1.7 Earth and Atmosphere Flashcards
Who was Alfred Wegener?
He was a german meteorologist who came up with the theory of continental drift
What was the name of the experiment which carried out in the 1900s which was trying to find the original creation of amino acids?
The Miller-Urey experiment
What process converted lots of the carbon dioxide in the primitive air into oxygen from today’s atmosphere?
Photosynthesis
Why do plates move?
Radioactive decay in the core heats up the mantle. This sets up convection currents as warm magma rises to the surface and then cools again falling back down before repeating this process.This causes the plates to move slowly just a few cm per year.
What are the four layers of the earths structure?
Inner core, outer core, mantle and crust
What were the main gases present in the earths early atmosphere?
Carbon dioxide, water vapour, ammonia and methane
How was the amount of carbon dioxide decreased in the early atmosphere?
Photosynthesis and it was dissolved in the ocean
How are the gases that make up air separated?
Fractional distillation
What current is responsible for the movement of the Earths plates?
Convectional Currents
What did the electrical spark in the Miller-Urey experiments replicate?
Lightning
What was the name of the supercontinent that broke up into the world we know today?
Pangaea
What effect does sulphur dioxide have on the earth?
Global Dimming
Why is there uncertainty about the miller-urey experiment?
It was an experiment on a much smaller scale
We are not certain of the conditions
What is coal made from?
Dead plants that have been buried and have had high amounts of pressure compress them
What could a rise in global temperatures effect?
Sea levels
The poles
Food cycles
What is the Earths core made up of?
Mainly iron, but the outer core contains an Iron-Nickel alloy
Where do volcanoes and earthquakes tend to lie/happen?
Along plate boundaries and faults
What is the main gas that is released when a volcano erupts that can cause a lot of problems?
Sulphur Dioxide
What is the earths surface made up of?
Tectonic plates
What two metals do we think the core of the earth is made up of?
Iron and nickel
How far do plates move in one year?
A few cm
What was the main gase in the earths atmosphere 4.5 billion years ago?
Carbon dioxide
What are the two main gases in the atmosphere today?
Nitrogen and oxygen
What is the term used when green plants convert carbon dioxide to oxygen?
Photosynthesis
What is the layer of earth that humans live on?
The crust
What is the oxygen layer in the atmosphere that is used to block out uv rays?
Ozone layer
Where do volcanoes and earthquakes usually occur?
Plate boundaries and hot spots
What causes the plates to move?
Convection currents
How has the amount of carbon dioxide decreased in the Earth’s atmosphere?
The carbon dioxide became locked up in fossil fuels and sedimentary rocks
What caused the amount of oxygen in the atmosphere to increase?
Photosynthesis
What caused the level of co2 to decrease since the earths early atmosphere
Photosynthesis
Oceans
What where the main gases in the earths early atmosphere?
Methane, co2, ammonia and water vapour
What causes plates to move, and where does it occur
Convection currents in the mantle
