Question

There is a close relationship between the air pressure inside a hurricane and its maximum sustained wind speed: y=−1.22x+1250 where x is the air pressure in millibars (kPa) and y is the wind speed in knots (nautical miles per hour).

What does the slope of the line represent?
A. the change in wind speed for every 1 kPa increase in air pressure
B. the wind speed of a hurricane with an air pressure of 1000 kPa
C. the wind speed of a hurricane with an air pressure of 0 kPa
D. the change in wind speed for every hour

Answer 1

A. the change in wind speed for every 1 kPa increase in air pressure

Explanation:

The equation of a straight line is given by:

y = mx + b;

where y, x are variables, m is the slope (rate of change) of the line and b is the y intercept (value of y when x = 0)

Given the line y=−1.22x+1250 where x is the air pressure in millibars (kPa) and y is the wind speed in knots.

The slope of the line is -1.22. The slope means that there is a decrease in wind speed by 1.22 miles per hour for every increase of 1 kPa in air pressure.