Environmental lapse rate is the measure of the rate of temperature decrease with height in the atmosphere at a specific time and location.

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Start by parsing the statement: Environmental lapse rate refers to how temperature changes with altitude in the atmosphere, and it may vary with time and place.
Option 1 (True): This aligns with the standard meteorological definition. The environmental lapse rate is indeed defined as the actual rate of temperature change with height at a given location and time, reflecting local atmospheric conditions, and it can differ from place to place and from moment to moment.
Option 2 (False): If one argued that lapse rate must be a fixed, universally constant value, that would be inaccurate. The environmental lapse rate is not a universal constant; it varies with weather patterns, humidity, convection, radiation, and other atmospheric processes, which makes the statement true rather than false because variability by time and location is precisely what the environmental lapse rate accounts for.
Option 3 (False alternative reasoning): The term could be confused with the dry adiabatic lapse rate or moist adiabatic lapse rate, which are specific, more theoretical rates used under certain conditions. However, the environmental lapse rate is a separate, broader concept that captures the actual observed rate at a specific time and place, not a fixed theoretical value, so claiming it is not tied to time and location would be inaccurate.
Option 4 (False alternative reasoning): Some might think environmental lapse rate is defined only under stable conditions or only at sea level, but in reality it is defined for any height in the atmosphere and for any location, reflecting real-time vertical temperature profiling rather than being restricted to particular environments.
After evaluating each option, the reasoning highlights that the core idea of the environmental lapse rate is its dependence on time and location, and its variability with atmospheric conditions, which supports the intuitive accuracy of the statement.

CLMTGR5001_002_2025_3 - Dynamics of Climate Variability and Chan Midterm Group A (Secure Browser)

Environmental lapse rate is the measure of the rate of temperature decrease with height in the atmosphere at a specific time and location.

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