mastering geography homework 3
Half of the total mass of Earth's atmosphere lies below an elevation of_____ meters
5500.
Which of the following ecological regions is affected by the most acidic rain?
Eastern temperate forests
Which of the following is true?
The ozonosphere corresponds with the stratosphere.
Which atmospheric zone supports the biosphere and is the region of principle weather activity?
Troposphere.
What type of energy is absorbed in the ozonosphere?
UVC and UVB
Montreal Protocol
aims to reduce and eliminate all ozone depleting substances.
Which stable (nonvariable) gas in the atmosphere is inert and unusable in life processes?
argon
Three criteria used for classification of the atmosphere are
composition, temperature, and function
What are some variable atmospheric gases of the troposphere?
water vapor, carbon dioxide, nitrogen dioxide
Temperature inversions occur
when surface temperatures are lower than warmer overlying air.
Given the pH scale is logarithmic where each whole number represents a tenfold increase, a rain with a pH of 3 is how many times more acidic than rain with a pH of 7?
10,000 (each whole pH value is 10x more acidic than the next higher value) For example, pH 4 is ten times more acidic than pH 5 and 100 times (10 times 10) more acidic than pH 6.
The top of the Earth's atmosphere is approximately
480 km (300 mi) above Earth's surface
Which of the following statements about acid deposition is accurate
Acid deposition results in declining fish populations, forest damage, and altered soil chemistry.
Which of the following statements about the atmosphere is correct?
Air consists of gases thoroughly mixed so that they behave like a single gas
Which of the following is false?
Air pressure decreases through the troposphere though increases in the stratosphere.
Which of the following statements accurately describes air pressure?
Air pressure decreases with height above Earth's surface.
Which of the following major industrial areas is associated with an urban area with the highest level (199-540 μg/m3) of poor air quality?
Firozabad/Agra (Northern India)
Which statement describes the homosphere?
Gases are uniformly mixed.
Which of the following is true of gases in the heterosphere?
Hydrogen and helium occur at the top of the heterosphere and oxygen and nitrogen dominate in the lower heterosphere.
Which of the following best describe conditions in the mesosphere?
It contains the coldest portion of the atmosphere along its outer boundary.
Which of the following is not true of carbon dioxide?
It occurs in large amounts in the atmosphere relative to other gases.
Which of the following is true regarding the depletion of ozone in the ozonosphere?
It results from chemical reactions with chlorine derived from CFCs.
Which of the following is true?
Natural events, such as volcanoes and wildfires, produce air pollution and may cover large areas.
Which of the following is not true of UV exposure
Only exposure to UVA is a concern, not exposure to UVB and UVC.
Why does temperature increase with altitude in the stratosphere?
Ozone converts UV radiation from the sun into heat energy.
Which of the following statements about ozone (O3) is false?
Ozone in the lower atmosphere protects human health.
Why is stratospheric ozone loss a concern?
Stratospheric ozone absorbs harmful ultraviolet radiation (UVB and UVC).
Which of the following is not true about the troposphere?
Temperatures increase with altitude in the troposphere because the higher in altitude, the closer to the sun
Which of the following is true of chlorofluorocarbons?
The CFC molecules react with ultraviolet light to release chlorine which then destroys ozone.
Air consists of
a mixture of gases that behaves as if it were a single gas, it is colorless
The ozonosphere is critical to life because it
absorbs most ultraviolet wavelengths.
The tropopause altitude is highest ________ because of the ________
at the equator; air expansion from intense heating at the surface
Photochemical smog became prevalent with the advent of
automobiles.
The single major source for photochemical reactants in the United States are
automobiles.
O3 in the lower troposphere
causes lung irritation, asthma, and susceptibility to respiratory illness in humans
Based on temperature, the atmosphere is divided into
four regions, ranging from the troposphere to the thermosphere.
Clean Air Act
has resulted in the significant reduction in various atmospheric pollutants.
The outermost region of the atmosphere, based on composition, is the
heterosphere
The region of the atmosphere that is so evenly mixed that it behaves as if it were a single gas is the
homosphere
Which of the following is not a result of acid deposition?
increase in nutrients in forest ecosystems
Which of the following is not cited as a factor in helping to reduce air pollution?
increased use of coal as an energy source
Sources of natural variable pollutants and materials include all of the following except
industrial activity.
The high temperatures in the thermosphere occur because
it is in direct contact with high energy solar radiation.
In which two atmospheric zones does temperature increase with altitude
stratosphere and thermosphere
What two pollutants react with water to produce acid rain?
sulfur oxides and nitrogen oxides
What is the ozonosphere?
the layer of the atmosphere that absorbs significant amounts of ultraviolet radiation
The lower the pH of a liquid
the more acidic it is.
The solar constant is measured at
the top of the atmosphere (480 km (300 mi)).
In terms of incoming solar radiation (insolation), which is the correct order?
thermosphere, mesosphere, stratosphere, troposphere
The highest temperatures in the atmosphere occur in the
thermosphere.
Why are humans and other living things not crushed by the pressure of the atmosphere?
they exert pressure outward, counterbalancing atmospheric pressure
In which two atmospheric zones does temperature decrease with altitude?
troposphere and mesosphere
Based on composition, the atmosphere is divided into
two broad classifications: homosphere and heterosphere.
Based on function, the atmosphere has
two zones that absorb radiation from the Sun.
Which of the following statements about air pollution is correct?
Anthropogenic pollution includes carbon monoxide, photochemical smog, and volatile organic compounds
Which of the following best describes air pollution?
Both natural and anthropogenic gases, particles, and other substances in amounts that cause damage to the environment or are harmful to humans.
Which is true of the level of CO2 in our atmosphere?
CO2 is reached 400 ppm in approximately 2013.
Why is the hole in the ozone greatest over Antarctica?
Chlorine freed from CFCs elsewhere migrate to the Antarctic region, where they are trapped by the polar vortex
Nitrogen (N2) is
Cycled through the environment via the activity of bacteria.
Despite its high temperatures, why would the thermosphere feel cold to humans?
The number of molecules is not high enough to transfer heat to human's skin.
Which of the following is true of the ionosphere?
The region principally absorbs gamma rays, X-rays, and interacts with the solar wind.
Which of the following statements is correct about a nation's coal consumption and subsequent per capita carbon dioxide emissions?
Though China is a leading consumer of coal, its overall per capita CO2 emissions are lower than those of developed nations such as the United States, Canada, Germany, and Australia.
Why are temperature inversion noteworthy vis-à-vis air pollution?
Vertical mixing of pollutants is halted, trapping the pollutants under the inversion layer.
Oxygen (O2) is
a by-product of photosynthesis.
How can the temperature in the thermosphere exceed 1200° C but not be "hot"?
low atmospheric density
Which of the following lists the correct sequence of gases, from most to least, in terms to percentage within the homosphere?
nitrogen, oxygen, argon, carbon dioxide, trace gases
The three stable (i.e., nonvariable) gases in the atmosphere, in order of abundance from most to least, are
nitrogen, oxygen, argon.
The thermopause is located
on average, approximately 480 km (300 mi.) above Earth's surface.
Which of the gases listed below has accumulated in the atmosphere as a result of biological processes?
oxygen
Which of the following associations correctly matches the atmospheric component with its approximate relative percentage by volume?
oxygen 21%
The main ingredients in photochemical smog are
ozone, PAN, and nitric acid.
The heterosphere is the layer of the atmosphere in which the gases are ________ because of ________
poorly mixed; gravity causes gases of different weight to separate into layers
Industrial smog is
principally associated with coal-burning industries and electrical generation.
The reaction of automobile exhaust and ultraviolet light
produces photochemical smog
