Earth Science Final Exam
What are the 3 landforms? Describe with elevation and relief.
Plains: interior (low relief and elevation can vary) and costal (low relief and low elevation) Mountains: mountain->mountain range->mountain system->mountain belt (high relief and high elevation) Plateau: treats and rivers may cut into pieces of a plateau (relatively low relief and high elevation)
What are the 3 main landforms?
Plains: interior (low relief and elevation can vary) and costal (low relief and low elevation) Mountains: mountain->mountain range->mountain system->mountain belt (high relief and high elevation) Plateau: treats and rivers may cut into pieces of a plateau (relatively low relief and high elevation)
What is the collision ring theory?
Planet sized object collided with earth knocking of a large section of the outer layers which formed a debris ring and later contracted into the moon.
What are the 3 life forms in the ocean?
Plankton: microscopic floating organisms some photosynthesize some eat other organisms Benthos: live on the ocean bottom some stationary some move Nekton: organisms that can swim (basically everything) include vertebrates and invertebrates
What is pollution, pollutants, point and non-point source?
Pollution- the addition of any substance that has a negative effect on water or living things that depend on water Pollutants- the substances that cause pollution Point source- a specific source of pollution that can be identified Non point source- a widely spread source of pollution that can't be tied to a specific source
What are the 4 eras and their lengths?
Precambrian time: 4.6 byo - 544 myo Paleozoic era: 544 - 245 myo Mesozoic era: 245 - 66 myo Cenozoic era: 66 myo - present
What are the 3 types of heat transfer?
Radiation: the transfer of energy through space Conduction: the transfer of heat within a material or materials that are touching Convection: the transfer of heat by the movement of a fluid (fluid and gas)
What are red shift and blue shift?
Red shift-the wavelength of light energy stretches longer moving the lights color to the red end of the EM spectrum (the object is moving further away) Blue shift- the wavelength of light energy compresses the lights color to the blue end of the EM spectrum (the object is moving closer)
What are relative and absolute age? How are they found?
Relative age: a rocks age compare to the ages of other rocks, found using index fossils and the law of superposition Absolute age: the number of years since a rock has formed, found using radioactive dating (carbon 14 for animals that died more recently and potassium 40 for animals that died a long time ago)
What are river systems made up of (smallest to largest)?
Rills, gullies, creeks, tributaries, main river
What are the 8 steps in the water cycle?
1. Evaporation - liquid water changes to water vapor 2. Sun-engine - the sun heats up the water and carries it upward 3. Condensation - at higher altitudes the air becomes colder and as a result the water cools and condenses back to liquid form making clouds 4. Precipitation - eventually the water in the clouds falls back to earth 5. Runoff - water runs off the land and goes back to a body of water 6. Groundwater - the water that gets soaked into the soil 7. Water table - when enough ground water is absorbed the water table rises 8. Transpiration - the plants release water which then gets evaporated
What are the 7 steps of the nitrogen cycle?
1. Free nitrogen in the air goes into soil 2. Nfb's (nitrogen fixing bacteria) change nitrogen to nitrates 3. The nitrates are absorbed by the plants roots 4. Plants use nitrates to grow 5. Plant dies 6. Decomposing bacteria breaks down proteins back to nitrogen 7. Nitrogen is released into air
What are the 7 steps for a fossil forming?
1. Water must be present or nearby 2. Organism is quickly covered by sediments 3. Layers of sediment collect over the corpse and begin the compression stage 4. A mold or hollow section forms where the remains were located 5. Mineral rich water enters the mold and deposits its minerals on the remains slowly turning them to stone 6. The "cast" fills in the void and forms the hardened remains 7. The cast is weathered till exposed
What is the formation of the 1st and 2nd atmosphere?
1st- hydrogen and helium were lost to space 2nd- volcanic outgassing released methane, ammonia, carbon dioxide, and water vapor which were broken down by sunlight to create todays gasses
What was the formation of the atmospheres?
1st: hydrogen and helium was stripped away due to solar winds 2nd: volcanic outgassing released methane, ammonia, carbon dioxide, and water vapor which were further broken down by sunlight to form todays gasses
What is the ozone layer?
3 oxygen molecules or O3 which is created when lightning breaks water vapor and CO2 which releases oxygen.
What is a fault and the 4 types?
A break or crack in the surface along which rocks move Normal fault Reverse fault Slip-strike Thrust
What is the spectroscope? What 3 things are leaned?
A device that separates visible light into its component colors Age, composition, and movement
What is a landform region?
A large area of mainly of one type of landform
What is a mineral? What properties must it have?
A mineral is a naturally occurring, inorganic solid that has crystal structure, and a definite chemical composition
What are the properties of a mineral?
A mineral is a naturally occurring, inorganic solid that has crystalline structure and definite chemical composition. Not formed by humans, not from once living things, definite shape and volume, crystal structure, and must have certain elements in definite proportions.
What is the rock cycle?
A series of processes on earth's surface, in the crust, and in the mantle that slowly change rocks from one kind into another
What is the law of superposition?
According to the law of superposition, in horizontal sedimentary rock layers the oldest layer is at the bottom. Each higher layer is younger than the layers below it.
Who proposed the theory of continental drift? What is the supporting evidence?
Alfred Wegener Hypothesized that all the continents were once joined together in a single landmass called Pangea and have since drifted apart. Lots of evidence points to Pangea existing including: land features, fossils, and evidence of climate change.
What is the evidence for the Big Bang?
All galaxies are moving rapidly away from the center of the universe Background radiation is spread evenly throughout space
What is the Big Bang Theory?
All matter and energy was compressed into a tiny point from which everything exploded outward. This matter and energy became the universe
What is the electromagnetic spectrum?
An array of energies that is present throughout the universe. Includes radio waves, microwaves, infrared, visible light, ultraviolet, x-rays, and gamma rays.
What are the 3 ways a caldera can form?
An eruption that blows off the top because the vent can be plugged by sticky magma It can be unstable and collapse under its own weight During an eruption the magma chamber can empty causing the volcano to collapse inwards
What is nuclear fusion?
Atoms fuse together in the core because of tremendous heat and gravity Nuclear fusion creates energy and radiation- 4H = 1He + energy
What is smelting, alloy, gemstone, and ore?
Smelting: the process of mixing an ore with other substances and melting it to separate the useful metal Alloy: a solid mixture of 2 or more elements, at least one of which is metal Gemstone: a hard, colorful mineral that has a brilliant or glassy luster Ore: a rock that contains a metal or other useful mineral that can be mined and sold at a profit
What are the importance of wetlands?
Some wetlands fill up during spring rains but dry up in the summer. Water in the wetlands is shallow, and plants and animals add natural fertilizer. Because of their sheltered waters and rich supply of nutrients, wetlands provide habitats for many living things. Wetlands also help with flooding and pollution control.
What are the 3 galaxy types and their characteristics?
Spiral: stars = millions of young and old dust/gas = in the spiral arms shape = bulge in the middle and arms that spiral outward Elliptical: stars = billions but no longer forming dust/gas = little dust and gas between stars shape = round or flattened ball Irregular: stars = lots of young stars dust/gas = lots of dust and gas shape = no specific shape but smaller
What percentages of matter did the solar system get?
Sun: 99.8% Jupiter: 0.14% Everything else: 0.06%
What are surface currents, deep currents, and upwelling?
Surface current: warms or cools the air above it, influencing the climate of the land near the coast Deep current: caused by differences in density of ocean water. Move and mix water around the world, carry cold water from the poles to the equator very slowly Upwelling: the movement of cold water upward from the deep ocean. As winds blow away warm surface currents cold water rises up to replace it
What are the 3 temperature zones?
Surface zone: as far as sunlight goes down Thermocline: from the bottom of the surface zone to about 1km below the surface. Darker and colder water Deep/abyssal zone: from the end of the thermocline on. Even darker and colder
What are the 3 forms of stress?
Tension: the stress that pulls on the crust Compression: the stress that pushes one plate against another Shearing: the stress that pushes a mass of rock into opposite directions
What defines a planet and why isn't Pluto one?
The IAU (international astronomical union) changed what it means to be a planet. The 3 new requirements are it has to only orbit the sun, has to be large enough to pull itself into a sphere, and it has to clear its orbit of any major objects. Pluto doesn't only orbit the sun and it doesn't clear its orbit, so its not a planet.
What is the Doppler Effect?
The apparent change in the wavelength of energy because the source is moving
What do the lithosphere and asthenosphere contain?
The lithosphere: the crust, Moho, and upper rigid mantle The asthenosphere: under the lithosphere (has plasticity)
What is the magnetosphere?
The magnetic field around the earth that protects us from cosmic and solar radiation. In theory produced by the dynamo effect- spinning core translates extra energy to magnetic field
How to use triangulation to find the epicenter of an earthquake?
The method used by geologists to locate the epicenter of an earthquake is called triangulation. Triangulation is when three or more seismic stations measure the difference in the arrival times of P waves and S waves. Geologists can learn how far the epicenter is located because the greater the difference in arrival times the further away it is. Then, the stations make a circle of all the possible locations the epicenter could be and where all three radiuses intersect is where the epicenter is located.
What are tides? What are the different types?
The pull of gravity's effect on our oceans, mostly from the moon but also the sun Spring: moon and sun work together pulling on oceans making higher high tides and lower low tides (full and new moon) Neap: moon and sun work against each other causing lower high tides and higher low tides (first and third quarter)
What is topography?
The shape of the land
What is the Nebular theory?
The solar system began as a huge cloud of dust and gas called a nebula. The nebula was hit with shockwaves from a supernova blast which carried heavy elements that seeded the cloud causing it to spin and later to collapse on itself.
What is the Nebular theory and percentages?
The solar system began as a nebula and it was hit with shockwaves from a nearby supernova blast causing the nebula to spin and later to collapse on itself, forming the solar system. 99.8% of all mater from the nebula went to the sun, 0.14% went to Jupiter, and 0.06% went to everything else.
What is the sun?
The star in our solar system. It is a superheated ball of glowing hot gasses mostly hydrogen and then helium
What are the different instruments for monitoring faults?
Tiltmeter: measures vertical movement Creep meter: measures horizontal movement Laser ranging device: measures both but vertical more accurately GPS: both
"Why we use telescopes" What are they-understand and explain
Tools that scientists use to make objects appear brighter and closer. Telescopes do this by collecting (objects appear brighter) and focusing energy (make objects appear closer) Telescopes can be used to look at objects iIn space with more detail and look further out into space Many different types to look at the different types of electromagnetic radiation
What are the 2 radioactive elements used to find absolute age?
Carbon-14: half-life = 5,730 dating range = 500-50,000 Potassium-40: half-life = 1.3 billion dating range = 50,000-4.6 billion
What are the 3 types of volcanoes? What types of lava and eruptions?
Cinder cone: granitic and explosive Shield: basalt and quiet Composite/strato: both and both
What are the different types of sedimentary rocks?
Clastic: grouped by the size of the rock fragments Organic: the remains of plants and animals Chemical: when minerals that are dissolved in a solution crystallize
What are contour lines, contour intervals, and index contours?
Contour lines: connects points of equal elevation Contour intervals: the change in elevation from one contour line to another Index contours: usually every fifth line that is darker and heavier that the others
What are the layers of the earth?
Crust: oceanic (basalt, darker color, denser) and continental (granite, lighter color, less dense) Mantle: upper (lithosphere and asthenosphere) and lower Outer core: molten metal, liquid Inner core: dense ball of solid metal
What are the different plate boundaries?
Divergent: the place where 2 plates move apart or diverge Convergent: the place where 2 plates come together or converge Transform/slip-strike: a place where 2 plates slip past each other moving in opposite directions
What 3 factors are the seasons mainly caused by?
Earth's shape (geoid)- uneaten heating Axis tilt- presents one hemisphere more directly to the sun Orbit- earth is either tilting toward (summer) or away (winter) from the sun or neither (spring and fall)
What are the causes for the seasons?
Earths shape (geoid) = uneven heating Axis tilt = presents one hemisphere more directly to the sunlight Orbit = earth is either tilting toward (summer) or away (winter) or neither (spring and fall) from the sun
What are the divisions of time (longest to smallest)?
Eons: Hadean Eon, Archean Eon, Proterozoic Eon, Phanerozoic Eon Eras: Precambrian Time, Paleozoic Era, Mesozoic Era, Cenozoic Era Periods: Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, Carboniferous, Permian, Triassic, Jurassic, Cretaceous, Tertiary, Quaternary Epochs
What are the 4 steps of the formation of sedimentary rocks?
Erosion: forms sediments Deposition: moves the sediments and deposits them Compaction: layers of sediment build up and compact and squeeze the ones below tightly Cementation: dissolved minerals seep into the spaces between particles and then harden
Essays
Essays
What is the difference between extinct and extant?
Extinct : no breeding pairs left Extant: still living
What are extrusions and intrusions?
Extrusions: lava that hardens on the surface Intrusions: magma that cools and hardens into a mass of igneous rock
What are the different types of igneous rock?
Extrusive: igneous rock formed from lava that erupted onto earth's surface Intrusive: igneous rock formed when magma hardens beneath earth's surface
What are the 3 ways an unconformity can form?
Faulting Unequal erosion Igneous intrusions
What are an earthquakes parts?
Focus: the area beneath earth's surface where rock that is under stress breaks Epicenter: the point on the surface directly above the focus Seismic wave: vibrations that travel through earth carrying energy (P,S,L,R)
What are the different types of metamorphic rocks?
Foliated: grains arranged in parallel layers or bands Non-foliated: grains are arranged randomly
What is a foreshock, aftershock, and liquefaction?
Foreshock: a smaller earthquake before a larger one in the same area Aftershock: a smaller earthquake after a larger one in the same area Liquefaction: when an earthquake turns soft soil into liquid mud by violent shaking
What are anticlines and synclines?
Upward and downward folds in a rock
What are the properties of lava and magma (viscosity and silica)?
Viscosity: resistance of a liquid to flowing (high viscosity=more resistance and low viscosity=less resistance) depends on silica and temperature Silica: made up of oxygen and silicon
What are the different types of fossils (most to least usefull)?
Ice: very well preserved Tree sap: well preserved but only small organisms Tar pit: only bones and some hide Petrified: turned to stone and only bony things remain Carbon film: only carbon imprint from insects remain and little detail Trace: provides evidence of the activities of an organism (footprints etc.)
What are the 3 different rock types?
Igneous: forms from the cooling of magma or lava Sedimentary: forms when particles of other rocks or the remains of plants and animas are pressed and cemented together Metamorphic: forms when an existing rock is changed by heat, pressure, or chemical reactions
What are index fossils and how do they help?
Index fossils help geologists match rock layers. To be an index fossil, a fossil must be widely distributed, represent a type of organism that existed only briefly, and have little variation between species. Index fossils are useful because they tell the relative ages of the rock layers in which they occur. Some example are Ammonites and Trilobites
What are the 3 life zones?
Intertidal: the zone between the highest high tide and the lowest low tide Neritic: low tide to edge of continental shelf Open ocean: beyond the edge of the continental shelf (contains the 3 temp zones)
What is an island arc and a hotspot?
Island arc: a converging plate boundary that results in a string of volcanos Hotspot: an area that has lots of volcanic activity
Where is ozone harmful/helpful?
It is harmful when it is closer to the surface because it can irritate and damage your lungs Helpful when it is in the stratosphere because it blocks radiation from outer space
What is the theory for the moons origin with evidence?
It is the collision ring theory and it states that a planet sized object collided with Earth knocking off a large section of the outer layers which formed a debris ring that later contracted into the moon
What are the outer four planets and their characteristics?
Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune Large, gas giants, rings around all of them Too far from the sun to get their light weight gasses removed
What are the volcanic landforms?
Lava plateaus: made up of many layers of thin runny lava Calderas: a huge hole left by the collapse of a volcanic mountain Volcanic neck: forms when magma hardens in a volcanic pipe and the softer rock around it erodes Dike: magma that forces itself across rock layers and hardens (vertical) Sill: magma that squeezes between layers of rock (horizontal) Geyser: a fountain of water and steam that erupts from the ground Batholith: the bigger, deeper down igneous intrusion Laccolith: smaller, makes a bulge in the surface
What are the parts of a volcano?
Magma chamber, main vent, crater, bomb, lava flow, ash cloud, side vent, pyroclastic flow
What is the difference between maps, globes, and projections?
Map: a flat model of all or part of earth's surface as seen from above Globe: a sphere that represents earth's entire surface Projections: a framework of lines that helps in transferring points in earth's three-dimensional surface onto a flat map
What are the 3 types of map projections?
Mercator: Lat/Long: straight/straight Advantage: distance between and size of landmasses Disadvantage: because it is is straight the further towards the poles more distortion Equal-area: Lat/Long: straight/curved Advantage: shows relative sizes of earth's land masses Disadvantage: further north or south it gets more distorted Conic: Lat/Long: curved/straight Advantage: very accurate Disadvantage: only used for part of the earth
What are the advantages and disadvantages of the 3 projections?
Mercator: Lat/Long: straight/straight Advantage: distance between and size of landmasses Disadvantage: because it is is straight the further towards the poles more distortion Equal-area: Lat/Long: straight/curved Advantage: shows relative sizes of earth's land masses Disadvantage: further north or south it gets more distorted Conic: Lat/Long: curved/straight Advantage: very accurate Disadvantage: only used for part of the earth
What are the inner four planets and their characteristics?
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars Small, dense, rocky The sun removed their light weight gasses
What are the 2 theories for the formation of the universe?
Open-the universe has no end and will expand forever Closed-the universe will collapse on itself and start over
What are the differences between P, S, L, and R waves?
P waves are the first waves to arrive, they compress and expand the ground, they can move through solid, liquid, and gas S waves are the second waves to arrive, they vibrate the ground side to side and up and down, they only move through solids R and L waves are surface waves, they move more slowly than P and S but deal lots of damage, R waves roll like ocean waves and L waves shake from side to side
What are the 4 seismic waves?
P: first waves to arrive, compress and expand the ground, move through solid, liquid, and gas S: second waves to arrive, vibrate the ground from side to side and up and down, only move through solid L: surface wave, shake from side to side R: surface wave, roll like ocean waves
What are watersheds and divides?
Watershed- the area of land that supplies water to a river system Divide- a ridge of land that separates 2 watersheds
What was Wegner's theory for continental drift and evidence?
Wegener's hypothesis was that all the continents were once joined together in a single landmass and have since drifted apart. This would have been a super continent called Pangea (all lands). Lots of evidence points to Pangea existing including: land features, fossils, and evidence of climate change.
What is a solar eclipse? What is a lunar eclipse?
When the moon passes directly between earth and the sun When the earth passes directly between the sun and the moon
What must a fossil be to be considered an index fossil?
Widely distributed Only existed briefly Little variation between species
What is a half life?
the time it takes for half of the radioactive atoms to decay