1. At a large airport the various elements of a weather observation:
a. must all be taken at the same location b. may be taken at the touchdown area of the main runway, at the control tower, or at the center of the runway complex c. must be taken by the National Weather Service d. must be reviewed by the FAA prior to transmission Answer
2. The primary observation code used in the U.S. to satisfy requirements for reporting surface meteorological data is:
a. METAR b. SA c. synoptic d. SHEF Answer
3. A METAR observation contains _____ section(s), _____________________________ .
a. 1, the body of the report b. 1, the remarks c. 2, the body of the report and the remarks d. 3, the time, the data, and the remarks Answer
4. A SPECI observation contains ______ section(s), ______________________________.
a. 1, the body of the report b. 1, the remarks c. 2, the body of the report and the remarks d. 3, the time, the data, and the remarks Answer
5. Which of the following meet SPECI criteria (more than one answer):
_____ the wind speed is 15 kt while the wind direction changes by 60 degrees in 10 minutes _____ surface visibility drops from 2 1/2 miles to 2 miles _____ the RVR value drops from 3,000 ft to 2,000 ft during a 10 minute period _____ a tornado is observed _____ hail intensity changes _____ thunderstorms or squalls are observed _____ the ceiling changes from 3,000 ft to 2,500 ft AGL _____ a new cloud layer is observed below 1,000 ft AGL _____ an aircraft mishap occurs Answer
6. Which of the following statements are true (more than one answer):
_____ all observers must be trained but not certified _____ all fractional parts of a number are rounded up _____ METAR observations are transmitted at fixed intervals _____ the actual date and time of METAR shall be the time that the last element of the observation is taken _____ the time disseminated in METAR observations will reference a 24-hour LST clock Answer
7. For automated systems, sky condition values represent a time average over the past _______ minutes while other elements are based on sensor data from the last _______ minutes.
Answer
8. At no time shall a manual observation be started more than _______ minutes prior to the scheduled observation time.
Answer
9. All METAR observations:
a. have the same dissemination priority b. shall be disseminated long-line first, then locally c. shall be given long-line dissemination d. shall be given local dissemination Answer
10. Corrected reports are not transmitted if they:
a. are more than 15 minutes old b. are superceded by a later report c. are recorded locally d. have only minor corrections Answer
11. METAR observations shall not be transmitted sooner than _______ minutes before their scheduled time.
Answer
12. What remark is appended to the report of a METAR or SPECI observation that is not transmitted?
Answer
13. Regardless of the delay, observations containing which of the following elements shall be disseminated:
a. volcanic eruptions b. tornadoes c. thunderstorms d. blizzards Answer
1. b [2.4]
2. a [2.5.1]
3. c [2.5.1]
4. c [2.5.2]
5. Yes the wind speed ...
No surface visibility ...
Yes the RVR value ...
Yes a tornado ...
No hail intensity ...
Yes thunderstorms ...
Yes the ceiling changes ...
Yes a new cloud layer ...
Yes an aircraft mishap ... [2.5.2a]
6. False all observers ... [2.6.1]
False all fractoinal parts ... [2.6.3]
True METAR observations ... [2.6.4]
True the actual date and time ... [2.6.4c]
False the time disseminated ... [2.6.4d]
7. 30, 10 [2.7.1]
8. 15 [2.7.2]
9. d [2.8.2, 2.8.3]
10. b [2.8.4]
11. 10 [2.9]
12. FIBI - Filed But Impractical to Transmit [2.10]
13. a [2.10]