Exam 1

Question 1

Biogeochemical cycles

Answer 1

The processes that allow matter and energy throughout the atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, and cryosphere to flow- critical for life on Earth

Question 2

Sequestration

Answer 2

The capture and storing of carbon dioxide (CO2)

Question 3

Environmental Geology

Answer 3

Applied science involving the study and identification of geological hazards and environmental degradation that is relevant to human well-being

Question 4

GPS (global positioning system) receivers

Answer 4

A navigational system of coded satellite signals that can be processed in a GPS electronic receiver, enabling the receiver to compute the exact positions and elevations of specific locations

Question 5

Satellite

Answer 5

Instrumental platforms that orbit Earth in space to examine the Earth’s surface, collecting data of varying types

Question 6

RADAR

Answer 6

Use of radio signals for determining elevations and mapping topography

Question 7

Seismologists

Answer 7

Scientists who study the pattern of energy waves generated by earthquakes to determine how they took place and to learn about the structure of Earth’s interior

Question 8

LiDAR

Answer 8

Use of lasers from drones or airplanes to map topography

Question 9

Atmospheric river

Answer 9

Long, narrow plumes of moist air in the atmosphere that originate over tropics that bring plentiful rain to regions at temperate latitudes

Question 10

Aquifers

Answer 10

Groundwater bearing bodies of rock or sediment that yield water to wells or springs in useable quantities

Question 11

Climate mitigation

Answer 11

The effort to rein in the degree of climate change

Question 12

CERCLA (Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act

Answer 12

An act established to coordinate cleanup at waste sites around the US. Related to superfund sites

Question 13

Environmental Justice

Answer 13

The fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all person and sections of society impacted by an environmental problem, irrespective of race, economic category, and gender

Question 14

Environmental refugees

Answer 14

People escaping drastic, long-lasting environmental change

Question 15

Groundwater

Answer 15

Water that collects in the subsurface pore spaces and fractures within bedrock, sediment, and soil

Question 16

Numerical modeling

Answer 16

Use of mathematical techniques to study physical processes in detail

Question 17

PCBs (Polychlorinated biphenyl compounds)

Answer 17

Large, complex, synthetic molecules of carbon, hydrogen, and chlorine with a wide array of industrial applications. They are associated with multiple illnesses for humans that are exposed to them

Question 18

Radon

Answer 18

Chemical symbol Rn, radon is a radioactive gas emitted as uranium (U). Breaks down to a stable, non-radioactive lead (Pb)

Question 19

Transuranic Elements

Answer 19

Artificially produced, radioactive elements that are members of the actinide series and have an atomic number between 93 and 103

Question 20

Tsunami

Answer 20

A very large, long-wavelength sea wave produced by a submarine earthquake, volcanic eruption, or landslide

Question 21

Adiabatic heating

Answer 21

The heating that occurs in air that is compressed, as individual gas molecules are driven closer together and increase their collisions

Question 22

Air masses

Answer 22

Large, roughly homogeneous, bodies of air with distinct temp, moisture, and density characteristics due to differences in the heating of Earth’s trophosphere

Question 23

Albedo

Answer 23

The reflectivity of surfaces

Question 24

Algal blooms

Answer 24

Large colonies of algae that grow out of control due to the addition of nitrogen runoff in bodies of water

Question 25

Alpine glaciers

Answer 25

Glacier confined by a surrounding mountain terrain

Question 26

apatite

Answer 26

An important source of phosphorus in the natural world

Question 27

Aquicludes

Answer 27

Low permeable rock or sediment that acts as a barrier or cap around aquifers, making them confined.

Question 28

Aquitards

Answer 28

An underground layer that slows but does not altogether stop groundwater movement

Question 29

Asthenosphere

Answer 29

the plastic layer of Earth, which underlays the lithosphere and consists of a part of the upper mantle

Question 30

AMOC

Answer 30

The sinking of cold and dense saltwater in the northern end of the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Greenland. It’s integral to the worldwide climate system

Question 31

Biosignatures

Answer 31

The distinctive spectroscopic signs of life and Earth-like conditions on exoplanets

Question 32

Brine- exclusion effect

Answer 32

Generation of saltier, denser water where sea-ice which is salt-free, forms

Question 33

Chinooks

Answer 33

Warm, dry winds that occur on the downward slopes of mountain ranges when warm air has lost its moisture

Question 34

Circulation cells

Answer 34

Divisions of the global air circulation model in which each cell covers a region where the air circulates from high to low pressure

Question 35

Circumpolar Marine Current

Answer 35

An ocean current that flows East-West around Antarctica, which formed when the continent broke free from South America and became isolated from the climate-moderating influence of warmer ocean waters

Question 36

Climate

Answer 36

The general types and patterns of weather that characterize a place