Final Exam - December 1998
Part II - Climate and Society

1. Which of the following is considered a climatic control?
   ( ) ocean currents
   ( ) intensity of sunshine and its variation with latitude
   ( ) prevailing winds
   ( ) altitude
   ( ) all of the above

2. The climatic effects of volcanic eruptions depend on:
   ( ) the elevation of the volcano with respect to the surrounding land
   ( ) the intensity and inclination of the eruption and the latitude of the volcano
   ( ) the temperature and amount of hot lava emitted by the eruption
   ( ) the snowpack on the lee side of the mountain

3. Precession of the equinox refers to:
   ( ) changes in the shape of the earth's orbit as the earth revolves around the sun
   ( ) changes in the tilt of the earth as it orbits the sun
   ( ) changes in the seasons, especially from winter to summer
   ( ) the wobble of the earth on its axis

   Given the map of North America and Europe below, please answer questions (4)-(7).

   The different symbols on this map are: A-San Francisco, B-Sacramento, C-Seattle, D-Spokane

4. San Francisco (A) and Sacramento (B) experience the following mean climate characteristics:
   ( ) San Francisco is cooler than Sacramento in the summer because the two cities are located at different elevations
   ( ) Sacramento is warmer than San Francisco during the summer because San Francisco is located near the ocean
   ( ) San Francisco is cooler than Sacramento in the summer because the two cities are located at different longitudes
   ( ) Sacramento is colder than San Francisco in winter because it has a cold ocean current that produces low clouds and constant rain
   ( ) San Francisco is cooler in summer and warmer in winter because it is located on the western side of mountains while Sacramento is located on the eastern side of it and the prevailing wind direction is from the west.

5. The climate in Seattle (C) and Spokane (D) is characterized as being:
   ( ) wet in summer and winter because they are located in the northern part of North America
   ( ) Spokane is drier than Seattle is because there are always deserts in the interior of continents
   ( ) Spokane is drier than Seattle is because the prevalent wind is dry and from the east
   ( ) Spokane is drier than Seattle is because Spokane is located well above sea level and Seattle is not
   ( ) Spokane is drier than Seattle is because of the "rain shadow" effect of the Cascade Mountains

6. The climate of Scotland is influenced by a warm ocean current. What is the name of this current and where in the map above it originates?
   ( ) The Humboldt Current, off the coast of Florida at 1.
   ( ) The warm North Atlantic current, off the coast of Africa at 2.
   ( ) The Gulf Stream, off the coast of Florida near 1.
   ( ) The warm North Atlantic current, off the coast of Scotland at 4.
   ( ) The Scottish current, in the tropical Atlantic at 3.

7. How is the current from question (6) above believed to have changed during the last Ice Age?
   ( ) The seawaters became colder and saltier
   ( ) The current did not extend as far north as it does today
   ( ) The current went south instead of north
   ( ) The current stopped all together

8. If the angle of the axis of rotation of the Earth (obliquity of the axis) were to become smaller which of the following statements are true:
   ( ) the intensity of sunshine on the Earth will increase
   ( ) the tropics will become warmer while the poles will become cooler
   ( ) the duration of the year will change
   ( ) the distribution of solar radiation with latitude will change

9. In what Geologic time of Earth's history are we living today?
   ( ) The Cenozoic Era, the Quaternary Period and the Holocene Epoch.
   ( ) The Cenozoic Era, the Quaternary Period and the Pleistocene Epoch.
   ( ) The Mesozoic Era, the Tertiary Period and the Holocene Epoch.
   ( ) The Cenozoic Era, the Jurassic Period and the Pleistocene Epoch.
   ( ) None of the above.

10. Why do scientists not believe that the Ice Ages are a result only of changes in the Earth's orbit around the sun? (Mark all that apply)
    ( ) Because the orbit has not really changed in the past.
    ( ) Because the transition between glaciation and interglacial periods seem to happen too fast to be explained by the slow changes in the orbit.
    ( ) Because the changes in solar radiation received by the Earth produced by changes in the orbit are not large enough.
    ( ) Because the periods of changes in the Earth's orbit does not coincide with the periods of glaciation.
    ( ) Because in the distant past when the orbit has changed considerably glacial periods have not occurred.

11. Why are instrumental records not used to analyze the climate of the last 500 years?
    ( ) Because meteorological observations are not good enough to analyze climate.
    ( ) Because observations are too sparse, especially before the 17th century.
    ( ) Because the data provided by these instruments is not quantitative.
    ( ) Because many of the observations have been lost during times of adverse climate.
    ( ) Because the instruments used to measure the state of the atmosphere were not invented until the 17th century.

12. Which of the following environmental indicators can be used to reconstruct past climates? (Mark all that apply)
    ( ) The level of glacier moraines.
    ( ) The deposits of minerals in sea bottom cores.
    ( ) The deposits of fossil pollen and beetles in lake sediments.
    ( ) The amount of carbon dioxide in rocks and minerals.
    ( ) The width of growth rings on trees.

13. Dendrochronology is the study of:
    ( ) the ice ages
    ( ) annual growth rings of trees
    ( ) time history of past climatic conditions
    ( ) fossil pollen

14. Oxygen isotope analysis of the water in ice cores is used to determine:
    ( ) the chemical composition of the air in the past
    ( ) the content of CO2 in bubbles trapped in the ice
    ( ) the time when volcanic eruptions and meteor impacts occurred in the past
    ( ) the species of animals and plants living at the time the snow was formed
    ( ) the temperature of the atmosphere when the water evaporated from the ocean
    ( ) There is a lag between the time of the observed event and its description.

15. During the Pleistocene epoch the climate of most of the Earth can be characterized by:
    ( ) a sequence of glacial and interglacial periods of about the same duration
    ( ) a sequence of glacial events covering less than 10% of the total length of this period
    ( ) a general cooling trend in global temperatures that ended with human-induced global warming
    ( ) a generally cold period with short warmer breaks
    ( ) a period of the Earth's climate when precipitation was scarce

16. The analysis of ice cores is a very good source of climate information because (Mark all that apply):
    ( ) it provide information of past temperatures
    ( ) it provide information on past volcanic eruptions
    ( ) it can be used to determine the composition of the atmosphere in the past
    ( ) it can indicates differences in snowfall between different periods
    ( ) it can indicate when ice ages occurred in the past

17. Low atmospheric concentrations of CO2 in the past have usually coincided with periods of colder than normal temperatures.
    ( ) True
    ( ) False

18. A positive feedback mechanism:
    ( ) acts to reinforce an initial change
    ( ) acts to weaken or oppose an initial change
    ( ) causes a positive change only
    ( ) causes a negative change only

19. The Milankovitch Theory proposes that climatic changes are due to:
    ( ) variations in Earth's orbit as it travels through space
    ( ) volcanic eruptions
    ( ) changing levels of CO2 in the earth's atmosphere
    ( ) particles suspended in the earth's atmosphere

20. What kind of changes did the landscape in high latitudes experienced at the end of the last Ice Age? (Mark all that apply)
    ( ) Melting of water previously trapped in glaciers.
    ( ) Sea-level rise.
    ( ) Expansion of forested areas.
    ( ) Rise in elevation of land areas that had been weighted down by the ice.
    ( ) Gradual increase in temperatures.

21. The peak of the last Ice Age occurred approximately
    ( ) 180-220 years ago
    ( ) 18,000-22,000 years ago
    ( ) 1,800-2,200 years ago
    ( ) 180,000-220,000 years ago

22. What short climatic event occurred during the warming that followed the last glaciation?
    ( ) The last Ice Age.
    ( ) The Younger Dryas event
    ( ) The little Ice Age
    ( ) The Milankovitch cycle
    ( ) The Medieval Optimum

23. What changes in climate could have promoted the development of ancient civilizations after 5000 BC?
    ( ) The desertification of Northern Africa.
    ( ) The warming of high-latitudes and Polar Regions.
    ( ) The increase in coastal flooding at the end of the last glaciation.
    ( ) The existence of a land bridge between Asia and North America during the Pleistocene.
    ( ) The increase in precipitation in the Middle East.

24. Some archeologists believe that the invention of agriculture occurred in Palestine about 10,000 years ago and was a result of changes in climate in the region. What was this change in climate?
    ( ) increase in temperatures in the winter
    ( ) decrease in temperatures in the summer
    ( ) increase in precipitation in winter
    ( ) decrease in precipitation in the summer

25. How is it believed that the aboriginal inhabitants of North America arrived on the continent?
    ( ) sailing across the Atlantic Ocean
    ( ) flying into LAX airport
    ( ) walking across a glacier that connected Asia and North America
    ( ) walking across a land bridge that connected Asia and North America
    ( ) floating on a drifting iceberg

26. The Little Ice Age was:
    ( ) a short (less than 1,000 years) warm period during the last glacial maximum
    ( ) a cold period at the beginning of this century
    ( ) a succession of relatively short cold spells between the 16th and 19th centuries
    ( ) a period of extreme cold and flooding during the Middle Ages
    ( ) a period of warmer-than-normal summers in Northern Africa and the Middle East

27. What has been the general trend in averaged surface temperatures during the 20th century?
    ( ) Warming in the Northern Hemisphere and cooling in the Southern Hemisphere.
    ( ) Cooling in both hemispheres first, then warming in the Northern Hemisphere.
    ( ) Warming in both hemispheres, but more consistent in the Southern Hemisphere.
    ( ) Warming between 1900-1920 and then cooling in both hemispheres, especially after the 1940's.
    ( ) Oscillating patterns of warming and cooling in both hemispheres.

28. The Viking colony in Greenland perished during:
    ( ) the Pleistocene epoch
    ( ) the climatic optimum
    ( ) the Little Ice Age
    ( ) the explosion of Mt. Pinatubo

29. Scientist have discovered an interesting fact about the general warming of the 20th century:
    ( ) temperatures have not really changed
    ( ) nighttime temperatures have increased more than daytime temperature
    ( ) temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere are warmer in the summer than in the winter
    ( ) daytime temperatures have increased more than nighttime temperatures

30. Climate models can be used to experiment with:
    ( ) changes in land use
    ( ) changes in orbital parameters
    ( ) changes in atmospheric chemical composition
    ( ) all of the above
    ( ) none of the above

31. The forecasting of the weather by a computer is known as:
    ( ) weather type forecasting
    ( ) climatology forecasting
    ( ) extended weather forecasting
    ( ) analogue prediction
    ( ) numerical weather prediction

32. Most of the time weather forecast models do not provide useful (accurate) forecasts of the daily weather 10-15 days in advance. Why?
    ( ) because computers are not good enough
    ( ) because man modifies the weather before it has a chance to happen
    ( ) because the model is very sensitive to its initial conditions
    ( ) because the models are not developed to do that

33. What is the change in surface temperatures predicted by current climate models when the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is doubled from its pre-industrial value?
    ( ) Cooling 5-10°C
    ( ) No change.
    ( ) Warming 1.0-4.5°C
    ( ) Cooling 0.5-3°C
    ( ) Warming of more than 5°C

34. What are the principal processes that result in sea-level rise when global surface temperatures increase?
    ( ) Melting of ice and lowering of land masses.
    ( ) Melting of ice and increase of salinity of the oceans.
    ( ) Expansion of seawaters with temperature and increase in precipitation.
    ( ) Melting of ice and thermal expansion of seawater.
    ( ) Expansion of glaciers and increase in water density.

35. Which of the following is not one of the possible consequences of global warming predicted by climate models:
    ( ) a general increase in evaporation
    ( ) a general increase in precipitation
    ( ) lowering of sea levels
    ( ) a general warming of surface temperatures
    ( ) a larger increase in surface temperatures in higher latitudes than in the tropics