Chapter 1 Flashcards
Acid rain
Acidic rainwater produced when various acids, including sulfuric acid produced from SO2 oxidation, combine with natural rainwater.
Anthropogenic
Induced by humans
Atmosphere
The thin envelope of gases that surrounds most planets: one of the four major components of the Earth System.
Biodiversity:
The variety of life- forms, for example the number of species in an area.
Biota:
All living organisms.
Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs):
Synthetic compounds containing chlorine, fluorine, and carbon. These gases, also called freons, contribute to the greenhouse effect and are harmful to the ozone layer.
Core
The central part of a planet or of the Sun, Earth’s core- one of the three components of the solid Earth- is dense, is composed mostly of metallic iron and nickel, and has a solid inner and a liquid outer part
Crust
The thin, outer layer of the solid Earth; consists of light, rocky matter that is in contact with the atmosphere, hydroaphere, and biota
Cryosphere
The portion of the Earth’s surface that is mostly frozen, including both the polar caps and mountain glaciers.
Deforestation
The clearing of all the trees off an area of land.
Deuterium
A stable isotope of hydrogen that has one neutron in its nucleus; denoted as 2H or D.
Earth system
The group of interacting components (atmosphere, hydrosphere. Solid Earth and biota) that influence conditioned at the Earth’s surface.
Fossil fuels
Fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas that are formed from the partially decomposed organic remains of organisms, concentrated in sedimentary rocks.
Gaia hypothesis
A theory suggesting that Earth is a self- regulating system in which the biota play an integral role.
Global warming
A warming of earth’s atmosphere due to an anthropogenic enhancement of the greenhouse effect.
Greenhouse gases
gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and water vapor that warm a planet’s surface by absorbing infrared radiation and reradiating some of it back toward the surface. Greenhouse gases, whether natural or anthropogenic, contribute to the atmospheric greenhouse effect.
Hydrosphere
The component of Earth system that includes the various reservoirs of water and ice on Earth’s surface.
Interglacial period
An interval during the Pleistocene, such as the Holocene, when continental ice sheets were restricted to Greenland and Antarctica. Globally averaged surface temperatures during interglacial intervals were about 15 degree C, and atmospheric CO2 concentrations were about 280ppm.
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
An international group of scientists who periodically review the status of climate change science and issue consensus reports about both the climate science and the possible effects of climate change on humans.
Isotopes
Atoms of a given element that have different numbers of neutrons in their nuclei.
K-T boundary
the boundary between the Cretaceous (K) and Tertiary (T) periods, about 65 million years ago, when the dinosaurs and many other species went extinct.
Latent heat
The heat energy released of absorbed during the transition from one phase to another, such as when water evaporates.
Luminosity
The brightness of a star such as our Sun.
Mantle
One of the three layers of the solid Earth; a thick, rocky layer between the core and crust. Composed primarily of silicate minerals.
Mass extinction
An extraordinary extinction event in which more than 25% of all extant families are lost.
Nuclear fusion
The splitting of a heavy atomic nucleus into two fragments, accompanied by the release of energy.
Ozone (O3):
A form of oxygen that is much less abundant than, and chemically unlike, the oxygen that we breathe. The ozone that is dispersed in the stratosphere blocks the Sun’s harmful ultraviolet radiation.
Ozone hole
A patch of extremely low ozone concentration in the ozone layer. This hole has appeared near the South Pole each October since about 1976.
Ozone layer
A chemically distinct region of the atmosphere (specifically, the stratosphere) that protects Earth’s surface from the Sun’s harmful ultraviolet radiation.
Photosynthesis
the process by which an organism such as a green plant uses sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water to produce organic matter and oxygen.
Rocks
Consolidated mixtures of crystalline materials called minerals.
Sediments
Layers of unconsolidated material that is transported by water or by air.
Solid Earth
The component of the Earth system that includes all rocks and all unconsolidated rock fragments. The core, mantle, and crust make up the solid Earth.
Stratosphere
The stable atmospheric layer between 10 and 15 km and 50 km above the surface; temperature increases with altitude there. The stratosphere contains most of Earth’s ozone.
System
An entity composed of diverse but interrelated parts (components) that function as a complex whole.
Trace gases
gases such as methane, nitrous oxide, and freons that are present in Earth’s atmosphere in very low concentrations.
Albedo
The reflectivity of a surface, usually expressed as a decimal fraction of the total incident sunlight reflected from the surface.
Component
An individual part of a system. A component may be a reservoir of matter or energy, a system attribute, or a subsystem.
Coupling
The links between any two components of a system. Coupling can be positive or negative.
Equilibrium state
A state in which the system is in equilibrium, that is, the state in which the system will remain unless something disturbs it. An equilibrium state can be stable or unstable.
Feedback factor
The ratio of the equilibrium response to forcing (the response with feedback) to the response without feedback. Feedback factors less than 1 are indicative of negative feedback. The equilibrium response (with feedback) is smaller than the response to forcing without feedback. Feedback factors greater than 1 indicate positive feedback: the equilibrium response is larger than the response to the forcing itself.
Feedback Loop
A linkage of two or more system components that forms a round-trip flow of information. Feedback loops can be positive or negative.
Forcing
A persistent disturbance of a system; a longer- term disturbance than a perturbation.
Negative Coupling
A link indicating that a change (increase or decrease) in one component leads to a change of the opposite direction (Decrease or increase, respectively) in the linked component.
Negative Feedback Loop
A feedback loop with an odd number of negative couplings. Negative feedback loops tend to diminish the effects of disturbances.
Perturbation
A temporary disturbance of a system; a shorter-term disturbance than a forcing.
Positive Coupling
A link indicating that a change (increase or decrease) in one component leads to a change of the same direction (increase or decrease, respectively) in the linked component.
Positive Feedback Loop
A feedback loop with an even number of, or zero, negative couplings. Positive feedback loops tend to amplify the effects of disturbances.
Stable Equilibrium
A state in which the system will remain if left undisturbed and to which the system will return when disturbed.
State
The set of important attributes of a system that characterize the system at a particular time.
System
An entity composed of diverse but interrelated parts (components) that function as a complex whole.
Unstable Equilibrium
A state in which the system will remain if left undisturbed, but even slight disturbances will carry the system to some other (stable) equilibrium.
Barometric Law
A relationship stating that atmosphere pressure decreases by about a factor of 10 for each 16-km increase in altitude. More technically, atmospheric pressure decreases exponentially with altitude.
Blackbody
A body that emits electromagnetic radiation equally well at all wavelengths.
Blackbody Radiation
Radiation given off by a blackbody. This radiation is characterized by the body’s absolute temperature.
Conduction
Transfer of heat energy by direct contact between individual molecules.
Convection
Transfer of heat energy by the circulating motions of a fluid that is heated from below; one of three primary mechanisms of heat transfer.
Effective Radiating Temperature
The temperature a planet such as Earth would have if the planet radiated as a blackbody (or if it had no atmosphere).
Electromagnetic Radiation
A self-propagating electric and magnetic wave such as visible light, ultraviolet, or infrared radiation.
Electromagnetic Spectrum
The full range of different forms of electromagnetic radiation, which differ by wavelength (or, conversely, by frequency).
Flux
The amount of energy (or number of photons) in an electromagnetic wave that passes perpendicularly through a unit surface area per unit time.
Frequency
The number of wave crests that pass a fixed point in 1 second.
General Circulation Model (GCM)
A three-dimensional computer model of the global atmosphere (or ocean) that simulates winds (current), moisture transport, and energy balance; also called a global climate.
H2O Rotation Band
A strong absorption band that is a result of rotational frequencies of the water molecule in vapor form. The H2O molecule absorbs infrared radiation of wavelengths about 12 um and longer.
Infrared (IR) Radiation
Electromagnetic radiation of fairly low energy and wavelengths longer than those of visible light from 0.7 to 1000um.
Inverse- Square Law
A relationship describing the rate at which the solar flux decreases with increasing distance.
Kelvin (absolute) Temperature Scale
A metric temperature scale in which the degree has the same size as a Celsius degree, but in which the zero point is moved downward by 273. 15, to absolute zero.
Latent Heat
The heat energy released or absorbed during the transition from one phase to another, such as when water evaporates.
Mesosphere
An atmospheric layer that extends from about 50 to 90km above the surface; temperature decreases with altitude there.
Photon
A single, discrete particle, or pulse, of electromagnetic radiation.
Photosphere
The surface layer of the Sun from which most of its energy, including visible radiation, is emitted.
Radiative- convective model (RCM)
A one- dimensional computer model of the atmosphere that can be used to stimulate the greenhouse effect. In an RCM, the climate system is greatly simplified by averaging the incoming solar and outgoing infrared radiation over Earth’s entire surface.
Relative Humidity
The amount of water vapor contained by a unit volume of air divided by the amount of water vapor that volume would contain if the air were saturated.
Stefan-Boltzmann Law
A relationship stating that the flux of radiation emitted by a blackbody is related to the fourth power of the body’s absolute temperature; derived from the Planck function.
Stratosphere
The stable atmospheric layer between 10 and 15 km and 50 km above the surface; temperature increases with altitude there. The stratosphere contains most of earth’s ozone.
Thermosphere
The atmospheric layer higher than about 90km above the surface; temperature increases with altitude there.
Troposphere
The lowermost, convective layer of Earth’s atmosphere between the surface and 10 to 15 km above it; temperature deceases rapidly with altitude there. Weather is confined to the troposphere.
Ultraviolet (UV) Radiation
Electromagnetic radiation of fairly high energy and wavelengths from 400 to about 10nm, shorter than those of visible radiation.
Visible Radiation
Visible light; electromagnetic radiation of moderate energy and a relatively narrow range of wavelengths, from about 400 to 700 nm. Within this range, the color of the light depends on its wavelength.
Visible Spectrum
The range of component wavelengths of visible light; the colors of the rainbow.
Wavelength
The distance between two adjacent wave crests.
Wien’s Law
A relationship stating that the flux of radiation emitted by a blackbody reaches its peak value at a wavelength that depends inversely on the body’s absolute temperature; derived from the Planck function.
