22) Cyclogenesis refers to the last stage of a midlatitude cyclone life cycle.
23) In the open stage of a midlatitude cyclone in the Northern Hemisphere, warm air begins to
move northward along an advancing front, while cold air advances southward to the west of the
center.
24) Cyclonic storms develop along the polar front.
25) Weather data necessary for forecasting includes barometric pressure, surface air temperature,
dew-point temperature, wind speed and direction, and precipitation patterns.
26) Advances in technology, such as in weather satellites, Doppler radar, computing, and
automated observation systems have helped increase the accuracy of weather forecasts.
27) Weather prediction will soon be almost 100 percent accurate because weather systems act in
a linear fashion.
28) Thunderstorms and hail are associated with cumulonimbus cloud development.
29) During a thunderstorm, you should never seek shelter from lightning under a tree.
30) Thunderstorms are most often associated with cirrostratus clouds.
31) Lightening is an infrequent event, only occurring during frontal lifting.
32) During hail formation, rain drops circulate repeatedly above and below the freezing level in
clouds, adding layers of ice until they fall under the force of gravity.
33) Thunder results from the sudden expansion of heated air through the atmosphere caused by a
lightening strike.
34) The frequency of tornadoes in the United States has been increasing over the last twenty
years.
35) Europe experiences more tornadoes than anywhere on Earth.
36) No tornadoes have been recorded in the United States during the months of November,
December, and January.
37) The Enhanced Fujita scale classifies tornadoes based on wind speed as indicated by related
property damage.
38) A typhoon and a hurricane are identical in physical structure and properties, although they
occur in different parts of the world.
39) Hurricanes originate entirely within tropical air masses.
40) Hurricanes are more likely to develop when sea surface temperatures are slightly below 26°.
41) Pacific super typhoons can have wind speeds over 241 kmph (150 mph).
42) The eye of a hurricane is the zone of the most intense precipitation.
43) Tropical cyclones have steep pressure gradients that generate inward-spiraling winds.
44) The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale is based on damage estimates from hurricane
force winds.
45) Hurricane Catarina, which made landfall in Brazil in 2004, rotated clockwise.
46) The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale includes estimates from related storm surges,
flooding, and tornadoes.
47) Prior to making landfall, the characteristics of Hurricane Sandy changed and it was,
therefore, reclassified as a post-tropical storm.
48) The flooding of much of New Orleans associated with Hurricane Katrina was the result of
the heavy precipitation associated with the hurricane.
49) Most Atlantic Basin hurricanes occur during the months of June to November.
50) Sea level rises associated with climate change can lead to increased hurricane-related
damage.
51) Warmer-than-average surface water temperatures between Africa and the Caribbean are
associated with a greater frequency of Atlantic hurricanes.
52) Derechos are slow moving, curved-line winds.
53) Most tornadoes in the United States occur west of the Continental Divide.
54) The cyclonic movement of tropical cyclones begin with slow-moving easterly waves of low
pressure in the trade wind belt of the tropics.
55) Severe weather events associated with midlatitude cyclones have little impact on humans
since they largely occur in scarcely populated areas.
56) Sea-level rise is increasing hurricane storm surge activity on the U.S. east coast.
57) Extreme snowfall events, such as blizzards, may increase in intensity during the coming
century.
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8.3 Essay Questions
1) How do air masses form? What are their general characteristics?
2) Describe the typical air masses that affect North America. Give their source regions, physical
characteristics and properties, and typical directions of motion.
3) Describe the formation of a cP air mass and then discuss the typical weather it produces and
the changes it undergoes as it travels across the Great Lakes and moves southward.
4) Describe the four types of atmospheric lifting and give typical geographic characteristics
associated with each.
5) Follow a parcel of warm, moist air eastward up and over the Sierra Nevada of California,
discussing where and why precipitation forms and what happens to the air parcel on the eastern
slope of the Sierra.
6) Using regional examples, explain how orographic precipitation and rain shadows are related.
7) Present the typical conditions and activities associated with both a cold front and with a warm
front.
8) Describe the typical life cycle of a mid-latitude cyclone in North America, beginning with
cyclogenesis and ending with the cyclone’s dissolution.
9) Discuss the formation, physical characteristics, and typical precipitation patterns of
thunderstorms.
10) Write an essay that discusses the formation of mesocyclones and tornadoes, and also
examines how scientists rank the intensity of tornadoes.
11) What are the spatial and temporal conditions that create Tornado Alley? What are the
specific weather conditions are necessary to create a tornado?
12) Examine the typical conditions that spawn hurricanes in the Atlantic. Describe the physical
characteristics of a hurricane and examine why it can be so devastating to land.
13) To what extent was Hurricane Katrina a natural disaster? To what extent was it caused by
humans?
14) Using several examples, discuss how climate change may affect severe weather events