Midterm 1 Flashcards by Kendall Stephan

Difference between the Homosphere and Heterosphere

Homosphere= lower 80km of atmosphere and it’s permanent gases form a constant composition of the dry atmosphere

Heterosphere= above the homos, and it has lighter gases dominant at higher altitudes

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

What are the 3 dominant permanent gases that make up 99.9% of the Homosphere, and what common one does it not have?

1) nitrogen, N2, 78.1%
2) oxygen, O2, 20.9%
3) argon, Ar, 0.9%

It does not have water vapour, hence dry atmosphere

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

What are 2 carbon sinks

phytoplankton and forests

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

What are the 4 other main gases that make up the remaining 0.9% of the homosphere?

carbon dioxide, CO2
methane, CH4
aerosols
ozone, O3

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Where is most of the atmospheres water vapour found?

the lower 5km of the homosphere

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

How is methane, CH4, produced

cattle farts
burning fossil fuels
thawing permafrost

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

What are variable gases? Give 3 examples

gases that are dispersed throughout the homosphere

water vapour, ozone, aerosols

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

What are aerosols? What is the normal concentration?

small solid particles & liquid droplets in the air that are formed naturally or by humans

10,000 particles/cm3

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

What is ozone, O3, how is it formed, what does it do, where is it found, how can it be bad, how do humans increase ozone concentrations?

ozone occurs when 3 oxygen molecules join together

ozone absorbs ultraviolet radiation from the Sun, and converts it into heat energy. Keeps the Earth at a liveable temperature

most ozone is in the stratosphere

ozone in the upper atmosphere= good
ozone in the lower atmosphere= pollutant

motor vehicles exhaust increases ozone concentrations in the lower atmosphere

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Weather vs Climate

weather is the condition of the atmosphere at any time or space

climate is the average range of weather over time in an area, in Canada based on last 30 years

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Atmospheric Pressure

measure, in millabars (mb), of the weight of the atmosphere’s gases

gas exerts mass and therefore also pressure

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

What is the atmospheric mass at sea level?

1000 mb

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

How many g(gas)/cm3(Earth’s surface) = 1 mb

1000 g/cm3 = 1 mb

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Troposphere

lowest 12km of the atmosphere
temperatures decrease with increasing altitude
most weather takes place here
thinnest layer yet contains 80% atmospheric mass

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

What is the environmental lapse rate (ELR)?

decrease in the troposphere’s temperature by 6.5*c/km is ELR

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Stratosphere

20-50km of the atmosphere
temperatures increase with attitude until it reaches -2*c
heated by absorption of ultraviolet radiation
19.9% of atmospheric mass

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

How much of the total atmospheric mass does the troposphere and stratosphere make up?

99.9%

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Mesosphere

50-80km of the atmosphere
temperatures decrease with increasing altitude
make sup 99.9% of the remaining 0.1% of atmospheric mass

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Thermosphere

80-500km of the atmosphere
temperatures increase with increasing altitude until it reaches >1000*c
very light gases
makes up 0.1% of the remaining 0.1% of atmospheric mass

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

What are the layers of the atmosphere in order?

1) troposphere
2) stratosphere
3) mesosphere
4) thermosphere

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Temperature vs Heat

temperature is the measure of the average speed of atoms & molecules

heat is the energy that is being transferred from an area of high heat energy to low heat energy

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Does the thermosphere have low of high temperature & heat?

thermosphere has high temperature but low heat (light gases are sparse and don’t make a lot of contact)

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

What is the first law of thermodynamics?

energy can be transferred from systems but cannot be created or destroyed

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

What is the second law of thermodynamics?

heat can never move from a cold mass to a warm mass

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

What is the third law of thermodynamics?

if all thermal motion of molecules (kinetic energy) could be removed, a state called 'absolute zero' would occur (0K or -273.3*c)

What are the 4 forms of energy

potential energy is the energy of a body at rest and can be transform into another type of energy kinetic energy is energy due to motion electromagnetic energy is energy stored in electromagnetic waves or radiation thermal or heat energy is the internal energy of an object due to the kinetic energy of its atoms and/or molecules

What are 3 types of energy transfer?

conduction is the movement of heat through a substance without movement of molecules in the direction of heat transfer convection is the transfer of heat by mixing a fluid done by movement of particles radiation is energy emitted by anything with thermal energy (high->low energy areas)

In what latitude is more radiation received than released?

lower latitudes receive more radiation than released

Latitudinal boundary

the boundary between a net excess and a net deficit is at 38*c

During the Northern Hemispheres summer, most areas North of 15* South (15*) have a ______ of energy

surplus

During the Northern Hemispheres winter, most areas South of 15* North (-15*) have a ______ of energy

surplus

Advection vs Convection

advection is a horizontal transfer of energy global winds 75% oceanic currents 25% convection is a vertical transfer of energy

What is the radiation energy balance of the Earth's surface?

Q*=K*+L* K*=K^-Kv L*=L^-Lv

What is the heat energy balance of the Earth's surface?

Q*=QH+QE+QG ``` QH= sensible heat, convection QE= latent heat, convection only QG= sensible heat, conduction ```

Perihelion

January 3rd, when the Earth is the closest to the Sun at 1.47x10^8km (147 million km)

Aphelion

July 3rd, when the Earth is the furthest from the Sun at 1.52x10^8km (152 million km)

How much closer is the Earth to the sun during the Perihelion, and how much does radiation increase?

Earth is 3% closer and radiation increases by 7%

What degree is the Earth tilted, where is it always facing?

23.5* always facing Polaris (North star)

Summer Solstice

June 22nd, maximum tilt of the Northern Hemisphere towards the Sun, 16.5 hours of sunlight

Winter Solstice

December 21st, maximum tilt of the Southern Hemisphere towards the Sun, 8 hours of sunlight

What 2 days does all of the Earth have 12 hours of sunlight and darkness?

spring equinox, March 21st autumnal equinox, September 21st

Where can you see the sun 90* directly above you?

at a latitude, at 23.5* North or South

Tropic of Cancer

23.5* North

Tropic of Capricorn

23.5* South or -23.5* South

Solar declination

the latitudinal position where the sun is at 90*

Solar noon

a time in the day when the sun is at it's peak height

What is the solar declination for tropic of cancer?

23.5* North

What is the solar declination for tropic of capricorn?

-23.5* South

How do you measure the solar angle?

solar angle= [90-LAT]-DLN ``` LAT= latitude of interest * DLN= solar declination * ```

Why does beam spreading occur?

an increase in surface area that insolation has to cover

Insolation

incoming solar radiation

Albedo

% of insolation reflected back by an object

Scattering

when an object reflects insolation as various weaker beams of radiation in different directions

What is the Earth's average input of shortwave radiation to the atmosphere

362 W/m2

Black body

emits 100% of radiation, perfect absorber

What is the Stefan Boltzmann Law and what does it calculate?

calculates the radiation energy, in W/m2, of the surface of a body E=emissivity(5.67x10^-8)T(K)^4

Emissivity

the ratio of energy radiated by a given grey body in relation to a black body (100%)

What is Wien's Displacement Law and what does it calculate?

calculates the peak wavelength of emission in um ~max=2898/T(K)

What is the wavelength for long and short wave radiation

long wave radiation >3 um short wave radiation <3 um

What is the solar constant?

1367 W/m2

Direction radiation

insolation that directly reaches the Earth's surface

Diffuse radiation

insolation that reaches the surface after being scattered by atmospheric gases (aerosols and clouds)

Rayleigh scattering

scattering agents (aerosols) that scatter incoming solar radiation about 1 tenth of the size of the insolation wavelength

What is the Q*radiation of the Earth's surface and the atmosphere

Earth's surface: +91 W/m2 (surplus) Atmosphere: -91 W/m2 (deficit)

The Earth's surface and atmosphere has an energy imbalance but it must have an energy balance, how does it get an energy balance?

The +91 W/m2 gets converted into heat energy and moves from the surface into the atmosphere, due to the 2nd law of thermodynamics where energy moves from high energy areas to low energy areas

Atmospheric beam depletion

reduction in the amount of insolation as it travels through the atmosphere

What are the 6 influences on temperature

1. latitude 2. altitude & elevation 3. atmospheric circulation 4. contrast between land & water 5. warm & cold oceans currents 6. local variations

Diurnal Maximum

minimum temperature ranges tend to be greater for surfaces with higher elevation

Heat Capacity

the amount of energy required to raise the temperature of 1 gram of a substance by 1*c

Continentality

the effect of an inland location that favours greater temperature extremes (ex. Winnipeg)

How do you convert temperature in *f to *c?

Tc=(5/9)x(Tf-32)

How do you convert temperature in *c to *f?

Tf=((9/5)xTc)+32

How many joules/second are in 1 watt?

1 joule/second = 1 watt

Midterm 1 Flashcards

(73 cards)