HPS Systems of the Earth (Unit 8)

Cyanobacteria

Brought oxygen to the Earth through photosynthesis

Supercontinent

All land masses come together to create one big continent

Differentiation

When substances within the geosphere are separated by density

Outgassing

Gas escapes Earth’s crust and travels into the atmosphere

Meteoroid

Small rock in outer space

Red Bed

Iron turns red due to free oxygen

Biogeochemical Cycles

The process of how life, Earth, and elements of compounds interact

Mechanisms / Fluxes

How a substances moves through a cycle

Reservoir / Sinks

Where a substance is stored in a cycle

Polarity (water)

When water’s shape is a little bubble

Heat Capacity (water)

Water takes a lot of heat to heat up

Expansion Upon Freezing

Water expands as it freezes

Universal Solvent (water)

Mostly anything dissolves in water

Evaporation

When a substance changes from a liquid into a gas

Transpiration

The release of water vapor through plants

Condensation

When a substance changes from gas to liquid

Precipitation

When water builds up in clouds and begins to fall

Collection

When water falls to Earth and collects in a body of water or the ground

Runoff

When water does not soak into the ground but instead runs into a body of water

Percolation

The movement to water in soil

Infiltration

When water soaks into the ground

Photosynthesis

The process when plants take in sunlight and CO2 and create glucose and O2

Cellular Respiration

Breathing or photosynthesis

Nitrogen Fixation

the process by which bacteria takes N2 gas and turns it into usable N compounds

Weather

What it’s like outside day to day

Climate

The weather of a place over a longer period of time

Eccentricity

The ovalness of Earth’s orbit

Precession / Wobble

The time of year the Earth is tilted to/away from the sun

Tilt

The amount the Earth is angled

Influences on Climate (Global)

Earth’s Orbit, Axis Tilt, Mountain Ranges, Oceans, Differential Heating, Latitude, Greenhouse Effect, Volcanism

Differential Heating

The Earth isn’t heated the same amount all around

Climate Change

A long-term shift in the weather patterns

Sequestration

The process of capturing and storing Carbon Dioxide

Acidity

When the ocean takes in CO2 and creates H2CO3

Salinity

How much salt is in the ocean water

Temperature

Average Kinetic Energy

Natural Atmospheric Change

Something that changes the atmosphere naturally

Artificial Atmospheric Change

Something that humans/organisms do to cause the atmosphere to change

Nuclear Energy

Lots of energy in a little reaction

Chemical Energy

Small amounts of energy released through chemical change

Carbon Footprint

How an individual/community impacts the Earth

More electric vehicles, public transportation, less factories, walking, going vegetarian, etc

What can be done about Climate Change?