APES Test #4

troposphere

lowest layer of Earth's atmosphere; weather occurs her

watershed

area where all water runoff drains into a single body of water

stratosphere

the atmospheric layer between the troposphere and the mesosphere; second lowest layer; ozone is here

At equator, what happens to air?

Warm, moist air rises and loses moisture as precipitation

volcano

vent or fissure in Earth's surface through which magma and gases are expelled

30 degrees latitude

Cold, dry air sinks

rain shadow

an area that has little precipitation because some barrier causes the winds to lose their moisture before reaching it

sea floor spreading

process that creates new seafloor as plates move away from each other at mid ocean ridges

coriolis effect

the effect of Earth's rotation on the direction of winds and currents

gyre

circular motion of water in each major ocean basin

lithosphere

the solid part of the earth consisting of the crust and outer mantle

albedo

ability of a surface to reflect light

asthenosphere

soft portion of the mantle on which the lithosphere floats

el nino southern oscillation

periodic changes in winds and ocean currents, causing cooler, wetter conditions in SW US and unusually dry weather in SE Asia

hot spot

area where magma from deep in mantle melts through the crust above it

thermohaline circulation

oceanic circulation pattern that mixes surface and deep water throughout Earth's oceans

upwelling

movement of cold, nutrient-rich water to the surface

silt

middle-sized soil particles

subduction

process by which oceanic crust sinks beneath a deep ocean trench and back into the mantle

convergent boundary

tectonic plate boundary where two plates collide, come together, or crash into each other

fault

break in the earth's crust

transform boundary

boundary between two plates that are sliding past each other

c horizon

least weathered soil horizon, similar to parent material

humus

material formed from decaying leaves and other organic matter

b horizon

subsoil

a horizon

topsoil

divergent boundary

tectonic plate boundary where plates are moving away from each other. An example is the mid-ocean ridge

troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere, exosphere

What are the layers of the atmosphere?

stratosphere

Where is the ozone layer found?

troposphere

Where does weather occur?

78%

nitrogen concentration in atmosphere

21%

oxygen concentration in atmosphere

0.93%

argon concentration in atmosphere

0-4%

water vapor concentration in atmosphere

Hadley cells

low-latitude overturning circulations where air rises at equator and sinks at 30 degrees

rainforests near equator, deserts near 30 degrees north and south

What kind of climates are found in Hadley Cells?

the tilt of the earth's axis

What causes Earth's seasons?

december solstice

Summer in S, Winter in N, S. hem. tilted max towards Sun

june solstice

Winter in S, Summer in N, N. hem tilted max towards Sun

march equinox

Fall in S, Spring in N, equator receives most direct insolation, both hem. get 12 hours of sunlight

september equinox

Spring in S, Fall in N, equator receives most direct insolation, both hem. get 12 hours of sunlight

convergent, divergent, transform

three types of plate boundaries

transform

What plate boundary causes earthquakes?

convergent

What plate boundary causes volcanoes, island arcs, and mountains?

divergent

What plate boundary causes rifts and possible volcanoes?

rain shadow effect

warm, moist air from ocean hits the "windward" wide of the mtn., rises, cools ---> lush, green vegetation
dry air descends down "leeward" side of mtn.. raining as it sinks --> arid desert conditions

desert, because mountain ranges have blocked all plant-growing, rainy weather

What climate occurs from rain shadows?

sand, silt, clay

What are three particles present in soil, from largest to smallest?

sand

Which particle is largest and most permeable?

clay

Which particle is smallest, most porous, and more likely to become waterlogged?

watershed

all of the land that drains into a specific body of water

essential to developing and implementing water quality protection and restoration actions

Why do we study watersheds?

el nino

a warm ocean current that flows along the equator from the date line and south off the coast of Ecuador at Christmas time

la nina

periodic cooling of ocean surface temperatures in the central and east-central equatorial Pacific