Meteorology Multiple Choice Questions and Answers for Practice

16. Characteristics of an air mass source region include

1. sharp temperature contrasts
2. high elevation
3. uniformity of temperature and moisture
4. jet stream winds aloft

17. Cloud seeding with silver iodide is based on the

1. Bergeron process
2. collision-coalescence process
3. both a and b
4. none of these

18. Clouds and precipitation form in the air primarily due to

1. moisture being added to the air
2. air being cooled as it rises
3. excessive numbers of hygroscopoic nuclei
4. release of latent heat

19. Clouds are classified and named according to their altitude and

1. water content
2. temperature
3. size of droplets in the cloud
4. form or appearance

20. Compared to other types of fronts, the weather associated with a cold front usually

1. covers more area
2. is less violent but of longer duration
3. involves less precipitation
4. is more violent but of shorter duration

21. Deserts such as the Great Basin, Gobi, and Takla Makan are examples of:

1. chinook deserts
2. subtropical deserts
3. rain shadow deserts
4. monsoon deserts

22. Downdrafts and updrafts found side by side relate to the.......................in the development of a thunderstorm.

1. cumulus stage
2. mature stage
3. dissipating stage

23. Downdrafts totally dominate the.......................in the development of a thunderstorm.

1. cumulus stage
2. mature stage
3. dissipating stage

24. During which of the time spans listed below should hurricane formation in the North Atlantic be at a peak?

1. January-February
2. April-May
3. August-September
4. November-December

25. Freezing rain (ice storm) or sleet occurs when

1. upper air is cold and surface air is warm
2. both surface and upper air are cold
3. both surface and upper air are warm
4. upper air is warm and surface air is cold

26. Heat lightning:

1. is brighter than ordinary lightning
2. is also called ball lightning
3. occurs more than 20 kilometers from the person observing it
4. is actually a display of the northern lights

27. Hurricanes and midlatitude cyclones are similar in that:

1. both are areas of low pressure
2. both have conspicuous surface fronts
3. both are most common and well-developed in the winter season
4. both form in the trade-wind belt

28. Hurricanes generally are:

1. larger than tornadoes
2. smaller than midlatitude cyclones
3. areas of heavy rainfall and strong winds
4. all of these

29. Hygroscopoic nuclei may be formed from

1. particles of dust
2. nitric acid particles
3. smoke from forest fires
4. all of the above

30. Inside of a cloud, how do the air temperature and the dew point compare to one another?

1. they are equal
2. air temperature exceeds dew point
3. dew point exceeds air temperature
4. there is no consistent relationship