Chapter 10 pt. 2 Flashcards
(29 cards)
What are 3 Sources of Gas
- Out-gassing from volcanoes
- evaporation of surface liquid; sublimation of surface ice
- Impacts of particles and photons
What are 5 Losses of Gas
- Thermal escape of atoms
- Sweeping by solar wind
- Condensation onto surface
- Chemical reactions with surface
- Large impacts blasting gas into space
Thermal Escape
When heating of an atmosphere allows molecules to escape
Does the Moon and Mercury have any atmosphere?
Yes, but they are very thin
What is the Moon’s exosphere like?
it extends high above it’s surface
What is Mercury’s exosphere like?
Much of it is escaping
Does the Moon and Mercury have polar ice craters?
Yes
What is Mars like?
- Cold
- Dry
- Frozen
- Strong seasonal changes cause CO2 to move from pole to pole creating dust storms
How does Mars’ orbit effect it’s seasons
The ellipticity of Mars’s orbit makes seasons more extreme in the southern hemisphere
What are the polar ice caps of Mars like?
- Residual ice of the south polar cap remain during the summer is mostly water ice
- Carbon dioxide ice of polar cap sublimates as summer approaches and condenses at the opposite pole
What are the dust storms on Mars like?
- Seasonal winds drive the dust storms
- Dust in the atmosphere absorbs blue light, makes the sky brownish-pink
What is the range of Mars’ tilt?
0 to 60 degrees
How does Mars’ tilt affect the planet?
- Causes climate changes
- Alternating layers of ice and dust show this
What is the history of climate change on Mars?
- Has not had widespread surface water for 3 billion years
- Greenhouse Effect probably kept the surface warmer before that
- Somehow lost most of its’ atmosphere
What about Mars’ atmosphere?
- Magnetic field may have preserved its’ early atmosphere
- Solar wind may have stripped atmosphere after field decreased because of interior cooling
What is the atmosphere of Venus like?
- Thick carbon dioxide atmosphere
- surface pressure 90x that of Earth
- Slow rotation produces very weak Coriolis Effect
- Little weather
The Greenhouse Effect on Venus
Thick carbon dioxide atmosphere produces very strong greenhouse effect
How did Venus get so hot?
- Reflective clouds w sulfuric acid
- The upper atmosphere has fast winds that remain unexplained
Runaway Greenhouse Effect
a planet’s atmosphere traps so much heat that its surface temperature rises uncontrollably, leading to a planet becoming uninhabitable
(Venus)
What is the main reason Venus is hotter than Earth?
Greenhouse effect is much stronger on Venus that on Earth
How did Earth’s atmosphere end up so different?
- We have oceans that can dissolved atmospheric carbon dioxide, trapping it in rocks
- Ultraviolet light can break up o2 molecules allowing the ozone to form
Why does Earth’s climate stay relatively stable?
The carbon dioxide cycle
What are the consequences of Earth changing its tilt?
- May lead to ice ages
- Widespread ice tends to lower global temperatures by increasing Earth’s reflectivity
What is current CO2 concentration looking like?
The highest it’s been in at least 500,000 years
