Homework 1 -

1) Describe the various scales of motion and give an example of each.

microscale -

mesoscale -

synoptic scale -

global scale -

2) What is wind shear and how does it relate to clear air turbulence?

3) Why does a sea breeze blow from sea to land and a land breeze from land to sea?

4) Which wind will produce clouds: a valley breeze or a mountain breeze? Why?

5) What are katabatic winds? How do they form?

6) Explain why chinook winds are warm and dry.

7) According to Fig. 7.24 (p. 195), most of the United States is located in what wind belt?

8) (a) What is a major El Nino event?

(b) What happens to the surface pressure at opposite ends of the Pacific Ocean during the Southern Oscillation?

(c) Describe how an ENSO event may influence the weather in different parts of the world.

9) What are the conditions over the tropical eastern and central Pacific Ocean during the phenomenon known as La Nina?

Homework 2 -

1) (a) What is an airmass?

(b) If an area is described as a "good air-mass source region", what information can you give about it?

2) Why is cP air not welcome to the Central Plains in winter and yet very welcome in summer?

3) What are lake-effect snows and how do they form? On which side of the lake do they typically occur?

4) Explain why the central United States is not a good airmass source region.

5) List the temperature and moisture characteristics of each of the major air mass types.

6) What type of air mass would be responsible for the weather conditions listed below?

7) What type of air mass would be responsible for the weather conditions listed below?

(a) hot, muggy summer weather in the Midwest and East

(b) refreshing, cool, dry breezes after a long summer hot spell on the Central Plains

(c) persistent cold, damp weather with drizzle along the East Coast

(d) drought with high temperatures over the Great Plains

(e) record-breaking low temperatures over the Great Plains

(f) cool weather with showers over the Pacific Northwest

(g) daily afternoon thunderstorms along the Gulf Coast

8) Describe the typical characteristics of:

a) warm temperatures

b) cold temperatures

c) Occluded front

9) List four regions in North America where wave cyclones tend to develop.

10) Why is it important that for a surface low to develop or intensify, its upper-level counterpart must be to the left (or west) of the surface storm?

11) Describe some of the necessary ingredients (upper-air support) for a wave cyclone to develop into a huge mid-latitude cyclonic storm system.

Homework 3 -

1) What is the function of the National Center for Environmental Prediction?

2) How does a weather watch differ from a weather warning?

3) How does a prog differ from an analysis?

4) What are some of the problems associated with computer model forecasts?

5) Describe four methods of forecasting the weather and give an example of each

6) Describe four methods of forecasting the weather and give an example of each

1. Persistence forecast -

2. Steady state or trend forecast -

3. Analogue method -

4. Statistical or climatological forecasting -

7) (a) Look out the window and make a persistence forecast for tomorrow at this time.

(b) Did you use any skill in making this prediction?

8) How can ensemble forecasts improve medium-range forecasts?

9) If today's weather forecast calls for a "chance of snow", what is the percentage probability that it will snow today?

10) Do monthly and seasonal forecasts make specific predictions of rain or snow? Explain.

Attachment:- Notes.rar