Grade 10 June Flashcards
1
Q
What is the atmosphere?
A
The thin layer of gases surrounding the Earth, kept in place by the Earth’s gravity.
2
Q
What is oxygen?
A
A gas with no colour or smell that is very important for life on Earth.
3
Q
What are constant gases?
A
Those atmospheric gases whose concentrations are stable and do not change much over time.
4
Q
What are inert (noble) gases?
A
Colourless, odourless gases with low chemical activity.
5
Q
What is water vapour?
A
The gaseous form of water.
6
Q
What is atmospheric pressure?
A
The pressure caused by the weight of the air above any area of the Earth’s atmosphere.
7
Q
What is ozone?
A
A molecule made up of 3 oxygen atoms instead of the usual 2. It absorbs ultraviolet radiation.
8
Q
What is the ozone layer?
A
A layer in the stratosphere with a high concentration of ozone. It protects life on Earth by absorbing ultraviolet radiation from the sun.
9
Q
What is the ozone hole?
A
The decrease in stratospheric ozone quantities, observed on a seasonal basis (September to November) over Antarctica, and to a lesser extent over the Arctic.
10
Q
What is the first 80km called?
A
Homosphere
11
Q
Give an example of an inert/ noble gas.
A
Argon
12
Q
What are the 5 important qualities of the atmosphere?
A
Contains the air we breathe
Absorb’s the Sun’s radiation
Burns up meteoroids before they hit the earth
Keeps moderate heat on earth
Traps heat at night
13
Q
What is the first 80km of the atmosphere called?
A
The homosphere
14
Q
What is 80-100km of the atmosphere called?
A
The turbopause
15
Q
What is the section of the atmosphere that’s 100km and up called?
A
The heterosphere
16
Q
What is the border between stratosphere and the mesosphere?
A
The stratopause
17
Q
In which two layers of the atmosphere does temperature decrease with altitude?
A
The troposphere and the mesosphere
18
Q
Where is the homosphere?
A
0-80km
19
Q
Where is the heterosphere?
A
100km and higher
20
Q
What do you call the border between the mesosphere and the thermosphere?
A
The mesosphere
21
Q
Where is the thermosphere?
A
80-480km
22
Q
Where is the turbopause?
A
80km-100km
23
Q
In which 2 layers of the atmosphere does temperature increase with altitude?
A
In the stratosphere and the thermosphere
24
Q
Where is the troposphere?
A
Up to about 12km
25
Where is the stratosphere?
12-50km
26
Where is the mesosphere?
50-80km
27
Where is the ozone layer?
15-35km
28
What man made things can be found in the stratosphere?
Aeroplanes and weather balloons
29
What does the ozone layer do?
Absorbs ultraviolet radiation
30
Where are the strongest winds found?
| Up to 3000km/h
In the mesosphere
31
What was discovered in 1913 by a French physicist?
The ozone layer
32
How do UV rays affect people?
Non-melanoma skin cancer
Melanoma
Cataracts
33
How do UV rays affect plants?
Ways plants form
Affect soil nutrients
Growth
Affects their metabolisms
Reduces photosynthesis
34
How do UV rays affect animals
They feed on affected plants
35
How are marine animals affected by UV rays?
They eat phytoplankton, which grow close to the surface and become affected
36
What was done to reduce CFC's in 1987?
The Montreal protocol
37
What is insolation?
Incoming solar radiation
38
What is convection
A process in which heat energy is distributed through movement of heat molecules from one position to another.
39
What are greenhouse gases?
Gases that absorb radiation from the Earth and contribute to the warming of the Earth's atmosphere
40
What is global warming?
The process in which the world's temperature is rising
41
What is a temperature range?
The difference between minimum and maximum temperatures
42
What are isotherms?
Lines on a map joining places with the same air temperature.
43
How much of the Sun's rays are absorbed by the Earth's surface?
46%
44
What is another term for the transfer of energy from the earth's surface?
Terrestrial radiation
45
What happens after the sun's rays reach the ground?
The short-wave rays are changed to long-wave(infrared) waves. These are radiated back into the atmosphere
46
What is convection?
The vertical transfer of energy by movement of molecules.
47
What is conduction?
The transfer of energy from molecule to molecule.
48
What 3 currents are on the coast of South Africa?
Cold Benguela current
Warm Agulhas current
Warm Mozambique current
49
In what 2 ways are places further from the equator cooler?
Solar radiation must travel through a thicker layer of atmosphere
Solar radiation is distributed over a greater surface
50
What climates do coastal and inland places have?
Coastal climates: maritime climate
Inland climates: continental climate
51
What are the 6 factors that influence horizontal temperature change?
```
Latitude
Altitude
Distance from the sea
Ocean current
Aspect
Movement of air masses
```
52
Climate graph excluded.
Include if needed in November exams
53
What are 6 greenhouse gases?
```
Carbon dioxide
Methane
CFC's
Nitrous oxide
Water vapour
HFC's
```
54
What does it mean to annotate?
To add explanatory notes to a diagram or sketch.
55
What does it mean to classify?
To arrange or organise information into groups based on similarities.
56
Note!
Study precipitation symbols
57
What is a synoptic chart?
A summary of the weather of an area based on information.
58
From where can we get weather information?
Name at least 4
Weather balloons, satellites, weather stations, aeroplanes, ships, weather buoys and islands with weather stations.
59
Who organises the weather information onto synoptic charts and how often?
The South African Weather Services every 6 hours.
60
Who are meteorologists?
Specialists that study the processes in the atmosphere that cause weather.
61
How do you describe the weather conditions shown at a weather station?
```
Air temperature
Dew point temperature
Cloud cover
Wind direction
Wind speed
Precipitation
```
62
What is a glacier?
A mass of accumulated snow and ice moving down a slope from high ground.
63
What is evaporation?
The process in which liquid water becomes water vapour.
64
What is sublimation?
The process in which a solid changes directly into a gas.
65
What is condensation?
The process in which water vapour turns into liquid water.
66
What is ground water?
Water located underground in soil spaces and in cracks of rock.
67
What is transpiration?
The process in which plants give off water.
68
What is evapotranspiration?
The total amount of moisture removed by evaporation and transpiration from the surfaces and vegetation.
69
What is precipitation?
Rain, hail, snow and other forms of water falling from the atmosphere.
70
What is infiltration?
The process in which water on the ground enters the soil.
71
What is run-off?
Water that flows over the land when the ground cannot absorb any more water.
72
What is a saturation point?
The point at which no more water can be absorbed.
73
What is erosion?
The process in which rock that has already broken down by weathering is removed from an area, often by water, wind or ice.
74
What is humidity?
Water vapour in the air.
75
What is relative humidity?
The percentage of water vapour in the air relative to the amount of water vapour that would be present in the air if the air were saturated at the same temperature.
76
What is a condensation level?
The height at which the relative humidity of rising air reaches 100%, it is where clouds form. P
77
What are condensation nuclei?
Microscopic particles such as dust or pollution around which raindrops form.
78
What is dew?
Water that condenses out of the air and appears on cold objects such as vegetation in the cooler mornings and evenings.
79
What is a dew point?
The temperature at which air can no longer hold all its water vapour and condensation begins.
80
What is frost?
The frozen deposition of water vapour from saturated air.
81
What is hail?
Precipitation in the form of pieces of ice.
82
What is a rain shadow?
A drier area that lies on the leeward (or downward) side of an object.
83
What is snow?
Precipitation in the form of small crystals of ice called snowflakes.
84
What is convection?
A process in which heat energy is distributed by the movement of heated particles from one position to another.
85
What is the proper name for the water cycle?
The hydrologic cycle
86
What do you say if the air can't hold more water vapour?
The air is saturated.
87
What 2 types of thermometers do you get?
Dry-bulb thermometer
| Wet-bulb thermometer
88
What do the two types of thermometers measure?
Dry-bulb thermometer measures air temperature.
Wet-bulb thermometer measures humidity.
89
What is aspect?
The average weather conditions of an area usually measured over 30 years.
90
What is convectional rainfalls?
Rain caused when the sun heats the ground, the ground heats the air, which then rises to form clouds.
91
What is cyclonic/ frontal rain?
Rain caused when a warm front meets a cold front
92
What is relief rain?
Rain that occurs when air is forced to rise over a hill or mountain.
93
Note!
Look at types of clouds.
🌤 ☁️ ⛈ 🌨
☔️
👫 🌴 🌲 🚴🏼 💂🏼 ⛄️
94
What instrument is used to measure air pressure?
Barometer
95
What instrument is used to measure cloud cover?
Your eyes. Satellite images
96
What instrument is used to measure precipitation?
Rain gauge
97
What instrument is used to measure visibility?
Visibility meter
98
What is visibility?
How far ahead we can see.
| E.g. On a foggy day.
99
What instrument is used to measure wind direction?
Weather vane
100
What instrument is used to measure wind speed?
Anemometer
101
Note!
Study map work!
102
What is magma?
Molten material that forms deep beneath the earth's surface.
103
What is lava?
Magma that reaches the surface.
104
What is weathering?
A process in which rocks are broken down by water, air and living things.
105
What is sediment?
Weathered pieces of earth sediment.
106
What are rocks?
Any solid mass of mineral or mineral-like matter occurring naturally as part of our planet.
107
What are the 3 Rock types?
Igneous rock
Sedimentary rock
Metamorphic rock
108
How is igneous rock formed?
By the crystallisation of molten magma.
109
How is sedimentary rock formed?
From the weathered products of pre-existing rocks that have been transported, deposited, compacted and sedimented.
110
How is metamorphic rock formed?
By the alteration of pre-existing rock deep within the earth (but still in the solid state) by heat, pressure and/ or chemically active fluids.
111
Name 4 examples of sedimentary rock.
Conglomerate (pebbles and sand stuck together)
Shale
Limestone
Sandstone
112
Name 3 examples of igneous rock.
Granite (large crystals, cooled magma)
Obsidian (cools quickly)
Basalt (hard and black, cooled lava)
113
Name 3 examples of metamorphic rock.
Gneiss (changed granite)
Marble (changed limestone and dolomite)
Slate (changed shale)
114
How is a sill formed?
Magma pushes between rock layers horizontally.
115
What is a pluton?
A large rock formation. Smaller than a batholith.
116
What is a batholith?
The largest rock formation. Usually granite.
117
How does a laccolith form?
Magma intrudes horizontally and pushes top layers of rock upwards.
118
How does a dike form?
Magma pushes into cracks vertically.
119
What is another name for a dike?
A dollente
120
How does a lopolith form?
Magma intrudes the layers horizontally. Rock underneath sinks down under the weight of the magma. Exposed as a depression.
121
What are the 4 types of plate boundaries?
Destructive margins
Collision margins
Constructive margins
Conservative margins
122
What happens at destructive margins?
Oceanic crust moves towards continental crust. Oceanic crust is forced downwards.
123
What happens at collision margins?
Two plates consisting of continental crust move together. Rocks between plates are pushed upwards to form fold mountains.
124
What happens at constructive margins?
Two plates move away from one another. Molten rock rises to fill the space. New oceanic crust and mid-ocean ridges formed.
125
What happens at conservative margins?
Two plates slide slowly past each other sideways. No crust is formed or destroyed.
126
When plates push together and sedimentary rock folds, what does one call the individual folds, the top of the folds, the bottom of the folds and the cracks where rock is stretched?
Individual fold: limb
Top of a fold: anticline
Bottom of a fold: syncline
Cracks in rock from stretching: joints
127
What is a monocline?
| Not important for June exams
An area of steeply sloping rock strata in an area of horizontal/ gently sloping rock strata.
128
What is a horst/ block mountain?
A block of land uplifted between parallel faults.
129
What is a gravin/ Rift Valley?
A block of land which slips down between parallel faults.
130
What is the range of the Richter scale?
0-9 and over
131
What do earthquakes travel in the form of?
Seismic waves
132
What are the names of the point within the earth where an earthquake starts and the point on the surface above where the earthquake starts.
Within earth: fokus
On surface: epicentre
133
What are the 3 types of seismic waves and what do the do?
Primary waves: squeeze and stretch the ground.
Secondary waves: move ground up and down and side to side.
Surface waves: move ground in circular motion.
134
What is volcanism?
Process where magma from the mantle moves to the earth's surface as lava.
135
What are the 2 types of volcanism and how do they differ?
Intrusive volcanism: magma solidifies in crust.
Extrusive volcanism: magma erupts onto surface.
136
What is a vent?
The pipe of a volcano.
137
What are the 5 types of volcanoes?
```
Shield volcano
Dome volcano
Cinder cone
Composite volcano
Caldera volcano
```
138
What is a shield volcano?
Successive layers of fluid lava. No explosive activity.
139
What is a dome volcano?
Successive layers of viscous lava-lava does not flow far.
140
What is a cinder cone?
Successive layers of ash and cinders. Not much lava. Explosive activity.
141
What is a composite volcano?
Layers of lava and pyroclastic material. Explosive volcano.
142
What are the 3 types of faults?
Normal fault, reverse fault, transform or tear fault
143
What is the cause of a normal fault and a reverse fault?
Normal fault: tension
| Reverse fault: compression
