ATPL Met Study Notes
ATPL Met Study Notes
ATPL Met Study Notes
How does the height of the tropopause normally vary with latitude in the
northern hemisphere?
It decreases from south to north.
What approximately, is the average height of the tropopause over the
equator?
16km.
In which layer is most of the atmospheric humidity concentrated?
Troposphere.
At FL 180, the air temperature is 35c. The air density at this level is:
Greater than the density of the ISA atmosphere at FL 180.
The lowest assumed temperature in the International Standard
Atmosphere (ISA) is:
-56.5c.
Under what condition does pressure altitude have the same value as
density altitude?
At standard temperature.
In the troposphere the decrease of pressure per 100m increase in height:
Is smaller at higher levels than at lower levels.
A 200 hPa pressure altitude level can vary in height. In temperate regions
which of the following average heights is applicable?
FL 390.
What is the approximate vertical interval which is equal to a pressure
change of 1 hPa at an altitude of 5500m?
15m (50FT).
In order to calculate QFE from QNH, which of the following must be
known:
Elevation of the airfield.
Several physical processes contribute to atmospheric warming. Which of
the following contribute the most?
Convection and condensation.
What is the dry adiabatic lapse rate per 1000FT?
3.0C.
A layer is conditionally unstable if the air:
Is unstable for saturated air and stable for dry air.
A parcel of unsaturated air is lifted to just below the condensation level
and then returned to its original level. What is the final temperature of
the parcel of air?
The same as the starting temperature.
What is the relative movement of the two airmasses along a cold front?
Cold air pushes under a warm air mass.
What cloud cover is typical for a wide warm sector of a polar front
depression of central Europe in the summer?
Fair weather CU.
Which of the following describe a warm occlusion?
The coldest air mass is ahead of the original warm front.
When do cold occlusions occur most frequently in Europe?
Summer.
In which main direction does a polar front depression move?
Along the front towards the East.
How are high level condensation trails formed that are to be found
occasionally behind jet aircraft?
Through water vapour released during fuel combustion.
What process in an air mass leads to the creation of widespread NS, AS
and ST cloud coverage?
Lifting.
Which of the following cloud is classified as low level cloud?
ST.
In which of the following conditions is moderate to severe airframe icing
most likely to be encountered?
In Nimbostratus cloud.
What flying conditions may be encountered when flying in cirrus clouds?
Average horizontal visibility more than 1000m; nil icing.
Which of the following is most likely to lead to the dissipation of
radiation fog?
A marked increase in wind velocity near the ground.
Which of the following conditions is most likely to lead to the formation
of advection fog?
Moist warm air moving over a cold surface.
Which of the following conditions is most likely to lead to the formation
of smoke fog (artic smoke)?
Cold air moving over warm water.
How does freezing rain develop?
Rain falls through a layer where temperatures are below 0 C.
What type of cloud can produce hail showers?
CB.
What is the boundary layer between the troposphere and the
stratosphere called?
Tropopause.
What characteristics will the surface winds have in an area where the
isobars on the weather map are very close together?
Strong and flowing across the isobars.
Which forces are balanced with geostrophic winds?
Pressure gradient force, coriolis force.
How does moderate turbulence affect an aircraft?
Changes in altitude or attitude occur but the aircraft remains in positive
control at all times.
Which degree of aircraft turbulence is determined by the following
ICAO description? There may be moderate changes in aircraft attitude
and / or altitude but the aircraft remains in positive control at all times.
Usually, small variations in air speed. Changes in accelerometer readings
of 0.5 to 1.0g at the aircrafts centre of gravity. Occupants feel strain
against seat belts. Loose objects move about. Food service and walking
become difficult.
Moderate.
For an aircraft what are the meteorological dangers associated with a
Harmattan wind?
Dust and poor visibility.
What is the strong relatively cold katabatic wind, blowing down the
northern Adriatic coast, mainly during the winter and spring called?
Bora.
In a land and sea breeze circulation the land breeze blows?
During the night and is weaker than the sea breeze.
A high pressure area (shallow pressure gradient) covers an area of the
Mediterranean Sea and its near by airport. What surface wind direction
is likely at the airport on a sunny afternoon?
Sea to land.
A mountain breeze (katabatic wind) blows?
Down the slope during the night.
Generally northern hemisphere winds at 5000ft / AGL are southwesterly
while most of the surface winds are southerly. What is the primary
reason of the difference between these two wind directions?
Friction between the wind and the surface.
Friction between the air and the ground results in the northern
hemisphere in?
Backing of the wind and decrease of wind speed at the surface.
Whilst flying at FL 180 on the northern hemisphere an aircraft
experiences right drift. What effect, if any, will this have on the aircraft
true altitude?
It decreases.
0 to 7N.
What weather conditions are indications of the summer monsoon in India?
Thunderstorms, showers of heavy rain.
After passing at right angles through a very active cold front in the
direction of the cold air, what will you encounter, in the northern
hemisphere immediately after a marked change in temperature?
A veering in the wind direction.
When are the rainy seasons in equatorial Africa?
March to May and October to November.
Which of the following best describes the Intertropical Convergence
zone?
The zone where the trade winds of the northern hemisphere meet those
of the southern hemisphere.
What is the likely track for a hurricane in the Caribbean area?
West in the early stages and then turning northeast.
During which seasons are hurricanes most likely to appear in the northern
hemisphere?
Summer and autumn.
What is encounter during the summer, over land, in the centre of a cold
air pool?
Showers and thunderstorms.
How do you recognise a cold air pool?
As a low-pressure area aloft (e.g. on the 500 hPa chart).
What type of air movement is associated with the centre line of a
trough?
Convergence with lifting.
What is the correct term for the descending airflow in a large highpressure area?
Subsidence.
What surface weather is associated with a stationary high-pressure
region over land in the winter?
A tendency for fog and low ST.
In temperate latitudes what weather conditions may be expected over
land during the summer in the centre of a stationary high-pressure zone?
Calm winds, haze.
At what time of the year, are the paths of North Atlantic lows moving
from west to east generally at their most southerly position?
Winter.
What is the relationship between meteorological visibility (met.vis.) and
RVR in homogenous fog?
The met.vis. is generally less than the RVR.
In which weather report would you expect to find information about icing
conditions on the runway?
METAR.
In which of the following 1850 UTC METAR reports, is the probability of
fog formation, in the coming night the highest?
VRB01KT 8000 SCT250 11/10 Q1028 BECMG 3000 =
Which of the following weather reports could be, in accordance with
regulations, abbreviated to CAVOK ? (MSA above ground: LSZB 10000
FT, LSZH 8000 FT, LSGG 12000 FT, LFSB 6000 FT).
LSGG 22003KT 9999 SCT120 BKN280 09/08 Q1026 BECMG 5000 =
Within a short interval, several flight crews have reported they have
experienced strong clear air turbulence in a certain air space. What is
the consequence of these reports?
The competent aviation weather office will issue a SIGMET.
The jetstream and associated clear air turbulence can sometimes be
visually identified in flight by?
Long streaks of cirrus clouds.
During the winter months in mid-latitudes in the northern hemisphere,
the polar front jetstream moves toward the?
South and speed increases.
What causes surface winds to flow across the isobars at an angle rather
than parallel to the isobars?
Surface friction.
What type of fog is likely to form when air having temperature of 15 C
and dewpoint of 12 C blows at 10 knots over a sea surface having
temperatures of 5 C?
Advection fog.
In addition to the lifting action, what are two other conditions necessary
for thunderstorm formation?
Unstable conditions and high moisture content.
If you have to fly through a warm front when freezing level is at 10000ft
in the warm air and at 2000ft in the cold air, at which altitude is the
probability of freezing rain the lowest?
12000ft.
Refer to the TAF below:
EGBB 261812 28015G25KT 9999 SCT025 TEMPO 1822 29018G35KT
5000 SHRASN BKN010CB PROB30 TEMPO 1821 1500 TSGR BKN008CB
BECMG 2124 26010KT
From the TAF above you can assume that the visibility at 2055z in
Birmingham (EGBB) will be?
Not less than 1.5km but could be in excess of 10km.
How does a pilot react to heavy freezing rain at 2000ft / AGL, when he is
unable to deice, nor land?
He turns back before the aircraft loses manoeuvrability.
An aircraft is flying through the polar front jetstream from south to
north, beneath the core. How would the OAT change, in the northern
hemisphere during this portion of the flight?
It decreases.
What is the average height of the artic jetstream core?
20000ft.
What is the approximate ratio between height and width for a jetstream
cross section?
1/100.
Which jetstream blows all year round, over the northern hemisphere?
The sub tropical jetstream.
What is the average height of the jet core within a polar front
jetstream?
30000ft.
An aircraft is flying from south to north, above the polar front
jetstream, at FL 400 in the southern hemisphere. What change, if any, in
temperature will be experienced?
It falls.
A wind speed of 350kt within a jetstream core should be worldwide
regarded as?
Possible but a very rare phenomenon.
An aircraft over Western Europe is crossing a jetstream 2500ft below
its core at right angles. While crossing, the outside air temperature is
increasing the prevailing wind is?
From the right.
Does the following report make sense?
LSZH VRB02KT 5000 MIFG 02/02 Q1015 NOSIG.
The report is possible because shallow fog is defined as a thin layer of
fog below eye level.
You receive the following METAR.
LSGG 0750Z 00000KT 0300 R05/0700N FG VV001 M02/M02 Q1014
NOSIG =
What will be the RVR at 0900 UTC?
The RVR is unknown, because the NOSIG does not refer to RVR.
What name is given to the low-level wind system between the sub tropical
high-pressure belt and the equatorial trough of low pressure (ITCZ)?
Tradewinds.
The QFF at an airfield in California located 69m below sea level is 1030
hPa. The air temperature is 10 C lower than a standard atmosphere.
What is the QNH.
More than 1030 hPa.
If the QFF at Locarno (200m above sea level) is 980 hPa, what is the
approximate QNH?
1005 hPa.
If the QFE at Locarno (200m above sea level) is 1000 hPa, what is the
approximate QNH?
1025 hPa.
If the QNH at Locarno (200m above sea level) is 1015 hPa, what is the
approximate QFE? (assume 1 hPa =8m)
990 hPa.
If the QNH at Locarno (200m above sea level) is 1025 hPa, what is the
approximate QFE?
1000 hPa.
If you are flying at FL 300 in an air mass that is 15 C warmer than a
standard atmosphere, what is the outside air temperature likely to be?
-30 C.
If you are flying at FL 100 in an air mass that is 10 C warmer than a
standard atmosphere, what is the outside air temperature likely to be?
+5 C.
If you are flying at FL 120 and the outside air temperature is 2 C, at
what altitude will the freezing level?
FL 110.
An aircraft flying at FL 100 from Marseille (QNH 1012 hPa)
To Palma de Mallorca (QNH 1006 hPa) experiences no change to true
altitude. The reason for this is?
The air at Palma de Mallorca is warmer than that at Marseille.
During a flight over the sea at FL 100 from Marseille (QNH 1012 hPa) to
Palma de Mallorca (QNH 1012 hPa), the true altitude is constantly
increasing what action, if any, should be taken?
None, the reason for the change is that the air around Palma de Mallorca
is warmer than the air around Marseille.
During a flight over the sea at FL 100 form Marseille (QNH 1016 hPa) to
Palma de Mallorca (QNH 1016 hPa), the true altitude is constantly
decreasing what is the probable reason for this?
The air at Marseille is warmer than that at Palma de Mallorca.
During a flight over the sea at FL 135, the true altitude is 13500 ft; local
QNH is 1019 hPa. What information, if any, can be gained about the air
mass in which the aircraft is flying?
It is colder than ISA.
An aircraft is flying over the sea at FL 90; the true altitude is 9100 ft;
local QNH is unknown. What assumption, if any, can be made about the air
mass in which the aircraft is flying?
There is insufficient information to make any assumption.
An aircraft flying over the sea at FL 120, with a true altitude of 12000
ft; local QNH is 1013 hPa. What assumptions, if any, can be made about
the air mass in which the aircraft is flying?
Its average temperature is the same as ISA.
An aircraft flying over the sea at FL 100, with a true altitude of 10000
ft; local QNH is 1003 hPa. What assumptions, if any, can be made about
the air mass in which the aircraft is flying?
It is warmer than ISA.
An aircraft is flying through the Alps on a very cold winters day. The
regional QNH is 1013 hPa. During the flight, you circle around a mountain
at an altitude of its summit. What reading will the aneroid altimeter give,
compared to the elevation of the summit?
A higher altitude than the elevation of the summit.
An aircraft is flying through the Alps on a warm summers day. The
weather is fine, and there is a high-pressure system in the area. During
the flight, a mountain is passed at an altitude of its summit. What reading
will the aneroid altimeter give, compared to the summits elevation?
A lower altitude than the elevation of the summit.
An aircraft is descending to land under IFR. If the local QNH is 1009
hPa, what will happen to the altitude reading when the altimeter is reset
at the transition level?
It will decrease.
During a climb after take off, the altimeter setting is adjusted at the
transition altitude. If the local QNH is 1023 hPa, what will happen to the
altimeter reading during the resetting procedure?
It will decrease.
During a climb after take off, the altimeter setting is adjusted at the
transition altitude. If the local QNH is 966 hPa, what will happen to the
altimeter reading during the resetting procedure?
It will increase.
You are flying at FL 200. Outside air temperature is 40 C, and the
pressure at sea level is 1033 hPa. What is the true altitude?
19340 ft.
Which of the following is typical for the passage of a cold front in the
summer?
Mainly towering clouds.
With a uniform pressure pattern and no thunderstorms around, what will
the indications of the aneroid altimeter of an aircraft parked on the
ground do over the period of about 10 minutes?
Apparently nothing, because any changes would be small.
In which of these temperature bands is ice most likely to form on the
aircrafts surface?
0 C to 10 C.
Which of the following statements is true regarding moderate to severe
airframe icing?
It is likely to occur in nimbostratus cloud.
Which of the following statements is true regarding moderate to severe
airframe icing?
It will not occur in clear sky conditions.
In which of these cloud types can icing be virtually ruled out?
CS.
Which of the following conditions is most likely to cause airframe icing?
+FZRA.
At what degree of icing should ICAOs change of course and/or altitude
desirable recommendation be followed?
Moderate.
At what degree of icing should ICAOs change course and/or altitude
immediately instruction be followed?
Severe.
At what degree of icing should ICAOs no change of course and/or
altitude necessary recommendation be followed?
Light.
When will the surface wind in a METAR record a gust factor?
When gusts are at least 10 knots above the mean wind speed.
What are the images of satellites provided daily by the weather service
used for?
To locate fronts in areas with few observation stations.
Which of the following cause echoes on meteorological radar screens?
Hail.
Which constant pressure altitude chart is standard for a 9882 ft
pressure level (FL 100)?
700 hPa.
You must make an emergency landing at sea level. The QNH of a field on a
nearby island with an elevation of 4000 ft is 1025 hPa and the
temperature is 20 C. What is your pressure altimeter reading when
landing if 1025 hPa is set in the subscale?
Less than 0 ft.
The troposphere?
Has a greater vertical extent above the equator than above the poles.
What values are used for the forecasted wind at higher levels?
Direction relative to true north and speed in knots.
A wide body takes off on a clear night in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. Shortly
after take off the aircrafts rate of climb drops to zero. This can be due
to?
A very strong temperature inversion.
Flight visibility from the cockpit during approach in a tropical down pour
can decrease to minimal?
Tens of metres.
In what hPa range is an upper weather chart for FL 340 situated?
300 hPa 200 hPa.
Isobars on a surface chart are lines of equal?
QFF.
The Bora is a?
Cold katabatic wind with the possibility of violent gusts.
The range of the wind speed in which radiation fog is most likely to form
is?
Below 5 kt.
For a given airfield the QFE is 980 hPa and the QNH is 1000 hPa. The
approximate elevation of the airfield is?
160 metres.
When water evaporates into unsaturated air?
Heat is absorbed.
A moist but unsaturated parcel of air becomes saturated by?
Lifting the parcel to a higher layer.
A sample of moist but unsaturated air may become saturated by?
Expanding it adiabatically.
Precipitation in the form of showers occurs mainly from?
Convective clouds.
A super-cooled droplet is?
A droplet still in liquid state at a temperature below freezing.
Steady precipitation, in contrast to showery precipitation falls from?
Stratiform clouds with little or no turbulence.
The maximum amount of water vapour that the air can contain depends on
the?
Air temperature.
Convective clouds are formed?
In unstable atmosphere.
Altostratus clouds are classified as?
Medium level clouds.
The most effective way to dissipate cloud is by?
Subsidence.
A cumulonimbus cloud at moderate latitudes in summer contains?
A combination of ice crystals, water droplets and super-cooled water
droplets.
Strongly developed cumulus clouds are an indication of?
Instability in the atmosphere.
Areas of sinking air are generally cloudless because as air sinks it?
Is heated by compression.
The main factor which contributes to the formation of very low clouds
ahead of a warm front is the?
Saturation of the cold air by rain falling into it and evaporating.
Clouds, classified as being low level are considered to have bases from?
The surface to 6500 ft.
Which of the following are medium level clouds?
Altostratus and altocumulus.
In an unstable layer there are cumuliform clouds. The vertical extent of
these clouds depends on the?
Thickness of the unstable layer.
Which of the following phenomena are formed when a moist, stable layer
of air is forced to rise against a mountain range?
Stratified clouds.
The height of the lifting condensation level is determined by?
Temperature and dewpoint at the surface.
Cumulus clouds are an indication for?
Up and down drafts.
What type of cloud is being described? A generally grey cloud layer with
a fairly uniform base and uniform appearance, which may give drizzle or
snow grains. When the sun is visible through the cloud, the outline is
clearly discernible. Sometimes it appears in the form of ragged patches?
Stratus.
The presence of altocumulus castellanus indicates?
Instability in the middle troposphere.
The wind tends to follow the contour lines (isohypses) above the friction
layer because?
The Coriolis force tends to balance with the horizontal pressure gradient
force.
The wind speed in a system with curved isobars compared to a system
with straight isobars is (other conditions being the same)?
Higher if curvature is anti-cyclonic.
Divergence in the upper air results, near the surface, in?
Falling pressure and likely formation of clouds.
The geostrophic wind depends on?
Density, earths rotation, geographical latitude.
In a mountain valley wind circulation, the mountain wind blows?
At night down from the mountains.
At the approach of a warm front (northern hemisphere) the wind
direction changes from the surface up to the tropopause. The effect of
this change is that the wind?
Veers in the friction layer and veers above the friction layer.
The difference between the geostrophic wind and gradient wind is caused
by?
Curvature of the isobars.
The vertical extent of the friction layer depends primarily on?
Stability, wind speed, roughness of the surface.
During periods of prolonged clear skies associated with anti-cyclonic
conditions, the?
Surface wind speed tends to be highest during the early afternoon.
The Chinook is a?
Warm and dry wind that forms as air descends on the leeward side of the
Rocky Mountains.
The geostrophic wind speed is directly proportional to the?
Horizontal pressure gradient.
A strong, dry and warm katabatic wind, produced by prior enforced
ascent of air over hills or mountains is known as a?
Foehn.
A dry, sand and dust laden North Easterly wind that blows in the winter
over large parts of North West Africa is known as a?
Harmattan.
Geostrophic wind?
Is perpendicular to the horizontal pressure gradient force.
In a low pressure system the convergence at the surface is caused by?
Frictional forces.
Along the West coast of India the prevailing winds are the?
SW monsoon in July and a NE monsoon in January.
In which of the following situations is an aircraft most susceptible to
icing?
Level flight below a rain producing cloud when OAT is below 0 C.
Which of the following cloud types are most likely to produce light to
moderate icing when they are not subject to orographic lifting and
consist of?
Altocumulus and altostratus.
A winter day in northern Europe with a thick layer of stratocumulus
clouds and a temperature close to zero degrees C at ground level, you can
expect?
A high probability for icing in clouds. Severe icing in the upper part due
to accumulation of large droplets.
Which of the following statements concerning the formation of aircraft
icing is most correct?
A cloud consisting of both super-cooled cloud droplets and ice crystals
produces aircraft icing.
Which of the following factors have the greatest effect on the
formation of the various types of ice on an aircraft?
Cloud temperature and droplet size.
Hoar frost is most likely to form when?
Taking off from an airfield with a significant ground inversion.
Two aircraft, one with a sharp wing profile (S) and the other with a thick
profile (T), are flying through the same cloud with same true airspeed.
The cloud consists of small super-cooled droplets. Which of the following
statements is most correct concerning ice accretion?
Aircraft S experiences more icing that T.
While descending through a cloud cover at high level, a small amount of a
white rough powder like contamination is detected along the leading edge
of the wing. This contamination is called?
Rime ice.
A small super-cooled cloud droplet that collides with an aerofoil will most
likely?
Freeze immediately and create rime ice.
What is the name of the northerly, cold and strong wind, that sometimes
blows over a certain part of Europe?
Mistral.
What are the characteristics of the Bora?
It is a cold and very strong wind that blows mainly in winter from a
tableland downwards to the Adriatic.
The reason for the fact, that the Icelandic low is normally deeper in the
winter than in summer is that?
The temperature contrast between arctic and equatorial areas are much
greater in winter.
Which of the following statements is correct concerning the movement of
the ITCZ in the region of West Africa?
It reaches its maximum northerly position of 15 - 20 N in July.
What is the name of the wind or air mass which gives to the main part of
India its greatest proportion of precipitation?
Southwest monsoon.
Most strong air currents at higher levels (jet streams) have a westerly
direction. There is, however, an important easterly jet stream. When and
where is it likely to be encountered?
In the summer from Southeast Asia extending over southern India to
central Africa.
What is the type, intensity and seasonal variation of precipitation in the
equatorial region?
Rain showers, hail showers and thunderstorms occur the whole year, but
frequency is highest during two periods: April May and October
November.
A flight is to depart from an airport with runways 09 and 27. Surface
wind is 270/05; an inversion is reported at 300 ft with turbulence and
wind shear. The wind just above the inversion is 090/30. What is the
safest departure procedure?
Depart on runway 09 with a tailwind.
The turbulence which occurs at high flight levels (above FL250) is mainly
of the type CAT. In what way can moderate to severe CAT affect an
aircraft, the flight and passengers?
The turbulence is a small scale one and can cause damage of worn out
type. The manoeuvring of the aircraft will be made more difficult or even
impossible for the passengers the flight will be unpleasant.
An aircraft struck by lightning may sometimes get considerable damage
and at least temporarily the manoeuvring of the aircraft will be made
more difficult. Which of the following statements is correct?
Aircraft made by composite materials may get severe damage, the crew
may be blinded and temporarily lose their hearing.
Which is true of the temperature at the tropopause?
It is higher in the polar regions than in equatorial regions.
The value of the saturated adiabatic lapse rate is closest to that of the
dry adiabatic lapse rate in?
Cirrus.
For a similar pressure gradient, the geostrophic wind speed will be?
Greater at 30N than at 60N.
For the same pressure gradient at 60N, 50N and 40N the speed of
the geostrophic wind will be?
Greatest at 40N.
Under anti-cyclone conditions in the northern hemisphere, with curved
isobars the speed of the gradient wind is?
Greater than the geostrophic wind.
In which of the following areas do surface pressure systems usually
predominate over the North Atlantic region between 30N and 65N and
the adjoining land areas during the northern summer?
Azores, SE USA, SW Europe.
In the northern hemisphere the gradient wind of a cyclonic pressure
distribution is 350/24, over the sea the surface wind would approximate?
340/20.
The following statements deal with precipitation, turbulence and icing.
Select the list containing the most likely alternatives for NS cloud?
Precipitation may be snow, sleet or rain. Icing is probable any may range
between light and severe. Turbulence is rarely more than moderate.
Select the answer which you consider will complete correctly the
following statement in relation to the main pressure system affecting the
North Atlantic region between 30N and 65N. During winter the
predominant mean low-pressure system at the surface is usually centred
over?
Iceland / Greenland.
Considering the North Atlantic region between 30N and 65N and the
adjacent land areas during mid-summer, the predominant pressure
systems are?
Azores high and weak low over NE Canada.
Considering the North Atlantic region between 30N and 65N together
with the adjacent land areas during winter, the normal disposition of the
main anticyclones at the surface is?
Azores, Siberia.
Which is true of a secondary depression in the northern hemisphere?
It tends to move round the primary in a cyclonic sense.
Why do tropical revolving storms tend to develop mostly in the western
part of the tropical oceans?
Because there is a maximum of humidity as a result of the trade winds
long sea passage.