Multiple Choice
Identify the
choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
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1.
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What are tornadoes?
a. | whirling columns of air | c. | a type of car | b. | heavy
rains | d. | lightning
storms |
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2.
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Where is the earth’s temperature predictably warm year round?
a. | Along the equator | c. | At the South Pole | b. | In Madera | d. | Along the prime
meridian |
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3.
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How long does it take for a typical mid-latitude low to move through its life
cycle?
a. | about 4 days | c. | about 12 hours | b. | about 4 hours | d. | about 12 days |
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4.
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What causes wind?
a. | low pressure | c. | Air moves from regions of high pressure to regions of low
pressure. | b. | high pressure | d. | weather patterns |
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5.
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What is true of all arid climates?
a. | They are very windy. | c. | They are near the ocean. | b. | They are very
hot. | d. | They receive very
little precipitation. |
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6.
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In the Northern Hemisphere, winds blow
a. | into high pressure areas | c. | clockwise around low-pressure
areas | b. | counterclockwise around low pressure areas | d. | counterclockwise around high-pressure
areas |
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7.
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The driving force for weather on Earth is the
a. | dew point | c. | difference in air temperatures | b. | Sun | d. | Moon |
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8.
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Which of the following instruments is used to
measure wind speed?
a. | thermometer | c. | barometer | b. | anemometer | d. | rain gauge |
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9.
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Which air mass would cause a hot, humid spell in the northeastern United States
during the summer?
a. | maritime tropical | c. | continental polar | b. | continental tropical | d. | maritime polar |
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10.
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How do isobars help meteorologists predict
weather?
a. | They show where the clouds are.. | c. | They help meteorologists tell how fast wind is blowing by noting how closely
isobars are placed on a weather map. | b. | They help
meteorologists predict dry weather. | d. | They help meteorologists see areas of equal
temperature. |
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11.
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What do we call the scale that is used to measure tornadoes?
a. | the Richter scale | c. | the Fujita scale | b. | the Bathroom scale | d. | the Fish scale |
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12.
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What conditions are necessary for the formation of a thunderstorm?
a. | warm, humid unstable air | c. | cold, dry stable
air | b. | warm, dry stable air | d. | cold, dry unstable air |
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13.
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Continental tropical (cT) air masses can be characterized by
a. | warm and moist air | c. | cold and dry air | b. | cold and damp air | d. | hot and dry air |
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14.
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In a thunderstorm what happens to warm humid air?
a. | it dissipates quickly | c. | it creates a temperature inversion | b. | it descends from the
upper atmosphere to the ground | d. | it rises upward from the ground |
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15.
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When do storm clouds develop?
a. | The do not develop, they are always there, they just move around. | c. | When dry air falls
to Earth. | b. | When moisture from space dissolves as it enters the atmosphere. | d. | When humid air rises and cools, so that the
moisture inside condenses. |
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16.
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What is climate?
a. | An area’s pattern of weather over a long period of time. | c. | The type of weather
that occurs during a particular season. | b. | What is going on in the atmosphere at a
particular point in time. | d. | It is the same thing as weather. |
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17.
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What causes lightning?
a. | Large amounts of rain falling in a short time. | c. | Thunder | b. | Thor, the god of
thunder. | d. | Differences in
electrical charge inside a cloud. |
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18.
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Why do we experience lightning and thunder at different times?
a. | Because sound travels faster than light. | c. | Because light travels faster than
sound. | b. | Scientists don’t really know. | d. | We always experience them at exactly the same
time. |
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19.
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What instrument measures atmospheric pressure?
a. | A barometer | c. | A Richter scale | b. | A thermometer | d. | An anemometer |
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20.
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All deserts are
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21.
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What causes thunder?
a. | Rapid expansion of air from the heat of lightning. | c. | Humid air turning into
precipitation too quickly. | b. | Giant bowling balls and
pins. | d. | Clouds falling from
the sky. |
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22.
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What are the large waves caused by hurricane winds called?
a. | storm surges | c. | tsunamis | b. | monsoons | d. | nor’easters |
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23.
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What is weather
a. | The number of clouds in the sky. | c. | The amount of moisture in the
air. | b. | The amount of insolation. | d. | The state of the atmosphere at any one point in time. |
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24.
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What human activities endanger the rainforest?
a. | Nothing endangers the rainforest | c. | Both a and b. | b. | Farming and grazing
animals | d. | Logging and
mining |
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25.
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What data do infrared satellites use to create images?
a. | visible light measurements | c. | humidity
measurements | b. | pressure measurements | d. | temperature measurements |
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26.
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What is the main cause for the two belts of deserts at around 20 to 30 degrees
north and south latitudes?
a. | High elevation | c. | Warm ocean currents | b. | Permanent zones of high
pressure | d. | Lots of
cacti |
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27.
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What causes weather to change?
a. | lightning and thunder | c. | the phases of the moon | b. | the interaction of
air masses | d. | Thor the god of
thunder |
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28.
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What are the characteristics of a high pressure system?
a. | Clear sky and sun | c. | Humidity and thunder | b. | Snow storms | d. | Wind and rain |
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29.
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What element of air determines its
temperature?
a. | the arrangement of air molecules | c. | the average motion of air
molecules | b. | the direction of air molecules | d. | the composition of air
molecules |
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30.
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What is the Gulf Stream?
a. | A warm air current over North America | c. | A warm current in the Atlantic
Ocean | b. | A type of jet | d. | A warm current in the Gulf of India |
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31.
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What causes wind
a. | evaporation | c. | rain and snow | b. | a difference in pressure between two air
masses | d. | thunder and
lightning |
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32.
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What does water vapor condense around to form
clouds?
a. | space | c. | air molecules | b. | snow | d. | small particles like dust and
salt |
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33.
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What is a scientist who studies climate called?
a. | Paleogeologist | c. | Weather man | b. | Marine Biologist | d. | Climatologist |
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34.
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What is the relationship between air temperature and water vapor?
a. | There is no relationship between the two. | c. | As temperature drops it can hold
less water. | b. | As temperature rises it can hold less water. |
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35.
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Deserts are also know as
a. | Ice cream and cake | c. | Arrant regions | b. | Acrid regions | d. | Arid regions |
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36.
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Weather refers to the state of the
atmosphere__________.
a. | at a specific time and place | c. | over a long period of
time | b. | at a specific temperature | d. | over a short period of time |
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37.
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In what direction do most weather systems move across the United States?
a. | east to west | c. | north to south | b. | west to east | d. | south to north |
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38.
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Why do hurricanes weaken over land?
a. | They have changed their path. | c. | They gain heat energy from the
land. | b. | They no longer have a source of humid air to provide heat from
condensation. | d. | Their winds
are counteracted by the land and sea breezes. |
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39.
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Which of these events always happens first?
a. | Neither, they both always happen at exactly the same time. | c. | Thunder | b. | Lightning |
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40.
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When two air masses of different densities collide,
it's called__________.
a. | a thunderstorm | c. | a high pressure zone | b. | a hurricane | d. | a front |
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41.
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Because of the rainforest’s ability to absorb carbon dioxide and give off
oxygen, it has earned the following nickname:
a. | The lungs of the planet. | c. | Harvey | b. | The nose of the
planet. | d. | The heart of the
planet. |
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42.
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Which of the following factors is NOT something climatologist consider in
determining an area’s climate?
a. | Population density | c. | Air pressure | b. | Precipitation | d. | Temperature |
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43.
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What is the difference between a tornado and a
hurricane?
a. | Tornadoes occur over land and hurricanes occur over
sea. | c. | They are the same things. | b. | Tornadoes happen during winter and hurricanes happen in the
summer. | d. | Tornadoes occur over sea and hurricanes occur over
land. |
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44.
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Why does it tend to be cool at Earth’s poles?
a. | because Santa needs snow for his reindeer | c. | because sunlight strikes them at an
extreme angle | b. | because they are further from the sun | d. | because they have the worst
weather |
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45.
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What type of storm is a hurricane?
a. | a tropical cyclone | c. | a nor’easter | b. | a mid latitude low | d. | a tornado |
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