Climate and the Seasons Practice Questions

Review these concepts at: Climate and the Seasons Study Guide

Practice Questions

1. If Earth's diameter is 8,000 miles, how far is it from the center of the earth to the surface?

a. 4,000 miles

b. 16,000 miles

c. 25,120 miles

d. 12,560 miles

2. In the United States, we are at which longitude and latitude?

a. east longitude and north latitude

b. east longitude and north latitude

c. west longitude and north latitude

d. west longitude and south latitude

3. Boston and Seattle are close to 45° N latitude. If a square meter of land at the equator receives about 1,000 watts per square meter, then a square meter of land at the latitude of 45° receives how many watts per square meter?

a. about 500

b. about 2,000

c. about 1,400

d. about 700

4 . Assume you travel south from the equator along a line of longitude that is 30° E. When you cross past the South Pole along the same circle of longitude, you are now on a different number for the line of longitude. Traveling on the other side of the earth, back toward a point on the equator exactly opposite the point you started from, you are now on what line of longitude?

a. 150° E

b. 60° E

c. 150° W

d. 60° W

5. The line of 0° longitude passes through which country?

a. United States

b. Japan

c. Russia

d. England

6. You are floating in the sky (horizontally, in a flying position) in the southern hemisphere, with your head toward the equator and your feet toward the south pole. You have a friend who is in the northern hemisphere, also floating (in a "flying" position) with her head toward the north pole and feet toward the equator. Which one is true about the turning of the earth, given the positions of you and your "distant" friend?

a. Earth turns from right to left for you, from left to right for your friend.

b. Earth turns from right to left for you, from right to left for your friend.

c. Earth turns from left to right for you, from right to left for your friend.

d. Earth turns from left to right for you, from left to right for your friend.

7 . If the earth's axis were perpendicular to the plane of the earth's orbit around the sun, which of these statements would be true?

a. Half the planet would have 24 hours of day light and half would have 24 hours of night, all year long.

b. Daylight and night would be the same every where on Earth all year long.

c . Daylight and night would vary from 24 hours and 0 hours, respectively, and then reverse during the course of the year.

d. Changes in daylight and night would be opposite to the way they are now during the course of the year.

8. The tilt of Earth's axis is how much off perpendicular (vertical) to the plane of Earth's orbit around the sun?

a. 23.5°

b. 31.5°

c. 42.5°

d. 12.5°

9. What is unique about a point along the equator?

a. They have the longest length of daylight of any place on Earth.

b. The length of time for the complete cycle of day to night is longer than anywhere else.

c. The sun at noon is always directly overhead.

d. They have 12 hours daylight and 12 hours night all year long.

10. On June 21, the North Pole has 24 hours of day light. True or false? And why?

a. false, because it's tilted into Earth's shadow

b. false, because nowhere gets that much daylight

c. true, because it's tilted toward the sun

d. true, because the spin axis points to the North Star

11. What are the three main factors that cause the midlatitudes to have seasons?

a. The distance from Earth to the sun changes, Earth's spin axis is tilted, and the sun's energy varies with latitude.

b. Earth's spin axis is tilted, Earth's spin axis remains pointed in the same direction in space, and the distance from Earth to the sun changes.

c . The sun's energy varies with latitude, Earth's spin axis remains pointed in the same direction in space, and the distance from Earth to the sun changes.

d . Earth's spin axis remains pointed in the same direction in space, the sun's energy varies with latitude, and the earth's spin axis is tilted.

12. What are the two times of year in which the sun is exactly overhead at noon within the tropics?

a. June 21 and December 21

b. June 21 and September 22

c. March 20 and September 22

d. March 20 and June 21

13 . You are in a ship that crosses the Tropic of Cancer from north to south. In terms of climate zones, you have crossed from which zone into which other zone?

a. midlatitudes to tropics

b. high latitudes to midlatitudes

c. tropics to midlatitudes

d. midlatitudes to high latitudes

14 . Between the winter solstice and the spring equinox, an observer in Australia watching the angle of the sun at noon each day would see which of the following?

a. the sun get lower and lower

b. the sun get lower and then higher

c. the sun get higher and higher

d. the sun get higher and then lower

15 . You fly in an airplane from New York City to Buenos Aires, Argentina (35° S). What series of climate zones describes your path?

a. temperate to tropical to subarctic

b. subarctic to temperate to tropical

c. temperate to midlatitudes to tropical

d. temperate to tropical to temperate

Answers