Deck 8: Microthermal, Polar, and Highland Climate Regions; Climate Change

Question 1

The modern climate interval, which is characterized by relatively stable, warm temperatures compared with most of the last 2.6 million years, is known as the ____.

A)Altithermal
B)Little Warm Age
C)Holocene
D)Pleistocene

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Patterned ground is found in the ____.

A)ice-sheet climate
B)humid continental climate
C)tundra
D)boreal forest

Answer 2

C

Question 3

The Pleistocene began with major glacial advances as early as:

A)10 thousand years ago
B)100 million years ago
C)26 million years ago
D)2.6 million years ago

Answer 3

D

Question 4

What is the line above which summer melting is insufficient to remove all of the preceding winter's snowfall?

A)tree line
B)equilibrium line
C)transhumance
D)slope aspect line

Question 5

Mosses, lichens, and short grasses are the common types of natural vegetation in a ____.

A)taiga
B)tundra
C)permafrost
D)broad-leaf forest

Question 6

A permanently frozen layer of subsoil and underlying rock is called ____.

A)taiga
B)permafrost
C)patterned ground
D)tundra

Question 7

What is the predominant type of forest vegetation in a humid continental, hot summer climate?

A)northern coniferous forest
B)deciduous needleleaf forest
C)broad-leaf deciduous forest
D)boreal forest

Question 8

What is a technique used to estimate past temperatures on Earth recorded in very old ice layers?

A)Ice coring
B)Oxygen-isotope analysis
C)CaCO3 analysis
D)Radioactive decay

Question 9

Subarctic precipitation is ____.

A)cyclonic
B)advectional
C)frontal
D)orographic

Question 10

Which of the following best describes the Pleistocene?

A)A warm, humid period of swamps and forests when dinosaurs roamed Earth
B)A most recent climate interval characterized by warm, stable conditions
C)A series of four major glacial cycles slowly followed by shorter, warmer interglacials
D)A complex record of climate changes characterized by cycles of rapid advance and retreat of glaciers

Question 11

What is the most important factor in determining the differential zonation of climates in high mountain areas?

A)elevation
B)sun or shadow slope location
C)windward or leeward slope location
D)latitude

Question 12

Which climate region is most likely to experience winter droughts?

A)subarctic
B)humid continental, hot summer
C)humid continental, mild summer
D)ice-sheet

Question 13

The primary factor in the low temperatures of ice-sheet climates is:

A)a generally low absolute humidity of the air
B)the minimal insolation received
C)the prevailing wind direction
D)the number of snow storms

Question 14

What climate region typically experiences the largest annual temperature range?

A)Subarctic
B)Humid continental, hot summer
C)Humid continental, mild summer
D)Highland

Question 15

The direction a slope is facing is called the ____.

A)tree line
B)oblique side
C)slope aspect
D)wind direction

Question 16

Which of the following creates a major problem for scientists studying a particular cycle of glaciation?

A)subsequent glaciation
B)changes in sea level
C)human activity
D)changes in wind direction

Question 17

Winters are generally mild in which climate?

A)highland
B)ice-sheet
C)subarctic
D)humid continental, hot summer

Question 18

The Little Ice Age is the most recent ____ period in Earth's history.

A)cold
B)warm
C)interglacial
D)neoglacial

Question 19

The coldest temperature ever recorded occurred in a(n) ____ climate region.

A)marine west coast
B)humid continental
C)tundra
D)ice-sheet

Question 20

Distinguishing characteristics of a humid continental, mild summer climate include ____.

A)moderate summers and occasional winter cold waves
B)moderate summers and long winters with frequent clear cold weather
C)brief, cool summers and bitterly cold winters
D)hot, often humid summers and bitterly cold winters

Question 21

The polar climates are not found in the Southern Hemisphere.

Question 22

Which of the following has been linked to the coldest years of record over the past 200 years?

A)levels of carbon dioxide
B)El Niño
C)the sunspot cycle
D)volcanic activity

Question 23

Thundershowers in highland climate regions are typically a result of____.

A)heating of air over valleys
B)cooling of air over mountain tops
C)tropical anticyclones
D)heating of air over rocky slopes

Question 24

Which of the following is one of the Milankovitch cycles?

A)variations in the shape of Earth's orbit
B)shifts in the paths of cyclonic storms
C)changes in solar output
D)changes in Earth's atmosphere

Question 25

Uplift of the ____ has altered atmospheric currents and the Asian monsoon.

A)Himalayas
B)Rocky Mountains
C)Appalachian Mountains
D)Ural Mountains

Question 26

Boreal forests are also known as ____.

A)taiga
B)tundra
C)patterned ground
D)El Niño

Question 27

Current Global Climate Model estimates predict what range of warming for the 21st century?

A)1o to 2o F
B)1o to 4o F
C)2o to 6o F
D)5o to 10o F

Question 28

What is the "greenhouse gas" that is the most significant cause of what scientists have labeled global warming?

A)nitrogen dioxide
B)hydrogen peroxide
C)ferrous oxide
D)carbon dioxide

Question 29

According to your text, warming of the tundra regions could ____ global warming.

A)decelerate
B)accelerate
C)stop
D)have no effect on

Question 30

The Antarctic ice sheet can be as much as ____.

A)1,000 meters thick
B)2,000 meters thick
C)3,000 meters thick
D)4,000 meters thick

Question 31

An object greater than ____ in size hitting the Earth would likely cause an impact winter.

A)10 meters
B)40 meters
C)1 kilometer
D)1.6 kilometers

Question 32

A significant increase in the spatial distribution of snow cover on Earth's surface would change the ____.

A)albedo
B)glacial cover
C)ocean currents
D)precession cycle

Question 33

The precession cycle has a periodicity of ____.

A)100,000 years
B)41,000 years
C)21,000 years
D)11,000 years

Question 34

Greenhouse gases impede ____ radiation.

A)incoming shortwave
B)incoming longwave
C)outgoing shortwave
D)outgoing longwave

Question 35

Based on the study of past climates, we can conclude that future climates will be ____.

A)variable
B)continually colder
C)continually warmer
D)nearly stable

Question 36

Although extremely cold, the polar climates still receive more energy from the sun than they lose during the year.

Question 37

The subarctic climate of Asia can be attributed to the monsoon circulation associated with that region.

Question 38

Annual temperature ranges are small in tundra climates.

Question 39

Short-term changes in Pacific Ocean circulation are primarily responsible for climatic events associated with ____.

A)glaciation
B)global warming
C)El Niño
D)albedo

Question 40

Seasons only exist in highlands if they also exist in the nearby lowlands.

Question 41

Climates in the past were much the same as they are today.

Question 42

The highest temperature ranges in the world are found in polar ice sheet climates.

Question 43

In highland climates, greatest precipitation is found along the windward slopes.

Question 44

The ___________________ is the coniferous forest that covers much of the subarctic climate of Russia.

Question 45

_________________ refers to the permanently frozen subsoil of the subarctic regions.

Question 46

Each subsequent glacial advance tends to destroy or bury evidence of the previous glacial period.

Question 47

Patterned ground is also known as ____________________.

Question 48

Climate during the most recent 10,000 years has been fairly stable compared to similar periods of time during the past two million years.

Question 49

Boreal forest is a typical vegetation biome in subarctic climate regions.

Question 50

The ____________________ line is the line above which low winter temperatures and severe wind stress eliminate all forms of vegetation except for those that grow low to the ground.

Question 51

A tundra climate is situated farther from the poles than a subarctic climate.

Question 52

The ice-sheet climate is the harshest climate zone on Earth.

Question 53

The term eccentricity refers to Earth's orbit.

Question 54

Glacial advances in the past have been accompanied by increased CO2 levels.

Question 55

The "Corn Belt" climate is more technically known as the ________________ climate.

Question 56

The driest period of the year in the climates of eastern China occurs in the __________________ season.

Question 57

The ____________________ was a period of cold climates within recorded human history.

Question 58

The _________________ line is the line above which summer melting is insufficient to remove all of the preceding winter's snowfall.

Question 59

The predominant type of precipitation during the winter in the humid continental, hot summer climates is _______________.

Question 60

The factor that relates to receipt of the direct rays of the sun in mountain areas is referred to as the _________________ aspect.

Question 61

_________________ vegetation is hard-leafed and drought resistant.

Question 62

The ___________________ climate is the most severe and restrictive climate on Earth.

Question 63

Draw and describe the three Milankovitch cycles and the effects they have on Earth's climate.

Question 64

Compare the temperatures, controlling factors, and distribution of the three types of microthermal climates.

Question 65

__________________ describe(s) the time interval between glacial advances.

Question 66

The soggy landscape of Northern Canada and Alaska is termed ____________________.

Question 67

Common to all past glacial periods in Earth's history is the presence of a continent in ____________________ latitudes.

Question 68

The warm period on Earth about 7,000 years ago is known as the ____________________.