GEL Exam 2 (Part 5)

What is the sudden movement of a glacier due to a sudden addition of snow on ice called? a) Calving. b) A surge. c) Slipping. d) Frosting.

b) A surge.

Where is the world's largest ice sheet? a) Iceland. b) Greenland. c) Canada. d) Antarctica.

d) Antarctica.

The abundant yield of ______, currently more than 80 million tons per year, is just one of the many services proved to humankind by the worlds oceans

fish

Glacially carved __________ deeply indent the mountainous, west-facing coasts of Norway, Alaska, British Columbia, Chile, and New Zealand.

fjords

A __________ is a persistent body of ice consisting largely of recrystallized snow.

glacier

When an accumulating mass of snow and ice on a mountainside reaches a critical thickness, the mass begins to deform and flow downslope under the pull of __________ .

gravity

The crystal structure of snow has a __________ symmetry, which means that it typically forms as a six-sided crystal.

haxagonal

Huge continent-sized __________ sheets overwhelm nearly all the land surface within their margins.

ice

The global circulation of the world ocean is directly influenced by the formation and melting of __________ .

ice

In 1912, the S.S. Titanic sank after striking an __________ .

iceberg

Ridge-like accumulations of sediment called __________ form as sediment is bulldozed by a glacier advancing across the land.

moraines

The most characteristic feature of periglacial regions is perennially frozen ground, also known as __________ .

permafrost

The rapid increase in water density with depth defines the ______

pycnoclin

When sea ice melts, the __________ of the water is decreased as fresh water is added to the ocean surface.

salinity

Approximately two-thirds of the area of Earth's persistent ice cover floats as a thin veneer of __________ ice on polar oceans.

sea

The altitude of the __________ and its horizontal position on the landscape typically change from year to year depending on the weather.

snowline

Nearly all coasts have experienced _________, a rise of water level relative to the land over the past 10,000 years

submergence

The ________ zone typically extends to a depth of 100 to 500 meters

suface

Ice throughout a warm glacier, more commonly called a __________ glacier, can coexist in equilibrium with water.

tempperate

The front, or __________ of a glacier is likely to advance as the glacier grows.

terminus

The distance between two equivalent points on a wave is called the _________

wavelength

How are icebergs formed? a) By freezing seawater. b) By pieces of glacial ice breaking off the glacier. c) By pieces of intercontinental ice migrating toward the ocean. d) By river ice from mountain zones flowing to the sea.

b) By pieces of glacial ice breaking off the glacier.

As you go from lower to higher latitudes, the altitude of the snow line should a) Increase. b) Decrease. c) Stay the same. d) Need more information.

b) Decrease.

Where do Earth's large ice sheets now exist? a) Greenland and Asia. b) Greenland and Antarctica. c) Antarctica and Asia. d) Canada and Greenland.

b) Greenland and Antarctica.

What is the typical crystal structure of snow? a) Tetrahedral. b) Hexagonal. c) Octagonal. d) Pentagonal.

b) Hexagonal.

What happens to the tides if the Earth, Moon, and Sun are all in a line? a) Lowest high tides. b) Highest high tides. c) Moderate high tides. d) Moderate low tides.

b) Highest high tides

What percentage of an iceberg will be below the sea? a) 90% b) 10% c) 50% d) 75%

a) 90%

Which of the following terms refers to glacial melting below the snow line? a) Ablation. b) Calving. c) Surging. d) Plucking.

a) Ablation.

Why is the thickness of ooze along the ocean floor not always an accurate indication of the biological productivity of surface water in a given area? a) beyond certain depths, both calcareous and siliceous ooze will tend to dissolve in the water. b) Animal remains tend to get eaten in the upper layers and therefore will never fall to the bottom. C) Marine life generally migrate and do not stay in any once place that long. D) currents take most of the material away.

a) Beyond certain depths, both calcareous and siliceous ooze will tend to dissolve in the water.

Where does a medial moraine develop? a) In the middle of two coalesced glaciers. b) On the side of a glacier. c) At the top of a glacier. d) Near the bottom of a glacier.

a) In the middle of two coalesced glaciers.

If the amount of ice that a glacier loses is greater than the amount of snow it gains, it will a) Retreat. b) Advance. c) Stay motionless.

a) Retreat.

Which of the following is not a component of the cryosphere? a) Seawater. b) Seasonal snow cover. c) Sea ice. d) Ice shelves. e) Permafrost.

a) Seawater.

Where would the surface velocity across a valley glacier be the fastest? a) Uppermost ice in the central part of the glacier. b) Ice at the sides of the glacier. c) Ice at the bottom of the glacier.

a) Uppermost ice in the central part of the glacier.

79. The cool temperature of the Canary Current water is produced by _________ a) the upwelling caused by offshore winds from the continent b) the downwelling caused by offshore winds toward the continent c) the cold precipitation that falls into the ocean d) the strong cold North wind

a) the upwelling caused by offshore winds from the continent.

When will Arctic sea ice typically reach it minimum? a) June. b) September. c) August. d) December.

b) September.

What is the highest point called at which a glacier's winter snow cover is lost during a given season? a) Tree-line. b) Snowline. c) Frost-line. d) Equilibrium line.

b) Snowline.

In polar regions, the amount of annual snowfall is generally very low. Why is this? a) The air is too warm to hold much moisture. b) The air is too cold to hold much moisture. c) The pressure is too high to hold much moisture. d) The pressure is too low to hold much moisture.

b) The air is too cold to hold much moisture.

How deep do crevasses in glaciers extend down to? a) About 1000 meters. b) Zone of plastic flow. c) Slightly through the continent. d) The very bottom of the glacier.

b) Zone of plastic flow.

Each year, about __________ percent of the Arctic Sea ice moves south into the Greenland Sea, where it eventually breaks up and melts away.

10

A _______ consists of wave-washed sediment along a coast, including sediment in the surf zone.

Beach

Primitive meteorites called_________ are considered to be samples of the same material that accreted to form Earth

Carbonaceous chondrites

The direction taken by ocean currents is influenced by wind and the_____ force

Coriolis

If the net Ekman Transport is toward the coast, the surface water thickens and sinks in a process known as __________

Downwelling

In the northern hemisphere, almost 60% of the land area is covered by seasonal snow and frozen ground during the winter.

FAlse

Glaciers generally develop below sea level in the polar regions.

False

Ice has a low albedo, which makes the ice-covered polar regions far warmer than if the same areas were covered with water or land.

False

Icebergs float with most of their volume above sea level.

False

The crystal structure of snow is closed and dense.

False

The largest areas of permafrost occur in eastern South America and the Tibetan Plateau.

False

The lower most water of the ocean constitutes the pelagic zone.

False

The thermocline does not coincide with the pycnocline or the halocline

False

Very little of Earth's land area has been shaped by glaciers.

False

the salinity of seawater is about 5.0 percent by weight

False

Many of the worlds warm-water coastlines are characterized by limestone_______, vast colonies built by corals and other carbonate-secreting organism.

Reefs

is the measure of the sea's saltiness.

Salinity

The melting of ______ ice does not have a dramatic impact on sea level.

Sea

_____ covers 70.8 percent of Earth's surface

Seawater

Turbulent _______ is defines as wave activity between the line of breaking waves and the shore

Surf

A valley that has been shaped by glaciers has a distinctive U-shaped cross section and a floor that lies below its tributary valleys.

True

Earth has had liquid water on its surface for at least 4 billion years

True

Glacial ice contains abundant physical, chemical, and biological evidence of past changes in local and global environmental conditions.

True

In the temperature ("warm") glaciers of low and middle latitudes, ice can coexist with water.

True

Sea ice is in constant motion, driven by winds and currents.

True

Sea water covers nearly 71% of Earth's surface.

True

Sea-surface temperatures a strongly related to latitude

True

Solifuction is a common mass-wasting process in which waterlogged regolith in a thawed, active layer moves slowly downslope.

True

The cryosphere is the part of Earth's surface that is perennially frozen.

True

The huge continental ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica contain about 95% of existing glacial ice.

True

There is evidence of glacial-interglacial cycles as long as 2.4 billion years ago.

True

Till is a glacial sediment that occurs in unsorted and unstratified deposits.

True

When a glacier gains more mass than it loses over a period of years, its volume increases and the terminus advances.

True

______ are often erroneously called "tidal" waves

Tsunamis

Surface ocean waves receive their energy from _____ that blow across the water surface.

Winds

Ice has a high __________ which means that an ice-covered surface reflects a large amount of incoming solar radiation.

albedo

During the most recent ice age, about what percentage of glaciers covered the Earth's land area? a) 20% b) 30% c) 50% d) 70%

b) 30%

Upwelling is________ a) a surface convergence of the water. b) net transport towards land. c) horizontal offshore current. d) net transport away from land.

b) net transport toward land

What will be the result of sea level rising, causing the ocean to fill a glacially carved valley? a) A surge. b) A moraine. c) A fjord. d) A horn.

c) A fjord.

If the rate of accumulation is __________the rate of ablation, a glacier will advance from its source area. a) Equal to. b) Less than. c) Greater than. d) Much less than.

c) Greater than.

A wave is composed of a crest and trough. With this said, what are high tides and what are low tides? a) High tide = crest; low tide = crest. b) High tide = trough; low tide = crest. c) High tide = crest; low tide = trough. d) High tide = trough; low tide = trough

c) High tide = crest; low tide = trough

Coastal erosion can be devastating to communities and ecosystems along the coastline. There are a number of ways to prevent -- or at least slow down -- this erosion. Which of the following is not one of those ways? a) Retreat. b) Hard stabilization. c) Medium stabilization. d) Soft stabilization.

c) Medium stabilization.

Features such as cirques are associated with what type of glaciation? a) Fjords. b) Valley glaciation. c) Mountain glaciation. d) Lowland glaciation.

c) Mountain glaciation.

What is a moraine? a) A deep crevice filled with sediment. b) U-shaped valley, filled with sediment. c) Ridge-like accumulation of sediment. d) None of these.

c) Ridge-like accumulation of sediment.

In climatology, what does AMOC stand for? a) Alternative Method of Compliance b) Acoustic Monitoring of Ocean Circulation in the Arctic c) The Atlantic meridional overturning circulation d) Air Mobility Operations Course

c) The Atlantic meridional overturning circulation

Where are most glaciers found? a) Mid-latitude cold zones. b) Lower latitudes on high mountains. c) The high-latitude polar regions. d) None of these.

c) The high-latitude polar regions.

Where would one find the equilibrium line on a glacier? a) The point where net mass loss is less than net mass gain. b) The point where net mass loss is greater than net mass gain. c) The point where net mass loss equals net mass gain.

c) The point where net mass loss equals net mass gain.

What is the major feature of a valley formed by a glacier versus a valley formed by a stream? a) Deep moraines. b) W-Shape. c) U-Shape. d) V-Shape.

c) U-Shape.

Where do crevasses form in glaciers? a) Where a glacier is accumulating. b) Where a glacier is melting. c) Where a glacier is subjected to tension. d) Any of these.

c) Where a glacier is subjected to tension.

Glaciers cover about how much of the land surface? a) 5% b) 20% c) 30% d) 10%

d) 10%

When did the most recent ice age begin? a) About 10,000 years ago. b) About 100,000 years ago. c) About 50,000 years ago. d) About 70,000 years ago.

d) About 70,000 years ago.

As a result of __________ over the course of a year or more, accumulated snow gradually becomes denser and denser until it is not longer permeable to air.

compaction

The part of the Earth's surface that remains perennially frozen constitutes the __________ .

cryosphere

What is frontal calving? a) Breaking off of icebergs from the back of a glacier that terminates in shallow water. b) Breaking off of icebergs from the front of a glacier that terminates in shallow water. c) Breaking off of icebergs from the back of a glacier that terminates in deep water. d) Breaking off of icebergs from the front of a glacier that terminates in deep water.

d) Breaking off of icebergs from the front of a glacier that terminates in deep water.

What is the most characteristic feature of periglacial regions? a) Fjords. b) Continental ice sheets. c) Large glaciers. d) Permafrost.

d) Permafrost.

When did the most recent ice age occur? a) Mesozoic. b) Precambrian. c) Cambrian. d) Pleistocene.

d) Pleistocene.

If you were to analyze a deep ice core, what would expect to be the relative sizes of the ice crystals that make up the core? Start from the top layer and work your way down to the bottom layer. a) Large, small, medium. b) Large, medium, small. c) Medium, small, large. d) Small, medium, large.

d) Small, medium, large.

What is the outermost limit of a glacier's advance called? a) Lateral moraine. b) Medial moraine. c) Ground moraine. d) Terminal moraine.

d) Terminal moraine.

The zone of accumulation is generally characterized by a) Striations. b) Ablation. c) Thick sediment. d) The thickest development of glacial ice.

d) The thickest development of glacial ice.

One of the most important factors affecting salinity is___________, which removes fresh water and leaves the remaining water saltier

evaporation

Approximately 75% of Earth's permanent ice cover is sea ice.

false

The North Pole is located in the Antarctic continent, covered by a vast, thick ice sheet.

false