Earth Science Expert Answers & Study Resources

  56) No mountains on Earth extend above the troposphere. 57) Relative humidity describes how close the air is to being saturated. 58) Cumulus clouds are puffy clouds that form during the mature stage of a thunderstorm. 59) Air pressure increases as you move up in the atmosphere. 60) High atmospheric pressure is associated with.

63) Explain the basics of how sinkholes are formed in an area.     .

11) Which of the following is the most important driving force in landslide? A) Weight of the slope in the downslope direction B) Friction C) Cohesion D) Viscosity E) Shear strength 12) Would adding mass to the top of a slope in the form of houses or buildings make the mass more or less likely to.

  21) How is the incidence of landslides expected to change in the future? A) Incidence of landslides will increase. B) Incidence of landslides will decrease. C) Incidence of landslides will stay the same. D) Incidence of landslides will cease. E) There is no way to tell whether the incidence of landslides will increase or decrease. 22).

  46) Expansive soils are relatively rare and cause little if any damage to structures. 47) The mineral composition of soils has a great influence on the type of subsidence or volume changes that will occur. 48) Sinkhole formation is influenced by dramatic changes in the water table level that happen during wet.

  41) How is a blizzard defined? A) In terms of wind speed and visibility B) In terms of wind speed and amounts of snow C) In terms of amounts of snow and freezing rain D) In terms of temperature and atmospheric pressure E) In terms of amounts of snow and temperature 42) What is the difference.

  16) What is the main difference between collapse sinkholes and solutional sinkholes? A) Collapse sinkholes create a subsidence in the ground whereas solutional sinkholes have no effect on the land surface. B) Solutional sinkholes form faster than collapse sinkholes. C) Collapse sinkholes involve the surface rock and soil falling into an underground cave.

69) What does "restricting deltaic sedimentation" mean? Explain how it relates to subsidence. 70) In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the city of New Orleans received a lot of damage. One of the reasons why New Orleans was hit so hard was because of land subsidence. Explain two reasons for why.

  26) Which of the following is NOT a factor in how urbanization increases the incidence of landslides? A) Trees and grasses are removed, leaving the land susceptible to erosion. B) Roads are constructed altering the permeability of the land. C) Buildings are placed on slopes, increasing the weight on the slope. D) Roads are.

82) Give an example of conduction, convection and radiation heat transfer processes. 83) Explain what happens to the solar radiation as it travels to the Earth's surface.     .

1) Which of the following is NOT a good description of heat energy? A) Energy attributed to the motion of atoms and molecules that make up a material B) Energy transferred between objects at different temperatures C) Energy that can be monitored by a thermometer D) Energy that can cause a change in state.

  6) How good of an indicator is soil color in categorizing the soil horizon? A) Excellent. Color always indicates an exact soil horizon. B) It is an excellent indicator of soil horizon for well-drained soils but a poor indicator for poorly-drained soils. C) Terrible. Different soil horizons don't have distinct color differences. D) Reasonably.

  21) What type of front has cold air moving into warm air? A) Cold front B) Warm front C) Stationary front D) Occluded front 22) What type of front involves fast moving thunderstorms and severe weather? A) Cold front B) Warm front C) Stationary Front D) Occluded Front 23) If you watched the clouds get lower in the sky and.

67) Explain the possible cause of subsidence in areas of Florida. Explain how you arrived at your answer. 68) Coastal cities, like Venice, Italy and New Orleans are sinking. What effect will this have on these cities?     .

61) Describe how soil develops from rocks. In this description, choose three things that affect the development of soil and explain how they affect soil development.     .

  26) Which of the following is NOT a way that climate change can contribute to the subsidence problem? A) Permafrost will melt causing subsidence. B) Some soils will dry out causing them to settle. C) Sea levels will rise sinking coastal cities that are already sinking. D) Groundwater levels may rise or fall increasing.

87) Florida is a spot where many thunderstorms develop. Explain what atmospherically is happening that causes these storms. 88) The Midwest United States sees many severe thunderstorms and tornados. Explain what atmospherically is happening that causes these storms.     .

92) There were many hazards discussed in this chapter. Choose two hazards that you would consider able to cause catastrophe and two that you would not consider catastrophic. Explain your reasoning.     .

  51) Heat is needed to make water change from liquid to gas. 52) The Earth gets its energy from the Sun mostly through conduction. 53) The Earth intersects most of the Sun's radiation. 54) The light that we are able to see is only a small portion of the radiation that we get.

  76) Drought is very uncommon and only affects the few people who live in the drought area. 77) Dust storms can involve large amounts of dust that can travel large distances from their origination. 78) Heatwaves are always associated with low humidity and extreme dry conditions. 79) In large urban areas, the temperatures.

  31) Which of the following is NOT a normal purpose of a landslide hazard map of an area? A) Communities could use it to decide where to place critical facilities. B) Communities could use it to decide where to place drains or supports. C) Communities could use it to decide where to build.

  46) Which of the following hazards is NOT influenced by the weather? A) Landslides B) Earthquakes C) Flooding D) Wildfires E) Hurricanes 47) What should you do when a tornado watch is issued for your area? A) Go outside and watch for the tornado to come B) Run quickly down to your basement because a tornado is coming C).

  71) An EF0 tornado is the most damaging on the Enhanced Fujita Scale. 72) Blizzards can be caused by storms that move across land or from storms that move up the coast over water. 73) Freezing rain is most likely to occur in the early fall because the ground is still too.

  11) In a region susceptible to sinkhole formation, the most likely times for collapse will be A) When groundwater levels are low. B) When groundwater levels are high. C) During periods of heavy rain. D) Just before full moons. E) During late afternoon when air temperatures are highest. 12) Which of the following does NOT cause.

62) Describe what is meant by weakly developed versus well-developed soil. Give two examples to explain your answer.     .

86) Describe the three stages of thunderstorm development.     .

  6) Nearly all of the Earth's energy comes from the Sun. Where does most of the rest of the Earth's energy come from? A) Magnetic energy from the Earth's outer core B) Thermal energy from the Earth's core C) Thermal energy from ocean currents D) Electric energy from thunderstorms E) Wind energy from atmospheric circulation 7).

  11) What is humidity? A) A measure of how warm it is outside B) A measure of how much water vapor there is in the air C) A measure of how much molecules are moving in the air D) A measure of how many clouds there are in the area E) A measure of how.

  36) Which of the following actions in a rotating storm will define it as a tornado? A) A mesocyclone forms. B) A wall cloud descends. C) A funnel cloud forms. D) A funnel cloud touches the ground. E) Vertical wind shear occurs. 37) In which stage of development are the winds in a tornado moving the.

  16) Adding earth material to the lower part of a slope which has the potential for a landslide would A) increase the resisting force. B) decrease the resisting force. C) increase the driving force. D) decrease the driving force. 17) Which of the following is NOT a way in which water contributes to slope failure? A) Water.

  36) The type of mass wasting process that occurs depends on many different factors including the steepness of the slope and the type of material involved. 37) Slumps are the only form of mass wasting that are not triggered by excess water. 38) A mudflow is usually not dangerous to human life.

  66) Thunderstorm development stages are defined by the presence of updrafts and downdrafts in the storm. 67) A dryline is an area of low humidity where thunderstorms cannot form. 68) Supercells are the longest lasting severe thunderstorm type. 69) Hail is usually associated with winter storms that produce sleet and freezing rain. 70) In.

60) Why do soil scientists and engineers have different taxonomies for classifying soil?     .

91) Explain how humans can affect the weather.     .

64) Describe how volcanoes are associated with land subsidence.     .

  41) Sinkholes usually form when the ground becomes wet and things sink into them after a big rainstorm. 42) Caves form in places where giant bubbles were present in the lava that formed the Earth's crust. 43) Sinkholes and caves involve extensive dissolution of rocks due to changing levels of groundwater. 44) Permafrost.

  31) What is groundwater mining? A) Groundwater is pumped from the ground faster than it is replenished. B) Groundwater is used to excavate minerals. C) Groundwater is pumped into mines to clean them. D) Groundwater is put through a sieve to remove minerals. E) Groundwater is used to dissolve minerals and then evaporated. 32) Weathering is.

89) Explain how MCS thunderstorms self-perpetuate. 90) Explain how the Enhanced Fujita Scale classifies tornados.     .

  21) Which of the following states has the greatest percentage of karst topography? A) Kentucky B) Nevada C) Nebraska D) Louisiana E) Alaska 22) Which of the following is NOT an indication that there are expansive soils in an area? A) Wavy bumps on surfaces B) Tilting sidewalks C) Cracks in building foundations D) Popcorn-like weathering texture in the soil E).

66) Explain the possible cause of subsidence in areas of New Orleans. Explain how you arrived at your answer.     .

65) Explain the possible cause of subsidence in areas of Texas. Explain how you arrived at your answer.     .

  26) Which of the following is FALSE about thunderstorms? A) Thunderstorms are storms associated with lightning. B) Thunderstorms are usually associated with warm fronts. C) Thunderstorms are frequent in Florida and the Midwest United States. D) Thunderstorms are common in the late afternoon during summer. 27) Which thunderstorm stage is dominated by updrafts? A) Cumulus stage B).

  31) Which is the most common type of severe thunderstorm? A) Mesoscale convection systems B) Squall lines C) Supercell storms D) Derechos E) Microbursts 32) Which type of severe thunderstorm is caused by cold fronts? A) Mesoscale convection systems B) Squall lines C) Supercell storms D) Derechos E) Microbursts 33) Which type of severe thunderstorm generally spawn the largest tornadoes? A) Mesoscale convection.

84) Explain what happens to temperature and pressure in the atmosphere as you go upward as in climbing a very tall mountain or flying in an airplane. Explain why these changes occur. 85) Disregarding the Coriolis effect, explain how and why air moves globally between the poles and the equator.     .

  36) The main societal impact of soil erosion is that the eroded soil ends up filling our water reservoirs and diminishes our drinking water supply. 37) Haiti faces a major problem of soil erosion because it has been growing corn without applying any fertilizer for centuries and that has depleted the.

1) What is the definition of soil according to a soil scientist? A) Any solid earth material that has been altered by physical, chemical, and organic processes so that it can support rooted plants B) Any dark material on earth's surface C) Decayed plant material D) Hard clay layer cemented with calcite, iron oxide,.

  56) Humans have contributed to the thawing of permafrost through poor building practices. 57) In the U.S. subsidence and expansion and contraction of the soil are natural hazards that are well publicized and get considerable media coverage. 58) There is little that can be done to prevent damage from expansive soils. 59) Before.

  16) How does atmospheric pressure change within the troposphere? A) It increases with increasing altitude. B) It stays the same with increasing altitude. C) It decreases with increasing altitude. D) It increases and then decreases with increasing altitude. E) It decreases and then increases with increasing altitude. 17) What happens to air as it rises in.

  61) Low atmospheric pressure is associated with clouds and rainy conditions. 62) Air moves from low pressure to high pressure, creating wind. 63) The Coriolis Effect has no effect on winds at the equator. 64) Winds in the Northern Hemisphere spin in the opposite direction from winds in the Southern Hemisphere due to.

  51) There have not been too many problems due to land subsidence in the United States. 52) Damage from soil volume change in the U.S. commonly costs more annually than all other natural disasters combined. 53) In areas undergoing subsidence due to the overpumping of groundwater, flooding can be a major problem. 54).