Ch. 3 Key Terms

Question 1

geosphere

Answer 1

the solid part of the earth consisting of the crust and outer mantle

Question 2

hydrosphere

Answer 2

all of the water, in the form of liquid, ice, or vapor, above and below earth’s surface and in the atmosphere

Question 3

crust

Answer 3

Earth’s thin outer layer

Question 4

mantle

Answer 4

layer of the earth below the crust

Question 5

core

Answer 5

Earth’s innermost layer

Question 6

lithosphere

Answer 6

Earth’s outer layer

Question 7

asthenosphere

Answer 7

Layer beneath the lithosphere

Question 8

tectonic plate

Answer 8

pieces of the lithosphere that move around on top of the asthenosphere

Question 9

chemical weathering

Answer 9

Weathering is the breaking down of rocks, soils, and minerals

Question 10

erosion

Answer 10

removal and transport of surface material

Question 11

atmosphere

Answer 11

mixture of gases that surrounds earth

Question 12

troposphere

Answer 12

atmospheric layer nearest to the Earth’s surface, all weather occurs here

Question 13

stratosphere

Answer 13

above the troposphere, temperatures increase

Question 14

ozone

Answer 14

molecule made up of three nitrogen atoms

Question 15

radiation

Answer 15

transfer of energy across space and in the atmosphere

Question 16

conduction

Answer 16

flow of heat from a warmer object to a colder object when the object are placed under physical contact

Question 17

convection

Answer 17

transfer of heat by air currents

Question 18

greenhouse effect

Answer 18

the process in which gases trap heat near the Earth

Question 19

water cycle

Answer 19

continuous movement of water into the air, onto land, and then back to water sources

Question 20

evaporation

Answer 20

process by which liquid water is heated by the sun and then rises into the atmosphere as water vapor

Question 21

condesation

Answer 21

water vapor forms water droplets on dust particles, which form clouds, the droplets collide and create heavier, larger droplets

Question 22

percipitation

Answer 22

larger droplets fall from clouds as rain in this process

Question 23

salinity

Answer 23

concentration of all the dissolved salts it contains

Question 24

fresh water

Answer 24

locked up in icecaps and glaciers

Question 25

biosphere

Answer 25

narrow layer around Earth’s surface in which life can exist