UNIT-II

METEOROLOGY
PART-A
1. Define Meteorology.
Meteorology is a science that deals with the atmosphere and its phenomena and
especially with weather and weather forecasting.

2. What are the uses of meteorogical data?

Meteorological data helps:

 identify the source of pollutants

 predict air pollution events such as inversions and high-pollutant concentration days
 simulate and predict air quality using computer models.

3. List the meteorological factors that influence air quality.

 Sunlight
 Horizontal dispersion
 Vertical mixing
 Transport
 Clouds and precipitation
 Temperature and humidity

4. How meteorology affects the atmosphere?

Meteorological factors have an important effect on the amount of pollution in the
atmosphere. Temperature and solar radiation affect the quantities of pollutant emitted by
their influence on the amount of space heating required. Sunshine is required in a
photochemical production of oxidants forming smog. The wind velocity, turbulence and
stability affect the transport, dilution and dispersion of the pollutants. The rainfall has a
scavenging effect in washing out ("rainout") particles in the atmosphere. Finally, the
humidity is a frequent and important factor in determining the effect that concentrations of
pollutants have on property, vegetation and health.

5. What is Lapse rate?

The lapse rate is the rate at which an atmospheric variable, normally temperature in Earth's

atmosphere, changes with altitude Lapse rate arises from the word lapse, in the sense of a
gradual change.

6. What is wind rose?

A wind rose is a graphic tool used by meteorologists to give a succinct view of how wind
speed and direction are typically distributed at a particular location.
7. Define Atmospheric inversion.
Atmospheric inversions are horizontal layers of air that increase in temperature with height.
Such warm, light air often lies over air that is cooler and heavier. As a result the air has a
strong vertical stability, especially in the absence of strong winds. It plays an important role
in air quality. They can trap air pollutants below or within them, causing high concentrations
in a volume of air that would otherwise be able to dilute air pollutants throughout a large
portion of the troposphere.

8. Define NAAQS.

The clean air act requires U.S EPA to set national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS)
for pollutants that are considered harmful to the public environment.

9. What is lofting and looping?

Lofting
Lofting is a drafting technique whereby curved lines are generated, to be used in plans for
streamlined objects such as aircraft and boats. The lines may be drawn on wood and the wood then
cut for advanced woodworking. 
looping
Under extreme inversion condition (due to negative lapse rate), fanning plume is obtained. ... In an
unstable atmosphere, rapid air movements take place vertically, both upward and downward and
the plume becomes a looping plume. • As a result of this, high concentrations of pollutants may
occur near the ground
10. Define wind rose.

The wind rose is the time honored methods of graphically presenting the wind conditions,
direction and speed, over a period of time at a specific location.

11. What is the effect of wind direction?

Since the wind directs the travel of the pollutants, the expected persistence of the wind
direction, as related to the topographic features and the locations of the receptors, must be
considered both in forecasting the air pollution potential as well as in selecting sites for
plants.

12. Write the plume rise computing formula suggested by Indian Standard.

hs = hs+2ds [vs /us -1.5] for vs<1.5us

OR

hs = hs for vs ≥ 1.5us

where T =Ta – Ts is stack gas temperature (k), and Ta is ambient air temperature (K). for
determining plume rise due to the momentum of plume.
13. Define lapse rate.

The lapse rate is the rate at which an atmospheric variable, normally temperature in Earth's

atmosphere, changes with altitude. Although this concept is most often applied to the earth
troposphere, it can be extended to any gravitationally supported parcel of gas.

14. What is Wind Rose? List its application.

A wind rose is a graphic tool used by meteorologists to give a succinct view of how wind
speed and direction are typically distributed at a particular location. The direction of the
longest spoke shows the wind direction with the greatest frequency.

15. What is a wind rose diagram?

A wind rose diagram is a tool which graphically displays wind speed and wind direction at a
particular location over a period of time.

16. What is Mixing Height?

The mixing height is the height of vertical mixing of air and suspended particles above the
ground. This height is determined by the observation of the atmospheric temperature profile.

17. Define Ambient air quality

It refers to physical and chemical measure of the concentration of contaminants in the

ambient atmosphere. The quality is usually monitored over a specific period.

18. What is the word MINAS stands for?

Minimum National Air Quality Standards.

19. Define Fumigation

The phenomenon in which pollutants that are aloft in the air are brought rapidly to
ground level when the air destabilizes is called Fumigation.

20. Define Dispersion.

Many atmospheric factors influence the way air pollution is dispersed, including wind direction
and wind speed, type of terrain and heating effects. To better understand how atmosphere
processes can affect ground level pollution, atmospheric conditions can be described simply as
either stable or unstable, where the stability is determined by wind (which stirs the air) and
heating effects (which cause convection currents).

21. Write short note on Air monitoring.

It means the process of detention and measurement of pollutants in air.

22. Briefly explain Gaussian model

The Gaussian model is perhaps the oldest (circa 1936) and perhaps the most commonly
used model type. It assumes that the air pollutant dispersion has a Gaussian distribution,
meaning that the pollutant distribution has a normal probability distribution. Gaussian models
are most often used for predicting the dispersion of continuous, buoyant air pollution plumes
originating from ground-level or elevated sources. Gaussian models may also be used for
predicting the dispersion of non-continuous air pollution plumes (called puff models). The
primary algorithm used in Gaussian modeling is the Generalized Dispersion Equation for a
Continuous Point-Source Plume.

23. Explain Lagrangian dispersion model

A Lagrangian dispersion model mathematically follows pollution plume parcels (also called
particles) as the parcels move in the atmosphere and they model the motion of the parcels as a
random walk process. The Lagrangian model then calculates the air pollution dispersion by
computing the statistics of the trajectories of a large number of the pollution plume parcels. A
Lagrangian model uses a moving frame of reference] as the parcels move from their initial location.
It is said that an observer of a Lagrangian model follows along with the plume.

24. Briefly explain Eulerian dispersion model

Eulerian dispersions model is similar to a Lagrangian model in that it also tracks

the movement of a large number of pollution plume parcels as they move from their initial
location. The most important difference between the two models is that the Eulerian model uses
a fixed three- dimensional Cartesian grid as a frame of reference rather than a moving frame of
reference

25. Write the effects of wind speed.

The effect of an increase in wind speed on the concentrations resulting from low-level
sources of emissions is to dilute the pollutants - the concentration of pollutants in a
downwind location from a ground-level source is inversely proportional to the wind speed.
High air pollution potential forecasts for most large urban areas where low-level emissions
are the principal sources of pollution include light wind speed as one of the criteria.
26. What is Chimney?

Chimney is a structure with an opening or outlet from or through which any air pollutant
may be emitted.

27. Define Coning.

Coning means a type of plume which is like a cone. It takes place in a near neutral
atmosphere when the wind velocity is greater than 32km/h.
28. What Is Plume?

The path and extent in the atmosphere of the gaseous effluent released from the source,
usually a stack.

29. Briefly explain Chimney effect.

The vertical penetration of smog through the inversion layer on the south slope of the San

Gabriel and San Bernardino Mountains caused by the strong solar heating in the afternoon.
30. Define Fall out
A radioactive pollutant in the air caused after the explosion of a nuclear device, its degree of
contamination depending on several factors, such as distance, wind, and power of the device.
31. What is the world MINAS stands for?
MINAS stands to raise awareness among regulators, industry and consumers as to the
importance of standardization to the global economy.
32. What is mixing height?
The oceanic or limnological mixed layer is a layer in which active turbulence has
homogenized some range of depths. The surface mixed layer is a layer where this turbulence
is generated by winds, surface heat fluxes or process such as evaporation or sea ice
formation which result in an increase in salinity.
33. Define fumigation.
Fumigation is a method of pest control that completely fills an area with gaseous pesticides
or fumigants to suffocate or poison the pests within.
34. Define dispersion.
In statistics dispersion also called variability, scatter, or spread is the extent to which a
distribution is stretched or squeezed.
35. Write short notes on air monitoring.
Monitoring is an exercise to measure ambient levels of air pollution in an area. The result of
which indicate the status of quality of air we breath.
36. Define mass concentration.
 Mass concentration in chemistry, the mass concentration ρi (or γi) is defined as the mass of
a constituent mi divided by the volume of the mixture V.
37. What do you meant by pressure drop?
Pressure drop is defined as the difference in pressure between two points of a fluid carrying
network. Pressure drop occurs when frictional forces, caused by the resistance to flow, act
on a fluid as it flows through the tube.
38. What is relative humidity?
Relative humidity (RH) is the ratio of the partial pressure of water vapor to the equilibrium
vapor pressure of water at a given temperature. Relative humidity depends on temperature
and the pressure of the system of interest.
39. What is inversion?
Inversions are important because they suppress vertical dispersion of pollution and often
trap pollution near the surface where we live.
40. What is stability?
Stability is associated with how air parcels behave once they are displaced vertically from
their initial once they are displaced vertically from their initial positions.
41. Write the causes of turbulence.
The most common cause is turbulent air in the atmosphere. Jet streams trigger sudden
changes in wind speed that can rock the plane. ... It's created by hot rising air, usually from
cumulus clouds or thunderstorms. Mechanical turbulence is caused by the landscape.
42. List the classification of atmospheric stability.
Three types
 Positive stability implies that a displaced air parcel will return to its initial
position; associated with high pollution
 Neutral stability Neutral stability implies that a displaced air parcel will
implies that a displaced air parcel will remain at its new position; associated
with moderate pollution
 Negative stability, or instability, means that a displaced air parcel will
continue to accelerate away from its rest position; associated with low
pollution
43. Define coning in stack plume.
Plume refers to the path and extent in the atmosphere of the gaseous effluents released from a
source usually a stack (chimney). The behavior of a plume emitted from any stack depends on
localized air stability.
44. Define looping in stack plume.
Looping plume is of wavy character and occurs in super adiabatic
environment (ELR>ALR), which produces highly unstable atmosphere
because of rapid mixing.
45. Define fanning in stack plume.
They are created when atmospheric conditions are stable above the plume and
unstable below. This happens most often after the daylight sun has warmed the
atmosphere, which turns a night time fanning plume into fumigation for about a
half an hour.
46. Define fumigation in stack plume.
Plume trapped by inversion above stack height.
47. Define lofting in stack plume.
The upward lifting of the plume will continue till it reaches a height where
density and temperature of surrounding air are equal to it. Under conditions of
strong super adiabatic lapse rate just above the stack and negative lapse rate
(inversion) just below the opening of stack, lofting plume is obtained.
48. Define plume rise.
Plume will rise due to momentum and buoyancy forces before reaching an
equilibrium height. Plume rise increases with higher buoyancy or momentum
of the plume and decreases with increasing wind speed or vertical temperature
gradient in the atmosphere.
49. What are gravity waves?
Gravitational waves are disturbances in the curvature of space-time, generated
by accelerated masses, that propagate as waves outward from their source at
the speed of light

50. What is wind shear?

Wind shear (or windshear), sometimes referred to as wind gradient, is a
difference in wind speed or direction over a relatively short distance in the
atmosphere. Atmospheric wind shear is normally described as either vertical or
horizontal wind shear.