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Energy is transmitted through space via
electromagnetic radiation
electromagnetic emissions are determined by
a body's temperature
planetary temperature is a result of
sunlight, albedo, and greenhouse effect
wavelength
distance between crests
short wavelengths =
high energy (make it warm)
long wavelengths =
low energy
frequency
number of crests that pass a fixed point per second
earth emits primarily
infrared radiation
stefan-boltzman law
the higher the temperature the more energy emitted
Wien's law
the higher the temperature the shorter the peak wavelength
earth (terrestrial) radiation
cold, long wavelengths, emit low energy
sun (solar) radiation
hot, short wavelengths, emit high energy
planck curves
relate temperature to radiation at different wavelengths
planetary energy balance
total sunlight (shortwave) absorbed by planet = total radiation (longwave) emitted by planet
albedo
measure of reflectivity of a surface
greenhouse effect
some longwave radiation is absorbed by certain gasses in the atmosphere and reemited back to the planets surface
what makes a gas a greenhouse gas
ability to absorb and emit infrared radiation by increasing the rate of its energy (through rotation or vibration)
5 layers of atmosphere (from top to bottom)
exosphere, thermosphere, mesosphere, stratosphere, troposphere
what drives atmospheric motion
differential solar heating (more heat at equator, less at poles)
gravity (pulls air towards surface)
buoyancy (pushes air up from surface)
pressure gradient (moves from high pressure to low pressure)
Coriolis (deflects right in N hemisphere, left in S hemisphere)
friction (neighboring air pulls in same direction)
how does nature balance the thermal gradient between equator and poles
by heat/energy transfer (heat surplus at the equator is transferred to the poles through atmospheric circulation and ocean currents)
hadley circulation
circulating cells transport heat from equator to poles (results in semi-permanent areas of high and low pressure)
coriolis effect
matter gets deflected from straight line path (right in Northern hemisphere, left in southern hemisphere)
ocean layers
deep layer, pycnocline, mixed
types of ocean currents
surface currents (fast) deep water currents (slow)
surface current forces
prevailing winds, coriolis, continental boundaries
ekman spiral
surface winds drive surface currents, and each layer of water drags the layer below, but the Coriolis Force changes each layer's direction slightly to make a spiral effect
upwelling
The movement of deep, cold, and nutrient-rich water to the surface, away from the coast (increases productivity)
downwelling
The movement of water from the surface to greater depths
thermocline
a layer of rapid change in temperature at the surface of the water (density-driven)
what water has the highest density
cold, saltwater
biogeochemical cycle
recycling of inorganic matter between living organisms and their environment
5 spheres of the earth system
lithosphere (solid surface layer of the earth/plates)
biosphere (all living things)
hydrosphere (water reservoirs)
atmosphere (thin gaseous veil around earth)
cryosphere (frozen component of water reservoirs)
5 major carbon pools in carbon cycle (from largest to smallest)
lithosphere, oceans, soils, atmosphere, biosphere
carbon levels decrease in ____ and increases in ___
summer (more sun, plants grow faster, absorb more co2 through photosynthesis) winter (less sunshine, plants absorb less co2)
anthropogenic emissions in the context of the carbon cycle
we are moving carbon from long term reservoir (lithosphere) to short term reservoir at a very accelerated rate (extracting fossil fuels/burning them)
global temperature methane feedback loop
warming wetlands releases more methane, causes temperature to increase faster
nitrogen
most abundant gas, triple covalent bond (super strong)
nitrification
ammonia is converted to nitrate ions (NO3-).
nitrogen fixation
Process of converting nitrogen gas into ammonia
Denitrification
Conversion of nitrates into nitrogen gas
Assimilation
when living organisms take up nitrogen
Ammonification
decomposers convert organic waste into ammonia
6 biome organization levels (small to large)
individual/species, population, community, ecosystem, biome, biosphere
availability of ___ is the most important climatic factor defining biomes
moisture (temperature/precipitation define biome boundaries)
2 types of autotrophs (primary producers)
photosynthetic and chemosynthetic
primary consumers
herbivores
secondary consumers
carnivores
decomposers
bacteria/fungi (break down organic matter)
inefficiencies in energy transformation lead to a pyramid of energy in the ecosystem, with less energy at the top (true/false)
true
3 levels of biodiversity
gene, species, ecosystem
4 dimensions of biodiversity
taxonomic (who is there)
phylogenetic (who is related to who)
genetic (what roles can they play)
functional (what roles are they currently playing)
3 scales of biodiversity
alpha (species biodiversity of a local community)
beta (change in species biodiversity between 2 groups)
gamma (total species richness over a large geographic area)
peninsula effect
Species richness decreases toward the end of a peninsula
elevation gradients
species richness increases with elevation until a certain threshold and then decreases
GF Gause's competitive exclusion principle
2 species competing for the same resources cannot coexist indefinitely
species can coexist because of factors like...
self inhibition, niche partitioning, trade offs, dominance/tolerance, disturbance
types of extinction
local (disappeared in part of its range)
ecological (still present, but density's so low that species no longer functions in ecosystem)
global (gone everywhere)
main threats to biodiversity/drivers of extinction
alteration of habitats (mostly agriculture) and invasive species
soil texture
indicates the relative content of particles of various sizes (such as sand, silt and clay in the soil)
soil minerals
derived from parent materials through weathering, divided into class sizes (sand, silt, clay)
important functions in soil
water holding capacity, ionic interactions with nutrients, interactions with soil organic materials
clay
smallest particle size, highest surface area (important for water holding/interactions with nutrients/soil organic matter)
Soil profile (horizon levels)
O Horizon ("Humus", surface)
A Horizon (topsoil)
E Horizon (zone of leaching)
B Horizon (subsoil)
C Horizon (bottom layer, weathered parent material)
Surface ___ of soil particles dictates their functionality
area
___ is composed of minerals, organic matter, biota, and pore space
soil
how much visible light is absorbed by the gases in the atmosphere
little (that is why we can see in the visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum)
how much solar energy is reflected after reaching earth
30%
what are the 2 most abundant gases in the atmosphere
nitrogen and oxygen
what makes a gas a greenhouse gas
ability to absorb and emit infrared radiation by increasing the rate of its energy
in what direction do ALL winds move
from high pressure to low pressure
what is the name of the cell from 0-30 degree south
hadley
air ascends AWAY from the earth's surface (true or false)
true
would you typically find low or high pressure systems at the equator
low
would you typically find low or high pressure systems at 30 degrees south
high
would you typically find deserts or forests at 60 degrees north
forests
would you typically find deserts or forests at the poles
deserts
coriolis always deflects objects left in the southern hemisphere and right in the northern hemisphere (true or false)
true
is ice or liquid water more dense
liquid water
drastic change in salinity with change in depth is called
halocline
the tendency of ocean water and wind to be deflected is due to the
earth's rotation
what contains more carbon: the biosphere or oceans
oceans
anthropogenic CO2 emissions cause climate warming and ocean acidification and is contributed by deforestation, fossil fuel combustion and land-use change (true or false)
true
how is it that nitrogen is one of the most abundant elements on earth and yet is the most common limiting factor for plant growth
plants cannot use N2 directly and N2 has a strong triple bond
2 basic processes must occur in an ecosystem: flow of energy and the cycling of chemical elements (true or false)
true
abiotic or biotic: minerals, primary producers, decomposers, nutrients, water, consumers
abiotic, biotic, biotic, abiotic, abiotic, biotic
what explains the inefficiency of energy transfer between trophic levels
metabolic energy use and not all consumed material is digested
taxonomic biodiversity
who is there
genetic biodiversity
what roles can they play
phylogenetic biodiversity
who is related to who
functional biodiversity
what roles are they currently playing
mountain effect: biodiversity ___ as you move from flat regions to mountainous regions
increases
latitudinal gradient: biodiversity ___ as you move from the equator to the poles
decreases
peninsular effect: biodiversity ___ as you go from the base to the tip of a peninsula
decreases
species is no longer present in an area
local extinction
species is present, but no longer functioning
ecological extinction
species is gone everywhere
global extinction
the most important property of different soil mineral particles are their
surface area per unit mass
since the 5 soil forming factors interact in endless ways, the types of soil that occur are incredibly diverse (true or false)
true
a small percent increase in the total amount of carbon in the world's soils would offset human GHG emissions (true or false)
true (this is why there is a lot of interest in soils for helping with negative greenhouse gas emissions)
current rates of erosion are not sustainable because erosion rates exceed the rate of soil formation (true or false)
true