Biosphere and Human Impacts

Flashcards about the biosphere, ecosystems, and human impacts such as pollution and climate change.

What is the biosphere?

Includes all living communities on Earth.

What are the global patterns of life on Earth influenced by?

1. The amount of solar radiation, 2. Patterns of global atmospheric circulation which influence oceanic circulation

What is the angle of incidence?

How the Sun’s rays strike the spherical Earth

What effect does Earth’s orbit have on climate?

Earth’s orbit around the Sun and its daily rotation on its own axis affect climate, causing the progression of seasons

How does heating at the equator affect air?

Heating at the equator causes air to rise from the surface to high in the atmosphere and is rich in water vapor including warm air holding more water than cold due to solar radiation providing the heat needed for evaporation

How does the movement of air affect different latitudes?

Warm air moves north and south, cooler air flows toward the equator, dry air descends at 30°latitude creating desert regions, and at 60° latitude cool air rises again

What is the Coriolis effect?

The curvature of the paths of the winds due to Earth’s rotation

How does the Coriolis effect impact the paths of winds in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres?

Northern hemisphere; counterclockwise winds curve to the right. Southern hemisphere; clockwise winds curve to the left.

What is a rain shadow?

An area that remains dry on the leeward side of a mountain because rain falls as air rises on the windward side

What are monsoons?

Seasonally shifting winds that affect rainfall patterns

How does elevation affect temperature?

Air temperature falls about 6°C for every 1,000 m increase in elevation

What are microclimates?

Highly localized sets of climatic conditions

What are biomes?

A major type of ecosystem on land with a characteristic appearance, defined largely by sets of regional climatic conditions.

Name several biomes.

Tundra, taiga, temperate deciduous forests, temperate evergreen forests, tropical rain forests, savannas, deserts, temperate grasslands

What are the predictors of biome distribution?

Temperature and precipitation

Describe a tropical rain forest.

High temperature and high rainfall with very high diversity.

Describe a savanna.

Tropical or subtropical grasslands that occur as a transition ecosystem between tropical rainforests and deserts

Describe a desert.

25 to 40 cm rainfall/yr; unpredictable where plants and animals cannot depend on any rainfall

Describe temperate grasslands.

Rich soils; grasses with roots that penetrate deep into the soil and are adapted to periodic fire.

What are the characteristics of temperate deciduous forests and taiga?

Temperate deciduous forests have mild but seasonal climates and plentiful rains. Taiga and tundra stretch in unbroken circles around the globe.

What factors limit life in freshwater habitats?

Oxygen availability; oxygen per liter is only 5% of that in the atmosphere.

What are the zones of a lake?

Photic zone: area where light penetrates for photosynthesis; littoral zone: shallows at edge of lake; aphotic (benthic) zone: below light penetration level.

What is thermal stratification?

Warm water is less dense than cold water and tends to float on top; layering is stratification

What is an oligotrophic lake?

Low in nutrients, usually high in oxygen creating crystal clear conditions.

What is a eutrophic lake?

High in nutrients, densely populated with algae and plant material and low in dissolved oxygen in summer.

What are continental shelves?

Near coastlines, water is not especially deep at approximately 80 km wide and up to 130 m deep.

What are the primary producers in oceans?

Phytoplankton (single cell or colonial)

What characterizes upwelling regions?

Localized places where deep water is drawn consistently to the surface

What are neritic waters?

Waters over the continental shelves with high concentrations of nitrates and other nutrients.

What are estuaries?

Shelf ecosystem where fresh water from streams or rivers mix with ocean water.

What is ENSO?

El Niño Southern Oscillation, occurring every 2 to 7 years on an irregular and unpredictable basis where coastline waters become profoundly warm.

What is the immediate cause of El Niño?

Weakening east-to-west Trade Winds

What can El Niño wreak havoc on?

Ecosystems

What characterizes the deep sea?

Cold, dark place with fascinating communities and high pressure.

What characterizes hydrothermal vent communities?

Thick with life with large-bodied animals that do not depend on the Sun’s energy for primary production.

What is DDT?

Highly effective insecticide that biomagnifies in the food chain affecting predatory bird species.

How are freshwater habitats threatened?

Pollution and resource use

What is point source pollution?

Comes from an identifiable location.

What is diffuse pollution?

Eutrophication caused by excessive run-off of nitrates and phosphates.

How are terrestrial ecosystems threatened?

Deforestation

What are zoonotic diseases?

Contagious diseases that spread between animals and humans

What is a single greatest problem in the ocean realm?

Overfishing of the ocean

What are some of effects of pollution in the ocean?

Plastic found washed up on beaches, waters laced with toxic chemicals, and microplastics are pervasive.

What is a major cause of hurricane destruction along the coast?

Destruction of salt marshes

What is a major cause of ozone depletion?

Chlorine- and bromine-containing compounds in the atmosphere like CFCs

How does UV-B radiation affect the atmosphere?

Damages tissue, increases risks for skin cancer, and is detrimental to amphibian eggs.

How do CO2 and other gases in the atmosphere affect the Earth’s average temperature?

Maintains the Earth’s average temperature at 25°C higher than it would be without these gases.

What is a potential sudden release will cause a large perturbation in global temperatures?

Methane locked up in permafrost

How does global temperature change affect ecosystem species?

Shift in species’ geographic ranges, migratory birds arrive earlier at their summer breeding grounds, and insects and amphibians breed earlier.

What are possible effects on human populations if sea levels rise?

200 million people would be affected by increased flooding as coastal cities and entire islands could be submerged.

How would increase frequencies or severity of extreme meteorological events affect humans?

Heat waves, droughts, severe storms, and hurricanes may become more common.

How does increased CO2 affect agriculture

More CO2 tends to increase growth of some crops and increase pollen production causing more severe allergies.

What are some solution technologies to global warming?

Green technologies and practices are becoming more common with investment in renewable energy sources has increased