Domain 3: Earth and Space Science Flashcards
(27 cards)
Planets
Generally divided into two main types: large, low-density gas giants, and smaller, rocky terrestrials. There are eight planets in the Solar System. In order from the Sun, they are four terrestrials, Mergury, Venus, Earth, and Mars, and then the four gas giants, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.
Comet
A small solar system body that orbits the Sun and, when close enough to the Sun, exhibits a visible coma or a tail - both primarily from the effects of solar radiation upon the comet’s nucleus.
Asteroid
Bodies - primarily of the inner solar system - that are smaller than planets but larger than meteoroids, excluding comets. Asteroids don’t have a coma like comets do.
Sun
Huge ball of incandescent gasses. More than 300,000 times more massive than the earth.
Sedimentary rock
one of the three main rock types. Formed by deposition and consolidation of mineral and organic material and from precipitation of minerals from solution. The processes that form sedimentary rock occur at the surface of the earth and within bodies of water. Rock formed from sediments covers 72-80 % of the earth’s land area, and includes common types such as limestone, chalk, dolostone, sandstone, conglomerate, some types of breccia, and shale.
Igneous rocks
domed by solidification of cooled magma. They may form with or without crystallization, either below the surface as intrusive rocks or on the surface as extrusive rocks.
Metamorphic rock
is the result of the transformation of an existing rock type, the protolith, in a process called metamorphism, which means “change in form”. The protolith is subjected to heat and pressure, causing profound physical and/or chemical change.
Minerals
Natural chemical compounds that are the crystals that make up rocks.
Mountain
landform that stretches above the surrounding land in a limited area, with a peak. A mountain is generally steeper than a hill, but there is no universally accepted standard definition for the hight of a mountain or a hill.
River
A natural flow of water, usually freshwater, traveling toward an ocean, a lake, or another stream. In some axes, a river flows into the ground or fires up completely before reaching another body of water.
Deserts
Take up about one-third of the earth’s land surface. They usually have a large day and seasonal temperature range, with high daytime temperatures, and low nighttime temperatures.
Many deserts are formed by rain shadows; mountain blocking the path of precipitation to the desert.
Weathering
The decompositions of the earths rocks, soils, and minerals through direct contact with the planet’s atmosphere.
Erosion
carrying away or displacement of solids usually by the agents of currents such as wind, water, or ice or downward or down-slope movement in response to gravity.
The earth’s structure
inner to outer: inner core, outer ore, mantle, upper mantle, crust
Precipitation
condensed water vapor that falls to the earths surface. Most precipitation occurs as rain but also include snow, hail, fog drip, graupel, and sleet
Canopy interception
The precipitation that is intercepted by plant foliage and eventually evaporates back to the Earth’s atmosphere rather than filing to the ground.
Snowmelt
Runoff produced by melting snow
Runoff
The variety of ways by which water moves across the land. This includes both surface runoff and channel runoff. As it flows, the water me percolates into the ground, and the rapid operates into the air, becomes stored in Lakes are reservoirs, or extracted for agricultural of our other human resources.
Subsurface flow
The flow of water underground, in the vadose zone and aquifers. Subsurface water meat return to the surface or eventually seep into the oceans. Water returns to the land surface at lower elevations than where it entered, under the force of gravity or gravity induced pressures. Groundwater tends to move slowly and is replenished slowly, and so it can remain in aquifers for thousands of years.
Evaporation
The transformation of water from liquid to gas phases as it moves from the ground or bodies of water into the overlying out the spirit. The source of energy for evaporation is primarily solar radiation. And operation often insistently includes transpiration from plants, although together they’re typically referred to as evapotranspiration
Sublimation
The state change where a solid changes directly to a gas
Condensation
That transformation of water vapor to liquid water droplets in the air, producing clouds and fog.
Differential heating
The motive force behind land breezes and sea breezes also known as on our offshore winds. Land of sorts and radiates heat faster than water, but water releases heat over a longer period of time. The result is that, in locations where sea and land me, he absorbed over the day will be radiated more quickly by the land at night, cooling the air. Over the CD, he is still being released into the air at night, and rises. The convective motion draws the cool land air and to replace the rising air, resulting in a land breeze and the late-night and early-morning. During the day, the roles are reversed. Warm air over the land rises, pulling cool air from the sea to replace it, giving a seabreeze during the afternoon and evening
Mountain breezes
Due to a combination of differential heating and geometry. When the sun rises, it is the tops of the monkey which received first light, and as the day progresses, the mountain slopes take on a greater heat load in the Ballys. This resulted in temperature any quality between the two, and as warm air rises off the slopes, cool air moves up out of the valleys to replace it. This upslope wind is called Valleybreeze. The opposite effect takes place in the afternoon, as the belly radiates heat. the peaks, long since cool, transport air into the valley and a process that is partly gravitational and partly convective and is called a mountain breeze.
