Q2 Physical Geography Mar 2
Wind, Jet Stream And Air Masses
1. The orientation of mountains to the prevailing wind affects-
(A) Precipitation
(B) Ocean currents
(C) Evaporation
(D) Movements of wind
Ans D
Exp: The orientation of mountains effects the movements of the prevailing winds. There are basically three factors which influence the movement of wind, they are as follows;
i) Atmospheric pressure (wind flows from high pressure to the low pressure zone eg: land breeze and sea breeze).
ii) Coriolis effect (this is due to rotation of the earth, which causes wind deflection).
iii) Topography (Earth's topographic variation affect the wind direction and also precipitation)
Hence the answer is 'D'
2. The atmospheric air is held to the Earth by-
(A) Gravity
(B) Winds
(C) Clouds
(D) Rotation of the Earth
Ans. (A)
Exp:- Gravity is the force which bounds atmosphere to earth's surface.
Molecules in our atmosphere are constantly moving, energized by sunlight. Some move quick enough to escape the grip of Earth's gravity. The escape velocity for planet Earth is a 11.2 kilometers per second. Light ones, like hydrogen and helium, typically move faster than heavier ones, like oxygen and nitrogen. The light atoms are more likely to reach escape velocity and escape to space. That's why light molecules are rare in our atmosphere, in contrast to their abundance in the universe at large.
3. What is the meaning of frictional movements?
(A) It means whenever air moves relative to the earth surface, frictional drag tends to slow the air and change the direction of movements
(B) It tends to speed up the air movements
(C) It tends to change the weather conditions
(D) None of the above.
Ans. (D)
Exp:- Frictional movements of air near the surface of the earth slow down the air. Due to pressure gradient and Coriolis force the air movement eventually reach an equilibrium and blow parallel to the isobars.
The frictional movement only slow down the air movement hence the option 'D' i.e. none of the above will be the correct answer.
4. Winds and air currents differ in the aspect that
(A) Air currents blow much faster than winds
(B) Air currents are always moisture laden while the winds are usually dry.
(C) The winds blow on lands while air currents blow over seas and oceans
(D) Winds are horizontal movements of air while air current is the vertical movements of air.
Ans. (D)
Exp:- Air currents are the patterned movement of wind. It is mainly due to difference in pressure or temperature. Air currents have both horizontal as well as vertical movement.Wind is the horizontal motion of air due to the pressure difference between two places. It is usually attributed to temperature differentiation.
5. Which of the following statement(s) about land breeze and sea breeze is/are correct?
(A) Land and sea breezes are wind and weather phenomena associated with coastal areas.
(B) Land breezes and sea breezes arise because of differential heating between land and water surfaces.
(C) Land and sea breeze patterns can greatly influence fog distribution and pollution accumulation or dispersion over inland areas.
(D) All the above.
Ans. (D)
Exp:- Land and sea breezes are winds and weather phenomena associated with coastal areas. These winds can be defined as the complete cycle of diurnal local winds occurring on sea coasts due to differences in surface temperature of land and sea.Land and sea breeze patterns can greatly influence fog distribution and pollution accumulation or dispersion over inland areas.Hence all the mentioned statements are correct about land and sea breeze.
6. Land masses get heated more quickly than the oceans, mainly because-
(A) Specific heat of land is much greater than that of the water
(B) Specific heat of water is much greater than of land
(C) Evaporation of water bodies cools the air
(D) Cold nights
Ans. (B)
Exp:- The daily temperature contrast between land and sea and the pressure pattern produced, thereby generate land and sea breezes.
The land heats up quickly and faster than the sea. The specific heat capacity of sea water is greater than that of the land, hence it need more heat energy to heat up. On the other hand by the same amount of the heat the land become hot at a faster pace.
7. Consider the following stements:-
Assertion [A]: The large landmasses of the America and Asia become much warmer in summer and much colder in winter.
Reason [R]: Land gains and loses heat much more quickly than sea water.
Select the correct answer from the given options:-
(A) [A] and [R] are correct and [R] is the correct explanation of [A].
(B) [A] and [R] are correct but [R] is not the correct explanation of [A].
(C) [A] is true but [R] is false.
(D) [A] is false but [R] is true.
Ans. (A)
Exp:- As water is a liquid, its molecules are in greater motion than those of land, a solid. Water has convective movements and vertical mixing. As water molecules are in constant motion, it takes longer for solar radiation to uniformly raise the temperature of a given body of water.Large bodies of water like oceans have higher thermal capacities than land due to their immense density. As a result, it takes up to four times the amount of heat to raise the temperature of a given amount of water 1°C as it takes to raise the temperature of the same amount of land by an equivalent degree.Colour is also a factor. Because water is lighter than land, it has high albedo and does not heat up quickly. Sunlight also penetrates many meters into a body of water, whereas it only hits the upper, superficial portion of land. That is why it takes longer for water to cool than it does for land.
8. A sea-breeze front is a weather front created by a sea-breeze, also known as a-
(A) Divergence zone
(B) Submergence zone
(C) Convergence zone
(D) Emergence zone
Ans.(C)
Exp:- The land-sea breeze system is very shallow. A sea breeze front is created by a sea breeze. It is also called as a convergence zone. The cold air from ocean meets the warmer air from the land and creates a shallow boundary.The sea breeze usually begins a little before noon and reaches its maximum intensity in the mid- afternoon. In the morning and evening the temperature difference is minimum & the sea breezes die down. Since the temperature contrast during night is relatively less than day-time, the land breezes are not so strong as sea breezes.The land and sea breezes are experienced on the subtropical and tropical islands in fully developed form.
9.One of the two belts of high atmospheric pressure centered, near 30°N and 30°S latitudes is called-
(A) Polar winds
(B) Trade winds
(C) Prevailing winds
(D) Subtropical high-pressure belt
Ans. (D)
Exp:- Polar winds are also known as the polar Hadley cells. They are the dry, cold prevailing winds flowing from polar high pressure belt towards polar low pressure belt.Trade winds flow from the subtropical high pressure belt region to the low pressure equatorial region. Subtropical high pressure belt can be found between 25°-35° latitude in both the hemispheres. These belts popularly known as 'Horse latitude'. This zone is characterized by subsidence of air.
10. Consider the following climatic and geographical phenomena:-
1. Condensation
2. High temperature and humidity
3. Orography
4. Vertical wind
Thunder cloud development is due to which of these phenomena?
(A) 1 and 2
(B) 1,3 and 2
(B) 2, 3 and 4
(D) All of these
Ans D
Exp:-The thunder cloud or storm cloud is called as cumulonimbus clouds. They develop due to high temperature and humidity, which causes the hot wind to rise vertically up. After certain height winds get condense and form the thunder clouds. These clouds generally form around mountains due to orography and convectional process.
11. Consider the following statements:-
Assertion [A]: The Horse Latitudes are the region between the trade winds and the prevailing westerlies.
Reason [R]: This zone is classified with major non-polar deserts.
Select the correct answer from the given options:-
(A) [A] And [R] are correct and [R] is the correct explanation of [A].
(B) [A] And [R] are correct but [R] is not the correct explanation of [A].
(C)[A] is true but [R] is false.
(D)[A] is false but [R] is true.
Ans. (A)
Exp:- Horse latitudes are belts of latitude where winds are light and the weather is hot and dry. They are located mostly over the oceans, at about 30° latitudes in each hemisphere. The horse latitudes are associated with the subtropical anticyclone (High Pressure belt) and the large-scale descent of air from high-altitude currents moving toward the poles. This zone is known for its weak and variable winds.It makes the weather calm which ultimately suppresses precipitation and cloud formation. This zone is classified as the zone of subsidence. The belt in the Northern Hemisphere is called calms of Cancer and in Southern Hemisphere is calm of Capricorn.The consistently warm, dry and sunny conditions of the Horse Latitude is the main cause of the world's major non-polar deserts, such as the Sahara desert (Africa), Arabian and Syrian desert (Middle east), Mojave and Sonoran desert in southern USA in Northern hemisphere, the Atacama desert (South America) Kalahari desert (Africa), Australian desert/
12. Consider the following statements:-
Assertion [A]: The polar winds circulate in the cells between 60° and 90° in each hemisphere.
Reason [R]: Each polar region tends to send strong winds, varying from cool to cold, toward the equator.
Select the correct answer from the given options:-
(A) [A] And [R] are correct and [R] is the correct explanation of [A].
(B) [A] And [R] are correct but [R] is not the correct explanation of [A].
(C) [A] is true but [R] is false.
(D) [A] is false but [R] is true.
Ans. (A)
Exp:- The polar winds circulate in the cells between 60°-90° in both the hemispheres are often called as the Hadley cells. They are the high pressure belts, hence they tend to send strong winds towards the equator. The winds may influence the places due to their cold nature.The cold and dry flow of polar winds results in very cold weather in high latitudes over Siberia and Canada.
13. What causes wind to deflect toward left in the Southern Hemisphere?
(A) Temperature
(B) Rotation of the earth
(C) Magnetic field
(D) Pressure
Ans. (B)
Exp:- Coriolis force applies to a mass moving in a rotating system acting perpendicular to the direction of motion and to the axis of rotation. On the earth the effect of this force tends to deflect moving objects to the right in the Northern Hemisphere and to the left in the Southern Hemisphere and is important in the formation of cyclonic weather systems and circulation of winds.
14. Which of the following statements about westerlies is not correct?
(A) They blow from subtropical high to equatorial low.
(B) Westerlies of Southern Hemisphere are stronger
(C) In Northern Hemisphere they blow from south- west to north-east.
(D) They are also known as Roaring forties, Furious fifties, Shrieking sixties.
Ans. (A)
Exp:- Westerlies are global and perennial winds generally blow between 30° and 60° latitude in both the Northern and Southern hemispheres. They originate from the high-pressure areas in the horse latitudes (Subtropical High) and blow towards the poles (Sub polar low)and generates extratropical cyclones.The flow of pattern of westerlies in Northern Hemisphere is from south-west towards north-east. These winds are known with different names in different latitudes based on their strength i.e. Roaring forties, Furious fifties, Shrieking sixties. Also westerlies are strong in the Southern Hemisphere, as land is largely absent, which otherwise decrease the velocity of wind flow and it's orientation.
15. Consider the following statements:-
Assertion [A]: Polar areas have high atmospheric pressure.
Reason [R]: These areas receive minimum sunshine throughout the year.
Select the correct answer from the given Codes below:-
Codes:-
(A) [A] And [R] are correct and [R] is the correct explanation of [A].
(B) [A] And [R] are correct but [R] is not the correct explanation of [A].
(C)[A] is true but [R] is false.
(D)[A] is false but [R] is true.
Ans. (A)
Exp:- The amount of insolation at the earth's surface is very less at the poles. As the colder air contracts, becomes more dense, and then falls, this phenomenon raises the pressure at the surface level at the poles and generate anti-cyclonic conditions at the poles.
16. Foehn is a local wind of-
(A) China
(B) Korea
(C) Japan
(D) Switzerland
Ans. (D)
Exp:- Foehn is a warm and dry wind on the leeward side of a mountain range. Its high temperature is largely due to adiabatic heating during its descent down the mountain.These warm, dry and gusty winds are common on the northern side of the Alps in Switzerland.The begining of a Foehn is marked by a sharp rise in temperature and a sudden drop in the relative humidity of air. They are helpful in spring farming.19. Foehn is a local wind of-
17. Which of the following places receives 'Blood rain?
(A) Italy
(B) France
(C) Canada
(D) Spain
Ans. (A)
Exp:- Wind blown from Sahara desert to Mediterranean sea is hot, dry and sandy and is known as 'Sirocco'. It contains a lot of red sand and absorbs moisture as it blows over Mediterranean Sea and cause rainfall in coastal Italy. The colour of the rainfall is red and thus it is known as 'Blood Rain'.
18. Which among the following phenomena can occur when very warm and humid air is rising over a mass of a very cold air?
1. Calm weather
2. Snowfall
3. Storms and cyclonic storms
4. Intense rain and hail
Select the correct answer using the codes given below:-
Codes:-
(A) 1 and 2
(B) 2 and 3
(C) 3 and 4
(D) 1 and 4
Ans. (C)
Exp:- When very warm and humid air is rising over a mass of a very cold air, this results in cyclones or frontal rain. It happens due to the convergence of two different air masses with different temperature and other physical properties.
Due to high density the cold air stays close to the ground while the warm air tends to rise over cold air. This eventually results in condensation and create cumulonimbus clouds. These clouds results in cyclonic/frontal rain with hails
19. In the Hadley cell rising air is found in the-
(A) Subtropical high pressure zone
(B) Trade winds
(C) Westerlies
(D)Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ)
Ans. (D)
Exp:- Hadley cell is a movement of warm air heated by the insolation from the sun heating the surface of the Earth near the equator. The movement of air in the Hadley cell results in the formation of the trade winds moving from the northeast toward the west in the Northern Hemisphere at the equator.As the air is heated, the warm air around the equator rises and moves outward toward the cooler air. The warm air of the Hadley cell moves north in the Northern Hemisphere and south in the Southern Hemisphere. The warm air moves toward the cooler air of the Earth's poles, with some of warm air falling to the surface of the Earth approximately 30 degrees latitude in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. This creates the warm temperatures of the subtropics.
20. Which one of following statements is correct?
(A) Jet streams are best developed in winters.
(B)Jet streams often develop oscillations
(C) Jet streams greatly influence our surface weather.
(D)All the above three are correct in respect of jet streams.
Ans. (D)
Exp:- Jet streams are very strong high altitude air currents embedded within upper level westerlies. It flows parallel to isobars to balance Coriolis force and pressure gradient. These streams are prominently developed in winters.Jet streams often develop oscillation, hence they blew very strongly and also called as Jet streaks. These jet streaks move mostly in a straight way path. More the meandering lesser the speed of the jet stream. This can be attributed to the oscillation of jet stream (Rossby Waves).Jet streams influence the surface weather too. In India monsoon winds are highly influenced by jet streams.