Final review
Albedo-The Fraction of solar energy reflected back to space due to earth’s cloudiness or snow and ice cover.
Water decreases albedo
What tsunami amplitude occurs in the open ocean? An amplitude less than 1 m.
What tsunami amplitude occurs in the shallow water? An amplitude between 6 and 15 m.
The largest tsunami have wavelengths approaching 1000 km
Which ocean tsunami killed an estimated 245000 people in 13 countries in 2004? The Indian ocean Tsunami
The Green house effect - A portion of short-wavelength solar radiation absorbed at Earth’s surface gets re-radiated at lower frequency and absorbed in the atmosphere.
How much times does earth’s equatorial regions receive solar energy compared to polar regions? About 2.4 times
Volcanic eruptions can trigger tsunami
Based on NOAA hurricane tracker, the Atlantic hurricane season is winding down? True
Detailed mapping of the ocean bottom around the Hawaiian Islands revealed a previously unrecognized tsunami source. What did geologists discover on the seafloor in this area?
Slumps and debris avalanches formed by volcanic flank collapse
What two physical characteristics govern tsunami wave speed? Velocity so gravitational acceleration and ocean depth and is square rooted.
What are the two main streams in each hemisphere? Polar jet and subtropical jet.
When water vapor condenses it - releases latent heat
The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of a sample of water is referred to as the _____ specific heat.
Why is seasonal weather change not as great in the southern hemisphere relative to the northern hemisphere? Because of the great southern oceans
Front - Is the sloping surface between air masses of different temperature and humidity
Thermohaline flow- Deep-ocean waters distribute heat and salt around the world
Winds cross perpendicular to isobar lines due to which force? The pressure gradient
What causes winds to blow across isobars rather than parallel to them? The pressure gradient force.
Sublimation - Changing a solid to a gas without passing through a liquid stage
Tornadoes occur along the collision zone between what? Cold front and high -energy warm air mass
Winds in a hurricane are strongest at what point? In the eye wall
Pilar is a late season hurricane that formed in the Eastern Pacific a few days after Otis caused widespread flooding
What does the enhanced fujita scale? Ranks tornados based on estimated maximum wind speed.
What are the important requirements for hail to form? Buoyant hot moist air, upper-level cold air creating maximum temperature contrasts, and strong updrafts keeping hailstones aloft while adding layers
What causes the thunder associated with a lightning strike? Shock waves from explosive gasses
Saffir Simpson scale - ranks category one with highest pressure and low wind speeds and category 5 with low pressure and highest wind speed
What happens in the eye wall in well-developed hurricanes? Air sinks and warms
Fill in the blank: Hurricanes rotate in a ___ around a central core in the Northern Hemisphere. Counterclockwise direction
Milankovitch cycles - orbit, tilt, and wobble
Eccentricity, which is a variation of Earth’s orbit around the sun by the two largest gas giant planets, which causes the longest period Milankovitch cycle
Obliquity - the angle earth’s axis of rotation is tilted as it travels around the sun
Precession - As the Earth rotates, it wobbles slightly upon its rotational axis. This wobble is due to tidal forces
Which Milankovitch cycle is the longest? Eccentricity
Which Milankovitch cycle is the shortest? Precession
The little Ice Age Affecting Europe between 1400 and 1900 CE lowered the average annual temperature globally by about 1C and corresponds to crop failure, famine, and war in quantities significantly larger than during previous and subsequent eras
Hurricanes begin with an arctic disturbance - a low pressure system drawing in a poorly organized cluster of thunderstorms - false
Which of the worst greenhouse gas is thankfully, least abundant? Chlorofluorocarbon (CFC)
Plinian eruptions can cool the climate slightly for a few years because _____ highly reflective sulphuric acid and fine ash persist just below the tropopause. It blocks the upcoming radiation
Typhoon is more like a hurricane than a tornado - true
Do reefs capture the history of ocean’s temperature? Reef building stores the present 18O to 16O ratio of seawater with the CaCo3 shell walls built by reel-loving bugs. Over time, therefore, reeds capture the history of ocean temperature
Hurricane storm surge in the northern hemisphere is greatest on which part of the tropical cyclone? Right-side front
Wind speed on the western side of a tropical cyclone in the northern hemisphere is _____ speed of the storm body minus the wind speed
Does the melting of methane hydrate result in significant global warming?
21 times higher heat-trapping ability than CO2
Removal of CO2 comes from 20% by photosynthesis, 30% dissolves in ocean water, 50% stays in atmosphere
N2O is about 70% produced naturally by bacteria
Similarities between Hurricane, Cyclone, and Typhoon:
All three are tropical cyclones, which are large-scale weather systems characterized by low-pressure centers and strong winds.
They form over warm ocean waters and derive their energy from the evaporation of water.
They are associated with heavy rainfall, storm surges, and potential for damage to coastal areas.
Differences between Hurricane, Cyclone, and Typhoon:
Location: Hurricanes occur in the Atlantic Ocean and the eastern Pacific Ocean, cyclones occur in the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean, while typhoons occur in the Northwest Pacific Ocean.
Terminology: The different names are used based on the region where the cyclone occurs. Hurricanes are used in the Atlantic and eastern Pacific, cyclones in the Indian Ocean and South Pacific, and typhoons in the Northwest Pacific.
Intensity: Typhoons are often more intense and have stronger winds compared to hurricanes and cyclones.
Frequency: Hurricanes are more common in the Atlantic, cyclones in the Indian Ocean, and typhoons in the Northwest Pacific.
A wind shear refers to a sudden change in wind speed or direction over a short distance in the atmosphere. It can occur vertically or horizontally and is often associated with weather phenomena such as thunderstorms, tornadoes, or strong frontal systems. Wind shear can pose significant challenges to aviation, as it can cause turbulence and affect the performance and control of aircraft.
Typhoon is more intense and have stronger winds compared to the other two
Rotating winds pull air molecules into a tighter and tighter spiral increasing wind speeds due to the conservation of . . . angular momentum
The most localized, powerful windstorm with cyclonic winds is a …. tornado
The highest wind speeds of any weather phenomenon occur in . . . tornados
Ascending air at the equator and descending air around 30 degrees north and S latitudes create semicircular air circulations routes known as …. Hadley cells
As a hurricane forms, converging surface winds meet at the central core, which acts like a chimney sending …. warm most air flowing rapidly UPWARD
A building destroyed by a tornado likely lost its roof first. True
Which of the following conditions is not thought indicate an unusually active hurricane season in the Atlantic Ocean? Extra randomness in the Milankovitch Cycles
The center of polar jet flows ——— east at approximately 400 kmph
Requirements for a hurricane to develop include all but which of the following? The storm must be at least 200km from the equator
High humidity during a heat wave is particularly bad because —- the evaporation of swear is slowed
Wind-blown waves have ——- short periods and short wavelengths
Coastlines during low tide suffer worse storm surge during hurricanes. False.
Where do we find 80% of the Earth’s carbon dioxide? Limestones
Which of the following is not part of the basic sequence within a lightening strike? Clouds run together and create static electricity like socks on a carpet in winter time
Some of the greatest damage associated with the 1987 Edmonton tornado outbreak included—— destruction 100 Evergreen Mobile Home Park Trailers and 15 deaths
Our options for limiting climate change include reducing the CO2 content of the atmosphere and managing the solar radiation received by Earth.
The largest tsunami wave run-up recorded was caused by a massive rockfall into the water at Lituya Bay, Alaska.
The average surface temperature on Earth before life was present was much colder than it is now. False.
During the last 7000 years Earth experienced a ——. 2C lowering of global average temperature.
The portion of _____ -wavelength solar radiation absorbed at Earth’s surface getting re-radiated at ______ frequency and absorbed in the atmosphere is thought to causes the greenhouse effect. Short; Lower
Winds speed slows at ground level due to which force? Surface friction.
The beautiful tone and sustain of violin made in the late 1600s by Stradavari might correspond to denser wood grown during the 70-year _____ .maunder Minimum.
When a flood crest passes downstream, stream level falls more rapidly than it rose. False.
Which of these is a failure mode for a levee? Subsurface erosion.
If a stream experiences increased discharge, the stream ______. meanders
Non-permeable surfaces shorten the duration of floods
Environment Canada measures all but ____ for flood mitigation. Oxygen Isotope ratios.
Why does Winnipeg have a floodway? fast snow-melt and flat topography flood the Red River frequently
____is the sudden breakout of a stream from its channel during a flood. Avulsion.
Why is duff at the base of a tree a greater fire hazard than the tree itself? The continuous duff layer in a forest spreads fire from one tree to the rest
The Icelandic-origin word for large and abrupt releases of water related to glaciation is ______ jokulklaup
The last major earthquake and tsunami on our west coast occurred on or about 26 January 1700 because: annual growth rings in drowned trees have no rings after 1699, and a 2m tsunami hit Japan on 26 January 1700
The gigantic pieces of lithospheric plates diverging, sliding past, or colliding with each other are directly responsible for most of the earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and mountains on Earth. false
Which of the following is not a divergent margin? Aleutian Island Arc
Which of the following IS a divergent margin? Mid-Atlantic ridge Juan de Fuca Ridge and East African Rift
Can the same fault be classified as both a reverse and a normal fault? No
The typical trend in a rising plume of subduction-zone magma is to increase the ____. Percentage of SIO2, viscosity, and explosive potential of the magma by holding in the gases more tightly.
The relative proportion of people of different ages in a population is not a factor in calculating its growth rate. False
Which structure is safest during an earthquake? A two-story modern wood frame house
The three ‘Vs’ of volcanology are _____. Viscosity, Volatiles, and volume.
The presence of water _____ the melting point of rock. Lowers
______ faults are commonly found where subduction and continental collision occur. Reverse
Over a typical span of 20 years, hurricanes kill more people than earthquakes. True
Disasters occur when Earth unleashes its concentrated energy. True
_____ waves advance with retrograde-elliptical motion. Rayleigh
Love waves and S waves are two types of seismic waves generated during earthquakes. Love waves, also called L waves, move horizontally and are the slowest, causing the most damage to surface structures. S waves, also known as shear or secondary waves, move vertically and are slower than P waves but faster than Love waves. Both Love waves and S waves are surface waves that travel along the Earth's surface, unlike P waves and other seismic waves that travel through the Earth's interior.
P waves, or primary waves, are the initial seismic waves detected in earthquakes. They are compressional waves that traverse through all states of matter, causing particles to oscillate in the same direction as the wave.
The Pacific Plate subducts along ___ edges and creates enormous earthquakes. Its northern and western
The law of ___ explains that sediments (such as sand, gravel, and mud) are originally deposited or settled out of water in horizontal layers. Original horizontality
The difference between births and deaths each year adds a population equivalent of Germany to the world population. True.
Below the curie point, about ____, magnetization of iron-bearing minerals along the Earth’s magnetic field occurs. 550 degrees Celsius
Which source rocks produce the HIGHEST viscosity magma? Rhyolite
Which source rocks produce the LOWEST viscosity magma? Basalt
The glowing ejected mantle-material in a 1973 image from Iceland is liquid in air so we call each fragment a _____. Bomb
Recent work in Switzerland suggests that Swiss _____ will retreat completely by _____. Glaciers; 2100
A population growth of 100% annually results in doubling a population each year. True
For every _____ times increase in seismic amplitude, the Richter magnitude value increases one integer. 10
In 1989 Loma Prieta quake, the Marina District building collapses were extensive, and numerous destructive fires broke out, due to all but which of the following? Widespread looting and arson.
West Texas earthquakes withs hypocenters of less than 10 Km depth occurred this semester. Why might we associate this seismicity with oil-field production? Production facilities near epicenters; Oil production seismicity associated with fluid injection at about 4 Km.
A natural with a large return period is a low-frequency event. True
Astronomers do not theorize how our solar system formed ____. As a sequence of miracles.
Si and O2 link up to form a silicon-oxygen_____. tetrahedron
As radioactive atoms decay, heat energy is _____. Released
All but which of the following characterize the moment magnitude of an earthquake? Modified Mercalli Intensity
Which of the following characterize the moment magnitude of an earthquake? Shear strength, displacement, and rupture area.
Three basic classes of collisions include all but which of the following? Continental plate versus mantle plate
The town of Lahaina in 2023 adds ____ to volcanic eruption and earthquake on its list of natural disasters. Fire
In a collision between continental plates, the ______ subducts the ______. Neither plate; the other plate which often creates large mountain forms like the Himalayas
Which of the following correctly lists the order in which the listed minerals form in a cooling magma from the first to the last form? Olivine, pyroxene, amphibole, biotite mica, and quartz
Fertility rate decrease is likely linked to urbanization and increased opportunities for women. True
____ waves propagate by compressing particles in the direction of advance. P
Earth’s magnetic and rotational axes generally coincide within a degree or so as is the case currently. False
We hope to identify then next likely earthquake epicenter in a region using the _____ method. Seismic-gap
Hurricane Lee began as ____ 13 in the eastern _____ ocean just above the _____. Tropical storm, Atlantic, Equator
The sediment layer on the sea floor is _____. Thickest near the deep ocean trenches
When most of the movement along a fault is horizontal, the fault is referred to as a _______ fault. Strike-slip fault
A typical molecule in an oceanic plate gets recycled every _____ years, approximately. 200 thousand
All but which of the following affect Earthquake intensity? Air pressure
Which of the following affect Earthquake intensity? Rupture area, fault displacement, ground-surface stiffness, distance to epicenter.
The supercontinent _______ is thought to have existed about 220 million years ago. Pangea
All of the continents were once combined into a single supercontinent called ______. Pangea
Lower the viscosity of magma by _______. Decreasing SIO2 content, increasing temperature, decreasing crystal content