Earth Science

A typical rate of plate motion would be

1-10 centimeters per year

What is the percentage of oxygen in Earth's atmosphere?

21%

Under the Kyoto protocol, the first international climate change treaty, how much, on average, did industrialized nations pledge to reduce their annual greenhouse gas emissions by?

5.2% by 2012 compared to 1990

If you removed the atmosphere's natural greenhouse effect, and everything else stayed the same, Earth's temperature would be:

50-60*F cooler

There have been other periods in Earth's history when carbon dioxide concentrations were high. But the current level is unprecedented over at least how many years, according to IPCC?

800,000

What usually happens to cause an occluded front?

A cold front catches up with a warm front

What role do the oceans play in the carbon cycle?

Both a and b

During the summer, air masses in the _________ and __________ United States are often unstable.

Central, southeastern

Which process releases latent heat?

Condensation

What do climate models predict will happen globally to sea level over the next 100 years?

Decrease

When two oceans make a trench, what is the relative direction of motion?

Divergent

What phenomenon does the Coriolis Effect arise from?

Effect of winds high in the atmosphere

A pair of air circulation cell which exists between 30*N and 60*N latitude and 30*S and 60* is known as

Ferrell Cell

Rossby waves are formed at the boundary of the ________ cell with the _________ cell.

Hadley, Ferrell

Where have some of the strongest and earliest impacts of global warming occurred?

In northern latitudes

Hailstorms are more likely to occur in this state.

Kansas

Which statement about the global carbon cycle is most accurate?

Less carbon enters the atmosphere than leaves the atmosphere

Which systems are more likely to be associated with clear conditions and why?

Low pressure systems because air rises there

What air pressure and wind direction are present in tornadoes?

Low pressure, winds flow inward

In the past the areas of Africa, South America, India, Australia, and Antarctica were joined. This supercontinent was called:

Pangea

What happens to relative humidity of an isolated, unsaturated parcel of air as temperature decreases?

Relative humidity increases

In the carbon cycle, what happens between the biosphere and the atmosphere?

Respiration

What is a tectonic plate?

The crust and underlying rigid mantle above the asthenosphere

In the carbon cycle, what happens between the geosphere and the atmosphere?

Volcanic eruption

Global wind patterns are driven by all EXCEPT

air pressure differences

Which of the following is not used to study temperature variations over the last thousand years?

all of the above are used

A hot spot is

an area in which subduction is causing partial melting

The partially melted or plastic zone just below the brittle plates is the

asthenosphere

Why are tornadoes most common in the so called "tornado alley"?

because it is a location where air masses with different temperatures are interacting with each other frequently

In North America most thunderstorms are associated with ___________ fronts and marine __________ air masses.

cold, tropical

Subduction occurs along what type of plate boundary?

convergent

The west coast of North America along Washington and Oregon represents a:

convergent margin

Subduction zones are ___________ plate boundaries, and are marked by ____________.

convergent, deep ocean trenches

According to the adiabatic principle as air rises it _______, and as it sinks it __________.

cools, warms

In the troposphere temperature ___________ with altitude, whereas in the stratosphere temperature __________ with height.

decreases, increases

Recent warming is strongly affecting terrestrial biological systems including such changes as:

earlier and later bird migration

During the spring and fall equinoxes the maximum solar energy falls on the __________.

equator

When air is forced to rise it _________, and its temperature ___________.

expands, decreases

For North America, future global warming will probably lead to a __________ in floods, droughts, storms and landslides, and to ____________ coastal erosion

increase, increased

High humidity _______ the evaporation of sweat from the body, __________ its cooling effect.

increases, decreasing

What happens to the density of air with increasing elevation in the atmosphere?

it decreases

Divergent margins are where:

lithosphere is being destroyed

Water vapor, carbon dioxide, and methane in the atmosphere absorb ________ radiation and then radiate heat _________, causing the average temperature on the surface of the Earth to be ___________.

long wave infrared, back to Earth, warmer

Which of the following has NOT been proposed as a cause of climate change?

magnetic reversals

Air masses are characterized by their __________ content and ____________.

moisture, temperature

Jet streams are wind streams that reach great speeds in ________ zones at a ________ altitude.

narrow, high

The most abundant gas in the Earth's atmosphere is

nitrogen

Which of the following gases does not trap heat?

nitrogen

A an oceanic-continental convergent plate boundary, the ___________ plate will subduct, and a __________ arc will form.

oceanic, continental volcanic

Back in Wegner's day, which of the following was NOT used to support his continental drift hypothesis?

paleomagnetism

Which surface would have the lowest albedo?

rainforest

Hess's explanation of the formation of ocean crust is called:

seafloor spreading

Magnetized polarity stripes are _________ on either side of the __________.

symmetrical, mid-ocean ridges

Cumulonimbus clouds are __________ clouds that _________ produce thunderstorms.

tall, can

The acceptance of seafloor spreading was aided by the fact that:

the ocean crust is youngest adjacent to spreading ridges

The San Andreas Fault represents a:

transform boundary

The Earth's magnetic field is produced by:

turbulent motion in the liquid outer core