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Ocean and Earth Systems SOES1008 > Exam Revision > Flashcards

Exam Revision Flashcards

0
Q

What is the current accepted hypothesis for solar system formation?

A

The Nebula Hypothesis.

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1
Q

What is the age of the universe?

A

13.8 billion years old.

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2
Q

What is the regolith?

A

The earth’s layer of rock and mineral fragments produced by weathering.

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3
Q

What was the key stage in the development of oxygenic photosynthesis?

A

The functional linking of two photosystems in one organism.

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4
Q

Which element serves both as a key ion in cellular fluids and as a cofactor in biological molecules?

A

Magnesium.

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5
Q

What is the minimum sea-water temperature?

A

-2 degrees.

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6
Q

The current characterised by a balance between the Coriolis force and the foce exerted by the horizontal pressure gradient is called:

A

Geostrophic.

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7
Q

Which set of terms are all relevant to tsunamis?

A

Very long wave lengths, 100km/h

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8
Q

What is the earth’s magnetic field generated in?

A

The earth’s liquid metal alloy outer core.

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9
Q

At what temperature does seawater attain its highest density?

A

-2 degrees.

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10
Q

The industrial age increase in atmospheric CO2 levels concerned an amount of carbon roughly equivalent to:

A

1/3 the amount of carbon contained in the world’s current living biomass.

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11
Q

The Ekman spiral describes…?

A

The directional change in transport with depth in a wind-driven surface layer.

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12
Q

On a smooth non-rotating earth…?

A

We would expect 1 thermally direct circulation cell per hemisphere in the atmosphere.

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13
Q

Considering the global carbon budget over very long time scales, weathering of silicate rocks….

A

Withdraws CO2 from the atmosphere.

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14
Q

Which characterists do mid-latitude cyclones and hurricanes have in common?

A

Surface pressure lowest at centre.

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15
Q

What are the sub-atomic particles?

A

Hadrons containing baryons & mesons (composite particles) & elementary particles containing fermions (quarks and leptons) and bosons.

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16
Q

What is the frost line?

A

The line in a solar system beyond which water freezes.

17
Q

What is the earth’s inner core made of?

A

A Nickel-iron mix.

18
Q

What is the Earth’s mantle made of?

A

A stony (silicate) mantle.

19
Q

What are the two types of meteorites?

A

Differentiated - Fe/Ni metal, representing already differentiated cores of proto-planets smashed in asteroid belt.
Undifferentiated - Chondrites, 86% of earth falls. Stony, silicate composition, close to sun. Primitive - suggests early formation.

20
Q

What is the blocking or closure temperature?

A

The temperature below which daughter molecules can no longer diffuse out of the material e.g. crystallisation of lava.

21
Q

What is the Lithosphere?

A

The outermost 100-150km of earth. Behaves rigidly. Comprised of crust and upper mantle.

22
Q

What is the Asthenosphere?

A

The upper mantle below the lithosphere. Shallow under oceanic lithosphere, deeper under continental.

23
Q

What is polar wandering?

A

The change in the positions of the countries in relation to the magnetic pole of the world.

24
Q

What are the two types of lithosphere?

A

Continental (thicker) and oceanic (thinner)

25
Q

What does oxygen determine in planet formation?

A

The size of the planet’s lithophile silicate layer.

26
Q

What does sulphur determine in planet formation?

A

The size of the chalcophile layer.

27
Q

What do excess metals determine in planet formation?

A

The size of the siderophile layer.

28
Q

What are the silicates?

A

The rock-forming minerals. They constitute almost the entire crust & mantle of earth, & are the most common, e.g quartz.

29
Q

What are the oxides?

A

Metal cations bonded to oxygen e.g. magnetite, hematite, rutile.

30
Q

What are the sulfides?

A

Metal cations bonded to a sulfide anion, i.e. pyrite, galena and sphalerite.

31
Q

What are the sulfates?

A

Metal cations bonded to a sulfate anionic group. E.g. gypsum, anhydrite, halides.

32
Q

What is the Si:O ratio important for in silicate minerals?

A

Defining melting temperature, structure and cations present, and susceptibility to chem weathering.

33
Q

What is continental crust made of?

A

Granite - less dense.

34
Q

What is oceanic crust made of?

A

Basalt - more dense.

35
Q

What is weathering?

A

The disintegration and decomposition of rocks and sediments by mechanical or chemical processes.

36
Q

What is erosion?

A

The process by which particles primarily of rock or soil are detached by wind/water/ice.

37
Q

What is physical/mechanical weathering?

A

Physical disintegration of a rock into smaller fragments. Usually by temp/pressure changes.

38
Q

What is chemical weathering?

A

Alteration or change in composition of a mineral due to the action of chemical agents.

39
Q

What is lithification?

A

Compaction through burial. Clastic sediments.

Ocean and Earth Systems SOES1008 (1 decks)

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