Paper 2 (9) Flashcards
Roughly how old is the planet Earth?
Around 4.6 billion years old
Which gas makes up around 80% (78.09% to be exact) of the Earth’s atmosphere?
Nitrogen
Which gas makes up around 20% (20.95% to be exact) of the Earth’s atmosphere?
Oxygen
Give 2 gases which contribute to less than 1% to the Earths atmosphere:
Argon
Carbon dioxide
In the first billion years, the gases that formed Earth’s early atmosphere came mainly from which source?
Volcanic activity
During the first billion years, which two of the following gases were released from volcanoes?
Water vapour
Carbon dioxide
1) Around a billion years after it formed, the earth began to c___. This allowed water vapour to c_______ into liquid water and form the o_____.
2) When the oceans formed, carbon dioxide d________ in the water, and c___________ were precipitated, producing s________.
3) Steps 1 & 2 dramatically reduced the amounts of water vapour and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
cool
condense
oceans
dissolved
carbonates
sediments
Starting 2.7 billion years ago, which process started to increase the amount of oxygen in the atmosphere, and further decreased the amount of carbon dioxide?
Photosynthesis by plants and algae
Complete the word equation for photosynthesis:
carbon dioxide + ______ ➔ oxygen + _______
carbon dioxide + water ➔ oxygen + glucose
As photosynthetic organisms such as plants and algae died, the carbon they contained became trapped in ____________ rocks, and _______ fuels.
sedimentary
fossil
The ___________ is a layer of gases surrounding the Earth that is held in place by gravity.
atmosphere
Which three of the following are greenhouse gases (GHGs)?
Water vapour
Carbon dioxide
Methane
Greenhouse effect (5 steps)
1) Solar radiation from the sun passes through the atmosphere and hits the earth.
2) Some of this energy is reflected straight back towards space, and some of it is absorbed by the earth and then re-emitted towards space.
3) Some of the energy makes it all the way to space, but much of it is absorbed by small molecules called greenhouse gases.
4) These molecules then re-emit the energy and the whole process of absorption and emission happens over and over again.
5) This trapped energy keeps the atmosphere warmer and more stable than it otherwise would be.
True or false? Until now, the Earth’s atmosphere has always been the same temperature.
False
The Earth’s temperature has fluctuated. What’s concerning is that this time, the changes are happening very quickly, and are being caused by human activity.
How are global warming and climate change different?
-> Global warming refers to the overall increase in the Earth’s temperature
-> Climate change is a consequence of global warming and refers to the effects on the climate, such as large-scale shifts in weather patterns
One effect of global warming is the m______ of ice caps. This will increase the volume of water in the ocean and could lead to seasonal f_______, or the submersion of entire islands. This is made worse by the fact that water e______ when it is heated, so it will also increase in volume.
melting
flooding
expands
What’s the difference between the climate and the weather?
-> Weather refers to short term atmospheric conditions, like whether it’s raining or sunny on a particular day
-> Climate describes the typical weather conditions in an entire region for a very long time
Which is an impact of climate change?
Species in affected areas may become extinct
The c_____ footprint is the total amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases emitted over the full life cycle of a product, s_______, or event.
carbon
service
When calculating carbon footprints, would a mobile phone be considered a product, service, or event?
Product
When calculating carbon footprints, would a plane flight be considered a product, service, or event?
service
Give three factors you would you need to take into account when calculating the carbon footprint of a car.
How all the raw materials were sourced
The manufacturing process
The total amount of fuel it will use over its lifetime
How it’s disposed of
Give three general ways we could reduce the carbon footprint of a product.
Create it using fewer, or more sustainable, raw materials
Use a more efficient manufacturing process (e.g. less energy or less waste)
Use renewable energy resources (e.g. wind, solar, or nuclear)
Recycle it, rather than disposing of it in landfill
____________ can help reduce carbon footprints by introducing new laws and regulations, or taxing companies based on the quantity of __________ gases they emit.
Governments
greenhouse
Why is it hard to use more renewable energy resources, rather than fossil fuels?
Many of our existing products (e.g. cars) require fossil fuels
Renewable energy is generally more expensive
Carbon _______ technology allows us to trap carbon and store it deep underground. A downside is that it is very expensive.
capture
Complete the equation for the complete combustion of a hydrocarbon.
Hydrocarbon + _______ ➔ carbon _______ + _______
oxygen
dioxide
water
Incomplete combustion can lead to the formation of small particles of carbon, which are called ‘particulates’, or ‘soot’.
Which two of the following describe the adverse effects of these particulates?
Cause respiratory problems as the particles damage our lungs
Forms clouds of smog which reflect light back to space
Which two products are formed by the incomplete combustion of hydrocarbons?
Carbon monoxide
Particulates
Describe why (2 points) carbon monoxide is harmful for humans.
-> When we breathe in carbon monoxide it diffuses into our bloodstream, and binds to our haemoglobin
-> This reduces the amount of oxygen that haemoglobin can carry
-> So less oxygen is transported to the tissues, which can cause symptoms such as fainting, coma and death
When burning fossil fuels, how is sulfur dioxide formed?
Sulfur is an impurity in some fossil fuels and is oxidised when they’re combusted
When burning fossil fuels in an engine, how are nitrogen oxides formed?
Nitrogen from the air is oxidised at the high temperature inside the engine
Give 2 gases which can form acid rain:
Nitrogen oxides
Sulfur dioxide
Can you give 2 adverse effects of acid rain?
It damages certain buildings and statues
It makes the soil more acidic, which harms plants
Other than acid rain, what problem is caused by sulfur dioxide and oxides of nitrogen?
Respiratory problems in humans
