The Earth’s Atmosphere Flashcards
Volcanoes
Released CO2, water vapour, nitrogen
Water vapour from volcanoes
Condensed and fell as rain
Collected in crust forming oceans
Comets
Icy comets could’ve brought water
Earth stabilising
CO2 main gas in atmosphere
Methane and ammonia
No oxygen
Once stabilised, life began
Evolution due to oxygen in earths early atmosphere
Bacteria and other simple organisms (algae) evolved Algae photosynthesised = oxygen More plants evolved Plants colonised surface of Earth Animals evolved Relied on algae for food
Skeletons in Earth’s early atmosphere
Skeletons built at bottom of oceans
Layer of sediment on top of them
Buried under pressure depositing formed sedimentary carbonate rocks
Remains of living things heated on Earth’s crust
Formed fossil fuels
Coal’s formation
Coal classed as sedimentary rock
Formed from thick deposits of plant material
Crude oil and natural gas formation
Formed from remains of plankton deposited in muds
Covered by sediments that became layers of rocks when compressed over millions of years
Found trapped beneath layers of rocks
Ammonia and methane
Ammonia and methane was removed by reactions with oxygen, once oxygen had been formed by photosynthesis
Consequences of rising sea levels of greenhouse gases
Melting ice caps
Expansion of warmer oceans
Flooding of low-lying land
Increased coastal erosion
Islands disappear
Extreme weather events = more frequent and severe storms
Disruption of rainfall
Food-producing capacity of different regions affected (dry areas)
Monsoons heavier
Changes to distribution of wildlife species
Ecosystems under stress
Carbon footprint
The carbon footprint of a product, service or event is the total amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases emitted over its full life cycle
How is electricity made
Burning fossil fuels
Solutions of solving our carbon footprint
Carbon capture and storage
World leaders meet to negotiate limits
Problems of reducing carbon footprint
Scientific disagreement causes consequences of global climate change
Incomplete targets for reducing greenhouse gases
Poorer countries not included in negotiations
People need information about climate change to make a positive contribution
Pollution from fuels
Contain sulfur = acid rain -> kills animals and plants
Sulfur impurities removed from fuel before burnt