exam #2 Flashcards
what elements are included on this map?
diagram
contour lines, map scale, north arrow, reference grid, forested terrain, stream channels, roads, urbanized areas
what are charts used for? an example?
to be worked on, or to help navigate. nautical maps
What are Ottawa, Paris, Miami and Lethbridge classified as under the Koppen-Geiger Climate Classification System
Ottawa: Dbf: cold boreal forest, warm summers, moist climate
Paris: Cbf: warm, warm summers, moist climate
Miami: Caf: warm, hot summers, moist climate
Lethbridge: Bsk: dry, summer = main dry season, semi-arid climate
What is Qup*?
QH?
QE?
QG?
Qup*= non-radiative heat transfer
QH: convective sensible heat flux into air
QE: convective latent heat flux into air
QG: conductive sensible heat flux into surface
what is the NTS
national topographic systems: maps produced for all areas of Canada
what are the atmosphere’s two specific zones?
ionosphere and ozonosphere
what are the STP values?
T = 15 degrees cesius
P = 101.325 kPa
D = 1.23 kg/m^3
how can you determine your position without GPS?
to determine latitude: use the north star
to determine longitude: take a clock with a fixed time (GMT) and measure distance of time between GMT and high noon wherever you are
why does the temperature profile change with height in the atmosphere? diagram
troposphere: T decreases as height increases because it is warmed by the ground’s surface
stratosphere: T increases with height because the stratosphere houses ozone which sits at the top of this layer and so it gets warmed from above through absorption of UV radiation by the ozone
mesosphere: T decreases with height as it’s warmed from below via contact with the stratosphere
thermosphere: T increases with height as it’s warmed via absorbing the solar radiation
….show what kind of slope?
1) widely spaced contours
2) narrowly spaced contours
3) uniformly spaced contours
1) gentle slope
2) steep slope
3) uniform slope
what do you have to consider with maps?
types, map elements, coordinate systems, projections, correct map?
what’s ITCZ and why is it tied to monsoon behaviour
ITCZ: intertropical convergence zone. winds from northern and southern hemispheres come together here.
What causes weather?
unequal heating of the atmosphere
What is a map?
generalized view of an area (a model)
what are the problems with a miller cylindrical projection?
super bad for measuring distance. polar regions represent a small amt of the world but the distortions created from stretching a round world onto a flat piece of paper result in polar regions looking the same size as equatorial zones.
what type of projection is a mercator map? what are its pros/cons?
Cylindrical projection
Pro: can see the whole earth
Con: can’t be used to measure distance as regions are stretched
define magnetic declination. what is the declination for lethbridge?
angle between true north and magnetic north.
13 degrees 29’ E
What percent does water exist in the atmosphere? What are its sources/sinks? What are the two elements that allow rain?
0.25%, source: evaporation, sink: condensation, gravity and sun allow rain
In terms of Q*, temperature and L, describe a desert and ocean surface **diagram
desert: Q* is low due to high albedo, T increase during the day is large (low specific heat, little moisture for evaporation, low heat conductivity), L up is high (large T decrease at night due to clear skies and dry conditions)
ocean: Q* is high due to low albedo, T increase during the day is low (high specific heat, lots of evaporation, convective mixing carries heat deeper into the water), L up is low (small T decrease at night)
which planets have atmospheres? were they present when the planets were formed? why or why not? what’s atmospheric thinning?
venus, earth, mars
no & hypotheses are:
1) outgassing (release of gases dissolved in rock) means the atmosphere came from inside the planet
2) comets and asteroids (atmosphere came from somewhere else)
atmospheric thinning: water vapour condenses into liquid water forming oceans and carbon dioxide is removed more slowly which creates chemical weathering and photosynthesis/burial of organic matter
what’s the net radiation equation?
Rn = Q down - Q up - I up + I down
= incoming sw radiation from the sun (insolation) - reflected sw radiation - lw radiation radiated by the earth - lw radiation reflected back towards the earth
How are maps categorized?
- scale
- function
- subject matter
which datum was previously used? which is currently used?
past: NAD27
current: NAD83
what are Lethbridge’s coordinates?
49 degrees 42’ N, 112 degrees 49’ W
what map would best be used to show how different ridings vote?
a thematic/special purpose map
between venus, earth and mars, rank…
1) atmospheric pressure
2) temperature
3) size
1) atmospheric pressure (kpa): mars @ 0.7 -> earth @ 101.325 -> venus @ 9200
2) surface temperature (degrees celsius): mars @ -53 -> earth @ 15 -> venus @ 474
3) radius (km): mars @ 3390 -> venus @ 6049 -> earth @ 6371
what does GIS stand for? what are the two ways you can represent data? what are they good for?
software to organize spatial and attribute data.
vector: lines defined by X, Y coordinates. good for anything with a definite shape/clear boundaries
raster: composed of grids and cells. good for remotely sensed images
what are the rules for contour lines?
1) never intersect
2) never split or divide
3) always closed
4) hill = concentric contours
5) depression = concentric hachured contour
6) river valley = V, base pointing upstream
7) ridge = U or V, base pointing downwards
what’s the difference between small/large scale maps? what’s the cutoff?
small scale: bird’s eye view of a large area. ex. 1:250,000
large scale: close up view of a small area. ex. 1:1,000
the cut-off is 1:50,000
what is meant by the concept of accurate generalization?
does your map accurately answer the question you’re asking? the level of generalization is important and it must fit the purpose.
Draw the diagram of the carbon cycle, describe how this is typical today and what the consequences are
The surplus of CO2 in the atmosphere leads to an increased GHG effect and we are taking away the filtering mechanisms.
Differentiate Q* by day and night…. +/-, ground/air temp, water vapour?
day: Q* is positive, ground and air become warmer, water vapour in the air increases
night: Q* is negative, ground and air become cooler, water vapour decreases: there is condensation into dew or sublimation into frost
What does the international date line do?
divides Sunday and Monday
What percent does ozone exist in the atmosphere? What are its three primary roles?
4 x 10^-6%
1) absorbs UV radiation from the sun
2) absorbs earth’s longwave radiation
3) is a pollutant
define residence times. ____ is a reservoir.. what are sinks/sources
residence time: the average amount of time that a substance might be expected to remain in the atmosphere or any of the other spheres
the atmosphere is a reservoir.
sources: inputs to a reservoir
sinks: outputs from a reservoir
what types of maps are there? what do they do?
thematic: look at a theme/attribute
planimetric: shows the horizontal position of boundaries. ex: used for planning
topographic: portrays physical relied via contour lines which connect points at the same elevation
water phase change diagram plz and thanks
what is the sexagesimal scale? used in the geographic grid?
base 60 (degrees, minutes, seconds) = unit of measurement
Note how much earth’s composition is made up of this gas, what their residence times are and what their sinks/sources are
1) Nitrogen
2) oxygen
3) CO2
Nitrogen: 78%, 1,600,000 years, sink: nitrogen fixation, source:denitrification
Oxygen: 21%, 3000-4000 years, sink: respiration, oxidation, source: photosynthesis
Carbon Dioxide: 0.039%, 100 years*, sink: photosynthesis, atmosphere-ocean exchange, burial of organic carbon, sources: respiration, decomposition, combustion
what can be illustrated on a topographic map?
natural physical features, infrastructure and other human-made features.
what is geomatics? what does it consist of?
geographic tool that allows us to answer spatial questions in geography. consists of remote sensing, GIS and GPS
what kind of map would look at things like property boundaries?
cadastral
What does UTM stand for?
Universal Transverse Mercator
what is the ionosphere?
a layer of electrically charged particles (ions) in the mesosphere and thermosphere that interact with solar radiation and cause northern/southern lights
understand chinooks
diagram
without an atmosphere, planets would lack what? do other planets have atmospheres?
they would lack weather.
the moon doesn’t have an atmosphere (but some moons do when the sun shines on them)
what are the 7 influences on climate?
1) latitude: affects insolation. strong influence on T but not the only influence (equator = more stable)
2) altitude/elevation. T colder at higher elevation. altitude= free height above surface, elevation= relative to sea level
3) distribution of land and sea. closer to sea -> higher latent heat -> cooling effect & (surface is transparent, water can mix). closer to land -> conditions are more extreme (lower latent heat means less evaporation so T can change more rapidly)
4. nature of ocean currents
5. distribution of mountain barriers
6. pattern of prevailing winds
7: location of main centers of high and low pressure
what is true north? magnetic north?
true north: geographic north pole, 0 degrees latitude
magnetic north: point where magnetic field points vertically downwards, compass north
when did oxygen start accumulating on earth and why is this important?
~ 2 billion years ago which is important because life can start to evolve complex organisms where cellular respiration can occur at this point.
life didn’t start till ~1 billion years ago though which means oxygen takes a while to build up
photosynthesis started ~3.5 billion years ago
what is a datum?
point of reference on a map
what are the two normal scales for Canada?
large scale: 1:50,000
small scale: 1:250,000
how do you calculate percent slop and slope in degrees?
percent slope: rise/run * 100
slope in degrees: arctangent(rise/run)
where are greater amounts of longwave radiation lost? subtropical desserts, polar regions or tropics?
subtropical desserts
why is Venus warmer than the Earth?
the atmospheric composition is 96% CO2 which makes the GHG effect much larger than earth’s
what type of projection is a gnomonic map? what are its pros/cons?
planar projection
pros: highlights proximity of polar regions
cons: severe distortion
what is the longitude? what does it run through?
angular distance measured E and W on the earth’s surface, relative to the prime meridian, greenwich england.
What are the 7 elements of climate?
1) Temperature: measurement of average kinetic energy, influences precipitation
2) precipitation: moisture that falls from the sky (amount and duration). ex: rain, fog, snow, sleet
3&4) wind speed &wind direction: wind = horizontal movement of air due to unequal heating of surfaces, pressure gradients, influences perception of temperature
5) relative humidity: ratio of water vapor in the air compared to the maximum water vapor the air could hold at that temperature, greatest in the morning (bc it’s coldest in the morning)
6) evaporation: potential and actual
7) insolation: how much direct sunlight is received
describe/note the constant gases
Nitrogen (78%), Oxygen (21%), inert gases whose concentrations stay the same on century timescales and have large residence times
What doe Easting and Northing measure?
easting: distance from a meridian
northing: distance from the equator
what is radar and lidar?
Radar: Radio detection and ranging. microwave pulse emitted. good for detecting precipitation
Lidar: light detection and ranging. impulse from laser. good for detecting distance
what’s the difference between active and passive remote sensing?
passive: records energy reflected/emitted from a surface
active: direct a beam of energy at a surface and analyze the energy that is reflected back. ex: radar, lidar
that radiative heat transfer diagram**
what is the radiative flux by day vs by night? when does sunrise occur? what’s the warmest time of day? how can you calculate the value of albedo? why are the fluxes changing/behaving the way that they are?
by day: Q* = K* + L*
by night Q* = L*
K down peaks at noon, k up peaks at 3
warmest at 3pm because there’s the least amt of outgoing LW radiation
compute albedo by getting a reading of the amount of sw radiation coming from the sun and then computing how much is leaving the earth’s surface. if 100 (incoming) minus 30 (leaving) = surplus of 70 so reflectivity is 30%
describe/note the variable gases
CO2, O3, H2O whose concentrations vary over time and space and have small residence times. they are reactive with small reservoirs
Describe the different climates in the Koppen-Geiger Climate Classification System
A: tropical rainy: T>18, no winter, water surplus (rain forests, monsoon areas)
B: dry climates: water deficit (desert)
C: warm temperatures: -3<T<18 (subtropical, mediterranean)
D: cold boreal forest: T<-3 and T>10 so trees grow (ottawa, yukon)
E: polar climate: T<10 (tundra, polar)
describe the relationship between pressure and density in the atmosphere
pressure: as height increases, pressure decreases. this is because at lower heights, the weight of the overlying atmosphere contributes to pressure
density: as height increases, density decreases because air is compressible
what does 1:50,000 mean in reality?
means 1 cm on the map equals 50:000cm or 500m
what are some applications of remote sensing?
weather forecasting, tracking environmental problems and landscape change, monitoring forest fires
what’s the difference between weather and climate? what’s a climate normal?
weather: state of the atmosphere at a given time in relation to meteorological phenomena
climate: meteorological condition of an area in general over a long period of time
climate normals (1981-2010): rotating averages that are constantly evolving (30 year period)
what landform is an obvious violation of topographic maps?
over-hanging cliffs: same land occupies two different vertical elevations
sheer vertical drops
what is the gulf stream, which influence on climate is it apart of
the gulf stream is the warm current that flows from florida to the carribean and eventually deposits the warm current in western europe which explains why although they’re at a higher elevation, they are warmer than places in Canada
nature of ocean currents
What is Q*? What is the radiative side and the non radiative side?
Q* = incoming sw (sun) - outgoing sw (albedo) + incoming lw (atmosphere) - outgoing lw (T of earth’s surface)
Q* = QH (convective sensible heat flux into the air) + QE (convective latent heat flux into the air) + QG (conductive sensible heat flux into the surface)
describe the influence latitude has on climate. think equator vs poles
affects insolation, poles have more seasonality, equator receives 2.5x more solar radiation…. strong influence on T but not the only influence
describe the influence that the nature of ocean currents have on climate
take the gulf stream… it deposits warm current from florida into western europe which is why they are warmer at a higher latitude
