ENVS Midterm 2
El Niño
During El Niño years, productivity off the coast of Peru should (increase/decrease) ✅decrease✅ and sea level should (rise/fall) ✅rise✅. In contrast to El Niño, during La Niña years, the tradewinds (strengthen/weaken) ✅strengthen✅ and the low-pressure region in the western Pacific generally moves (westward/eastward/northward/southward) ✅westward✅
It would be impossible to suck a liquid through a straw if you were in a vacuum (such as floating in space)
False
Green light
Green light has a (shorter/longer) ✅shorter✅ wavelength than red light Green has a (higher/lower) ✅higher✅ frequency than red light. Green light has a (higherlower) ✅higher✅ energy than red light Green light is (nearer/farther) ✅nearer✅ to/from ultraviolet light than red light As a solid body heats up, it radiates green light at a (lowerlhigher) ✅lower✅ temperature than red light. The energy of X rays is much (higher/lower) ✅higher✅ than green light
Which is false about Earth's seasons?
a) Aphelion-when Earth is farthest from the Sun-occurs in July b) If you go to South Africa for a "summer" holiday, it will be very warm then c) It is winter in December in the Northern Hemisphere, because the South Pole is tilted toward the Sun d) Perihelion-when we are closest-occurs in January ✅ It is winter in December in the Northern Hemisphere, because the South Pole is tilted toward the Sun
Most of life occurs ________
a) At the boundaries of the geosphere, hydrosphere and atmosphere b) between 2 and 10 meters below the land surface c) In the open ocean d) at the surface of the ocean ✅ At the boundaries of the geosphere, hydrosphere and atmosphere
The chemical formula for ozone is
a) CH4 b) 03 c) 02 d) C20 ✅ O3
Which of the following are greenhouse gases?
a) CO2 b) nitrogen c) methane d) krypton e) argon ✅CO2 ✅methane
Reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone resulted in which of the following? (Answer all that apply)
a) Eagle and bear populations decreased b) Flooding became a bigger problem due to decreased beaver population c) ✅ Beaver and songbird populations increased d) ✅ Carrion eaters such as eagles and crows returned to Yellowstone in greater numbers e) ✅ Trees began to grow in abundance f) ✅ Streams started meandering and eroding less g) ✅ The number of coyotes decreased
What causes the Earth's seasons?
a) Earth is closest to the Sun in the Summer and farthest in the Winter b) Earth's orbit is not round c) Earth is tilted on its axis by 23.45 degrees d) Earth is blocked by the Moon during the Winter months ✅ Earth is tilted on its axis by 23.45 degrees
The time of year focused on with regard to ENSO is Fall O Winter Spring Summer
a) Fall b) Winter c) Spring d) Summer ✅ Winter
The seasons are primarily controlled by
a) Increased cloudiness in the winter b) Changing length of day c) The influence of the lunar tides d) The inclined axis of the Earth's rotation around the Sun e) Earth's changing distance to the sun over a bi-annual cycle ✅ The inclined axis of the Earth's rotation around the Sun
CO2 is a greenhouse gas because
a) It absorbs in the visible light range b) It has high concentrations in plant communities (i.e. greenhouse gases) c) It absorbs infrared radiation d) It is a poisonous gas in high concentrations ✅It absorbs infrared radiation
Which of the following bodies has the highest salinity?
a) Lake Michigan b) Red Sea c) Pacific Ocean d) Arctic Ocean e) Gulf of Mexico ✅ Red Sea
The Earth is divided into Northern and Southerm Hemispheres based on the:
a) Prime Meridian b) Equator c) Tropic of Cancer d) Tropic of Capricorn ✅ Equator
The salinity of the oceans is greater at 20 to 30° latitude than at the equator because
a) Temperatures are higher at the equator than at any other latitude b) Temperatures are higher at 20 to 30° than at the equator c) Major rivers cause a lowering of the salinity d) There is more rain at 20° to 30° than at the equator e) There is more evaporation at 20° to 30° than at the equator ✅ There is more evaporation at 20° to 30* than at the equator
Check all of the following statements that are true according to the Garbage Patch (Landfill on Sea) reading.
a) The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is 10 times the size of France b) It is estimated that the Great Pacific Garbage patch increases in size 10 times every year. c) On average, every person disposes of 185 pounds of plastic per year d) 100,000 marine birds are killed by ingesting plastics every year e) Recycling of the plastics in the ocean is actually profitable ✅ It is estimated that the Great Pacific Garbage patch increases in size 10 times every year. ✅ On average, every person disposes of 185 pounds of plastic per year ✅ 100,000 marine birds are killed by ingesting plastics every year
Which of the following explains the change in biomes with latitude (answer all that apply)
a) There are more species (taxa) variation at higher latitudes b) There are more primary consumers at higher latitudes c) The amount of sunlight decreases at higher latitudes d) The amount of rainfall decreases with increasing latitude ✅ The amount of sunlight decreases at higher latitudes ✅ The amount of rainfall decreases with increasing latitude
Put a P for prokaryotes or an E for eukaryotes in each blank as appropriate.
a) These are always single celled organisms ✅P b) These contain organelles, including mitochondria ✅E c) Mammals are made of these ✅E d) These do not have a cell membrane ✅P e) Bacteria are these ✅P f) These appeared on Earth about 1.5 billion years ago ✅E
This region on the World Zone Map is characterized by a vear-round warm/hot and moist climate.
a) Tropics b) Subtropics c) Temperate Zone d) Frigid Zone ✅ Tropics
According to the article Landfill-on-sea, approximately 30-40% of plastics sink to the ocean floor.
a) True b) False ✅ False
Air masses move from the troposphere to the stratosphere because the stratosphere is cooler than the troposphere
a) True b) False ✅ False
Clouds form because air compresses and cools as it rises
a) True b) False ✅ False
The most nutrient-rich waters are in the shallow ocean.
a) True b) False ✅ False
The salinity of the ocean is lowered when temperature is raised
a) True b) False ✅ False
The winter is colder because the earth is farther from the sun at that time of year
a) True b) False ✅ False
Warm tropospheric air masses do not reach the stratosphere because they are blocked by the tropopause.
a) True b) False ✅ False
Autotrophs are always at the first trophic level
a) True b) False ✅ True
Jellyfish eat microplastics which get passed up the food chain to larger animals.
a) True b) False ✅ True
No animals are at trophic level 1
a) True b) False ✅ True
The amount of downwelling is greater in the AABW than the NADW.
a) True b) False ✅ True
The highest productivity is in the shallow ocean.
a) True b) False ✅ True
The location of 28,000 rubber duckies that fell off a ship were used to help constrain ocean currents.
a) True b) False ✅ True
A cold winter day that is at near 100% relative humidity holds cproximately double the amount of diesolved water vapor than wam air at 50% relative humidity
a) True b) False ✅False
The troposphere is unstable and convects because temperatures decrease with increasing altitude.
a) True b) False ✅True
The Tropic of Capricorn is the latitude where the Sun is directly overhead around the time of December 21 or 22nd
a) True b) False ✅ True
If you eat a a lot of large fish, you are likely at a trophic level of 5. If you are vegan, you are at a trophic level of 1
a) True b) False ✅ False
Relative to Sea Level, the highest region on Earth (Mt. Everest) is only slightly higher than the deepest part of the ocean (Mariana Trench) is deep.
a) True b) False ✅ False
At 20 to 30° north and south of the equator, the waters in the open ocean tend to be nutrient poor.
a) True b) False ✅ True
At some depth, the water is actually moving in th opposite direction from the direction of the surface wind.
a) True b) False ✅ True
Biomagnification is the phenomenon whereby organisms at higher trophic levels are comespondingly larger than those at lower trophic levels
a) True b) False ✅ False
Ekman transport causes sea ice to move 90° to the right of the direction of the wind in the northern hemisphere.
a) True b) False ✅ False
Mammals and plants have far more genetic variability than prokaryotes do.
a) True b) False ✅ False
Many paleontologists hypothesize that mammals are the evolutionary offspring of dinosaurs
a) True b) False ✅ False
Photosynthesis removes O2 from the atmosphere which helps keep the planet cooler than it otherwise would be.
a) True b) False ✅ False
Areas over the ocean have only a small seasonal temperature variation in part because the ocean temperatures change much less than the land temperatures.
a) True b) False ✅ True
Photosynthesis removes CO2 from the atmosphere which helps keep the planet cooler than it otherwise would be.
a) True b) False ✅ True
The largest extinction event in Earth's history oocurred at the boundary between the Permian and Triassic periods.
a) True b) False ✅ True
Viruses are considered to be non-living because they are smaller than the minimum accepted cutoff for living organisms
a) True b) False ✅True
Which of the following didn't Fridtjof Nansen do?
a) Won the Norwegian national cross-country skiing championship 11 times b) Developed the mathematics to describe the Ekman spiral c) Helped hundreds of thousands of refugees settle in new countries d) First to cross Greenland e) Purposely had his boat get stuck in pack ice for three years f) Got a Nobel Peace Prize ✅ Developed the mathematics to describe the Ekman spiral
In the troposphere (up to about 10 km altitude, which of the following are true?
a) air pressure increases b) air pressure decreases c) air temperature increases d) air temperature decreases ✅air temperature decreases ✅air pressure decreases
EI Niño and La Niña events occur on
a) average every six to twelve years b) average every one to two years c) average every two to twenty years d) average every two to seven years ✅ average every two to seven years
Fill in the blanks with an a for autotrophs and an h for heterotrophs.
a) bacteria feeding on black smokers ✅a b) rabbits ✅h c) plants ✅a d) photosynthetic algae ✅a e) mushrooms ✅h f) reptiles ✅h
The biological pump is
a) dead organic matter transferring CO2 from the shallow to deep oceans b) The major physiological change during evolution of eukaryotes (multicellular organisms) c) one of three links to El Nino d) The photosynthetic pathway used by most plants e) the proposed method for extracting petroleum from (Canadian) tar sands ✅ dead organic matter transferring CO2 from the shallow to deep oceans
Marine organisms with limited mobility use ocean currents for
a) determining the location of the optimum sunlight distribution b) sending messages through the water column to distant offspring c) sensing what movements are occurring in other oceans d) food, nutrients, and to distribute larvae and reproductive cells ✅ food, nutrients, and to distribute larvae and reproductive cells
The eye of a hurricane is a region of
a) downwelling air b) intense precipitation c) extreme winds d) all of the above ✅ downwelling air
Currents affect the Earth's climate by
a) driving warm water from the Equator and cold water from the poles around the Earth. b) driving cold water from the Equator and warm water from the poles around the Earth. c) driving salty water from the Equator and nutrient poor water from the poles around the Earth. d) driving temperate water from the Equator and hot water from the poles around the Earth. ✅ driving warm water from the Equator and cold water from the poles around the Earth.
In 1938, a living example of this fish was discovered 66 million years after its supposed extinction.
a) ghost fish b) coelacanth c) Placodermi d) giant squid ✅ coelacanth
Global wind currents and ocean currents are linked. They are primariy controlled by which of the following processes?
a) heating at the equator/Hadiey cell b) the IAEA c) precipitation d) plate tectonics e) anthropogenic release ✅ heating at the equator/Hadiey cell
Which one of the following gases has a variable concentration in the atmosphere?
a) helium b) nitrogen c) water vapor d) oxygen ✅water vapor
Downwelling is the sinking of dense waters from the surface too the deep ocean. Density will increase for which of the following conditions?
a) high acidity and low pH b) high salinity and cold waters c) low salinity and low pH d) high salinity and warm waters e) low salinity and high acidity ✅ high salinity and cold waters
The salinity of the ocean is increased by which of the following processes
a) ice formation b) raising the water temperature c) increasing productivity d) decreasing the water temperature e) evaporation ✅ ice formation ✅ evaporation
The equatorial current moves
a) in opposite directions in the Pacific and Atiantic due to Gyre effects b) east to west in summer, west to east in winter c) from west to east d) northward e) from east to west ✅ From east to west
Upwelling usually occurs
a) in the middle of the ocean b) occurs toward the edges of continents. c) brings up currents that damage cell walls. d) forces marine animals to search harder for their food ✅ occurs toward the edges of continents
Air's capacity to hold water vapor (the maximum amount of water that an air mass can dissolve)
a) increases with rising temperature b) decreases with rising temperature c) is reduced by adding carbon dioxide d) is increased by addition of ozone e) is unaffected by air temperature ✅ increases with rising temperature
Match up the left and right sides
a) infrared radiation ➡️ absorbed by greenhouse gases b) UV radiation ➡️ absorbed by ozone c) visible radiation ➡️ transparent to all natural gases d) gamma radiation ➡️ highest energy radiation
According to our definition, which of the following are criteria for life (check all that apply)
a) intelligence b) crystalline structure c) metabolism d) reproduction e) evolution f) movement g) response to stimulus h) growth ✅ metabolism ✅ reproduction ✅ evolution ✅ growth
The region on Earth above the Arctic Circle is
a) is the most northernly location where the Sun is directly overhead in the northern summer. b) is the latitude of equal daylight and darkness during the Spring Equinox c) is the latitude of equal daylight and darkness during the Autumnal Equinox d) in complete darkness at the peak of the northern winter ✅ in complete darkness at the peak of the northern winter
The reason the Mariana Trench is so deep is that
a) it is part of the oldest oceanic lithosphere on Earth b) it is the southernmost part of a massive graben system c) it contains uniquely high amounts of gabbroic rocks d) it is bounded by volcanoes on all sides. ✅ it is part of the oldest oceanic lithosphere on Earth
In terms of water abundance, Which is sorted from largest reservoir to smallest?
a) lakes, cryosphere, oceans, rivers b) oceans, rivers, air, lakes c) oceans, cryosphere, groundwater, lakes, rivers d) lakes, cryosphere, rivers, air e) oceans, cryosphere, lakes, rivers, groundwater ✅ oceans, cryosphere, groundwater, lakes, rivers
On the Earth, most climate systems vary most strongly according to _______ gradients.
a) latitudinal b) longitudinal c) temperate d) human-caused ✅ latitudinal
This picture of the Sandia Mountains shows clouds. This is an example of
a) orographic lifting b) convergent lifting c) stationary cold front lifting d) density lifting ✅ orographic lifting
Nutrients are delivered back to the environment (soil or water) by
a) protists b) decomposers c) autotrophs d) photosynthetic bacteria ✅ decomposers
The layer of rapid salinity change in the ocean is know as the
a) salocline b) hypnocline c) halocline d) pycnocline e) thermocline ✅ halocline
Christmas Island get torrential rains in El Niño years because
a) sea-level rises in the central Pacific b) temperatures decrease in the central Pacific c) productivity increases in the central Pacific d) the low pressure cell in the western Pacific moves eastward e) All of the above ✅ the low pressure cell in the western Pacific moves eastward
Match each picture (a), b), c) d) to the trophic level number.
a) shark ➡️ more than trophic level 4 b) cat ➡️ trophic level 3 c) rabbit ➡️ trophic level 2 d) trees ➡️ trophic level 1
This picture best illustrates which concept
a) that roads heat up because of absorbed infrared radiation b) that roads heat up because of absorbed visible radiation c) that dark surfaces absorb less visible radiation than light surfaces d) that water buildup on roads can cause accidents ✅that roads heat up because of absorbed VISIBLE radiation
During the Autumnal and Spring Equinox, the Sun is directly over
a) the Northern Equinox b) the Equator c) the Tropic of Capricorn d) the Tropic of Capricorn ✅ the Equator
The ozone laver blocks ultraviolet light, it is located in
a) the stratopause b) the ultraviolet cloud c) the troposphere d) the stratosphere ✅ the stratosphere
In times of extensive continental glacier, the sea level
a) varies by season b) increases increases c) in the Southern Hemisphere, decreases in the Northern Hemisphere d) decreases ✅ decreases
When winds blow across and push water away from the ocean surface
a) water sinks from the surface to replace the converging surface water. b) water rises up from beneath the surface to replace the diverging surface water. c) water spills from the surface onto the land and causes flooding from deep water. d) water sinks from the surface to replace the diverging deep water. ✅ water rises up from beneath the surface to replace the diverging surface water.
For a constant temperature, the water content of an air mass is 0.15 mg/L. If the saturation of air at that temperature is 0.50 mg/L, then the relative humidity is
✅ 30% ....... (0.15/0.50)•100
For this diagram showing the direction of the wind and water, which hemisphere are we in?
✅ Northern Hemisphere= water direction to the right ✅ Southern Hemisphere= water direction to the left
How can you tell which hemisphere a hurricane is located in?
✅ Northern hemisphere: The hurricane spins clockwise from the center ✅ Southern hemisphere: The hurricane spins counter-clockwise from the center
The Red Sea has the (highest/lowest) [a] salinity of the Earth's oceans.
✅ highest
The region of rapidly changing temperature in the ocean is known as the
✅ thermocline
In this example, Senator Imhofe was
✅confusing weather with climate
The Arctic Circle would be found between these latitudes:
a) 0-10° b) 10°-30° c) 30°-50° d) 60°-90° ✅ 60°-90°
The volume of ice in Greenland is 2.9 million cubic kilometers 2,900,000 km^3. The volume of ice in Antarctica is 30 mill 361.9 million square miles (361,900,000 km^3). Question: Using these numbers, calculate how high sea level would rise if all of the ice in Greenland melted.
a) 0.79 meters b) 0.8 meters (2.62 feet) c) 6.9 meters d) 7.4 meters e) 8.0 meters f) 85.2 meters ✅ 8.0 meters (2,900,000 km^3/361,900,000 km^3)•1000
It takes approximately _______ years for waters to complete a deep ocean current cycle.
a) 1 b) 10 c) 1,000 d) 10,000 ✅ 1,000 years
The following latitude is in the Tropics
a) 10°N b) 60°N c) 60°S d) 40°S ✅ 10°N
The rate of downwelling water in the North Atlantic (NADW) is
a) 15-20 cubic meters/year b) 15-20 cubic meters/second c) 15-20 thousand cubic meters/second d) 15-20 million cubic meters/second ✅ 15-20 million cubic meters/second
Waters as deep as _________ meters are affected by the surftace winds.
a) 20 b) 40 c) 100 d) 200 e) 400 ✅ 400 meters
What percentage of the Earth's surface is covered with water?
a) 30% b) 50% c) 64% d) 70% ✅ 70%
The volume of ice in Greenland is 2.9 million cubic kilometers 2,900,000 km^3. The volume of ice in Antarctica is 30 milion cubic kilor 361.9 million square miles (361,900,000 km^3). Question: Using these numbers, caloulate how high sea level would rise if all of the ice in Greenland and Antarctica melted.
a) 6.8 meters b) 57.9 meters c) 91.0 meters d) 100 meters e) 579 meters f) 581 meters ✅ 91.0 meters ((2,900,000 km^3+361,900,000 km^3)/361,900,000 km^3)•1000
The following latitude is in the Subtropics:
a) 60°S b) 30°N c) 10°N d) the Equator
Major downwelling occurs in which region(s)? Click on all that are correct
a) Antarctic (Weddell Sea) b) North Atlantic c) Central Pacific d) Mid-Ocean ridges e) Indian Ocean ✅ Antarctic (Weddell Sea) ✅ North Atlantic
Match the gases on the left to the properties listed on the right for air.
1) H20 ➡️ variable in concentration 2) N2 ➡️ most abundant gas in air 3) CO2 ➡️ after water vapor, the most abundant gas 4) O2 ➡️ 2nd most abundant gas in air
Please put these gases that are found in the air from the most abundant to the least abundant.
1. Nitrogen 2. Oxygen 3. Argon 4. CO2 5. Neon 6. Hydrogen gas (H2)
Up/Downwelling
Along the equator we have (upwelling/downwelling) ✅upwelling✅ which leads to nutrient- (rich/poor) ✅rich✅ waters and (highvlow) ✅high✅ productivity.
The factors that make up weather are which of the following?
wind speed humidity temperature cloudiness pressure
