World geography vocabulary wk2

Geography

The science dealing with the earth's surface, including elements like climate, elevation, population, land use, industries, and states, and their relationships.

Mercator Map

A cylindrical map projection that distorts size along higher latitudes, showing areas like Africa and South America more accurately than Canada or Russia.

Latitude

Also known as parallels, these lines run horizontally and measure north and south, with 0 degrees latitude at the Equator.

Longitude

Also called meridians, these lines run vertically and measure east and west, with 0 degrees longitude at the Prime Meridian.

Rotation

One complete spin of Earth on its axis.

Revolution

One elliptical orbit of Earth around the sun.

Greenhouse Effect

The heating of the atmosphere due to gases like carbon dioxide, preventing heat from escaping into space and warming the Earth.

Global Warming

An increase in the average temperature worldwide believed to be caused by the greenhouse effect.

Hurricanes

Tropical cyclonic storms of the western North Atlantic with wind speeds exceeding 72 miles per hour, characterized by low pressure.

Orographic Effect

The cooling effect on the windward side of a mountain due to difficulty in passing moisture over it, creating a rain shadow on the leeward side.

Rain Shadow

Dry climate on the leeward side of a mountain due to moisture being blocked by the windward side.

Humidity

The amount of water vapor in the air.

Tornadoes

Violent storms with winds swirling around a small area of extremely low pressure, often characterized by a funnel-shaped cloud causing damage.

Low Pressure

Usually accompanied by unstable weather and humidity, hurricanes are centers of low pressure.

High Pressure

Brings stable, clear, dry weather, sometimes leading to extreme dry heat or bitter cold.

Solstice

The shortest or longest day of the year, when Earth's tilt is greatest towards or away from the sun.

Equinox

The time when night and day are of approximately equal length all over the earth, occurring around March 21 and September 22.