Snow CrystalSNOW HYDROLOGY (GEOG 4321): HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT 1

Instuctor: Mark Williams
Telephone: 492-8830




Homework 1

  1. Convert 45 m/s, a wind speed measured at Niwot Ridge last fall, to km/hr and miles/hr (5 points).
  2. The melting point of ice decreases by 7.4 x 10-3 deg C when pressure increases by 1 atm. A 160-lb ice skater can exert a pressure equivalent to 600 atm on the ice directly under their ice skates. Consequently, the ice under the skates melts at a temperature lower than 0 deg C, so that the skate actually slides on a film of water. How much does a pressure of 600 atm lower the freezing point of ice, in deg C? (5 points).
  3. Starting with a mass of 100g of ice at -10degC, calculate the energy needed in Joules (J) to vaporize the ice at +100degC, as follows (10 points):
  4. Draw a single water vapor molecule and label (5 points):
  5. Explain why the maximum density of water occurs at +4degC and not at 0degC. Keywords must include hydrogen bonding, crystalline lattice, ice, Ih, and polymer (5 points).
  6. Following are actual data collected at the meteorological tower on Niwot Ridge. Calculate the average loss of water from the snowpack in mm/day for the months of November (no liquid water in snowpack) and May (liquid water in snowpack). To answer this question, remember that watts (W) are equal to Joules per second (J/s), and that there are 1000 kilograms of water per cubic meter of water (10 points).

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