final Flashcards
what is weather?
short-lived, local patterns temperature and precipitation due to circulation of the troposphere
what is climate?
long term patterns of temperature and precipitation
what is the atmosphere composed of?
nitrogen, oxygen, water vapor, aerosols-minute, suspended particles and droplets
what is the troposphere?
layer of atmosphere closest to earth, 18km-8km, convection currents redistribute heat and moisture around the globe
what is tropopause?
boundary that limits mixing between the troposphere and upper zones as air stops rising
what is the stratosphere?
from tropopause-50km, almost no water vapor, 1000x more ozone
what are roles of the ozone?
absorbs UV light which warms upper stratosphere, protect earth from radiation,
what substances are depleting the ozone?
freon and bromine
what is the mesophere
middle layer where temperature diminishes between mesosphere and thermosphere
what is the thermosphere?
80 km, ionized gases and high temperature
how are the northern lights or aurora borealis created?
lower thermosphere ions are struck by high energy radiation creating lights
what happens to the solar energy that reaches the outer atmosphere?
.25 is reflected by the clouds and atmosphere, .25 absorbed by atmosphere, .5 reaches earth surface, some of the energy on earth is reflected by snow, ice, sand, water
what does albedo mean?
reflectivity
what is the highest reflectivity?
fresh snow
what type of solar energy reaches the earth most often?
infrared
what type of energy is reemitted by the earth?
mainly infrared (long wavelength, heat)
what is the greenhouse effect?
natural phenomena where the atmosphere transmits sunlight while trapping heat; process supports life
what are greenhouse gases?
gases in the atmosphere, carbon dioxide, water vapor, nitrogen, methane, and substances that retain heat
what happens when burning fossil fuels?
releases extra carbon diozide
what destroys carbon sinks?
deforestation
what is latent heat?
energy stored in water vapor; when water vapor condenses heat is released
what happens when latent heat is released?
air rises, cools, and lose more water vapor causing precipitation
warm air close to the equator and cold air at the poles cause?
pressure differences that cause weather
vertical convection currents are created when?
air near surface warms and becomes less dense than the air above it; rises above cool air
when air is rising?
low pressure
when air is sinking?
high pressure
what are winds?
movement of air from high to to pressure
why does it rain?
air cools as it rises, water condenses as air cools, pressure decreases as air rises causing cooling, condensation nuclei have to exist; rain
what are circulation cells?
as air warms and rises and moves northward, it sinks and rises in several intermediate bands
what is the Coriolis effect?
winds and currents move clockwise in the northern hemisphere and counterclockwise in the southern hemisphere
what is a monsoon?
seasonal reversal of winds caused by differential heating and cooling rates of oceans and continents (subtropical and tropical areas)
what is a cold front?
boundary formed when cooler air pushes warm air away, cold air is more dense, tends to hug grounds and push warm air up, warm air cools= strong thunderstorms
what is a warm front?
boundary formed when warm air slides over cooler air, warm air is less dense and slides over cool air,long wedge shaped clouds, bring drizzle
what is a cyclonic storm?
water vapor is abundant; latent heat released by condensation intensifies convection currents and draws up more warm air and water vapor
what is essential for a storm cell to exist?
temperature differences
what is a tornado?
swirling funnel clouds over land, generated by superell frontal systems where strong dry cold fronts collide with warm humid air, greater temperature differences = more tornadoes
what are ice cores?
air bubbles trapped in ice, analyzed for atmospheric conditions
what is the milankovitch cycles?
period shifts in earth’s orbit and tilt which change distribution and intensity of sunlight
what is the pacific decadal oscillation?
very large pool of warm water moving back and forth across the north pacific every 30 years
what is the IPCC?
international group of scientists and governmental representatives from 130 countries formed to review the scientific evidence for climate change
carbon dioxide?
emissions doubled from 1970 to 2010, due to burning fossil fuels
methane?
ruminants and rice paddies are sources, absorbs more energy than CO2
nitrous oxide?
vehicle engines, agricultural processes, effective capture heat energy,
how to fight climate change?
implement emissions trading, technology sharing with LDC, reduce deforestation, help poor countries
carbon trading
legal limits on emissions are set and countries that want to emit more must purchase emission credits from others - KYOTO
natural sources of air pollution?
volcanoes, sea spray, vegetation, dust storms, bacterial metabolism
US clean air act designated six maximum air levels for?
sulfur dioxide, nitrogen, carbon monoxide, ozone,lead, particulates
what is a primary pollutant?
released directly from the source
what is a secondary pollutant?
converted to hazardous form after entering the air and mixing with other air components
what are fugitive emissions?
do not go through smokestack, dust from strop mining, rock crushing, building construction/destruction
what is the ozone?
o3 layer in the stratosphere shields biosphere by absorbing incoming UV raditation
ozone in the troposphere?
pollutant, acrid, biting odor characteristic of photochemical smog, damages vegetation and buildings
lead?
2/3 all metallic air pollution, neurotoxin, children blood levels dropped 90% and IQ rose3 points
mercury
dangerous neurotoxin, 75% human exposure comes from eating fish
what are halogens?
(fluorine, chlorine, bromine) CFCs release chlorine and fluorine in the stratosphere deplete ozone
aerosol?
solid particles or liquid droplets suspended in the atmosphere, particulate material, ash, soot, lint, smoke, pollen, spores, reduce visibility, enter lungs to cause damage
volatile organic compounds?
organic chemical, generally oxidized to CO and CO2, plants are largest source
what does toxic release inventory require?
manufacturers to report toxin release and waste management
aesthetic degradation
noise, odor, light pollution; reduce quality of life increasing stress, light pollution,
temperature inversions
occur when a stable layer of air lies above cooler air, reversing normal temperature decline with increasing height and prevents convection currents from polluatants
chronic obstructive lung disease?
which airways become permanently constricted and alveoli are damaged or destroyed; irreversible
synergistic effects?
injury caused by the combination is more than the sum of the individual exposures
acid percipitation
deposition of wet acidic solutions or dry acidic particles from the air
how to reducing production?
conservation, particulate removal, sulfur removal, nitrogen oxides, hydrocarbon control
clean air act
first national air pollution control
clean air act (1970)
identified critical pollutants, established ambient air quality standards
what did amendments in 1990 address?
acid rain,urban air pollution, toxic emissions, ozone depletion
what is the hydrologic cycle?
water evaporates from moist surfaces, falls as rain or snow, passes through living organisms and returns to oceans,
what are the three principle factors that control global water deficits and surpluses?
global atmospheric circulation, proximity to water sources, topography
what is residence time?
length of time water typically spends in a compartment
what are the major compartments of water?
oceans hold 97%, frozen water, ground water, atmosphere 0.001%
infiltration
process of water percolating through the soil and into fractures and permeable rocks
zones of aeration
upper soil layers that hold air and water
zone of saturation
lower soil layers where all spaces are filled with water
water table
top of zone of saturation
aquifers
porous layers of sand, gravel, or rock lying below the water table
artesain
pressurized aquifer intersects the surface (water flows without pumping)
recharge zones
area where water infiltrates into an aquifer, often slow,
what is the best measure of water volume carried by a river?
discharge; the amount of water that passes a fixed point in a given amount of time
what is a pond?
generally small bodies of water shallow enough for rooted plants to grow over most of the bottom
what are lakes?
inland depressions that hold standing fresh water year round > 1500 meters
what is a wetland?
lush plant growth stabilizes soil and retards surface runoff, allowing more aquifer infiltration
when does water stress occur?
human and ecosystem needs exceed renewable water supplies, resulting in competition
what is water withdrawal?
total amount of water removed from a water body
what is water consumption?
loss of water due to evaporation, absorption, or contamination
what is water use divided into?
agricultural, domestic, and industrial use
Ogallala Aquifer
underlies 8 states between Texas and North Dakota
when does saltwater intrusion occur?
along coastlines where overuse of freshwater reservoirs draws the water table low enough to let saltwater
what are dams built for?
provide inexpensive hydroelectric power, provide jobs, reduce flooding, allow farming on lands that would be too dry
what are the negative effects of dams?
submerge farm lands and towns, cause earthquakes, block fish migration,change aquatic habits for native species, reduce spring floods that enrich soils downstream
what is land banking?
some farmers may decide to let some of their land lay fallow in dry years
what is a walking wetland?
farmer may flood fields on rotational basis to create temporary wetlands
what is desalination?
removing salt from ocean water or brackish water to get fresh water; expensive
what is considered pollution?
any physical, biological change in quality that adversely affects living organisms or makes it unsuitable for desired uses
what are point sources?
discharge pollution from specific locations; factories, power plants, drain pipes
what are nonpoint sources?
scattered or diffuse, having no specific location of pollution discharge; agricultural fields, feedlots, golf courses, residential construction sites
what is atmospheric deposition?
contaminants carried by air currents and precipitated into watersheds or directly onto surface waters as rain, snow, or dry particles
infectious agents of water pollution
main source is via improperly treated human wastes
what is coliform bacteria?
intestinal bacteria; used to detect water contamination by animal wastes
what is a desirable oxygen content in water that will support aquatic life?
> 6 ppm
what will < 2 ppm oxygen continent support aquatic life of?
detritivores and decomposers
what is biochemical oxygen demand?
amount of dissolved oxygen consumed by aquatic microorganisms; used as a test for organic waste contamination from sewage, paper pulp, and food waste
what is dissolved oxygen content?
measure of dissolved oxygen in the water; depend on volume, flow and temperature of river water
what is oligotrophic?
bodies of water that have clear water and low biological productivity
what is eutrophic?
bodies of water that are rich in organisms and organic material
what is eutrophication?
process of increasing nutrient levels and biological productivity, a normal part of successional change in most lakes
what is cultural eutrophication?
increase in biological productivity caused by human activities
what is the red tide?
dinoflagellate bloom; increasingly common in slow-moving and shallow waters
dinoflagellates
are single-celled organisms that swim with 2 whip-like flagella; found in red tides; in marine zones polluted with eutrophication
what are toxic metals?
mercury, lead, cadmium, tin, and nickel; tend to accumulate in food chains, MERCURY
what are nonmetallic salts?
non-toxic at low concentrations can be mobilized by irrigation& concentrated by evaporation, reaching toxic levels
what are causes ofnonpoint pollution:
agriculture, urban runoff, construction sites, land disposal
what is primary treatment?
physical separation of large solids from the waste stream
what is secondary treatment?
biological degradation of dissolved organic compounds
what is tertiary treatment?
removal of plant nutrients (nitrates and phosphates) from secondary effluent, chemicals that bind or natural wetlands
what is effluent sewerage?
hybrid between traditional septic tank and full sewer system; flows through wetlands filtered and cleaned by plants
what is work?
application of force over distance (measure in joules)
what is energy?
the ability or capacity to do work
what is power?
rate at which work is done (measured in watts)
what is a newton?
force needed to accelerate 1 kg 1m per second
what is a joule?
amount of work done when a force of 1 newton is exerted over 1 meter
what is a watt?
one joule per second
how much of the world’s supply of commercial energy needs are supplied by fossil fuels?
88%
how is energy used?
industry (plastics, fertilizers) residential&commercial (heat,cool, light) transportation,
how is energy lost?
conversion, shipping and use, huge amounts of pollution created
what is black lung disease?
inflammation and fibrosis caused by accumulation of coal dust in the lungs or airways
how could carbon dioxide be sequestered or removed?
pumping it into deep geologic formations, which could enhance oil recovery
what are flex-fuel boilers?
coal can be mixed with biomass fuels to produce energy with less carbon dioxide emmisions
what are the impacts of oil on the environment?
disrupts wildlife and plants, burning oil produces carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides,
what are tar sands?
sand and shale particles coated with bitumen, a viscous mixture of long chain hydrocarbons; have to be mixed with steam to extract bitumen
what is oil shale?
sedimentary rock rich in kerogen; kerogen can be heated and extracted
what are characteristics of natural gas?
made primarily of methane, most rapidly growing energy source
what is methane hydrate?
small individual molecules of natural gas trapped in a crystalline matrix of frozen water; found in arctic and under ocean
what is energy efficiency?
measure of energy produced compared to energy consumed
what is cogeneration?
simultaneous production of both electricity and stream or hot water in the same plant
what is passive solar heat?
using absorptive structures with no moving parts to gather and hold heat; greenhouses
what are active solar heat?
pump heat-absorbing medium through a collector, rather than passively collecting heat in a stationary object
what are parabolic mirrors?
curved, reflective surfaces that collect light and concentrate it onto one point.
what are photovoltaic cells?
capture solar energy and convert it directly into electrical current by separating electrons from parent atoms and accelerating them across a one way electrostatic barrier
low-head hydropower
extract energy from small headwater dams
run-of-river flow
submerged directly in stream and usually do not require dam or diversion structure
micro-hydro generators
small versions designedt o supply power to single homes
tidal station
tide flows through turbines, creating electricity; requires a high tide/low tide differential of several meters
incineration is also known as?
energy recovery; heat derived from incinerated refuse is useful resource
refuse-derived fuel?
refuse sorted to remove recyclable and unburnable materials; higher energy content that raw trash
mass burn?
everything smaller than major furniture and appliances loaded into furnace, creates pollution
what are brownsfields?
contaminated properties that have been abandoned or are not in use because of pollution concerns
urban agglomerations?
mergers of multiple municipalities; appearing around world
village
collection of rural households linked by culture, custom, family, association with land
city?
large enough resource base to allow residents to specialize in arts, crafts, services, professions, other resource-based occupations
megacity
urban area with more than 10 million inhabitants
core regions
urban areas merge into continuous megacities
Traffic and Congestion
the number of vehicles in many urban areas is growing faster than the pace of road construction
slums
legal but inadequate multifamily tenements
shantytowns
settlements created when people build their own shacks on the outskirts of cities
squatter towns
sometimes people simply occupy land that they dont own or rent
new towns
numerous experiments to try and combine best features or rural village and modern city
ebenezer howard
proposed congestion of London could be relieved by moving whole neighborhoods into garden cities
green urbanism
redevelops existing cities to be ecologically sound
conservation development
preserves at least half of subdivision as natural areas, farmland, or open space
