Earth Science Knowledge Map

Flashcards based on Earth Science lecture notes.

What is a system in Earth Science?

Interacting parts that form a whole.

What is a subsystem?

A system that is part of another system.

What is input in the context of systems?

Energy, information, and matter that enters a system.

What is output in the context of systems?

Energy, information, and matter that exits a system.

What does a system boundary define?

The limits of the system to be studied.

What is a model in the context of systems?

A simplified representation of a system used to study the system.

What is the goal of science?

To ask and answer questions about the natural world.

What is an investigative question?

A question that sets the purpose of the experiment.

What is a hypothesis?

A prediction of what will happen in an experiment based on prior knowledge.

What is a controlled variable?

A factor kept the same from trial to trial to ensure a valid experiment.

What is a manipulated (independent) variable?

The factor being purposely changed by the experimenter.

What is a responding (dependent) variable?

The factor being measured and recorded.

What is the goal of engineering?

To apply scientific understanding in developing solutions.

What are the three parts to engineering design?

Define, develop solutions, optimize.

What are constraints of a design problem?

Scientific principles and potential impacts on both people and the environment.

How are design solutions evaluated?

Based on how well they meet the criteria and constraints of a problem.

What is the unit of measure for mass?

Gram

What is the unit of measure for volume?

Liter

What is the unit of measure for length?

Meter

What is the unit of measure for weight?

Newton

What is a beaker used for?

Holding and mixing liquids.

What is a petri dish used for?

Culturing cells or other small organisms.

What does the prefix 'milli' mean?

1/1000 (0.001)

What does the prefix 'centi' mean?

1/100 (0.01)

What does the prefix 'deci' mean?

1/10 (0.1)

What does the prefix 'deka' mean?

10

What does the prefix 'hecto' mean?

100

What does the prefix 'kilo' mean?

1000

How many years ago was the Earth formed?

4.5 billion years ago

What is the rock cycle?

The process where the Earth changes rocks over time through chemical and physical changes.

How are metamorphic rocks formed?

Changed by heat and pressure.

How are sedimentary rocks formed?

Made of compacted and cemented particles.

How is igneous rock formed?

When molten rock cools.

What is weathering?

The breaking down of substances over time.

What is erosion?

The transportation of weathered particles and dissolved materials.

What energy source drives weathering, erosion, and sedimentation?

Energy from the sun.

What energy source drives melting, crystallization, and deformation?

Energy from the Earth’s interior.

Where are most fossils found?

In sedimentary rocks.

What are rock strata and fossils used for?

To provide relative dates in the Earth’s history.

What does the Law of Horizontality state?

Layers of sediments are generally deposited horizontally due to gravity.

What does the Law of Superposition state?

Newer rock strata sit on top of older rock strata unless they have been disturbed.

What does the Law of Crosscutting state?

An igneous rock feature cutting across another rock strata is younger than the rock it cuts across.

What is the crust?

Relatively cool, thin, and brittle; it is the upper part of the lithosphere.

What is the mantle?

A relatively hot layer of molten rock and is broken into two layers; the lithosphere and asthenosphere.

What is the core?

Hot, dense metal and is split into two regions: Outer which is liquid and the Inner which is solid.

What is plate tectonics?

The theory that Earth’s crust is broken into tectonic plates that move.

Why do tectonic plates move?

Because of convection currents in the mantle.

What is a convection current?

The movement of a liquid or a gas due to a temperature difference.

What are some landforms that are evidence of tectonic plate movement?

Volcanoes, mountains, and faults

How are Earth’s mineral, energy, and ground resources distributed?

Unevenly distributed around Earth.

Are Earth's resources limited or unlimited?

Limited.

Can all natural disasters be predicted?

No, some such as earthquakes happen suddenly and cannot be predicted.

What is weather?

The temperature, pressure, humidity, precipitation, and wind at a specific place and time.

What is climate?

The weather conditions that are characteristic of a region over a long period of time.

How does the Sun transfer heat and light to the Earth?

Through radiation.

Why does the Earth's surface heat unevenly?

Because different substances absorb and retain heat at different rates.

What is an air mass?

A volume of air with the temperature and humidity characteristics of the surface it formed over.

What is a front?

The boundary between two air masses where storm systems often form.

What causes changes in pressure?

Rising air which creates lower pressure and falling air which creates higher pressure.

What is the result of convection currents in the atmosphere?

Wind

Where do clouds usually form?

In lower pressure areas.

What powers the water cycle?

The sun and gravity.

What is transpiration?

The evaporation of water from plant leaves.

What is evaporation?

When a liquid changes to a gas.

What is condensation?

When a gas changes into liquid.

What is precipitation?

When the water in the air gets too heavy to stay in the air and falls as precipitation.

What is sublimation?

When a solid turns into a gas without going through a liquid stage.

What is deposition?

When a gas turns directly into a solid without going through a liquid stage.

What is the Coriolis effect?

The apparent deflection of moving objects when the motion is described relative to a rotating reference frame.

What are deep ocean currents the result of?

Variation in density due to differences in temperature and salinity.

What are surface currents due to?

The direction of the prevailing winds and can cause upwelling.

How do oceans influence weather and climate?

By absorbing and releasing energy from the sun and redistributing it through ocean currents.

What is El Nino?

The warming of the Pacific Ocean surface due to the decrease of prevailing winds.

What is La Nina?

The decrease in Pacific Ocean surface temperature due to the increase in prevailing winds.

How can increases in human population and per-capita consumption impact the Earth?

They can have negative impacts on the Earth.

What is the greenhouse effect?

The process of trapping sunlight energy and transforming it to thermal energy to warm the Earth.

What is global climate change?

The measurable long-term changes in the Earth’s weather patterns.

What galaxy is our sun in?

The Milky Way Galaxy.

What is a day?

When a planet completes one rotation on its axis.

What is a year?

Completed when a planet makes one orbit (revolution) around their star (Sun).

What is the Earth's axial tilt?

23.5 degrees

What causes seasons?

The tilt of a planet’s axis relative to the Sun.

What is an equinox?

When the north and south poles are equal distance from the Sun.

What is the solstice?

When a pole is pointed most towards the Sun and the other is pointed most away from the Sun.

What is a moon?

A rocky object that orbits a planet.

How long does the moon take to orbit the Earth?

27.3 days

How long does it take for the moon to complete it's cycle from New moon to new moon?

29.5 days

Why do the moon phases occur?

Because as the moon orbits Earth, more or less of the lit side is visible from Earth.

Describe waning and waxing in terms of the moon.

When the lit side of the moon is on the right, it is waxing and on the left it is waning.

How is the Moon's orbit tilted from the Earth's orbit?

5 degrees

What is a solar eclipse?

Occurs when the moon passes in front of the Sun, causing a shadow to pass across the Earth.

What's a lunar eclipse?

Occurs when the Earth blocks the Sun’s light causing a shadow to pass over the moon.

What is the penumbra?

The lighter, outer part of the shadow during an eclipse.

What is the umbra?

The inner, darker part of the shadow during an eclipse.

What is an Astronomical Unit (AU)?

The distance between the Earth and the Sun.

Name the planets in our solar system.

Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune

What are the first four planets in our solar system called?

Terrestrial planets.

What are the last four planets made mostly of?

Gas and ice.

What are the last four planets called in our solar system?

Jovian planets

What are asteroids made of?

Metal and rock.