Assignment 3 for Earth Science, Weather and Climate | GEOG 1110, Study notes of Climatology

Download Assignment 3 for Earth Science, Weather and Climate | GEOG 1110 and more Study notes Climatology in PDF only on Docsity! GEOG1110 Assignment 3 Instructions: 1. Work on these questions each week, as you complete the readings and quizzes for each chapter. 2. Answer ALL questions. 3. Submit your completed assignment to the ‘Assignment 3 drop box’ on or before the due date. 4. Late assignments will be assessed a 20% late penalty, and late assignments will not be accepted more than 72hrs (3 days) beyond the due date without a doctor’s excuse. NOTES: 1. All answers must be in your own words. Do not copy from the textbook (this is plagiarism unless you use quotation marks and reference your source). Please see the syllabus for details on the plagiarism policy for this course. 2. To turn in an electronic sketch, you have several options -- sketch by hand and scan it, sketch by hand and take a digital picture of it, sketch using a drawing program like Paint (found under accessories in all Windows computers). Chapter 7 questions 1. An air mass is different from an air parcel. Air parcels are small and tend to be related to local weather conditions. Air masses are large (can be 1000’s of miles across) and their interaction with each other will determine the weather on a national scale. Describe four different air masses that affect North America in terms of temperature and moisture characteristics and where they are most likely to originate and seasonally where they are most likely to migrate). 2. For precipitation to occur, we need clouds, and for clouds we need condensation, which requires saturated air and condensation nuclei. The easiest way to get saturated air, is to force it to rise (by rising, it cools adiabatically – remember?). Describe two of the four atmospheric lifting mechanisms, providing specific examples of where they may occur (Note: old weather forecasts and photos are acceptable provided that you include a summary written in your own words). 3. Thunderstorms, hail and tornadoes: Use your animation CD, your text and other resources at your disposal (this website may help http://www.srh.weather.gov/srh/jetstream/tstorms/tstorms_intro.htm ) a. Describe the development of a hailstorm b. Describe the development of a mesocyclone and a tornado. c. Explain the pattern of tornado occurrence seen in the figure below. (Source: http://www.srh.weather.gov/srh/jetstream/tstorms/tornado.htm ) 4. The National Weather Service has produced a severe weather warning decision simulator called the “hot seat”. Your task is to learn how severe weather is forecast Use the textbook and other resources at your disposal), then go to http://www.srh.noaa.gov/ffc/HotSeat/index.shtml and start the simulator (click on “yes, bring it on!” in the middle of the screen). You will be presented with three scenarios and you must complete at least one of them. The deliverable on this question is two paragraphs. The first one should explain the criteria you will use to issue a tornado or severe storm warning, and the second paragraph should report on the results of the simulation (how well were you able to predict severe weather? What worked? What didn’t work? What might you do differently next time?) Enjoy! Chapter 9 questions 5. Describe several possible routes a molecule can take as it travels within the hydrologic cycle starting at the ocean, through the atmosphere, deposited as precipitation and then returning ‘somehow’ to the ocean. What I want you to do here is to describe the various ways the water molecule can make it back to the ocean. 6. Precipitation data is most commonly obtained from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Climactic Data Center (NCDC). Go to the NCDC station locator (http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/stationlocator.html ) to search for weather stations in your local area. You may search for stations close to your home town, or if you are out of the country feel free to search for weather stations near ETSU. Report back on your findings (how many stations? Where located? What type of station is it? What other data are available from this weather station? Other information you could find?) Do NOT just copy and paste the station information. 7. Groundwater Resources. The High Plains Aquifer is an important source of groundwater for irrigation in Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, however its days as a water source are limited if irrigation practices remain the same.