Atmosphere Review

What happens to air masses with different temperatures and moisture content?

Air masses with different temperatures and moisture content are moved from one place to another. This is due to unequal heating of Earth's surface and differences in pressure.

Air pressure ____________ as altitude increases

Decreases

Explain how heat is transferred within the atmosphere with: radiation

During the day, the sun heats the Earth's surface with radiation.

As air pressure decreases, so does its ________________ .

Density

_______________ is the distance above sea level _________

Altitude and elevation

What is a land breeze?

During the day, the sun warms the land faster than it warms the water, so the air over the land becomes warmer than the air over the water. As the warmer air over the land rises, cooler air moves in from the water to take its place. Air flows from the land to water in a land breeze.

Describe The Mesosphere layer of Earth's atmosphere

Meso- means "middle." This is the layer that protects Earth from being hit by meteoroids

Denser air exerts ______________ pressure than less dense air.

More

Explain why the region near the equator has little or no wind.

Near the equator, the sun is strong and constantly heats the air. The warm air expands, rises steadily, and creates an area of low pressure. Cool air moves into the area, but it is warmed rapidly and rises before it moves very far. Little or no wind occurs because the air does not move horizontally.

Most of Earth's incoming ultra violet radiation is absorbed by __________ .

Ozone

What are the 3 different wavelengths of light in the electromagnetic spectrum that are found in solar radiation before it passes through Earth's atmosphere?

Visible light, ultraviolet light, and infrared light

12. Radiation is the direct transfer of energy by ___________________ waves.

electromagnetic

An __________________ measures speed of wind.

anemometer

What is ultraviolet radiation? Why is it the type of energy emitted by the sun that is most dangerous to humans?

Ultraviolet radiation is an invisible form of energy with wavelengths shorter than violet light. It can cause sunburns, skin cancer, and eye damage.

Why does the sky appear blue?

Visible blue light in solar radiation is scattered as it reaches Earth's atmosphere.

What are the different colors of visible light a result of?

Visible light includes all colors of the rainbow. Different colors are a result of different wavelengths.

Wavelengths that are a little bit shorter than visible light are _____________ and wavelengths that are a little bit longer than visible light are _________________.

ultraviolet and infrared

Why does the wind blow that way for each type of local wind?

. At night, the land cools more quickly than the water, so the air over the land becomes cooler than the air over the water. As the warmer air over the water rises, cooler air moves in from the land to take its place.

How is an aneroid barometer different from a mercury barometer?

A mercury barometer consists of a glass tube open at the bottom end and partially filled with mercury. As air pressure increases, the mercury in the tube rises. Aneroid barometers have an airtight metal chamber that compresses and expands based on air pressure. It is different from a mercury barometer since it does not use any liquid to measure air pressure

Winds are caused by differences in _________ _____________.

Air Pressure

What is a sea breeze?

Air blows from the water to the land in a sea breeze.

Explain how heat is transferred within the atmosphere with: convection.

As particles in gas or liquids move, their energy moves along with them. The transfer of heat by movement of a fluid is convection, which is what happens in the air of the troposphere. This is the primary way heat is transferred in the troposphere.

Instruments used to measure air pressure are called _________________.

Barometers

_________ is the way earth's rotation makes winds curve.

Coriolis effect

Cool air tends to be more ______________ and flow under warm air.

Dense

_______ is the amount of mass in a given volume of air

Density

What are electromagnetic waves?

Electromagnetic waves are a form of energy that can move through the vacuum of space.

Describe the The Stratosphere layer of Earth's atmosphere.

Extends from the top of the troposphere to about 50 kilometers above Earth's surface. Strato- means "layer" or "spread out." This is the second layer of the atmosphere and contains the ozone. It is cold, however the upper stratosphere is warmer than the lower stratosphere due to ozone layer being thicker in the middle. Energy from the sun is converted into heat. The Ozone protects Earth form UV rays.

Explain how heat is transferred within the atmosphere with: conduction

Fast moving particles bump into a slower moving particle. The faster moving particle transfers some energy. For instance, a fast moving sand particle bumping into another particle transfers energy.

Gases in the air hold much of the energy that is radiated from Earth's surface in a process called ______________ ______________.

Greenhouse effect

Air moves from areas of _____________ pressure to areas of __________ pressure.

High and low

What is the most abundant gas in the atmosphere?

The most abundant gas in the atmosphere is Nitrogen, making up 78% of the air we breathe.

What percent of the atmosphere do (nitrogen, oxygen, each of these gases make up?

The most abundant gas in the atmosphere is Nitrogen, making up 78% of the air we breathe. The second most abundant is Oxygen, making up 21% of the volume. The other gases after Nitrogen and Oxygen make up about 1%.

What is the second most abundant gas in the atmosphere?

The second most abundant is Oxygen, making up 21% of the volume.

Describe the The Troposphere layer of Earth's atmosphere.

The troposphere is the inner or lowest layer of Earth's atmosphere (where we live). Tropo-means "turning" or "changing." The layer of the atmosphere that weather occurs.

Describe The Thermosphere: (Ionosphere and Exosphere): layer of Earth's atmosphere

This is the outermost layer of Earth's atmosphere. Thermo-means "heat." The air is thin at this layer, yet very hot (up to 1,800°C). Ionosphere is the lower portion where the northern lights occur. The exosphere is the outer portion of the thermosphere. Nitrogen and Oxygen molecules convert the energy from the sun to heat.

What are the 3 major wind belts? Where are they found? Which direction does each flow to and from?

Trade winds: are found between the equator and 30° S and 30° N latitude. These winds blow from the southeast and northeast. Prevailing westerlies: are found in the mid-latitudes and blow from west to east. Polar Easterlies: Found near the poles and blows from the west to east.

When going higher in altitude, you get out of breath easily because

there is less oxygen in each cubic meter of air

Most of the energy from the sun travels to earth in the form of ___________________________.

visible light