TOPIC QUIZ #5_Geog

Unlike in the last question, consider Earth from the Geographer's perspective, being within the Earth System and considering one location individually vs. another location: For each location within the Earth-Atmosphere System (e.g., in San Diego vs. Antarctica, or in Boston vs. 10 miles above Boston), output-LW is also being constantly readjusted to balance input-SW year-to-year-to-year (i.e., the annual Radiation Budget at any particular place within the Earth-Atmosphere system is also maintained in a state of dynamic equilibrium).

False

Which of the following is FALSE? Radiant Energy imbalances within the Earth-Atmosphere System...

are NOT the cause of Weather processes

Consider the effect of Phase Changes on the temperature of the environment. "Freezing" is a ____ process.

warming

If the Sun starts putting out more energy, what results?

(ALL OVER ABOVE) EXCEPT for that last statement, which should read instead: In this way, regardless of external conditions, the Earth System maintains a dynamic state-of-balance between input-SW vs. output-LW, as reflected by an Equilibrium Temperature that assures that the Earth system will always respond to any changes in input-SW by adjusting its output to reflect the current level of input, by way of the Stefan-Boltzmann Law, regardless of the effect on life or glaciers or civilizations or dinosaurs, etc.; meaning that the "balance of nature" has nothing to do with "The Lion King" or with "goodness" or with the "eternal awesomeness of the Divine," but rather, with balancing inputs and outputs of mass and energy as per the 2nd Energy Law -Once these rising amounts of output-LW reach the new level of SW-input, the Global Energy Budget is back into a state-of-balance, albeit possibly at a higher temperature than before and that may no longer support glaciers or various previously-adapted forms of life, etc., but nonetheless again stable-over-time as an Equilibrium Temperature -A warming Earth responds by increasing its emitted radiation to Space, in accordance with the Stefan-Boltzmann Law -The Earth responds by warming, meaning that it's temperature is now in disequilibrium and thus starts to rise decade-to-decade -The Earth now has a positively-imbalanced Energy Budget: ER inputs from the Sun are now greater than ER outputs from the Earth

The Sun is the ultimate-source for practically all of the energy that warms the Atmosphere. Which of the following is TRUE about the energy that directly warms the Troposphere?

ALL OF THE ABOVE -For the most part, the very lowest part of the Atmosphere (where we live down here in the Troposphere) is NOT directly warmed by sunshine -For the most part, the Troposphere is directly warmed "from below," meaning that the Troposphere is directly warmed by the Earth -One way the Troposphere is directly warmed by the Earth's surface is via TIR radiation emitted upward -A second way that the Troposphere is directly warmed by the Earth's surface is via Sensible Heat that is conducted and convected upward -A third way that the Troposphere is directly warmed by the Earth's surface (especially from water-covered surfaces) is via Latent Heat that is convected upward, then released during the process of condensation (i.e., during cloud production)

The Sun is the ultimate-source for practically all of the energy that warms the Atmosphere. Which of the following is TRUE about the energy that directly warms the Stratosphere?

ALL OF THE ABOVE -The Stratosphere is directly warmed "from above," meaning that the Stratosphere is directly warmed by the Sun -The Stratosphere is warmed directly by the absorption of UV radiation by Stratospheric Ozone -Little "greenhouse warming" of the Stratosphere occurs, in large part because Water Vapor is essentially limited to the Troposphere below

In basic energy terms, why does the atmosphere move? In other words, fundamentally and in the context of the 2nd Energy Law, why does the wind blow, and why do hurricanes occur, and why are there Sea Breezes, etc.? Or let's put it this way: why does Earth have weather? (Same answer for the question "why do the oceans move?")

Due to Radiant Energy imbalances within the Earth-Atmosphere System place-to-place, time-to-time, which differentially-heats the E-A System

The Earth's Equilibrium Temperature reflects a balance between

Incoming SW RADIATION from the Sun vs. Outgoing LW RADIATION from the Earth

The amazingly high amount of non-sensible Latent Heat stored in Water Vapor (that thus serves as the fuel powering both steam-engines and thunderstorms) was discovered by

Joseph Black

The Earth receives energy from the Sun in what form?

LIGHT

"Freezing" liquid water requires that _____stored in the _____ be transformed into and released to the _____as ______.

Latent Heat, liquid water, environment, Sensible Heat

Which of the following are FALSE? Weather processes...

NONE OF THE ABOVE -transport energy in a totally different form: the two forms of heat energy (Sensible Heat associated with warmer vs. cooler air, and Latent Heat associated with humid air) -occur so as to redistribute excess energy from zones with a positive Radiation Budget to zones with a negative Radiation Budget, so as to eliminate the energy imbalances as per the 2nd Energy Law -are caused by Radiant Energy imbalances within the Earth-Atmosphere System

Which of the following is TRUE about forms of energy?

ONLY THE FIRST TWO ABOVE ARE TRUE - Heat and Light are different forms of energy -Thermal Infrared and SW Radiation are the same form of energy

Consider the energy transformations associated with Phase Changes, as per the 1st Energy Law. Melting ice or snow requires an input of _____ that gets transformed into _____ stored at the molecular-scale in the liquid water.

Sensible Heat, Latent Heat

Evaporation from the ocean takes up ___ from the surface and transforms it into ___ stored in the water vapor, therefore ____ the Earth's surface. Subsequent uplift of this now-humid air, followed by condensation to produce a cloud, thus transforms the ___ stored in the water vapor into ___ released to the atmosphere, thus ___ the Earth's atmosphere (all in response to overcoming the Radiant Energy ___ within the Earth-Atmosphere System).

Sensible Heat, Latent Heat, Cooling... LH, SH, warming... imbalance

Evaporation requires an input of _____ that gets transformed into _____ stored at the molecular-scale in the ______.

Sensible Heat, Latent Heat, Water vapor

Consider the Earth from the Astronomer's perspective, looking down at Earth from afar: For the Earth-Atmosphere System as a whole, output-LW is constantly being readjusted to balance input-SW year-to-year-to-year (i.e., the annual Global Radiation Budget is maintained in a state of dynamic equilibrium).

True

Which of the following is FALSE? "Greenhouse" Gases...

include Nitrogen (n2), the atmosphere's most abundant gas

Which of the following is FALSE? The "permanent" gases of the atmosphere...

include the trace gas Ozone (or "triatomic" Oxygen), whose relatively higher concentration in the Stratosphere absorbs much of the highly-energetic, cancer-causinig UV radiation coming in from the Sun, thus making life possible at Earth's surface

Which of the following is FALSE? Ozone...

is largely transparent to UV wavelengths of radiation