APES Unit 4: Earth Systems and Resources Review

Stratosphere:

"S" for second; 16-60 km; less dense due to less pressure from layers above; thickest O2 layer is found here absorbs UV-B & UV-C rays which can mutate DNA of animals (cancer)

Explain a hotspot by using Hawaii as an example

A hotspot such as the one used in Hawaii, is an area where hot magma rises up to the lithosphere and can create mid-ocean islands in the process

Explain the rain shadow effect.

A patch of land that has been forced to become a desert because mountain ranges blocked rainy weather.

Describe how air circulates in a convection cell including the terms moisture, density, warm, cool, expand.

Air circulates in a convection cell by first allowing warm air to rise and making it less dense and moist. As it starts to go back down, cold air becomes denser and sinks downwards to expand.

What is urban heat island?

An urban area that is hotter than surrounding rural areas due to low albedo of blacktop.

Describe the asthenosphere and lithosphere.

Asthenosphere: solid, flexible, outer layer of mantle beneath the lithosphere Lithosphere: thin, brittle layer of rock floating on top of mantle (broken up into tectonic plates)

Explain the relationship between latitude and solar insolation.

At high latitudes, sunlight must pass through more atmosphere and thus loses more of its energy than in the tropic. It is also spread over a larger surface area than at the equator.

Clay

Clay is often the thickest and makes it harder for water to drain

What is coastal upwelling and how does it affect fisheries of the west coast of South America during El Nino and La Nina?

Coastal Upwelling is the process by which strong winds blow down the coasts of continents and in conjunction with the earth's rotation, cause the surface waters to be pushed offshore.

Core

Dense mass of metal and radioactive elements that release massive amounts of heat (Liquid outer core and solid inner core)

Explain the relationship between permeability, porosity, and water holding capacity.

Depending on the type of soil, H2O capacity ensures that the more porous or permeable the soil is, the less water there will be to hold.

What are some global impacts of El Nino

El Nino: increased precipitation and flooding in Americas, warmer winter in NA, drought in SE Asia & Australia, decreased hurricane activity in Atlantic Ocean, Weakened monsoon activity in India & SE Asia

Explain how soil forms in a step-by-step process

From Below: Weathering of parent material produces smaller fragments that make up geological/inorganic part of soil From Above: Breakdown of organic matter adds humus to soil, erosion deposits soil particles from other areas and adds to soil

What are Gyres?

Gyres are large ocean circular patterns due to global winds.

Describe the movement of air that occurs in a Hadley cell (convection). Use the terms warm, cool, expands, rises, sinks, moisture, condenses, and dry. Where do Hadley cells occur? Solar energy causes the air to circulate in a Hadley cell.

Hadley cells occur on either side of the equator. More direct sunlight @ equator warms the air -> warm air rises, cools, and expands -> air continues to rise, cool, and expand -> cooling, expanding air spreads out -> cool, dry air sinks back down and deserts form due to lack of moisture in air.

H2O Capacity

How well water is retained or held by soil

What is humus and how does it impact soil quality?

Humus is the main organic part of soil (broken down biomass like leaves, dead animals, waste, etc.) and impacts soil quality by making the soil more fertile and maintains nutrients.

Sand:

Is thinner and this creates more permeability and drains water too quickly

What are some global impacts of La Nina

La Nina: Stronger upwelling & better fisheries in SA, worse tornado activity in US & hurricane activity in Atlantic, cooler drier weather in Americas, Rainier warmer increased monsoons in SE Asia

Mantle:

Liquid layer of magma surrounding core, kept liquified by intense heat from core

Why are most deserts located at the 30° N and 30° S?

Most deserts are located at 30 N and 30 S because the air circulation rises and sinks at high and low pressure, making the desert areas full of dry hot climates.

Ecosphere:

Outermost layer where atmosphere merges with space

describe three types of weathering and give specific examples of each.

Physical: wind, rain, freezing/thawing of ice Biological: Roots of trees crack rocks Chemical: Acid rain, acids from moss/lichen

Divergent Plate Boundary:

Plates move away from each other; Rising magma plume from mantle forces plate apart; creates mid-oceanic ridges, volcanoes, seafloor spreading, and rift valleys

Convergent Plate Boundary:

Plates move towards each other; leads to subduction (one plate slides underneath another); forms mountains, islands arcs, earthquakes, and volcanoes

Transform Plate Boundary:

Plates slide past each other in opposite directions; forms earthquakes

How does soil texture (percent clay, sand, silt) affect permeability, porosity, and water holding capacity?

Sand > Silt > Clay Because sand is bigger, it has bigger pores allowing air and water to enter; clay has smallest pores so its harder for air and water to enter

What are some human activities that directly impact global climate change? (Think about activities that lead to an increase in atmospheric CO2)

Some human activities that have impacted global climate change include greenhouse emissions, pollution, as well as burning of fossil fuels.

Explain how the Coriolis effect deflects air between 0 degrees and 30 degrees and 30 degrees and 60 degrees

The Coriolis effect deflects air as it travels through the atmosphere due to the spin of the Earth. Wind between 0 to 30 degrees moves from East to West while wind between 30 to 60 degrees moves from West to East.

Explain the relationship between Earth's tilt and solar insolation.

The angle of the Earth's tilt will receive more solar insolation, as Earth's angles affect seasons, the seasons with more heat are directed from being angled towards the sun.

Describe El Nino (ENSO) using the terms upwelling, trade winds, warm and cold water, precipitation, and dry weather

The suppressed upwelling in El Nino pushes the trade winds from cold drier places in the Southeast of Asia and moves towards the warm areas of the Pacific with lots of precipitation.

What is responsible for seasons on Earth?

The tilt of the Earth's axis creates angles which the sun's rays create varying seasons in different lengths of the day.

Thermosphere

Therm = hottest temp; absorbs harmful X-Rays & UV Radiation; charged gas molecules glow under intense solar radiation which produces northern lights

What are two ways that heat is transferred to different parts of the Earth? (Slide 53)

Through surface temperatures that are affected by albedo and gives off heat radiation as well as the sunlight that is being absorbed.

Troposphere:

Tropo = change (weather occurs here)- 0-16 km, most dense due to pressure of other layers above it; most of atmosphere's gas molecules are found here; ozone O3 in the troposphere is harmful to humans (respiratory irritant) & damages plant stomata, and forms smog

b - Horizon

aka subsoil; lighter layer below topsoil, mostly made of minerals w/ little to no org. matter Contains some nutrients

a- Horizon

aka topsoil; layer of humus (decomposed organic matter) and minerals from parent material Has the most biological activity (earthworms, soil microbes) breaking down organic matter to release nutrients

Mesosphere: Meso

for middle; 60-80 km; even less dense

Silt

has an evenness of space and relative thickness which allows the soil to retain much of its nutrients

Permeability:

how easily water drains through a soil

O-Horizon

layer of organic matter (plant roots, dead leaves, animal waste, etc.) on top of soil Provides nutrients and limits H2O loss to evaporation

c - Horizon

least weathered soil that is closest to the parent material, sometimes called bedrock

Porosity:

the pore space within a soil (more sand, more porous)

Crust

Very outer layer of lithosphere, earth's surface

What is the difference between weathering and erosion?

Weathering is the physical, chemical, and biological breakdown of rocks into smaller pieces while erosion transports those fragments by wind and rain.

What happens to albedo when polar ice caps melt? What does high and low albedo mean?

When polar ice caps melt, the albedo that is reflected on decreases and the planet warms up even more. High albedo is when more light is reflected and absorbs less heat, but low albedo reflects less light and absorbs more heat.