Practice Quiz

MTEL Earth Science Practice Test - Question List

Select how would you like to study

Study Mode Free Daily Question Test Mode
61.
Approximately 14,000 years ago, warmer conditions began to melt the Pleistocene ice sheets. This warming was suddenly interrupted around 12,700 years ago by 1,000 years of below- average temperatures in northeastern North America and northern Europe. The onset of this sudden and prolonged cold snap, known as the Younger Dryas event, was caused primarily by which of the following?
  1. A reduction in tropical air masses moving north due to a shift in the position of the subtropical jet stream
  2. A change in the ocean currents in the North Atlantic caused by an increased input of freshwater.
  3. A decrease in the intensity of solar energy output due to changes in the Sun's magnetic field.
  4. A change in the timing of the seasons caused by variations in Earth's orbital parameters.
See answer
62.
In which of the following situations is energy absorbed by water?
  1. Dew forms on a lawn just before dawn in the summer.
  2. Ice crystals grow on a window pane on a cold winter night.
  3. Fog dissipates as the Sun rises on a fall morning.
  4. Clouds develop over a mountain range on a warm spring day.
See answer
63.
Under which of the following conditions is advection fog most likely to form?
  1. Cold air becomes trapped beneath a layer of warmer air.
  2. Hot dry air in contact with the surface cools after sunset.
  3. Cool moist air warms as it flows down a mountain side.
  4. Warm moist air flows over cold ocean water.
See answer
64.
The psychrometer is based on which of the following principles?
  1. Relative humidity can be calculated by comparing the evaporative cooling that occurs in a particular location to the air temperature.
  2. The apparent temperature can be determined by comparing the actual temperature in a location with the relative humidity.
  3. The density of an air mass can be calculated by comparing the molecular weight of dry air to the molecular weight of the actual air.
  4. The adiabatic cooling of an air mass can be determined by comparing the actual pressure in a location to the theoretical sea-level pressure.
See answer
65.
Climatologists have used computer models to investigate possible consequences of increased average global temperatures on various Earth systems. According to the models, which of the following changes in an Earth system is likely to occur in association with an increase in average global temperatures? 
  1. Regions prone to drought will become drier, due to longer periods without adequate rainfall.
  2. Jet stream winds will shift position more frequently, causing rapid changes in weather conditions.
  3. Hurricanes will become less common in tropical areas, due to a strengthening of the Coriolis effect.
  4. El Niño events will occur at longer intervals, causing anomalous weather conditions to last longer.
See answer

Select how would you like to study

Study Mode Free Daily Question Test Mode