Basic Weather Quiz

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Instructions: Answer the multiple choice questions, guessing if necessary; then click on the "Process Questions" button at the end of the quiz to see your score in the adjacent message box. The program will not reveal which questions you got wrong, only how many points you have. You can change your answers until you get them all right (at which point the page will turn pink.) If you need an answer key click here.

1. What time of the day is temperature typically at its highest?

a) around 9 am
b) around 12 noon
c) around 3pm
d) around 7pm

2. What time of the day is temperature typically at its lowest?

a) sunset
b) midnight
c) 2 am
d) about 15 minutes after sunrise

3. Which of the following most closely resembles a real raindrop?

a)
b)
c)
d)

4. How many points does a typical snowflake have?

a) 6
b) 7
c) 8
d) 10

5. If you see a single rainbow in the sky, in what order are the colors arranged from top to bottom?

a) yellow, orange, red, violet, indigo, blue, and green
b) violet, indigo, blue, green, yellow, orange, and red
c) green, blue, indigo, violet, red, orange, and yellow
d) red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet

6. On what date is the Earth closest to the Sun?

a) January 7
b) June 1
c) June 22
d) July 15

7. Which graph below shows the vertical profile of temperature during freezing rain?

a)
b)
c)
d)

8. If you see a tornado coming and happen to be near a highway underpass, what is the best thing to do?

a) stay in your car, since your seat belt and air bag will protect you
b) quickly get to a ditch or low-lying area away from the underpass, so that the debris flies over you
c) go under it so that the debris won’t fall on you
d) try and outrun the tornado, since most do not move that fast anyway

9. When you see lightning strike the ground, which way is the current flowing?

a) always from the clouds to the ground
b) usually from the clouds to the ground
c) usually from the ground to the clouds
d) always from the ground to the clouds

10. How long does it take for thunder to travel one mile?

a) one second
b) two seconds
c) three seconds
d) five seconds

Bonus: Let’s say you have an RV with a toilet and when you are at home, it flushes counter-clockwise. If you were to drive it to the southern Hemisphere, which direction would it flush?

a) counter-clockwise
b) clockwise
c) neither
d) either

Score (out of 10):

Answer Key

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