1. Deforestation is a good example of a human activity that effects the environment. Name at least three other activities or human-induced effects, which can be observed from space, that have the potential to impact the environment.
2. Parts of the U.S. southwest are experiencing a dreadful drought and heat wave, in which direction is the air aloft moving in a heat wave, and why is this important?
3. You've probably heard the expression "once in a blue moon." What is a blue moon and when will the next one occur? Hint: there are two different definitions for a blue moon.
4. What causes the monsoon and what parts of the world experience monsoon climates?
5. Do the eruptions of volcanoes, like Mt. St. Helens in Washington State sixteen years ago, generally make the Earth warmer or cooler?
6. Would the Earth's weather be any different if the moon didn't exist?
7. We'll probably be spending more time outside in the next few months. We're more aware now about the consequences of avoiding soaking up too much Sun. Which location do you think receives the most ultraviolet radiation, beneath the ozone hole in Antarctica during July, beneath the ozone hole during October, the North Pole during June, or the southwestern U.S. during June?
8. What is a halo, and in which ways is it different from a rainbow?
9. Which is more rare, a total eclipse of the sun or moon?
10. Comets, Where do they come from, and what makes them shine? The comet Hyakutake is coming, and we should be able to get a pretty good look at it, if those darn clouds don't interfere too much. It should be visible to the un-aided eye beginning on about March 23 (next Saturday). Look for it just to the east of the Big Dipper . It should be about as bright as the brighest stars in the "Dipper" - bright enough to see even in urban areas.
11. Are the continents more cloudy in the winter or the summer, and do clouds make the Earth cooler or warmer?
12. The fall and spring months are the most variable. In March, temperatures can be hot and cold, and there can be thunderstorms as well and snowstorms. What if anything is the difference between hail, sleet, graupel and freezing rain?
13. This year there is a February 29. It's a leap year. Are leap years warmer, cooler or about the same temperature as non-leap years?
14. If the sky is clear this coming Wednesday (Feb. 21), watch in the western sky, just after sunset, as the moon and Venus appear to draw very close to one another.
15. During the Arctic outbreak last week, some all-time low temperature records were set. What contributed to these extreme temperatures?
16. Which of the following has some validity in forecasting the weather or climate: The groundhog sees its shadow, there is a circle around the moon, the caterpillars are woolly this year or their bands are wider than last year, the squirrels are gathering more nuts, the expression "red skies at night sailors' delight, red skies at morn sailors be warned", the almanac says..., the birds are flying south earlier this year, the fishing is poor off the coast of Peru?
17. Last week the northeastern U.S. experienced near-record flooding. Contributing to the floods were heavy rains which fell onto deep snowpacks, and temperatures that were in the 50s and 60s (F). What other factors were responsible for the flooding?
18. You are sitting in your classroom looking out the window daydreaming (in reality this probably never happens). The sky is overcast and clouds obscure the Sun, it snowed several inches the other day and across the way you see a wall which was recently painted white. Which of these three things (the sky, the snow or the wall) is the brightest?
19. How are wintertime east coast storms different from west coast storms in the U.S., and where else in the world is likely to experience storms similar to those that effect the Atlantic coastal states?
20. What is the largest temperature change ever recorded at any one place in the U.S. over a 24 hr. period?
21. Hollow columns, needles, solid plates and stellar dendrites refer to what? What do two or more of these form?
22. The winter solstice will occur next week. This is the day in the Northern Hemisphere when the period of daylight is the shortest. Is this also the day of the latest sunrise and the earliest sunset?
23. What annual shower occurs about this time each year, and what causes it?
24. Next week there will be a full moon and the planet Venus will be brilliant in the western sky just after sunset; does the full moon reflect more or less light than the Earth, and why is it that Venus is brightest in its' crescent phase rather than its' full phase?
25. Most of the places that normally get snow during the winter have already received their first snowfall. - Rank the following list of places according to annual snowfall amounts; Salt Lake City, Seattle, Chicago, Boston and the South Pole.
26. If you wanted to see the northern lights, where would you go to get the best view?
27. Are you more likely to see a rainbow at 3pm in July or 3pm in November?
28. How can Allen become Benita or Helen become Juan?Yes, this is a weather related question.
29. Sunny days, cool nights, adequate moisture in the soil, and near normal temperatures are required to produce vivid fall colors. Name an ingredient (or ingredients) that is missing from the above list.
30. The weather in Maryland this week has been warm, but not really hot, with cool night and clear skies. However, this is not technically considered to be Indian Summer weather. Why?
    Also, in Sept. and Oct., what weather phenomenon do we usually experience more than any other time of the year?