Bio 301 - The Physical Environment

Climate

personality, how you are over all

What determines biomes?

plants, depends on if they can survive (and the animals that eat them)

reflection of sun’s light off of the earth’s surface (snow, bare dirt, parking lots)

Albedo

(loss), energy that was used to warm earth’s surface gets reflected off (evapotranspiration)

Sensible Heat

Convection

heat moving in a circular motion (warm rising, cold sinking), (the sun heats the air)

Conduction

direct contact with the heat (sun heats the ground)

Transpiration

(loss), plant loss of water

(loss), infared energy being released, much more released than absorbed causes cold

• the heat is back-radiated by greenhouse gases, makes it hot

Surface Radiation

air flows inland because lower pressure over land

Summer Sea Breeze

air flows towards sea because lower pressure over water

Winter Sea Breeze

clouds rain on one side of a mountain (lush) and then dry out on top of the mountain (snowy) and are dry on the other side (desert)

Orographic Effect

Which air holds more water?

warm air

Milankovich Cycles

earth’s shift between a circular revolution and spherical revolution around the sun

Upwellings

from deep underwater, brings more nutrients and cold weather

What type of pressure is there in an El Nino year?

low pressure

What is the temperature of the water in an El Nino year?

warm water brings extreme rain and weather

What causes variation in solar energy?

the curve of the earth

Why do clouds get flat tops?

clouds reach equilibrium with the air

Hadley Model

air rises at the tropics and sinks at the north pole

3 Cell Model

air rises at equator, sinks at 30, rises at 60, sinks at 90

Why is it rainy in the tropics?

hot temperatures make the warm air rise into clouds which then rain

Which direction does wind flow?

high to low

due to earth’s curve, certain parts of the globe spin at different speeds

Coriolis Effect

Direction of northern winds

clockwise

Direction of southern winds

counterclockwise

temperature layering, water gets colder the deeper you go

thermal stratification

the warmest part of the water that is at the top

Epilimnion

coldest part of the water at the bottom

Hypolimnion

epilimnion cools/ warms to match the rest of the water and everything is equal

Fall/ Spring Turnover

Where is water the most dense?

4C