Unit 4 -Earth systems and resources vocab Ali Portis

Convergent boundary

When two plates come together

Divergent boundary

occurs when two tectonic plates move away from each other

Transform boundary

places where plates slide sideways past each other.

Island arc

typically a curving chain of volcanic islands occurring around the margin of ocean basins. The curvature and the volcanic nature are important characteristic features.

Rift valleys

is a lowland region that forms where Earth's tectonic plates move apart, or rift.

MOHO layer

boundary between the Earth's crust and its mantle

Convection currents

heat-driven cycles that occur in the air, ocean, and mantle.

Subduction zones

form where a plate with thinner (less-buoyant) oceanic crust descends beneath a plate with thicker (more-buoyant) continental crust.

Hot spots

a large plume of hot mantle material rising from deep within the Earth

Sea floor speading

the usual process at work at divergent plate boundaries, leading to the creation of new ocean floor.

Soil profile

a vertical cross-section of the soil, made of layers running parallel to the surface.

Soil Horizons

distinct layers or zones within soil profiles that have different physical and chemical properties

Soil porosity

the amount of pores, or open space, between soil particles.

Soil permeability

the capacity of the soil to allow water to pass through it.

Soil fertility

the ability of a soil to sustain plant growth by providing essential plant nutrients and favorable chemical, physical, and biological characteristics as a habitat for plant growth

Soil Salinization

the process by which water-soluble salts accumulate in the soil

irrigation

the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns.

Humus

dark organic matter in soil that is formed by the decomposition of plant and animal matter.

Norman Borlaug

recommended improved methods of cultivation, and developed a robust strain of wheat - dwarf wheat - that was adapted to Mexican conditions.

Salt water intrusion

occurs when storm surges or high tides overtop areas low in elevation ; the movement of saline water into freshwater aquifers

cone of depression

Circular area surrounding a well where groundwater levels are reduced from pumping.

Ogallala

he largest aquifer in the United States and is a major aquifer of Texas underlying much of the High Plains region

Grey water

domestic wastewater generated in households or office buildings from streams without fecal contamination

troposphere

the lowest layer of Earth's atmosphere where weather occurs

Stratosphere

layer of the atmosphere above the troposphere and below the mesosphere

Mesosphere

the layer of Earth's atmosphere immediately above the stratosphere

Thermosphere/ Ionosphere

The layer of atmosphere most distant from the Earth

Exosphere

the outermost layer of the atmosphere

Aurora Borealis

a natural light display that occurs in the polar regions

Aurora Australis

a natural light display similar to the Aurora Borealis but occurs in the southern hemisphere near Antarctica.

Ozone layer

sits in the stratosphere between 15 km and 30 km above the earth

Watershed

an area of land that channels rainfall, snowmelt, and runoff into a common body of water.

Rain shadow

a patch of land that has been forced to become a desert because mountain ranges blocked all plant-growing, rainy weather

Leeward

situated on or toward the side sheltered from the wind; downwind.

windward

facing the wind or situated on the side facing the wind.

cfcs

a man-made chemical, created as a stable molecule to deliver other substances via aerosol. They were widely used in hairspray and air fresheners.

Perma frost

any ground that remains completely frozen—32°F (0°C) or colder—for at least two years straight.

Albedo effect

an expression of the ability of surfaces to reflect sunlight (heat from the sun).

Hadley cells

A large-scale atmospheric circulation pattern that occurs between the equator and 30 degrees latitude.

Polar cells

occur at latitudes greater than 60° represents the small circulation cell stretching from 60° north and south to the poles.

Ferral cells

represents the third type of air circulation cell, found between 60° and 30° north and south.

intertropical convergence zone ( ITCZ)

where northeast winds from the Northern Hemisphere converge with the southeast winds from the Southern Hemisphere.

Thermohaline circulation

the pattern by which the density of water increases as it becomes colder and saltier

ENSO

warmer surface temperatures in the eastern Pacific and higher rainfall in the central Pacific.

La Nina

occurs when sea surface temperatures in the central Pacific Ocean drop to lower-than-normal levels. a cooling of the Pacific Ocean between Papua New Guinea and South America,

Coriolis effect

circulating air is deflected toward the right in the Northern Hemisphere and toward the left in the Southern Hemisphere

Gyres

a large-scale pattern of water circulation that moves clockwise in the northern hemisphere and counterclockwise in the southern hemisphere. a large system of rotating ocean currents

Doldrums

a region of the ocean near the equator, characterized by calms, winds, or squalls; areas with no prevailing winds

Positive externality

one that is enjoyed by people other than those directly involved in a particular activity.

Negative externality

a spillover of an economic transaction that negatively impacts a party that is not directly involved in the transaction.