Introduction to Meteorology

There are eight (8) short-answer questions that are to be answered. These questions are to be answered thoroughly and short answers that don't follow spelling and grammar rules will be penalized. Each answer should be apx. 100 words. One-sentence answers will not be sufficient to address the questions

Turnitin.com will be automatically used on all submissions to check for plagiarism as well, so be sure to cite all sources following APA standards.

If the Turnitin report indicated plagiarism, the assignment will receive a zero and will be reported to the registrar's office.

When you have completed answering the questions, please enter them in a Microsoft Word Document.

QUESTIONS TO BE ANSWERED:

1. If the pressure gradient force remained the same but the earth's rate of rotation decreased slightly, would you expect the speed of the geostrophic wind to increase, decrease or remain about the same?

2. Explain why it is much more difficult to measure snowfall amount than rainfall amount.

3. Would you expect to find a subsidence inversion to be associated with high or low pressure? What effects might a subsidence inversion have on weather conditions at the ground?

4. What occurs during a major El Niño event? How might this affect global wind and precipitation patterns?

5. What changes might you expect to see in the earth's general circulation if the earth's rotation were in the opposite direction?

6. Explain why large high and low pressure systems don't move from east-to-west across the continental United States.

7. When making a weather forecast, which kind of chart is more important: a surface chart or a 500 mb chart? Why?

8. List the four basic types of air masses. Give an example of where each type could originate and describe how each air mass could affect local weather conditions if it moved into your region.