-producing thunderstorm
d. a rotating anvil cloud at the top of a thunderstorm
c. the possible presence of a tornado-producing thunderstorm
Most waterspouts:

a. form in severe thunderstorms
b. draw water up into their core
c. have rotating winds of less than 45 knots
d. form in an area where winds are descending from a cloud
e. actually form over land
c. have rotating winds of less than 45 knots
A tornado-like event that forms over water is a:

a. mesohigh
b. roll cloud
c. microburst
d. waterspout
e. squall line
d. waterspout
Most waterspouts would fall into which category of the Fujita scale?

a. EFo
b. EF1
c. EF2
d. EF4 or EF5
a. EF0
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