Earth Science Density, Convection, Weather, and Ocean Systems Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering core Earth Science concepts including density, convection, weather, global circulation, ocean currents, ENSO, and plate tectonics.

Mass

The amount of matter in an object, commonly measured in grams or kilograms, which does not depend on gravity.

Weight

The force of gravity acting on an object's mass, which changes if gravity changes.

Volume

The amount of space an object occupies, measured in units such as $\text{mL}$, $\text{L}$, $\text{cm}^3$, and $\text{m}^3$.

Density

The measurement of mass packed into a given volume, calculated using the equation $\text{Density} = \text{Mass} / \text{Volume}$.

Buoyancy

The upward force that a fluid exerts on an object placed in or on it.

Conduction

Heat transfer that occurs through direct physical contact between materials.

Radiation

Energy transfer through electromagnetic waves that does not require direct contact or a material medium.

Convection

Heat transfer by the movement of a fluid (liquid or gas) driven by density changes from heating and cooling.

Convection Current

A continuous rise-and-sink movement in a fluid caused by heating, expansion, cooling, and contraction.

Turbid

A condition of being cloudy or murky because solid particles are suspended in a fluid.

Turbidity

The degree of cloudiness in a fluid caused by suspended particles.

Suspended Solids

Undissolved particles carried in water, such as silt, clay, sand, or organic matter.

Dissolved Matter

Substances mixed into a fluid at the molecular or ionic level, rather than present as visible separate particles.

Turbidity Current

A gravity-driven underwater density current containing suspended sediment that flows downslope along the seafloor.

Evaporation

The water cycle process where liquid water transforms into water vapor, driven primarily by solar energy.

Transpiration

The process by which plants release water vapor into the atmosphere.

Condensation

The process in which water vapor cools and turns into liquid water droplets, forming clouds, fog, or dew.

Precipitation

Water falling from the atmosphere to Earth's surface as rain, snow, sleet, or hail.

Runoff

Water traveling over the land surface into streams, rivers, lakes, and oceans.

Infiltration

The process of surface water soaking into the soil and underlying ground layers.

Groundwater

Water stored beneath Earth's surface within soil and rock formations.

Down-cutting

Vertical erosion performed by a stream or river into its channel, forming V-shaped valleys and canyons.

Alluvial Fan

A fan-shaped deposit of sediment formed where fast-moving water leaves steep terrain, enters flatter land, slows down, and drops sediment.

Abyssal Plain

A broad, extremely flat region of the deep ocean floor smoothed by thick sediment accumulation.

Crust

Earth's thin, solid, rocky outer layer, composed of both continental and oceanic sections.

Mantle

A very thick layer of hot rock in Earth's interior that is mostly solid but capable of extremely slow deformation and flow over geologic time.

Outer Core

A liquid metallic layer of Earth's interior rich in iron.

Inner Core

Earth's solid metallic center rich in iron, kept solid despite high temperatures by enormous surrounding pressure.

Mantle Convection

The thermal circulation in Earth's mantle where deep hot material rises and cooler upper material sinks, driving tectonic plate motion.

Tectonic Plate

A large, rigid section of Earth's lithosphere that moves relative to surrounding plates.

Oceanic Crust

The thinner, denser, mostly basaltic, and usually younger portion of Earth's crust beneath the ocean basins.

Continental Crust

The thicker, less dense, largely granitic, and potentially very ancient portion of Earth's crust forming the continents.

Subduction Zone

A region at a convergent boundary where a denser tectonic plate bends downward and descends into the mantle beneath an overriding plate.

Strike-slip Fault

A fault in which the dominant movement is horizontal, with rock blocks sliding past each other.

Diurnal

Occurring daily or repeating over a 24-hour cycle.

Sea Breeze

A daytime ocean-to-land wind created as land heats faster than the ocean, causing warm air over land to rise and produce lower surface pressure.

Thermal Low

A surface low-pressure system generated when strong solar heating causes surface air to warm, expand, and rise.

Orographic Uplift

The forced ascension of air over mountains, causing the rising air to expand, cool, condense, and drop precipitation on the windward side.

Monsoon

A large seasonal shift or reversal in wind circulation driven by seasonal land and ocean heating differences.

Prime Meridian

The internationally agreed-upon reference line of $0^\times\text{ longitude}$ passing through Greenwich, England.

Coriolis Effect

The apparent deflection of moving air and water caused by Earth's rotation, turning paths to the right in the Northern Hemisphere and to the left in the Southern Hemisphere.

ITCZ (Intertropical Convergence Zone)

An equatorial region near $0^\times\text{ latitude}$ where trade winds converge, producing warm, humid rising air, low surface pressure, and frequent rainfall.

Doldrums

The equatorial surface region known historically for weak, variable winds despite intense vertical convection and thunderstorm development.

Hadley Cell

A tropical atmospheric circulation loop where warm air rises at the equator, moves poleward aloft, sinks around $30^\times\text{ N/S}$, and returns as trade winds.

Trade Winds

Persistent easterly surface winds blowing generally east-to-west between roughly $0^\times$ and $30^\times$ latitude.

Horse Latitudes

Subtropical zones near $30^\times\text{ N/S}$ latitude characterized by dry, descending air, high pressure, light winds, and clear skies.

Westerlies

Midlatitude wind belts operating between roughly $30^\times$ and $60^\times$ latitude that blow predominantly from west to east.

Desert

A climate region defined fundamentally by receiving very low total precipitation.

Thermohaline Circulation

Deep ocean circulation driven by density variations resulting from differences in water temperature and salinity.

Upwelling

The process where cold, deep, nutrient-rich water rises toward the surface of the ocean.

Gyre

A large circular surface ocean current system driven by global winds, the Coriolis effect, and continental landmasses.

ENSO

El Niño-Southern Oscillation; a coupled ocean-atmosphere climate phenomenon in the tropical Pacific Ocean.

El Niño

An ENSO phase defined by weakened trade winds, unusually warm ocean waters in the central/eastern tropical Pacific, and reduced upwelling off South America.

La Niña

An ENSO phase defined by stronger trade winds, unusually cold ocean waters in the central/eastern tropical Pacific, and intensified upwelling.

Southern Oscillation

The atmospheric pressure component of ENSO, representing sea-level pressure fluctuations across the tropical Pacific Ocean.

Tropical Cyclone

An intense rotating low-pressure storm system fueled by warm tropical ocean water and latent heat release.