Geoscience and Atmospheric Processes

Flashcards created from lecture notes covering geoscience, atmospheric processes, and related concepts.

What happens if river energy is greater than the amount of material it carries?

Incision

What happens if river energy is less than the amount of material carried by the river?

Aggradation

How do oceanic and continental air masses differ?

Oceanic air masses are moderate and humid; continental air masses have more extreme temperatures and are dry.

Why do the west coasts of mid-latitude continents have more temperate climates than the east coasts?

Air flows from oceanic air masses.

What is a watershed?

The region where runoff flows into a certain river, lake, or ocean.

What is the continental divide?

The line that divides North America into regions where water flows to the Pacific and the Atlantic.

How does warming affect P-E (precipitation minus evaporation) in general?

It reduces it, because evaporation increases with temperature.

How does saturation humidity change with temperature?

It increases.

What is the difference between saturation humidity and absolute humidity?

Saturation humidity is the maximum possible water vapor content at a given temperature, while absolute humidity is the actual water vapor content.

Define relative humidity.

Relative humidity (RH) = absolute humidity / saturation humidity.

How does relative humidity change with increasing temperature? Why?

It goes down because saturation humidity goes up.

What happens to the temperature of dry air as it rises?

It cools by 10°C per kilometer (DALR).

How fast does the temperature of saturated air change as it rises?

It cools by 5°C per kilometer (MALR).

What is the environmental lapse rate?

The environmental lapse rate is the rate at which the air temperature decreases as you go higher up in the atmosphere.

What distinguishes stability and instability in the atmosphere?

Stability occurs when DALR > MALR > ELR; instability when ELR > DALR > MALR.

Where does most evaporation occur?

In the tropics and sub-tropics.

Why does air rise near the equator?

Because it receives the most solar radiation.

Why does air sink near 30N and 30S latitudes?

Air cools as it flows away from the equator as part of the Hadley Cell.

What is the Hadley Cell and why does it exist?

It is caused by heating of the tropics, which leads to rising air there and sinking air in the subtropics.

Why are mid-latitude cyclones formed?

The big temperature difference from the equator to the poles in mid-latitudes causes wind changes with height, which creates turbulence and helps form cyclones.

What is the main difference between weather and climate?

Climate is the average weather over a long period, while weather refers to daily atmospheric conditions.

What type of feedback is the water vapor feedback?

Positive feedback.

What drives winds from high to low pressure areas?

Pressure gradient force.

What is a positive feedback loop?

A self-enhancing cycle, such as the water vapor feedback.

What is a negative feedback loop?

A self-limiting cycle, such as radiative feedback.

Which emits radiation with shorter wavelengths, the Earth or the Sun? Why?

The Sun, because it is hotter.

How does temperature change with height in the different layers of the atmosphere?

Thermosphere: increases; Troposphere: decreases; Stratosphere: increases; Mesosphere: decreases.

What is Albedo?

The measure of how much sunlight a surface reflects.

What is Energy Balance?

The balance between incoming energy from the sun and outgoing energy from Earth.

What is eccentricity in relation to Earth's rotation?

It refers to how circular the orbit is.

What is obliquity?

The tilt of the axis of rotation, approximately 23.5 degrees.

What is precession?

The direction of Earth's axis of rotation.

What forces act on an air parcel near the surface?

• Pressure Gradient Force – moves air from high to low pressure.
  
  

• Coriolis Force – caused by Earth’s rotation, deflects moving air (right in Northern Hemisphere, left in Southern).
  
  

• Friction – slows down wind near the ground.
  
  

• Gravity – pulls the air parcel downward.
  
  

What causes earthquakes?

Earthquakes occur when pressure on plates overcomes friction, causing them to snap into a new position.

What are the three types of faults that can cause earthquakes?

Side slip fault, Reverse fault -one plate moves up relative to another

Normal fault – one plate moves down relative to another

What is the difference between a P-wave and an S-wave?

P-wave involves stretching/compression and is fast-moving; S-wave involves up and down motion and is relatively slow.

What are the different types of volcanoes?

 Cinder volcano- small vent- high pressure-explosive eruptions-produce rock and steep mountains

Composite volcano- network of vents- medium pressure – tall and wide

Shield volcano- short wide mountains- low pressure- extensive network of vents

How do volcanic eruptions affect global temperature?

They can lower global temperatures temporarily by releasing aerosols that reflect sunlight away from Earth.

What is the fast carbon cycle?

The natural processes that move carbon from the atmosphere to plants and back to the atmosphere in about 1 year.

What is the slow carbon cycle?

The processes moving carbon through the atmosphere, ocean, and mantle over thousands to millions of years.

Write down the sources of air pollution

Particulate matter – tiny particles suspender in air- from all combustion

Sulfur dioxide- burning coal

Nitrogen oxide- from vehicle engines

Seismology

measuring earths interior using waves that propagate through the earth. 

Seismometer

instrument used to measure waves moving through earth

On what kinds of plate boundaries do 1) mountains form, 2) new crust form, and 3) old crust is destroyed?

Colliding plates produce mountains

Plates diverging produces new crust

convergent Plate boundaries produce subduction of one plate destroying crust

  What differentiates continental crust from oceanic crust?

Continental crust is thicker and less dense than oceanic trust

What is convection and why does it occur in the mantle?

Convection is the movement of heat through a fluid (like liquid or gas) where hot material rises and cool material sinks.

Crust floats on the mantle and the mantle moves due to convection.

What does it mean if P-E <0 and if P-E>0?

If P – E > 0:

• More precipitation than evaporation

• The area is gaining water.

• Example: Rainforests, wet climates.
  Can lead to runoff, rivers, or flooding if excess.
  
  

 If P – E < 0:

• More evaporation than precipitation

• The area is losing water.

• Example: Deserts, dry climates.

• Can lead to dry soil, drought, or water stress.
  

What is a volcano and how do the occur?

 Volcano- place where material from the mantle moves to the surface

Volcanoes occur because of plate boundaries