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GEO 302C EXAM 1 Spring 2005
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You may not refer to any other materials during the exam. For each question (except otherwise
explicitly stated), select the best answer for that question. Read all choices before selecting an answer
and make sure your choice answers the question asked.
Match (one-to-one) the following (1–5) from the list (A–E) below.
C1. ENSO
D2. NAO
E3. PDO
B4.
ITCZ
A5. GCMs
A. Computer models that can be used to study climate change
B. A low-pressure belt near the equator where air converges
C. A phenomenon in the tropical Pacific Ocean that can impact
climate worldwide
D. Atmospheric pressure oscillations in the north Atlantic that
influences climate in Europe and the United States
E. A decadal-scale air-sea phenomenon in the north Pacific Ocean
that impacts climate in the Pacific northwest states
Match (one-to-one) the following names (6–10) from the list (A–E) below.
C6.
E7.
A8.
B9.
Coriolis Effects
Ekman Spiral
Hadley Circulation
Walker Circulation
D10. Gaia Hypothesis
A. a north-south giant convection cell in the tropics
B. an east-west giant convection cell in the tropics
C. moving air and water on Earth is subject to deflection
D. a hypothesis that life itself has been responsible for modulating
Earth’s climate
E. the moving subsurface seawater is turned with depth,
progressively farther to the right in the northern hemisphere.
E11. Which of the following is true about tropical deforestation?
a. Tropical deforestation affects the amount of surface absorbed solar radiation.
b. Tropical deforestation can significantly decreases biodiversity.
c. Tropical deforestation increases the buildup of atmospheric CO2.
d. Tropical deforestation changes the local and regional hydrological cycle.
e. All of the above.
E12. Deserts can form
a. under zones of high atmospheric pressure associated with the subtropics and centered near 30° latitude.
b. near west coasts of continents between 20° and 30° latitudes.
c. because of rainshadows of high mountain ranges.
d. over the interiors of continents.
e. all of the above.
B13. Which of the following is correct in describing the Earth’s terrestrial biomes?
a. Tundra typically forms where ITCZ lies.
b. Tropical rainforests are located in the tropics where plenty rainfall occurs all year around.
c. Conifer forests are most common in subtropics.
d. a and b only.
e. a and c only.
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A14. Which of the following is true in describing Earth’s climate?
a. Earth’s climate involves interactions among air, water, ice, vegetation, and land surfaces.
b. Climate determines the distribution of biomes, but changes in vegetation do not influence climate.
c. Earth’s average surface temperature today is at the freezing point.
d. I have not seen climate changing in my entire life, so climate does not change at all.
e. All of the above.
E15. Which of the following is not a greenhouse gas?
A. Water vapor
B. Methane
C. Ozone
D. Carbon dioxide
E. Oxygen
C16. The fact that the concentration of the atmospheric carbon dioxide is higher in winter than in summer
is because
a. vegetation plants stop photosynthesis in winter.
b. vegetation plants stop oxidation in summer.
c. oxidation is greater than photosynthesis in winter, while photosynthesis is greater than oxidation in
summer.
d. all of the above.
e. none of the above.
A17. The water vapor-temperature rise feedback is a positive feedback because the initial _______ in
temperature is _______ by the addition of more water vapor to the atmosphere.
a. increase, reinforced
b. decrease, unaltered
c. increase, weakened
d. decrease, reinforced
e. none of the above
C18. Below are two feedback processes that occur in the atmosphere.
(a) temperature rises  cloud cover increases  clouds emit more downward infrared radiation 
surface warming.
(b) temperature rises  cloud cover increases  clouds reflect more solar radiation back to space 
surface cooling.
Which of the following is correct?
A. (a) is negative feedback and (b) is positive feedback
B. (a) is positive feedback and (b) is positive feedback
C. (a) is positive feedback and (b) is negative feedback
D. (a) is negative feedback and (b) is negative feedback
B19. An elliptical orbit causes the Earth's distance from the sun to vary annually. On January 3rd,
perihelion, the Earth is closest to the sun (146.9 million kilometers). The Earth is farthest from the
sun (152.1 million kilometers) on July 4th, or aphelion. This phenomenon is the primary reason that
causes the seasons in Austin.
a. True.
b. False.
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A20. All of the following are true about ozone EXCEPT:
a. it is a nuisance in the stratosphere formed by a combination of car exhaust and sunlight
b. it is an efficient absorber of ultraviolet (UV) radiation
c. it is a greenhouse gas
d. it is a pollutant causing smog in big cities
e. it is most abundant in the stratosphere, hence the ozone layer, where harmful untraviolet
radiation is blocked.
B21. The warm surface of the earth heats the atmosphere via all of the following EXCEPT
a. radiation
b. subduction
c. convection
d. conduction
C22. The amount of radiation emitted by an object is determined primarily by its _______.
a. size
b. speed
c. temperature
d. color
e. smell
C23. The largest monsoon system on earth is in
a. North America
b. Africa
c. Asia
d. Australia
e. South America
E24. The two main gases in Earth’s atmosphere are _____________.
a. ozone and carbon dioxide
b. water vapor and methane
c. methane and ozone
d. chlorofluorocarbons and carbon dioxide
e. nitrogen and oxygen
D25. The pressure of the atmosphere decreases with altitude because of
a. greenhouse effect of carbon dioxide
b. absorption of incoming ultraviolet radiation
c. radiant energy from surface of the earth
d. the pull of gravity that holds dense air (or high pressure) close to the surface
e. the latent heat released as water condenses into clouds
A26. Which of the following best describe the fate of solar radiation entering into the atmosphere?
a. Approximately 30% is reflected and scattered back to space
b. Approximately 50% is absorbed by the atmosphere and clouds
c. Approximately 70% is absorbed at the earth’s surface
d. All of the above
e. a and b only
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C27. Which of the following statements is not correct in describing weather or climate? [Hint: this
same question has been discussed in class!]
a. “The summers in Austin are hot and humid” – Climate.
b. “It is 75°F right now, partly sunny, and south winds 10 to 20 miles per hour” – Weather.
c. “September 2001 was the 2nd coolest September of record for Austin/Bergstrom International
Airport” – Weather.
d. “Although winters in Austin are on the average mild by U.S. standards, cold outbreaks
sometimes come, in some years more frequent than in others. These cold outbreaks are
sometimes preceded or followed by periods of summerlike weather” – Climate.
e. “The pressure now is 29.75 inches and steady, and humidity is 84%” – Weather.
A28. The prevailing surface wind patterns between the equator and 30° north are
a. the northeast trades
b. the southeast trades
c. westerlies
d. northerlies
e. southerlies
E29. Which of the following can be represented in General Circulation Models?
a. Shortwave radiation, longwave radiation, convection, conduction and latent heat
b. Coriolis force, pressure gradient force, and frictional force
c. Atmosphere, land, oceans, ice, and vegetation
d. ITCZ, clouds, and greenhouse effects
e. All of the above
D30. For a latitude band ranging from Austin, Texas northward to Canada, it is much more common
to experience winds blowing out of the ____ than from the ____. [Hint: think about wind patterns
in typical midlatitudes]
a. south, north
b. north, south
c. east, west
d. west, east
e. none of the above
D31. Which of the following does not act on the winds near the surface?
a. Coriolis force.
b. Frictional force.
c. Pressure gradient force.
d. Greenhouse force.
e. None of the above.
B32. Once the air is set in motion, the Coriolis force bends the moving air to the _____ of its intended path
in the Northern Hemisphere and to the ______ in the Southern Hemisphere.
a. left, right.
b. right, left.
c. east, west.
d. west, east
e. none of the above.
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B33. The above satellite image shows a tropical cyclonic system developed in the __________.
A. Northern Hemisphere.
B. Southern Hemisphere.
A34. Which of the following is a cold current?
A. California current
B. Gulf Stream
C. North Atlantic Drift
D. All of the above
E. None of the above
E35. Which of the following increases salinity?
A. Precipitation
B. Evaporation
C. River flow
D. Formation of sea ice
E. B and D
C36. What would happen to sea level if the two current continental ice sheets melted?
A. it would rise by inches
B. it would fall by inches
C. it would rise by tens of meters
D. it would fall by tens of meters
E. it would not change
A37. The three reservoirs of carbon in the earth’s climate system in the decreasing order of mass are:
a. Sedimentary rocks, deep ocean, and soil
b. atmosphere, vegetation, and deep ocean
c. Deep ocean, atmosphere, and soil
d. Atmosphere, vegetation, and soil
e. Soil, vegetation, and deep ocean
A38. During _________ carbon dioxide and water vapor are chemically converted into organic tissue.
During ________ oxygen is consumed to destroy organic matter and release CO2 to the atmosphere.
a. photosynthesis, oxidation
b. oxidation, forest fires
c. photosynthesis, transpiration
d. transpiration, oxidation
e. transpiration, photosynthesis
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B39. The earth's weather and climate is ultimately driven by the energy from
a. the earth’s interior
b. the sun
c. erupting volcanoes
d. lightning discharges associated with thunderstorms
e. latent heat released during the formation of hurricanes
B40.
The earth's atmosphere is divided into layers based on the vertical profile of:
a. air pressure
b. air temperature
c. air density
d. wind speed
D41.
Almost all of the earth's weather occurs in the:
a. stratosphere
b. mesosphere
c. thermosphere
d. troposphere
B42.
The temperature scale where 0o represents freezing and 100o boiling:
a. Fahrenheit
b. Celsius
c. Kelvin
d. absolute
D43.
The term "latent" means:
a. late
b. hot
c. light
d. hidden
e. dense
E44.
Solar radiation reaches the earth's surface as:
a. visible radiation only
b. ultraviolet radiation only
c. infrared radiation only
d. visible and infrared radiation only
e. ultraviolet, visible, and infrared radiation
C45.
The earth's radiation is often referred to as
__________ radiation, while the sun's radiation
is often referred to as
_________ radiation.
a. shortwave, longwave
b. shortwave, shortwave
c. longwave, shortwave
d. longwave, longwave
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A46.
As the air temperature increases, the air can hold _____________________ water vapor.
a. more
b. less
c. the same amount of
C47.
Which of the following statements is wrong?
a. Rising air cools and its water vapor condenses.
b. As warm air rises, it cools.
c. Cold air sinks, which forms clouds and precipitation.
E48.
Which of the following best describes the reason why we need climate models?
a. Climate models help understand the climatic causes and effects.
b. Climate models can provide rigorous tests of the validity of proposed hypothesis.
c. Climate models represent all aspects of reality, so they are perfect and do not need to
be evaluated with the real data.
d. Climate models put numbers on ideas.
e. All of the above except c).
A49.
The largest reservoir of water on Earth is
a. oceans
b. ice caps/glaciers
c. lakes/rivers
d. atmosphere
B50.
During a major El Niño event:
a. Peruvian fishermen harvest a record amount of fish
b. extensive ocean warming occurs over the central and eastern tropical Pacific
c. the Northeast trade winds increase in strength
d. Texas experiences normal climate conditions
e. climatic abnormalities are only limited to the tropical Pacific areas
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