Unit 6 Earth's Atmosphere

plate tectonics and Milankovitch cycles

Global climate has changed in the past due to

thermal pollution

Heated water (to cool machinery) released by factories and power plants that can kill organisms living in the body of water into which it is released

on a beach

Humidity is most prevalent

land breeze example

If you were standing on the beach at midnight, would you feel a sea breeze or a land breeze?

Van Allen radiation belts stuff

In 1958, a group of United States scientists discovered the

photosynthesis, respiration

In the carbon-oxygen cycle, carbon dioxide is used for _____ and oxygen is used for _____.

gas atoms, electrons

In the ionosphere, the collision that raises the energy levels of oxygen and nitrogen occurs

A greenhouse effect—heat was let in through the windows and some was trapped inside.

It's a hot sunny day and you decide to go for a drive. When you open your car door, it's a lot hotter inside than outside

urbanization

Large areas of land that are developed as more and more people move to cities and suburbs

the earth's surface

Most of the thermal radiation supplied by the sun is absorbed

exosphere example

NASA launches another satellite into the

primary

Nitrogen and oxygen are _____ gases in the atmosphere.

DNA, amino acids, and proteins

Nitrogen is important to life because it is part of ____

goes down

When air pressure decreases, the mercury in a barometer

yes

When you go camping, you burn wood. Are you contributing to air pollution?

troposphere example

You climbed to the top of Mount Everest, which rises to 29,000 feet. You are in the

stratosphere example

You're flying in a plane and the seatbelt sign is turned off. You're in the

clockwise

_ direction in the Southern Hemisphere because of the Coriolis effect.

Coriolis effect

a circular pattern of winds created by Earth's rotation

carbon monoxide

a colorless, odorless, poisonous gas

Milankovitch cycles

a gas produced at high temperatures by combining nitrogen and oxygen

nitrogen oxide

a gas produced at high temperatures by combining nitrogen and oxygen

sulfur oxide

a gas produced when sulfur impurities in fuel burn by combining with oxygen

ozone

a molecule composed of three oxygen atoms; absorbs UV radiation

ozonosphere

a region in the upper stratosphere where ozone is concentrated

ionosphere

a sub-layer of the thermosphere containing ions

albedo

ability of a material to reflect solar radiation

ion

an electrically charged atom

ways the atmosphere supports life?

blocks harmful UV rays transports and distributes heat cycles essential elements: C, O, and N

mesosphere characteristic

coldest layer atmosphere

humid and hot

conditions would most likely cause thunderstorms?

sinks

cool air

land breeze

cool breeze that circulates from land to sea

sea breeze

cool breeze that circulates from sea to land

humidity

moisture in the air

carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and water vapor

paleoatmosphere, the primary gases

exosphere definition

the sub-layer of the thermosphere where the atmosphere blends into space

conduction

the transfer of heat between two stationary entities

Carbon dioxide and water vapor are variable gases because

their amounts vary throughout the atmosphere

radiation

transfer of heat or energy through rays of various wavelengths

Warm air rises on land and moves toward the ocean to cool Cool air moves from the ocean to be warmed by the land

two events occur to create a sea breeze?

greenhouse gases

type of gases holds in heat and keeps the earth at a moderate temperature?

energy

vital to sustainable development.

rises

warm air

pollution

waste substances not ordinarily found in the atmosphere that affect Earth's natural cycles

hydrocarbon

wasted, unburned fuel given off as a gas

pressure

weight or force upon something

mesosphere example

There's a meteor shower tonight! It happens primarily in the

radiation, conduction, and convection

Three ways to transfer heat are by

thermosphere characteristic

the hottest layer in the atmosphere

mesosphere

the layer of the atmosphere just above the stratosphere; burns up most meteors

respiration

the process by which oxygen combines with food to release energy and carbon dioxide

Life would no longer be possible.

the result if Earth's unique atmosphere did not exist

pesticides

Chemicals that kill crop-destroying organisms

thickness

Compared to Mars, our atmosphere's _____ is better to maintain a warm, livable temperature.

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

Congress established the _____ in 1969 to help with the air pollution problem.

Biogeochemical cycles

help keep the earth warm recycle essential materials are needed by living things

meteoroid

mass of stone or metal traveling through space

deforestation

Area where people cut down woodlands to harvest timber or clear the land for farms or ranches

latent heat example

Energy released when water vapor condenses

less

The thermosphere has _____ air pressure than the mesosphere.

Earth's atmosphere make possible?

A biosphere existing Dynamic recycling of materials needed for most processes on Earth Maintaining a steady and habitable temperature on Earth

drought

A period when less rain than normal falls in an area

more powerful

A shorter electromagnetic wave

acid rain respiratory distress global warming

Air pollution causes

natural resource

Anything that occurs naturally in the environment and is used by people

Alive

Some people consider the earth to be _____ because of its dynamic processes or cycles.

desertification

The advance of desert-like conditions into areas that were previously fertile

convection is redistributing heat

The air in the atmosphere circulates mainly because _

a superhighway

The atmosphere is considered _____ because of its ability to transport and distribute materials throughout the globe quickly.

water vapor

The condensation of _____ formed the early oceans. It is an important part of the water cycle.

Earth's Atmosphere

The earth has fewer meteorite impacts

automobiles

The leading cause of air pollution

uneven heat distribution

The main reason for wind or air circulation is

nutrient depletion

The process by which soil becomes less fertile, because a farmer plants the same crops in a field every year causing too much nutrient absorption

erosion

The process by which water, wind, or ice moves particles of rocks or soil

land reclamation

The process of restoring an area of land to a more productive state

aurora

The release of atoms' energy through glowing light and gases called

carbon-oxygen cycle

describes how carbon and oxygen are exchanged and recycled on Earth

counterclockwise

direction is the Northern hemisphere

volcanic outgassing meteorite and comet impacts

factors caused the early atmosphere to become thicker?

cyanobacteria GAS

first major source of oxygen gas

GRAVITY

force keeps our atmosphere from floating out into space?

Argon

gas is the most abundant of the trace gases?

Radio waves

have the least energy have the longest wavelengths

latent heat

heat released when water vapor condenses

altitude

height above the earth's surface

barometer

instrument used to measure air pressure

Air pressure

is the weight of air molecules decreases as altitude increases can balance by popping your ears

thermosphere

layer of the atmosphere above the mesosphere where temperatures are the highest in the atmosphere

stratosphere

layer of the atmosphere just above the troposphere where the temperature remains fairly constant

troposphere

layer of the atmosphere nearest the earth where most weather changes occur

meteorite

mass of stone or metal that has passed through the atmosphere and struck the earth's surface

photosynthesis

process by which plants use chlorophyll and energy from sunlight to manufacture food from carbon dioxide

convection

process of heat transfer by the circulation or movement of a liquid or a gas

atmosphere's roles

provides gases for respiration and photosynthesis provides protection from UV radiation and meteorites stabilizes a habitable temperature

Van Allen radiation belts

radiation belts surrounding Earth that protect us from harmful radiation of the Sun

cyanobacteria

single-celled photosynthetic bacteria

The earth is cooled and its atmosphere is heated by terrestrial radiation.

statements correctly compares the relationship between the earth, its atmosphere and radiation?

Earth's energy budget

the balance between the amount of energy coming in from the Sun and going back out into space