| Review
Questions |
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1. a)What is the hydrologic cycle?
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b) What is the water balance?
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c) Which term links the energy and water balance?
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d) What is the difference between latent heat of vaporization & latent
heat flux?
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2. What controls the rate of evaporation from the Earth's surface?
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3. a) Using the web resources, generate a map of global patterns of
evaporation.
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b) Where is the rate of evaporation greatest?
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c) Where is the rate lowest? Explain the patterns you observe.
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4. a) Why is evaporation greater on a warm day?
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b)Why is it greater on a windy day?
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5. a) Why when we sweat do we cool ourselves?
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b) Why do we feel so hot and unpleasant on humid days in the summer?
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c) Where in the US, do heat
indexes tend to be greatest?
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6. a) What are absolute and specific humidity?
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b) As an air parcel moves away from the earth's surface the air parcel
will expand (why?) what will happen to the absolute and specific humidity?
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7. a) What is relative humidity?
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b) How would you expect relative humidity to vary over the course of a
day? Why?
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c) Using the web resources, describe how relative
humidity varies globally?
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d) Using your knowledge of the relationship between temperature and relative
humidity and global temperature patterns, explain why there are decreases
in relative humidity at approximately 30
N and S; why relative humidity is high near the poles.
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8. Using the web resources, contrast the global patterns of relative
and specific humidity. Where and why are the spatial patterns different?
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9. a) Draw a diagram (Temperature on the X - axis and Saturation vapor
pressure (
 )
on the Y -axis) to show the relationship between air temperature &
saturation vapor pressure. Using this diagram does the statement "warm
air can hold more moisture than cold air" hold true?
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b) Using your knowledge of variation in air temperature through the day
to draw a graph (Time on the X-axis and Temperature on the Y -axis) to
demonstrate this. Now with the aid of the graph in part (a), show the trend
of relative humidity if the vapor pressure (e) remained constant through
the day (i.e. add a second Y-axis to your graph label it Relative Humidity).
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c) Describe and explain the diurnal pattern of temperature and relative
humidity in Indianapolis yesterday.
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10. a) How are the concepts of saturation, dew point temperature and relative
humidity related?
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b) How can an air parcel be brought to it dew point temperature?
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c) If there is a large difference between the dew point temperature and
the air temperature is there much moisture in the air?
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d) Using the online resources, generate a map of dewpoint
temperatures across the US today. Describe and explain the pattern
you observe.
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11. What is the wet bulb depression? If there is a small wet bulb depression
is there much moisture in the air?
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12. Explain the difference in the influence of warm and cold ocean currents
on the humidity experienced on nearby land regions. Use Georgia and California
as examples. (You can use the online resources to look at patterns of ocean
currents and humidity).
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13. Describe and explain the difference between visible,
infra-red and the water vapor satellite imagery.
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