Unit 4 Flashcards by Madison Decker

Why does Earth have different layers?

-layers are made up of materials with different density
-due to gravity, the densest material sinks to the bottom, creating layers of varying density

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

3 main layers of Earth

-Core: liquid magma at the center of the earth (iron & nickel)
-Mantle: very hot rocks in-between
Crust - lithosphere

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Theory of Plate Tectonics

Earth’s crust is divided into plates; most are in constant motion caused by convection currents in the molten rock in Earth’s mantle below the crust

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

How does movement of tectonic plates form Volcanoes?

As the plate moves over hot spot, heat from rising magma melts the crust which pushes upward because heat rises (convection current)

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

How does movement of tectonic plates form Tsunamis?

Top convergent boundary tectonic plate forced upward over descending plate, pushing up massive amounts of water

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

How does movement of tectonic plates form earthquakes?

Release in potential energy from transform boundary as two plates slip against eachother

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

3 types of rock:

igneous, sedimentary, metamorphic

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Igneous rock

formed from the cooling of lava

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Sedimentary rock

when mud, sand, and gravels compressed overtime by overlaying sediments

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Metamorphic rock

when igneous, sedimentary, or other metamorphic rock are subjected to high temperatures & pressure, transformed

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Weathering

-occurs when rock is exposed to air, water, & chemical compounds
-Physical weathering, chemical weathering (acid rain), erosion

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Composition of soil:

-defined in 5 horizons: horizontal layers of soil defined by distinctive features such as color and texture
-minerals, organic matter, air, water

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Why is top soil nonrenewable?

Because it can take up to 100-500 years to make one inch of topsoil

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

The different layers of soil:

-O horizon: organic matter in various stages of decomposition
-A horizon: organic material mixed with underlaying mineral material
-B horizon: subsoil: accumulation of metal and nutrients
-C horizon: subsoil: least weathered, most similar to parent material

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

identify two ways soil is eroded

-wind (blown away)
-water (washed away)

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Identify ways humans erode soil:

-poor farming practices like tillage (breaks up and looses miles of bare soil; easy for wind to pick it up and blow it away)
-clear cutting: lack of vegetation results in less roots in the ground holding the soil together

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Clay

-smallest particles
-packed together closely
-less pore space
-roots can’t easily penetrate (retains water well tho)

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Silt

-intermediate in everything

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Sand

-largest particles
-packed loosely together
-water can move through it easily
-quick to drain & dry out
-roots can penetrate easily

Two chemical tests that can be used to determine soil quality

-Base saturation (testing for PH)
-CEC: cation exchange capacity (soils w/ potential to provide essential cation to plants are desirable for agriculture)

What is the significance of biological components of soil?

-Microorganisms and small digging mammals can affect water permeability and nutrient content of soil

Watershed

An area of land that drains into a particular stream, river, lake, or wetland

4 main factors that affect water movement within a watershed:

-Area & Length (amount of water, materials carried & time)
-Slope (power of erosion)
-Soil type (sand, clay, loam)
-Vegetation (prevents erosion, facilitates percolation)

2 ways humans impact watersheds

-building damns
-rerouting rivers

3 factors that cause variation in the warming of the Earth:

latitude, albedo, seasons

How does latitude cause variation in the warming of Earth?

-different latitudes have unequal warming due to angle the suns rays are hitting it and the surface area they cover

How does albedo cause variation in the warming of Earth?

-Albedo: percentage of incoming sunlight reflected by surfaces -the higher the albedo of a surface, the more energy reflected and the less absorbed

How does seasons cause variation in the warming of Earth?

-seasonal change due to Earth's axis being tilted 23.5 -changes which latitudes experience most direct rays of sun and most hours of daylight -(amount of solar energy reaching various latitudes shifts over the course of the year)

Identify the main gases that make up the atmosphere and what percentage each makes up

-oxygen: 20% -nitrogen: 78% other gases: 1%

Layer of the atmosphere that we live in:

The Troposphere -16km, densest layer (w/ most oxygen, nitrogen, and water vapor) -where weather occurs

Stratosphere

-above the troposphere -contains ozone layer (absorbs incoming UV rays)

What drives circulation of air within the atmosphere?

-Air density (less dense rises) -Saturation point (capacity to contain water vapor) -Changes in pressure (adiabatic cooling & heating) -Latent heat release (release of energy when water vapor in atmosphere condenses into liquid water)

Describe wind

the horizontal movement of air from an area of high pressure to low pressure

Coriolis Effect & how it changes wind patterns

-Is the deflection of objects (not attached to Earth)'s path due to rotation of the earth -Wind is not attached to the Earth, so it's deflected East and West because of the spinning of the earth

For each of Earth's latitudes, identify air pressure

0 (equator): low pressure, warm air rises up and out, rainy and humid 30 N or S: high pressure, cold dry air pushing down, little precipitation 60 N or S: low pressure 90 N or S: high pressure

Gyre

A large scale pattern of water circulation that moves clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere & counterpoise in the Southern hemisphere

What drives ocean currents?

-wind -density differences in water masses caused by temperature & salinity variations

Thermohaline circulation

Process by which deep-ocean currents are driven by differences in the water's density, which is controlled by temperature (thermo) and salinity (haline).

3 things redistributed by upwelling or downwelling

-nutrients -ocean currents -temperature

How do rain shadows create deserts?

-Rain shadow occurs when humid wind blowing inland from the ocean meet a mountain range (windward side) -the air rises & cools, depositing all it's moisture in humidity and precipitation -then it crawls over the mountain, the cold dry air descending, sucking all the moisture out of the leeward side of the mountain, and warms via adiabatic heating

El Niño

-Southern Oscillation -a reversal of win and water currents in the Southern Pacific -reduces upwelling of cold water near south America -results in water building ip on the west coast of Peru

La Niña

-when occurring, follows El Niño -trade winds in South Pacific reverse strongly -causes hot and dry regions to be cold and wetter

Chemical weathering is:

a part of the cycle that renews soil nutrients

What are the services provided by soil?

-provide habitats for various organisms -filter water

Importance of the ozone layer:

Absorbs incoming UV rays

A gyre is an oceanic pattern of circulation that moves:

-clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere -counterclockwise in the Souther hemisphere

What effect could melting of glaciers have on thermohaline circulation in the Northern Hemisphere?

Ocean water becomes less salty and less likely to sink