Science Study Guide
1. What happens to the atmospheric pressure the higher you travel in the atmosphere?
It decreases
2. Where is air pressure the highest?
At sea level
3. What are the conditions that make up weather?
Wind, rain, snow, clouds, temperature, air pressure, moisture, sleet, etc.
4. What instrument measures air pressure?
Barometer
5. Why does a glass with a cold drink inside form water droplets on the outside?
Condensation
6. Why does a puddle disappear on a sunny day?
Evaporation
7. What kind of air mass forms over the equator?
Warm air masses
8. What are cumulous clouds?
White, puffy clouds usually bring fair weather
9. What are cirrus clouds?
Feather-like clouds
10. What is the name of a thunderstorm cloud?
Cumulonimbus clouds
11. Name the four types of precipitation.
Rain, snow, sleet, hail
12. What do water droplets form to create clouds?
Dust particles
13. What are the five basic cloud cover terms?
Clear, overcast scattered clouds, partly cloudy, mostly cloudy
14. What four factors can change air pressure?
Temperature, Height above Earth’s surface, volume, and water vapor
15. Hot or warm air has what kind of air pressure?
Low
16. What is wind?
Air the moves horizontally
17. Why does wind blow?
Because high pressure air masses push on low pressure air masses
18. Which object heats up faster, land or water?
Land
19. How do we get a sea breeze?
Land next to the water heats up quickly and creates low pressure
20. The global winds that affect the United States are called?
Prevailing westerlies
21. Storms that move across the United States travel from?
West to East
22. What is an isobar?
A line on a map connecting places with equal air pressure
23. Big differences in air pressure over a short distance creates what type of winds?
Strong winds
24. Will 2 air masses mix?
No
25. What is the boundary called where two air masses meet?
Front
26. What happens when a cold front moves in?
Cold air moves under the warm air and a thunderstorm follows
27. What is a stationary front?
When two air masses come together and don’t move much
28. What is the color and symbol used for a cold front on a weather map?
Blue and triangles
29. What is climate and how is it different from weather?
Climate is the average weather pattern in the region. Climate is a long-term pattern
and weather is daily.
30. What is a short-term climate that occurs every 2-10 years in the Pacific Ocean?
El Nino