Lecture 5 The Atmosphere Flashcards

You may prefer our related Brainscape-certified flashcards:
1
Q

The ______ is the outer atmosphere in terms of composition. It begins at about 80 km altitude and extends outward to the exosphere and interplanetary space. Less than 0.001% of the atmosphere’s mass is in this rarefied sphere.

A

heterosphere

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

Below the heterosphere is the _______, extending from an altitude of 80 km to Earth’s surface.

A

homosphere

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

______ gases in the atmosphere change over time and space (ie, water vapour, CO2, methane, ozone)

A

Variable

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

______ is a byproduct of photosynthesis found it the atmosphere.

A

Oxygen

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

True or False: Argon is unusable in life processes

A

True

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

______ originates from volcanic sources, and originates from lightning

A

Nitrogen

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

______ are liquids and solids (but not water

or ice), that are suspended in the atmosphere.

A

Aerosols

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

What gas is causing increasing temperatures.

A

CO2

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

Where does CO2 primarily come from

A

deforestation and burning of fossil fuels

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

______ concentrations fluctuate naturally (carbon dioxide is more soluble in cold water,
atmospheric concentrations tend to be lower during periods of continental
glaciation)

A

CO2

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

______ is present in the stratosphere where it is produced from a photochemical reaction with
ultraviolet radiation
• stratospheric _____ is broken down by synthetic refrigerants such as CFCs
(chlorofluorocarbons)
• also present near ground level where it is a component of photochemical smog, as a
ground level pollutant it has a negative impact

A

Ozone

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

_____ is produced from anaerobic decomposition and human industrial activities

A

Methane

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

The _______ (“heat sphere”) roughly corresponds to the heterosphere (from 80 km out to 480 km). The upper limit of the thermosphere is the ______.

A

Thermosphere, thermopause

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

The ______ is the area from 50 to 80 km above Earth and is within the homosphere.

A

mesosphere

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

In the ______, at high latitudes, an observer at night may see these bands of ice crystals glow in rare and unusual ______clouds, which are so high in altitude that they still catch sunlight after sunset.

A

mesosphere, noctilucent

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

The ______ extends from about 18 to 50 km above Earth’s surface.

A

Stratosphere

17
Q

True or False: As you increase in altitude, temperature increases in the stratosphere.

A

True

18
Q

Where is the ozone located?

A

Stratosphere

19
Q

______ is 80% of the mass of the atmosphere, a turbulent well mixed layer , has large and rapid transfers of water vapour and temperature decreases.

A

Troposphere

20
Q

Auroras are produced in what sphere?

A

Thermosphere

21
Q
The \_\_\_\_\_\_ (mesosphere and
thermosphere) absorbs Gamma and X-ray radiation and the \_\_\_\_\_ (stratosphere) absorbs UV radiation.
A

ionosphere, ozonosphere

22
Q

_______ is emissions of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen causing negative impact on aquatic ecosystems

A

Acid deposition

23
Q

The loss of ______ in the stratosphere was due to chemical reactions between
ozone gas with CFCs and similar compounds. CFCs are synthetic compounds
developed for use in refrigeration and as propellants in aerosol cans among other uses.

A

ozone

24
Q

______ air pollution remains most prevalent in urbanized regions.

A

Anthropogenic

25
Q

______ is still the largest source of air pollution in Canada and the United States

A

Motor vehicle transportation

26
Q

______ results from the interaction of sunlight and the combustion products in automobile exhaust, primarily nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), such as hydrocarbons that evaporate from gasoline.

A

Photochemical smog`

27
Q

The high temperatures in automobile engines produce ______, a chemical also emitted to a lesser extent from power plants.

A

nitrogen dioxide

28
Q

Air pollution associated with coal-burning industries is known as ______ and the Sulphur dioxide can react in the air to form
Sulphuric Acid. Fine particulate matter can penetrate deeply into the lungs. .

A

Industrial smog

29
Q

The weather conditions that contribute to photochemical smog pollution are:

A
  • Hot sunny weather
  • Calm or light winds
  • Temperature inversion (temperature rises in inversion layer)
30
Q

The diverse mixture of fine particles, both solid and liquid, that pollute the air and affect human health is referred to as ____.

A

particulate matter (PM)

31
Q

What are natural factors that affect pollutants?

A

Winds, landscape (ie, mountains form barrier to air movement)

32
Q

True or False: Global estimates suggest approximately 4 million
premature deaths occur each year due to poor air quality.

A

True