Science Unit 6 Lesson 4

Question 1

What is the Earth’s atmosphere made out of?

Answer 1

• Earth’s atmosphere is made up of 78 percent nitrogen
• 21 percent oxygen
• 0.9 percent argon
• and 0.1 percent other gases, like carbon dioxide and methane.

Question 2

What does fossil fuel emissions mean?

Answer 2

gases that are released when fossil fuels are burned

Question 3

How do power plants generate electricity?

Answer 3

By burning fossil fuels

Question 4

How do cars, trucks, ships, and planes operate?

Answer 4

By burning fossil fuels

Question 5

What is the most abundant chemical emitted by fossil fuels?

Answer 5

Carbon dioxide

Question 6

What happens when CO2, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxide meet water, oxygen, and other chemicals in the atmosphere.

Answer 6

When these chemicals meet water, oxygen and other chemicals in the atmosphere, smog, acid rain, and harmful particulate matter is formed.

Question 7

What is the definition of greenhouse gases?

Answer 7

Gases that trap heat from the sun in Earth’s atmosphere

Question 8

Which industries produce the greatest proportion of canon dioxide emission in the United States?

Answer 8

Electricity production and transportation produce the greatest proportion of carbon dioxide emissions, followed by industrial uses.

Question 9

Wha happens when people inhale nitrogen oxides, nitrogen dioxide, and sulfur dioxide?

Answer 9

When people inhale these gases, they may experience respiratory issues. Long-term exposure can increase the risk of asthma.

Question 10

What is formed when nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide react with other chemicals?

Answer 10

Particulate matter

Question 11

What is particulate matter?

Answer 11

A form of pollution consisting of solid or liquid particles in the air; Particulate matter can range from soot or smoke to particles less than 2.5 micrometers wide, and it contributes to breathing problems.

Question 12

Describe greenhouse gases?

Answer 12

The greenhouse effect keeps Earth warm enough to support plant and animal life. However, as more greenhouse gases are released into the atmosphere, they trap more and more heat from the sun. Because carbon dioxide remains in the atmosphere for hundreds of years, the increase in greenhouse gases causes global temperatures to rise over time.

Question 13

What is the definition of smog?

Answer 13

A severe type of air pollution, originally named for a mixture of smoke and fog.

Question 14

What are 2 key components of smog?

Answer 14

nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide

Question 15

How is most nitrogen dioxide formed?

Answer 15

Most nitrogen dioxide in the air comes from vehicle and power plant emissions

Question 16

How is most sulfer dioxide formed?

Answer 16

sulfur dioxide is produced by power plants and industries

Question 17

How do sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide effect the environment?

Answer 17

Both chemicals can contribute to the formation of acid rain but sulfur dioxide is particularly damaging to plants and trees.

Question 18

What are the 2 types of ozone?

Answer 18

1. Ozone in the upper atmosphere
2. ozone at ground level

Question 19

What does ozone do in the upper layer?

Answer 19

Ozone in the upper atmospheremhelps protect Earth from ultraviolet rays
from the sun. This ozone occurs naturally

Question 20

Why is ozone at ground level problamatic?

Answer 20

This type of ozone is produced when nitrogen dioxide reacts with other
compounds and with sunlight. Groundlevel ozone is a major component of
smog, a severe type of air pollution. Respiratory problems can result from
inhaling ground-level ozone.

Question 21

How is ozone at ground level produced?

Answer 21

This type of ozone is produced when nitrogen dioxide reacts with other
compounds and with sunlight.

Question 22

Ozone at ground level is the main compnent of what?

Answer 22

Groundlevel ozone is a major component of smog, a severe type of air pollution.

Question 23

What type of problems could you get by inhaling ozone at ground level?

Answer 23

Respiratory problems can result from
inhaling ground-level ozone.

Question 24

The International Energy Agency estimates that people worldwide use __________ barrels of oil every day.

Answer 24

93 million

Question 25

How does acid rain form?

Answer 25

After sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides (like nitrogen dioxide) enter the atmosphere, they react with other substances to form acids. These acids mix with water and return to the ground as acid rain. (Other forms of precipitation, like snow and fog, can also become acidic.)

Question 26

How does the pH of acid rain compare to that of typical rain?

Answer 26

Typical rain has a pH of 5.6, but acid rain’s pH ranges from 4.2–4.4.

Question 27

What affects does acid rain have on plants and soil?

Answer 27

• The acidic water leaches aluminum from the soil, which affects the health of nearby waterways and the animals that live there.
• Acid rain strips soil of nutrients that plants need, and it can also damage the foliage on trees.

Question 28

How does Ground-level ozone affect plants and crops?

Answer 28

Ground-level ozone is another pollutant that can injure plants

• Affected leaves may turn brown or red or develop spots.
• For crops that are sensitive to ozone, like soybeans and cotton, high concentrations of ozone in the atmosphere can significantly reduce crop yield.

Question 29

What happens to the Ph of the ocean when it absorbs carbon dioxide?

Answer 29

the pH decreases

Question 30

How can the decreasing ph of the ocean affect marine life?

Answer 30

As the pH decreases, the amount of carbonate in the water also decreases. Carbonate is one of the building blocks of a lot of the shells that are in marine organisms. For example, all the mollusks, the snails, the sea urchins, all of these use calcium carbonate to make their shells.

Question 31

Pteropods, such as sea butterflies, a type of sea snail, are among the creatures that form the base of a food chain in the Ross Sea that includes predators, such as Antarctic cod, penguins, Weddell seals, and orca whales.

Answer 31

They say these changes could have serious implications on the future survival of other creatures throughout the Ross Sea.

Question 32

To monitor the changes if the pH what did scientists do?

Answer 32

To monitor these changes, lead researcher Gretchen Hoffman and her team have been deploying automated ocean sensors around McMurdo Sound, Antarctica, since 2010, giving them the longest continuous data set of ocean pH in the region.

Question 33

What is the sea fett?

Answer 33

It is used to measure the pH of the ocean.

Question 34

What is the definition of cryosphere?

Answer 34

Areas of ice and snow on Earth

Question 35

What is the definition of albedo?

Answer 35

The amount of radiation reflected from a surface

Question 36

How does the use of fossil fuels affect the cryosphere?

Answer 36

Higher levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere cause sea ice to melt.