Everything Flashcards
Weather
environmental conditions such as wind pressure, temp, amount of precipitation, etc. in a specific place at a specific time
Climate
characteristic patterns of weather conditions within a region including average temp, precipitation, wind velocity and other conditions over a long period of time.
Eccentricity
the fluctuation of the earths orbit around the sun due to the gravitational pull to other planets. ovr a cycle of 100000 years the earths orbit changes from circular to elliptical.
Tectonic plates
composes the lithosphere. massive sections of solid rock. every year the plates move a few centimetres. this causes changes in land and water masses which in turn affects air and water circulation. changes in air and water circulation affect weather patterns.
lithosphere
The earth solid crust
Hydrosphere
all the water on the earths surface
Layers of the atmosphere
5 layers. troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere, and exosphere. weather in troposphere and lower stratosphere
Wobble
The earth isnt a perfect sphere, so it wobbles on its axis
Tilt
the tilt of the earth on its axis changes by approximately 2.4 degrees over a period of 41000 years. the greather the tilt the bigger the difference between summer and winter
Heat Resevoirs
water stores more heat than water, water has a large specific heat capacity. therefore water heats up slowly and releases heat slowly. water is a buffer to temperature change in the environment. Land masses near big bodies of water are warmer in the winter than more inland areas.
Anthropogenic greenhouse effect
the increase in global average temp, as a result of an increase in greenhouse gases due to human activities.
Greenhouse effect
the process by which gases build up thermal energy in the atmosphere by absorbing infrared radiation from the earths surface.
global warming
the rise in average worldwide temps.
Radiation
transfer of energy including thermal energy as electromagnetic radiation. this energy can travel through a vacuum. it can be absorbed, reflected, or refracted.
Convection
the transfer of thermal energy by highly energized molecules moving from one place to another. this movement can occur in liquids and gases but not solids.
Conduction
the transfer of thermal energy between 2 objects that are in direct physical contact. thermal energy always moves from a region of higher temp region to a region of lower temp.
Albedo
the objects ability to reflect light
CFC’s
a human made compound that contains chlorine, fluorine and carbon. when released into atmosphere it can cause depletion of the ozone layer.
Thermohaline circulation
continuous flow of water around the worlds oceans driven by differences in water temps, salinity, and the wind.
Biome
largest division of biosphere, includes large regions that have similar biotic features and similar biotic components such as rainfall and temp.
ecozone
a division of earths surface that has developed over a long period of time and is separated from neighbouring ecozones by a geological feature such as a mountain range, or ocean
ecoregion
a subdivision of an ecozone that is characterised by landforms such as plains, lakes mountain and rivers
Natural greenhouse gases
water vapour, co2 methane, nitrous oxide an dozone
man made greenhouse gases
CFC’s release of excess co2 due to excess burning of fossil fuels.
How climate affects main fisheries
fish is 40 percent of trade. climate change affects the variety of fish and marine life. numbers of cold water fish are declining because of warmer waters.
how climate affects deforestation
rising temps increase risk of forest fires. burning of forests quickly releases co2 and trees are a natural sink forco2
how climate affects rising sea levels
reduces the amount of coastal land. causing loss of life and agriculture
how climate affects decreasing crop yeilds
crops do well when temps are between 10 and 30 degrees. when they are over 30 they wilt and evaporate and die
how climate affects water conflicts
changes in precip will make the demand for water higher than the supply in some areas. higher temps make more water evaporate. some countries depend on water from glaciers, and they are rapidly declining.
how climate makes a higher risk of disease
tropical diseases can spread higher north as the planet warms. animals can increase there range north possibly carrying more diseaes
how climate makes more severe storms
hurricanes cause economic loss as well as loss of life. more violent storms force people inland, thus adding population pressure.
electromagnetic spectrum
the entire range of electromagnetic waves in order of wavelength and or frequency
wavelength
the distance from one crest of a wave to the next crest
frequency
the number of crests in a wave that pass a given point in one second