What determines Climate?

Summers are caused by

• a. a combination of longer days and more direct rays from the sun.

• b. less direct rays from the sun.• c. longer days and longer nights.• d. Earth in its orbit moving closer to the

sun.

The seasons are caused by

• a. Earth’s varying distance from the sun.• b. Earth’s changing rate of rotation.• c. the tilt of Earth’s axis as Earth revolves

around the sun.• d. shifting climates on Earth’s surface.

Climates are classified according to two major factors:

• a. elevation and precipitation.• b. latitude and temperature.• c. elevation and latitude.• d. precipitation and temperature.

The average, year-after-year conditions of temperature, precipitation, winds, and cloud in

an area are known as its

• a. climate.• b. weather.• c. global warming.• d. seasons.

The three kinds of temperate marine climates all have

• a. severe winters.• b. mild winters.• c. rainy summers.• d. little rainfall and high temperatures.

Clues to what ancient climates were like come from all of the following EXCEPT

• a. fossil trees.• b. very old weather records.• c. fossil tree rings.• d. ancient plant pollens.

During an ice age, Earth’s sea level

• a. rises.• b. lowers.• c. remains unchanged.• d. rises and lowers rhythmically.

Some scientists theorize that continental movements may cause climate changes by

• a. changing patterns of winds and ocean currents.

• b. shifting the equatorial and temperate zones.

• c. altering the makeup of the troposphere.• d. redistributing Earth’s vegetation.

Over the past 200 years, the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has

• a. decreased slightly.• b. increased until recently, and then

decreased.• c. increased steadily.• d. stayed about the same.

Increased carbon dioxide may cause global warming by

• a. allowing more sunlight into the atmosphere.

• b. reflecting more sunlight from clouds.• c. reducing the amount of oxygen in the air.• d. trapping more heat in the atmosphere.

Earth’s ozone layer

• a. has thickened over the past several years.

• b. filters harmful ultraviolet radiation from the sun.

• c. exists only over Antarctica.• d. traps carbon dioxide in the stratosphere.

The sun’s rays are least direct

• a. near the poles.• b. near the equator.• c. at high altitudes.• d. far from the ocean.

The climate zones lying between 23.5° and 66.5° north and south latitude are called the

• a. temperate zones.• b. polar zones.• c. tropical zones.• d. subtropical zones.

Scientists predict that banning the use of chlorofluorocarbons will

• a. have no effect on the ozone layer.• b. gradually restore the ozone layer.• c. increase ultraviolet light reaching Earth.• d. increase the rate of ozone depletion.

The climate on the leeward side of a mountain differs from that on the windward side mostly in

• a. the strength of the winds.• b. the direction of the winds.• c. the angle of sunlight.• d. the amount of rainfall.

Sea and land breezes over a large region that change direction with the season are called

• a. savannas.• b. prevailing westerlies.• c. monsoons.• d. doldrum winds.

Near the end of both March and September,

• a. spring begins in both hemispheres.• b. the sun’s rays strike Earth with the same

intensity everywhere.• c. Earth’s axis is no longer pointing at the

North Star.• d. neither end of Earth’s axis is tilted

toward the sun.

A tropical wet climate exists in the United States only in

• a. Oregon and Washington.• b. Florida.• c. Hawaii.• d. California.

Regions that receive less than 25 centimeters of rain annually are called

• a. tundras.• b. savannas.• c. deserts.• d. steppes.

A temperate continental climate with short cool summers and long, bitterly cold winters is the

• a. polar climate.• b. subarctic climate.• c. humid continental climate.• d. tundra climate.

Permafrost and mosses, lichens, and wildflowers are common in the

• a. tundra climate.• b. subtropical climate.• c. temperate climate.• d. ice cap climate.

El Niño is a weather pattern that forms in the

• a. polar Pacific Ocean.• b. tropical Pacific Ocean.• c. tropical Atlantic Ocean.• d. polar Atlantic Ocean.

.An El Niño event typically occurs every

• a. year.• b. 1–4 years.• c. 2–7 years.• d. 7–10 years.

___________ temperature zones occur between tropical and polar zones.

• temperate• polar• tropical• climate

Because of its high __________________, Mount Kilimanjaro has a cool climate all year.

• altitude • latitude• temperature• mass

The ____________ Hemisphere receives fewer direct rays from the sun in January than in July.

• South• Eastern• North• Western

Because Earth’s axis is ____________________, the hemispheres receive different amounts of solar energy

at different times.

• bent• tilted• curved• is moving

Trees do not grow in the ____________________ climate region, which has short, cool

summers, bitterly cold winters, and permafrost.

• savanna• highlands• tundra• desert

A cool type of climate called ____________________ is found at the tops of

mountains and is surrounded by other climate regions.

• savanna• highlands• tundra• desert

____________________ are forests in which plenty of rain falls all year.

• savanna• tundra• rainforest• desert

Tundra and ice cap climates are examples of ____________ climates.

• rainy• tropical• polar• maritime

Ancient plant ___________ found in lake bottoms provides scientists with evidence about ancient climates.

Scientists observe the thickness of a tree’s ______ to learn about past climate conditions.

During cold periods called ____________________, large parts of Earth’s surface were covered with sheets of ice.

One possible explanation for past climate changes is the movement of Earth’s ______________from their previous

positions.

Climate changes may be linked to changes in the number of ________on the surface of the sun.

People add the greenhouse gas _____________ to the atmosphere by burning wood, oil, natural gas, and coal.

The gradual increase in the temperature of the atmosphere is known as.________

Humans have damaged the ozone layer by using _____________in refrigerators and spray cans.