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123 Terms

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The Big Bang theory
The moment in time when the universe started to expand out of an \n extremely hot, dense state, according to scientific theory
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axis of rotation
An imaginary line about which a turning body such as Earth rotates
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 adaptation
A characteristic, a behavior, or any inherited trait that makes a \n species able to survive and reproduce in a particular environment
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atmosphere
The mixture of gases that surrounds the solid Earth
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continental Drift
The hypothesis that Earth’s continents move on Earth’s surface
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abiotic factor
A nonliving physical or chemical part of an ecosystem
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convergent boundary
A boundary along which two tectonic plates push together, \n characterized either by subduction or a continental collision
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Continental air masses
Air masses that build over land
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\
Occluded Front
Cold air mass overtakes a warm air mass
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Conservation
The process of saving or protecting a natural resource
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competition
The struggle between two or more living things that depend on the \n same limited resource
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air mass
\
A large volume of air that has nearly the same temperature and \n humidity at different locations at the same altitude
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 black hole
The final stage of an extremely massive star, which is invisible because its gravity prevents any form of radiation from escaping
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Apparent magnitude
The brightness of a star as seen from Earth
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Aquaculture
The science and business of raising and harvesting fish in a controlled \n situation
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abiotic factor
A living thing in an ecosystem
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Commercial Harvesting
removing organisms from their natural habitat to be used for commercial purposes
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Convection currents
\
A circulation pattern in which material is heated and rises in one \n area, then cools and sinks in another area, flowing in a continuous loop
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asthenosphere
The layer in Earth’s upper mantle and directly under the lithosphere \n in which rock is soft and weak because it is close to melting
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 contour interval
On a topographic map, the difference in elevation from one contour \n line to the next
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astronomical unit
Earth’s average distance from the Sun, which is approximately 150 \n million kilometers
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carrying capacity
The maximum size that a population can reach in an ecosystem
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apparent brightness
The brightness of a star if it were a standard distance from Earth
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contour line
A line on a topographic map that joins points of equal elevation
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artificial reef
A man made underwater structure; built to promote marine life, to \n control erosion, or block ship passage
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food web
A model used to show a feeding relationship in which many food \n chains overlap in an ecosystem
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Food chain
A model used to show the feeding relationship between a single \n producer and a chain of consumers in an ecosystem
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doldrums
\
Mostly calm air in a band over the equator
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high pressure system
A generally calm and clear weather system that occurs when air \n sinks down and spreads out
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fronts
The boundary between air masses
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Equinoxes
In an orbit, a position and time in which sunlight shines equally on \n the Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere; a time of year \n when daylight and darkness are nearly equal for most of Earth
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hurricane
A tropical low-pressure system with sustained winds of 120 \n kilometers per hour (74 mph) or more
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 divergent boundary
A boundary along which two tectonic plates move apart, \n characterized by either a mid-ocean ridge or a continental rift valley
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galaxy
Millions or billions of stars held together in a group by their own \n gravity
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Ecosystem
All the living and nonliving things that interact in a particular \n environment
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Fusion
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A process in which particles of an element collide and combine to \n form a heavier element
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Gibbous
More than half but less than fully illuminated
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Folded mountains
A mountain that forms as continental crust is compressed and rocks bend into large folds
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electromagnetic waves
A type of wave, such as light or radio, that does not require a medium \n to travel; a disturbance that transfers energy through a field
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Global Winds
Winds that travel long distance in steady patterns over several weeks
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Earthquakes
A shaking of the ground caused by the sudden movement of large \n blocks of rocks along a fault
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\
energy pyramid
A model used to show the amount of energy available to living things \n in an ecosystem
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desalination
The process of removing salt from ocean water; used to obtain fresh \n water
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deep-ocean trench
A deep valley along the ocean floor through which oceanic crust \n slowly sinks toward the mantle; a convergent plate boundary
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depression
An area where the land decreases in elevation
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Hertzsprung-Russell diagram
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A graph relating the temperature and brightness of stars

\
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Gravitational force
The force that objects exert on each other because of their mass
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eclipse​
An event during which one object in space cases a shadow onto \n another
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Crescent
Partly, but less than half illuminated
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Elevation
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A measure of how high something is above a reference point, such \n as sea level

\
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lava
Molten rock that reaches a planet’s surface through a volcano
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Light-year
The distance light travels in one year, which is about 9.5 trillion \n kilometers
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Local Winds
Winds that blow over short distances
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nonpoint-source pollution
Pollution with a source that is hard to find or scattered
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moon phase
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The appearance of the illuminated portion of the moon as seen by \n an observer on Earth
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lunar eclipse
Occurs when the moon passes through the shadow of the Earth
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magma
Molten rock beneath Earth’s surface
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niche
\
The role a living thing plays in its habitat
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organism
An individual living thing, made up of one or many cells, that is \n capable of growing and reproducing
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neutron star
A dense core that may be left behind after a higher-mass star \n explodes in a supernova
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Jet streams
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A wind that flows in the upper troposphere from west to east over \n vast distances at great speeds
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lithosphere
The layer of Earth made up of the crust and the rigid rock of the upper \n mantle
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 occluded front
When two cold air masses collide and push a warm air mass up \n between them
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low pressure system
A large and often stormy weather system that occurs when air moves \n up to higher altitudes
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Maritime air masses
Air masses assembled over oceans
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Mid-ocean ridges
A long line of sea-floor mountains where new ocean crust is formed \n by volcanic activity along a divergent boundary
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nebula
A cloud of gas and dust in space; may form a star
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Sea breezes
The breeze caused when the water stays warm and the land has \n cooled
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 limiting factor
\
A factor or condition that prevents the continuing growth of a \n population in an ecosystem
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isotherm
A line on a weather map connecting places that have the same \n temperature
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Neap tide
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A tide of small range occurring during the first- and third-quarter \n phases of the moon
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omnivore
An organism that eats both producers and consumers
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Isobars 
\
A line on a weather map connecting places that have the same air \n pressure
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 nuclear fusion
The stage in which stars produce energy through the fusion of \n hydrogen into helium
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orbit
The elliptical path of an object in space as it moves around another \n object due to gravity
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sea breeze
The breeze created when cooler moist air from over the water slides \n beneath the rising air on an ocean beach
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Rotation
The motion of an object around its own axis
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specific heat
The amount of energy required to raise the temperature of one gram \n of a substance by one degree Celsius
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Pangea
A hypothetical supercontinent that included all of the landmasses on \n Earth; it began breaking apart about 200 million years ago
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season
In an orbit, a position and time during which one hemisphere gets its \n maximum area of sunlight, while the other hemisphere gets its minimum \n amount; the time of year when days are either longest or shortest, and \n the angle of sunlight reaches its maximum or minimum
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solar eclipse
Occurs when the moon goes in front of the Sun and blocks most of \n the Sun’s light from the Earth
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herbivore
An organism that eats a producer as its food source
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plate boundary
The line where the edges of the plates meet
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satellite
An object that orbits a more massive object
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Prevailing Westerlies
Cool air, usually moving quickly toward the poles from the west to \n east in both hemispheres
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overfishing
Winds that blow more often from one direction than the other
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Revolution
The motion of one body around another
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Predation
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An interaction in which one organism hunts and kills another organism \n for food
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 Penumbra
A region of lighter shadow that may surround an umbra
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point source pollution
Pollution that enters water from a known source
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Slope
A measure of how steep a landform is; calculated as the change in \n elevation divided by the distance covered
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Climate
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One part of a pattern of temperature changes and other weather \n trends over the course of a year; caused by the position of Earth’s axis \n relative to the direction of sunlight
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carnivores
An organism that eats a primary consumer as its food
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population
A measure of the number of organisms that live in a given area
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Overharvesting
Harvesting a renewable resource quicker than the source can renew \n itself; often leads to the destruction of the resource
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**Prevailing Winds**
Cold, fairly weak winds blowing from east to west
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Seafloor spreading
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The process by which molten material adds new oceanic crust to the \n ocean floor; a divergent plate boundary
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rift valley 
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A deep valley formed as tectonic plates move apart, such as along a \n mid-ocean ridge
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Symbiosis
The interaction between individuals from two different species that live \n closely together
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 transform boundaries
A boundary along which two tectonic plates scrape past each other, \n and crust is neither formed nor destroyed