P2C21 - Heat and atmospheric science

Question 1

When was the earth formed?

Answer 1

4.6 billion years ago

Question 2

What evidence do we have for when the earth was formed?

Answer 2

The age of volcanoes
Reduction of carbon dioxide levels

Question 3

What did the frequent eruptions of volcanoes result in?

Answer 3

The release of lots of carbon dioxide

Question 4

What did the formation of oceans result in?

Answer 4

Water vapour condensing

Question 5

What 5 gases were released by intense volcanic activity into the Earth’s early atmosphere?

Answer 5

Carbon dioxide
Nitrogen
Water vapour
Methane
Ammonia

Question 6

What did photosynthesis do for the early atmosphere?

Answer 6

Increase the atmospheric concentration of oxygen.

Question 7

What was the first photosynthetic organism?

Answer 7

Algae that appeared 2.7 billion years ago

Question 8

What 3 factors caused CO2 in atmosphere to decrease?

Answer 8

Photosynthesis

Oceans - carbon dioxide reacted with seawater to give carbonate precipitates.

Marine animals

Question 9

Whats the test for oxygen?

Answer 9

Insert a glowing splint into a test tube containing a gas.
If the gas is oxygen, the splint will relight.

Question 10

Whats the process of green house effect?

Answer 10

1. Sun emits short wavelength infrared radiation that enters the atmosphere and travels towards the Earth.
2. Earth absorbs a portion of this radiation, but longer wavelength radiation is reflected back into the atmosphere.
3. Greenhouse gases can’t absorb the short wavelength radiation emitted by the Sun, but they can absorb the reflected radiation.
4. The gases re-radiate this as heat energy, some of which heads back to Earth.
5. This increases the temperature at the Earth’s surface.

Question 11

What human activities cause the atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases to increase and why?

Answer 11

Burning fossil fuels - Releases carbon
Deforestation - Less photosynthesis, so less CO2 removal
Agriculture - Farm animal digestion releases methane
Landfill sites - Decomposition releases methane

Question 12

What are sources of misinformation regarding climate change?

Answer 12

Overly simplistic models
Biased opinions

Question 13

What are the consequences of global warming?

Answer 13

Melting polar ice caps
Meteorological events
Changes in water availability
Changes in precipitation
Food shortages