Chapter 2 Planet Earth Flashcards
Solar System
Consists of the sun and the objects that move around it
Planets
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, asteroid belt, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto
Orbit
The way objects in the solar system travels around the sun
A Satellite
A body that orbits a larger body
E.X. a moon
How far away is our sun from us
93 million miles
Geographers study Earth’s
Rotation, revolution and tilt of its axis
Why do geographers study Earths rotation, revolution, and tilt of its axis
To understand the differences In temperature around the earth from day to night
What Is Rotation
One complete spin of earth on its axis
How long does 1 rotation take
24 hours
Revolution
1 year for earth to orbit the sun
Earth’s axis is tilted 23.5 degrees so
The amount of the suns energy reaching different parts of the earth varies
Arctic circle
The line of latitude and longitude located 66.5 degrees north of the equator
It circles the North Pole
Antarctic circle
The line of latitude 66.5 degrees south of the equator
It circles the South Pole
Solstice
The day when the suns vertical rays are farther from the equator
A solstice occurs twice a year on
June 21 and December 22
During the summer solstice the sun strikes earth at
The Tropic of Cancer
During the winter solstice the suns rays strike earth at
The Tropic of Capricorn
Twice a year in between summer and winter the suns rays strike
The equator directly
Equinox
When the suns rays strike the equator directly
Everyone has twelve hours of day and night
When is the spring Equinox
March 21
When is the fall equinox
September 22
Earth System
The interaction of forces and materials on the planet
What are the 4 parts of Earth’s system
Atmosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere
Atmosphere
The layer of gases, the air that surrounds the earth
These gases include nitrogen oxygen and carbon dioxide
Contains the ozone layer
Ozone layer
A form of oxygen in the atmosphere
A layer of this gas helps protect the earth from harmful solar radiation
Lithosphere
The solid rocky outer layer of earth
Hydrosphere
Consist of all earths water found in lakes oceans and glaciers
This also includes the moisture in the atmosphere
Biosphere
The part of earth system that includes plants and animals
Characteristics of water
It can occur as a solid liquid or gas
Water vapor
Water that occurs in the air as an invisible gas
Water cycle
The circulation of water from earth surface to the atmosphere and back
What drives the water cycle
The suns energy
Evaporation
Occurs when the sun heats water on earth
Condensation
When water changes from a gas into tiny liquid droplets
These droplets join together to form clouds
Precipitation
If the droplets become heavy enough precipitation occurs
How much water from earth does the ocean have
97%
What percent of water is found in ice sheets and glaciers
2%
What percent of earth’s water is found in lakes, rivers, and underground
1%
Tributary
When a smaller stream or river flows into a larger one
How do lakes usually form
And rivers flow into basins and fill them up with water
How are springs made
When ground water bubbles out of the ground
Continental shift
Gently sloping underwater Land
This is important to Marine life
Average ocean depth
12,000 feet
Deepest part of Mariana Trench
36,000 feet
Floods kill
4 out of 10 people who die from natural disasters
What can cause a river to over flow
Who much rain or snow melt entering a river
Dams
Something people use to control floods
They also store water for use during Dry periods
Water supply
The amount of water available for use in a region
Landforms
Shapes on Earth’s surface
Plateau
An elevated flat
Plate tectonics
Explains how forces raise lower and roughen
Primary landforms
Landforms created by tectonic processes
Subduction
When a heavier plate moves under a lighter plate and trenches form
Parts of plate tectonics
Crust
Liquid mantle
Solid core
Fault
A fractured surface in earths crust where a mass of rocks is in motion
Pangea
The original landmass that was separated into the positions they are into today
Secondary landform
When primary land forms are broken down
Weathering
Process of breaking down rocks
Erosion
The movement of rocky materials to another location
Erosion and weathering both
Change rocks
Alluvial fan
Sediments that build into a fan shaped form
Floodplain
Created when rivers flood their banks and deposit sediment
Delta
formed when a river carries some of their sentiment to the sea
Glacier
Slow moving ice that has the power to move tons of rock
Isthmus
A neck of land connecting two larger areas
Peninsula
Land bordered by water on three side
How are mountains created
When to plates push on each other and form a peak
How do mid ocean ridges form
When plates pull away from each other and lava comess through the middle and hardens
How are fault zones created
When two plates that are right next to each other move opposing ways (one up and one down)
Explain magma and lava
Magma is inside the volcano and lava is what is outside the volcano
