106) Which of the following is not sited as a factor in helping to reduce air pollution?
A) Stricter air emission regulations.
B) Increased use of coal as an energy source.
C) Use of more alternative, clean energy sources such as wind and solar.
D) Increased vehicle fuel-efficiency.
1) Weather (rain, fog, storms, etc.) occurs primarily in the troposphere.
2) Based on the criteria of composition, the atmosphere is divided into two broad regions: the
ionosphere and the ozonosphere.
3) When the Sun is active (e.g. more sunspots and eruptions), the thermosphere increases in size.
4) Despite the thermosphere’s high temperature, the density of molecules is so low little actual
heat is produced.
5) The ionosphere resides principally within the thermosphere, and the ozonosphere resides
within the stratosphere.
6) The aurora occur primarily in the ozonosphere.
7) The principal gases of the homosphere (by volume) are nitrogen, helium, and argon.
8) Atmospheric pressure decreases with altitude.
9) The ozone layer protects Earth’s surface from most of the incoming ultraviolet radiation.
10) The amount of C in the atmosphere is higher now than any time in the last 800,000 years.
11) By volume, nitrogen is the most abundant gas in the modern homosphere.
12) Because percentage of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is so small, it is considered an
insignificant gas.
13) Oxygen is a byproduct of photosynthesis.
14) Carbon dioxide is currently increasing at the rate of 3.1% per year.
15) The role of CFCs in the depletion of stratospheric ozone was first hypothesized in the 1970s.
16) Political leaders in the United States worked swiftly to pass legislation banning CFCs.
17) The ozone hole has almost completely recovered.
18) The normal lapse rate for temperature decreases is an average of 3°C per 1000 m.
19) The heterosphere has a layered structure, whereas the homosphere occurs as an even mixture
of gases.
20) Of the atmosphere’s thermal layers, the stratosphere is the hottest.
21) Depletion of the ozone layer is happening principally because of natural circulation
dynamics in the upper atmosphere, not chemical reactions.
22) Air pressure is only exerted downward.
23) Captain Kittenger came close to the speed of sound during his record-breaking sky dive.
24) The atmosphere exerts an average force of approximately 1 kg/ (14.7 lbs/ ) at sea level.
25) Approximately fifty percent of the atmosphere is compressed by gravity below an elevation
of 5500 m (18,000 ft).
26) Both nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide are principally produced by automobiles.
27) Problems with air pollution occurred as far back in time as the Roman period (2000 years
ago).
28) Natural sources produce greater quantities of air pollutants than do sources attributable to
humans.
29) Pollution generated in one country can cause problems in other countries.
30) Atmospheric circulation ultimately connects all places on Earth to one another.
31) The higher the UV Index, the faster a person will sunburn.
32) Skin damage resulting from exposure to the Sun is cumulative; i.e., the skin never
completely heals from previous sunburns.
33) Photochemical smog results from the interaction of sunlight with the combustion products of
automobiles.
34) Peroxyacetyl nitrates (PAN)are damaging to plants., but not to humans.
35) Normal rainfall has a neutral pH.
36) Rainfall is naturally acidic due to the presence of carbonic acids.
37) Annually, acid deposition costs and estimated $50 billion in the United States, Canada and
Europe.
38) Air pollution can easily cross national boundaries.
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39) So far, the Arctic region has been free of air pollution.
40) Ground-level ozone is the principal ingredient of photochemical smog.
41) Particulate matter has been associated with higher medical expenses.
42) The Clean Air Act actually saves fewer than 1000 lives per year.
43) The Clean Air Act has not been cost effective.
44) Air pressure is produced through the motion, size, and number of air molecules.
45) Temperature inversions have little effect on air pollution.
46) Severe pollution conditions tend to develop during periods of low pressure systems.
47) A decline in sulfur dioxide has led to a lower pH in precipitation in the Mid-Atlantic states.
48) Scientists predict that air quality will continue to improve even without emission regulations.
49) Increased fuel efficiency may help mitigate urban pollution.
50) Anthropogenic air pollution is limited to urban areas.
1) The atmosphere can be studied using three basic criteria: composition, temperature, and
function. Discuss these three classifications, giving relevant details of each.
2) Trace the changing temperature of the atmosphere from Earth’s surface to the top of the
thermosphere.
3) List and describe the four main gases of the homosphere. Which is least important to life?
4) What is the environmental lapse rate, and which part of the atmosphere is it relevant?
5) Ozone is found in both the ozonosphere and as a component of smog. Discuss its properties
and function in the ozonosphere, and also its destruction by anthropogenic chemicals and the
international efforts undertaken to ameliorate the destruction. Also examine ozone’s production
and effects at ground level.
6) What is the role of ozone in the ozonosphere? Discuss and explain the chemical reactions that
lead to its destruction.
7) List and describe at least five natural sources of air pollution, as well as the source and effects
of at least eight human-generated air pollutants.
8) Examine the effects of wind, landscape, and temperature inversion on air pollution.
9) Which anthropogenic air pollutants are least harmful to humans? Most harmful, and in what
ways? Which are most damaging to plants?
10) Write an essay on acid rain in which you discuss its sources, its effects, and the efforts that
have been made to reduce the amount of pollutants that cause it.
11) What have been some of the significant achievements of the Clean Air Act?
12) Evaluate the economic costs and benefits of the Clean Air Act. Based on the cost benefit
analysis, make an argument for either strengthening or weakening the Clean Air Act.
13) Describe how anthropogenic activity may influence both the troposphere and the
stratosphere.