Study Guide for Final Exam (Exam #3)

These flashcards cover key vocabulary and concepts from the study guide for the final exam, including principles of thermodynamics, characteristics of solar and terrestrial radiation, and atmospheric phenomena.

Solar energy

Energy produced from nuclear/hydrogen fusion in the Sun, which reaches Earth through radiation.

First Law of Thermodynamics

Energy can neither be created nor destroyed, only converted from one form to another.

Second Law of Thermodynamics

Energy flows from areas of higher concentration to lower concentration.

Solar radiation

Shortwave radiation emitted by the Sun, primarily in the visible light spectrum.

Terrestrial radiation

Longwave radiation emitted by the Earth, primarily as infrared radiation.

Solar constant

The average insolation received from the Sun at the top of the atmosphere.

Aphelion

The point in the Earth's orbit when it is farthest from the Sun.

Perihelion

The point in the Earth's orbit when it is closest to the Sun.

Gaia hypothesis

The idea that life significantly affects the Earth's environment, functioning as a superorganism.

Faint Young Sun paradox

The observation that the Sun's brightness has increased over time, while Earth did not correspondingly heat, possibly due to reduced CO2 levels.

Specific heat

The amount of energy required to raise the temperature of 1 gram of a substance by 1 degree Celsius.

Latent heat

The energy required to change a substance from one phase to another (e.g., solid to liquid).

Sensible heat

The heat that can be sensed or measured with a thermometer.

Albedo

The percentage of sunlight reflected by a surface.

Urban heat islands

Urban areas that experience higher temperatures than their rural surroundings due to human activities.

Greenhouse effect

The process by which greenhouse gases trap heat in the Earth's atmosphere, warming the planet.

Absolute zero

The temperature at which molecular motion stops, occurring at 0 Kelvin or -273.15 degrees Celsius.

Net radiation

The difference between incoming solar radiation and outgoing infrared radiation.

Atmospheric pressure

The force exerted by the weight of air molecules above us.

Pressure gradient

The difference in atmospheric pressure between two locations that drives wind movement.

Coriolis effect

The deflection of moving objects caused by the rotation of the Earth.

Intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ)

The zone near the equator where trade winds from the northern and southern hemispheres meet, leading to significant rainfall.