Intro to Physical Geography Exam 1 – Flashcards

Unlock all answers in this set

Unlock answers
question
Geographers study
answer
relationships among and between natural and human systems. Geographers make maps of and study processes and patterns in space and time.
question
Physical geographers focus chiefly on natural systems:
answer
Lithosphere (rocks and dirt) Hydrosphere (oceans; lakes; rivers) Atmosphere (the thin canopy of air that hugs the Earth) Biosphere (The biota—the sum of all life on Earth).
question
natural systems
answer
driven by transfers of energy and mass in space and through time.
question
Solar energy
answer
engine that drives Earth's physical systems.
question
System
answer
an ordered, interrelated set of things, linked by flows of energy and matter
question
Matter
answer
mass that has a shape and takes up space
question
Energy
answer
capacity to do work on matter, changing its condition and state Energy can neither be created nor destroyed; it can only be transferred.
question
Kinetic energy
answer
energy of motion
question
potential energy
answer
unexpended energy
question
Open system
answer
energy flows in and out
question
Closed System
answer
No energy flows into or escapes
question
Earth is an open system with respect to energy
answer
Earth's energy escapes regularly into free space—and the Sun's energy enters the Earth system.
question
Earth can be considered a closed system WRT matter.
answer
nothing escapes Earth's gravitational pull
question
Earth is the 3rd rock from the
answer
sun
question
Converging lines of evidence
answer
Killed off Dinosaurs 1) the lack of dinosaur fossils after 65 million years ago; 2) the layer of Iridium at the K-T boundary; 3) the discovery of an impact crater.
question
Intercepted solar radiation (Insolation)
answer
underlying reason for Earth's seasons (no seasons without sunlight)
question
Five Factors that affect insolation
answer
1) Sphericity of Earth (if the Earth wasn't a sphere, there would be no solar angles to affect insolation); 2) Earth's axial tilt; 3) the constancy, or parallelism, of Earth's axial tilt; 4) Earth's revolution—an annual orbit around the Sun; 5) Earth's rotation on its axis.
question
Directly overhead
answer
on June 22 at high noon if you were standing at 23.5 degrees north latitude (i.e., the Tropic of Cancer), the Sun would be where?
question
the solar declination is 0 degrees at 23.5 degrees north on June 22
answer
This is the farthest north the subsolar point 'migrates' June Solstice—summer solstice; summer in the northern hemisphere.
question
best day to put a 'shrimp on the barby
answer
December 21, when the subsolar point is at 23.5 degrees south, thus solar declination is 0 degrees (straight overhead at high noon). It's December solstice—summer solstice in the southern hemisphere.
question
Equator (party)
answer
gets the 'Lion's Share' of insolation.
question
'march' Earth's seasons.
answer
As the Earth revolves, with its constant tilt, around the Sun
question
Earth's sphericity
answer
acts to 'spread' the solar beam at higher latitudes.
question
higher latitudes (north and south of the equator) are cooler.
answer
The solar beam covers a larger surface area at higher latitudes---and since the amount of insolation is constant, there must be less insolation per unit surface area at higher latitudes
question
Earth's orbit
answer
is elliptical (little to do with earth seasons)
question
CO2
answer
'greenhouse gas' that absorbs some of this outbound longwave radiation and reradiates it to the surface, warming the Earth.
question
CO2 is vital to keeping Earth habitable
answer
too much CO2 is producing too much global warming. So...we can have too much of a good thing!
question
Higher latitudes tend to have less insolation per unit area than regions near the Equator.
answer
Earth is a sphere
question
atmosphere scatters the short 'blue' wavelengths
answer
makes sky look blue
question
standing on the Moon
answer
Sky looks black because no atmosphere to scatter blue light
question
Sunsets look red
answer
the shorter non-red wavelengths are scattered out of the beam before they reach our eyes. polluted skies produce beautiful sunsets (dust helps scatter)
question
Water in the atmosphere
answer
act like billions and billions of tiny prisms, refracting light into a rainbow of colors
question
Refraction
answer
slows light down, turns at an angle depending on wavelength.
question
Reflection
answer
means sunlight bounces back the direction it came from.
question
Albedo
answer
is the percentage of reflected insolation: % Albedo = (Insolation out/Insolation in) * 100.
question
Energy balance equation:
answer
: Ein - Eout = 0. What's the energy balance equation for global warming? Ein - Eout > 0. For global cooling? Ein - Eout < 0.
question
Absorption
answer
occurs when land and water take in solar energy.
question
Outgoing longwave radiation
answer
greatest at the Equator, since the Equator gets the most solar energy.
question
Clouds reflect shortwave radiation
answer
never reaches the surface; so we can say clouds 'force' albedo increases.
question
The greenhouse effect
answer
a process by which thermal radiation from a planetary surface is absorbed by atmospheric greenhouse gasses (e.g., carbon dioxide; methane), and is re-radiated in all directions.
question
Clouds absorb outbound longwave thermal radiation (acting like a greenhouse),
answer
re-radiating it to the surface; so we can say clouds 'force' greenhouse warming.
question
How are clouds different from carbon dioxide (CO2) in terms of the greenhouse effect?
answer
Clouds reflect insolation; CO2 does not
question
Energy balance is not uniform
answer
the global energy (Ein - Eout) should in theory equal zero
question
Equatorial latitudes have an energy surplus.
answer
This energy flows, in air and water, to the cooler high latitudes, achieving some sense of energy balance between the lower and higher latitudes.
question
chief controls on temperature are
answer
latitude; elevation (altitude); cloud cover; and land-water heating differences.
question
Latitude:
answer
energy per unit area decreases with latitude because the earth is a sphere
question
Elevation (altitude):
answer
An air mass cools with elevation because air pressure drops; air expands and becomes less dense; it thus cannot absorb as much radiant heat from the surface and frictional air molecule collisions decrease too---all of this producing cooler air.
question
Air cools at a rate of
answer
3.5 degrees per thousand feet
question
Heating and cooling action
answer
happens as a result of the changing density of air
question
Land Vs.Water Heating
answer
water evaporates, latent energy in water does into water vapor. Engery can penetrate clear water, but can only heat the surface of land water has a higher specific heat(takes longer to heat water than land) water circulates energy, land cannot
question
cloud cover
answer
blocks surface insolation, producing cooler surfaces.
question
Being near water typically moderates temperature extremes
answer
water is slower to warm up and slower to cool down compared to land; water has a higher specific heat).
question
How is energy transferred?
answer
Energy is transferred by convection (vertical transport of energy through air or water conduction (transport through a solid); or advection (horizontal transport of energy) radiation (energy movement away from a heat source).
question
What's a good example of convection?
answer
Warm air rising at the Equator! It rises because it's pressure is lower than surrounding air—as would be the case with a hot air balloon.
question
Atmospheric or air pressure
answer
the force per unit of area exerted on the Earth's surface by the weight of the air above the surface.
question
Barometer
answer
measures air pressure
question
Isobars
answer
connect points of equal pressure
question
Gradient
answer
produced by pressure differences between two different regions
question
air moves
answer
from high to low pressure (stronger gradient, stronger wind)
question
4 forces affect the wind
answer
a) pressure gradient b) gravity c) Earth's rotation (i.e., the Earth gives 'spin' to the wind d) friction from the surface affects windflows.
question
Geographic differences in air pressure
answer
move the atmosphere around, via the wind
question
4 identifiable regions of pressure cover both the northern and southern hemisphere
answer
a) Equatorial low pressure trough b) Sub-tropical high pressure cells c) Polar high pressure cells d) Sub-polar low pressure cells.
question
Why does the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) migrate seasonally?
answer
It 'follows the Sun' just as do the high and low pressure regions.
question
Low pressure regions
answer
attract moisture
question
High pressure areas
answer
reject moisture
question
symmetry between
answer
the hemispheres in the global wind and pressure 'belts'
question
TRUE AND FALSE!!
answer
***
question
The subsolar point is at 0 degrees latitude on March and September 21/22.
answer
TRUE
question
Water in the atmosphere can act like billions and billions of tiny prisms, reflecting light into a rainbow of colors.
answer
FALSE (refracting)
question
Ice, snow, cloud tops have high albedos—they bounce back intercepted light.
answer
TRUE
question
? Global warming melts ocean ice, thus decreases albedo and increases absorption of insolation by water.
answer
TRUE
question
Equatorial latitudes have an energy surplus. This energy flows, in air and water, to the cooler high latitudes, achieving some sense of energy balance between the lower and higher latitudes.
answer
TRUE
question
Geography is integrative; the unity of space-time relationships among the sum of natural and human activities on the planet. Geographers study the relationships among and between natural and human systems.
answer
TRUE
question
Solar energy is the engine that drives Earth's physical systems.
answer
TRUE
question
Entropy
answer
Stronger gradient stronger wind
question
appears to shift because of axial tilt and where Earth is in its annual solar round trip
answer
Circle of Illumination (the circular edge of sunlight that separates Earth into night and day)
Get an explanation on any task
Get unstuck with the help of our AI assistant in seconds
New