Chapter #13 Solutions - Understanding Weather and Climate - James E Burt, Edward Aguado - 7th Edition

1c. What is a zone forecast? Get solution

1ct. Why will the climatological, persistence, and analog approaches never be entirely eliminated from the process of weather prediction? Get solution

1. Go to die website www.nws.noaa.gov/organization.php and click on the National Weather Service office nearest to you. Make note of the 24-hour forecast and follow up the next day to see if the forecast was correct. Do this for extended forecasts as well. In general, do you find the forecasts to be accurate? Get solution

1rq. Briefly describe some of the variables that complicate weather forecasting. Get solution

1va. Examine the surface and 500 mb maps for January 6, 2014, and answer the following questions:...What kind of temperatures might be expected for the eastern and western United States? Explain. Get solution

2c. What are the roles of physical models and statistical models in weather forecasting? Explain. Get solution

2ct. If a forecast calls for a 70 percent chance of rain and no precipitation occurs, was the forecast actually wrong? What if this happens two days in a row? Ten days? Get solution

2. During times of unusual or inclement weather, visit the websites listed below to obtain weather map, satellite, radar, and thermodynamic diagram information. Is the weather you are experiencing consistent with what you would have expected based on the information you obtained? Get solution

2rq. Describe the basic characteristics of climatological forecasts, persistence forecasts, the analog approach, and numerical forecasting. Get solution

2va. Examine the surface and 500 mb maps for January 6, 2014, and answer the following questions:...Where are the areas most likely to experience precipitation currently and within the next 24 hours? Explain. Get solution

3c. What factors complicate the prediction of temperature at a given point? Get solution

3ct. What would have to happen to the data acquisition network for the analysis phase of forecasting to be bypassed? Get solution

3. On a daily basis, make use of the available information from the websites listed below and make your own forecast (before reading the official forecast for your area). Then compare your forecast to that of the local weather office. Are your forecasts generally consistent with those of professional meteorologists? Get solution

3rq. What are the distinguishing characteristics of quantitative, qualitative, and probability forecasts? Get solution

4c. Why is the prediction of water vapor in the atmosphere so complicated? Get solution

4ct. Are further improvements in weather forecasting more likely to occur for large-scale phenomena or for smaller- scale events? Explain your answer. Get solution

4. Read the forecast discussion on the web page of your local weather service office each day. These discussions explain the meteorologists reasons for making their particular forecasts. Determine how this elaborates on the zone forecast for the same area. Get solution

4rq. Explain how weather data are obtained and disseminated to agencies across the globe. Get solution

5c. Define climatological forecasts and persistence forecasts. Get solution

5rq. What are radiosondes and rawinsondes? What other sources of upper-atmosphere information are available to forecasters? Get solution

6c. How do analog approaches and numerical weather forecasting differ? Get solution

6rq. Describe the analysis, prediction, and postprocessing phases in numerical forecasting. Get solution

7c. What is a quantitative forecast? Get solution

7rq. What are model output statistics? Get solution

8c. What are probability forecasts? Get solution

8rq. What are the primary characteristics of short-range, medium-range, and long-range forecasts? What types of information are needed to prepare the individual forecasts? Get solution

9c. What are two important elements of forecast quality? Get solution

9rq. What is ensemble forecasting? Get solution

10c. What is forecast skill? Get solution

10rq. Describe the station model used for surface weather maps. How is the information presented on the station model? What measures must be used to convert the numerical data on the station model to real values? Get solution

11c. Describe the ground-based instruments for obtaining automated weather information. Get solution

11rq. Describe the characteristics of the 850 mb, 700 mb, 500 mb, 300 mb, and 200 mb maps that make each of them useful to forecasting. Get solution

12c. What types of systems gather information about weather variables away from the surface? Get solution

12rq. Which upper-level weather map would you use to locate short waves? Get solution

13c. What are the three phases of numerical modeling? Get solution

13rq. Why are omega highs significant? Which map is best for identifying them? Get solution

14c. What is the role of a forecaster with regard to the use of numerical modeling? Get solution

14rq. What is an isotach? Get solution

15c. What is ensemble forecasting and how is it used? Get solution

15rq. Which maps are most useful for locating the polar jet stream? [Hint: recall that the polar jet is found at altitudes near 10km.] Get solution

16c. Which type of forecasting does the production of a seasonal outlook most resemble: climatological forecasting, persistence forecasting, or analog forecasting? Explain. Get solution

16rq. Describe the three types of satellite images discussed in this chapter. What characteristics make them useful? Get solution

17c. Draw a station model, showing where the temperature, dew point, wind speed and direction, cloud conditions, and sea-level pressure are indicated. Get solution

17rq. Describe how radar works and how its information is presented. Get solution

18c. How are maps of the 850 mb level used? The 700 mb level? The 500 mb level? Get solution

18rq. Explain what a thermodynamic diagram does and how it is constructed. Get solution

19c. Which type of satellite imagery would be most useful in detecting differences in the altitude of cloud tops? Get solution

19rq. Describe the lifted index and the K-index. How are they valuable to forecasters? Get solution

20c. How is a radar composite map produced and how could it be useful in forecasting? Get solution

21c. What data are shown on a thermodynamic diagram? Get solution

22c. What are the lifted index and K-index useful for? Get solution

23c. Describe some of the important considerations with respect to model scale. Get solution

24c. What are the two major types of representations of forecast models? Get solution