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Geography - A LEVEL > the Earths life support systems - P > Flashcards

the Earths life support systems - P Flashcards

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1
Q

what is carbon

A

the chemical backbone of all life on Earth - used in DNA, found in the atmosphere

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2
Q

what is the carbon cycle

A

the way carbon atoms travel from the atmosphere into organisms and the earth and then back into the atmosphere over and over again in a cycle

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3
Q

what are the main carbon sinks

A

the ocean
stored in rocks and sediments
atmosphere
organisms

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4
Q

when do plants and animals produce carbon

A

by living and dying - remains can turn into fuels used in combustion which produces CO2

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5
Q

When is carbon taken in and released by plants

A

taken in during photosynthesis and released by respiration, burning materials

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6
Q

how does carbon form the bodies of living organisms

A

carbon atoms such as proteins, carbohydrates and nucleic acid are built on large molecules of carbon atoms

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7
Q

what are the four main spheres that water and carbon can move through

A

lithosphere
atmosphere
hydrosphere
biosphere

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8
Q

what is the lithosphere

A

the rigid outer part of the Earth, consisting of the crust and upper mantle

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9
Q

what is the atmosphere

A

the envelope of gases surrounding the Earth

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10
Q

what is the hydrosphere

A

all of the waters o the Earth’s surface, sometimes including water over the surface (clouds).

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11
Q

what is the biosphere

A

the regions of the surface and the atmosphere occupied by living organisms

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12
Q

what is the importance of carbon in 4 main points

A

life is carbon based - built on molecules of carbon
crops and trees store carbon - used for food, textiles, profit, timber
helps regulate earths temperature
an economic resource - fossil fuels used as raw materials

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13
Q

when measuring carbon what units do we use

A

a Petagram/Gigaton:
1015 g OR 1012 kg

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14
Q

what is residency time

A

the amount of time carbon remains in a store - shows us the capacity and duration that carbon was stored.

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15
Q

what do we use residency time to differentiate between

A

long term and short term stores of carbon

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16
Q

how do you calculate residency time

A

amount in reservoir / flows in or out

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17
Q

what happens in a closed system

A

energy is transferred, matter is contained

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18
Q

what happens in an open system

A

energy and matter are transferred

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19
Q

Since our planet is a closed system what does this mean about carbon

A

the amount of carbon on the Earth doesn’t change it is just transferred between stores.

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20
Q

what are the four sub systems of the carbon cycle

A

terrestrial (fast) carbon cycle
ocean carbon cycle
atmospheric carbon cycle
slow carbon cycle

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21
Q

what happens in the terrestrial (fast) carbon cycle

A

the uptake of CO2 through plants during photosynthesis. Released through respiration and decomposition - the cycling between the atmosphere, soil, vegetation happens relatively quickly

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22
Q

what happens in the ocean carbon cycle

A

carbon held in the ocean and oceanic organisms - inputs and outputs take place through gas exchange with atmosphere & continental runoff

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23
Q

what happens in the atmospheric carbon cycle

A

CO2 and methane - methane is powerful but short lived - CO2 is removed by terrestrial and oceanic carbon cycles

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24
Q

what happens in the slow carbon cycle

A

carbon cycling between rock stores, atmosphere, oceans through weathering over millions of years - Weathering creates net carbon sinks in oceans- chemical weathering produces carbonate run off transferred to the ocean - organisms use this then die - released through volcanic activity

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25
Q

what is the timescale of a slow carbon cycle

A

100-200 million years

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26
Q

which processes are involved in the slow carbon cycle

A

geological processes (weathering, volcanic eruptions, sedimentation)

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27
Q

which spheres are involved in the slow carbon cycle

A

the atmosphere, lithosphere and also oceans - a movement of 10 million to 100 million tonnes of carbon per year

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28
Q

what does the slow cycle affect

A

complex chemical feedbacks regulate the process so it rebalances over hundreds of years and has no clear affects.

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29
Q

what is the timescale of the fast carbon cycle

A

over years to decades

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30
Q

which processes does the fast carbon cycle involve

A

biological processes (photosynthesis, respiration, food chain)

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31
Q

how much carbon does the fast cycle move each year

A

about 1,000 times more carbon each year than the fast cycle.

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32
Q

what does the fast cycle affect

A

the atmospheric CO2 levels, with seasonal variations based on plant growth

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33
Q

what is a climate graph

A

a graph used to illustrate average temperature and rainfall simultaneously experienced at a particular place over the course of a year.

34
Q

when interpreting a climate graph what should you consider

A
  • highest & lowest temperatures and rainfalls
  • the range for temperature & rainfall
  • the trends
  • links to store or flows in carbon/water cycle
35
Q

what carbon cycle processes are affected by climate graphs

A
  • rates of photosynthesis - light & temperature
  • rates of decomposition - temperature & moisture
  • rates of respiration - temperature, humidity, moisture
36
Q

what are some limitations of a climate graph

A
  • could be from an anomalous year
  • don’t show diurnal changes
  • don’t consider spatial variances within the area
  • only show rainfall & temperature as variables
  • graphs over a few years can hide changes in rainfall & temperature
37
Q

what is Insolation

A

INcoming SOLar radiATION

38
Q

what is differential heating due to

A

insolation

39
Q

why is the sun more concentrated at the equator

A

insolation travels a shorter distance and is spread over a narrower range

40
Q

why is the sun less concentrated at the poles

A

insolation travels through a deeper atmosphere causing greater heat loss as it is absorbed by clouds and gases

41
Q

what is the albedo affect

A

when ice at the poles of the Earth reflect radiation

42
Q

why is insolation weaker at the poles

A

spread over a greater distance at the pole so it is weaker

43
Q

what happens to carbon levels at higher latitudes

A

growing season for vegetation is shorter so less carbon is stored as biomass in the biosphere in these regions.

44
Q

what happens with carbon stores when there is low precipitation

A

fewer plants grow throughout the year so lower amounts of carbon are stored

45
Q

what happens with carbon stores in tropical regions

A

there is a lot of precipitation and a long growing season so more carbon is stored in plants

46
Q

where are tropical/subtropical forests in the world

A

the equator

47
Q

which forests store the most carbon

A

tropical/subtropical forests

48
Q

which forests store the most carbon after tropical/subtropical

A

Boreal forests, then temperate forests

49
Q

which biomes stores the least carbon

A

Tundra biomes

50
Q

what are forests for carbon

A

natural carbon sinks - they store carbon in living biomass, dead biomass and soil

51
Q

what are the ideal conditions for the storage of carbon

A

cold, wet soils - wetlands have the most soil storage

52
Q

what is carbon sequestration

A

a natural or artificial process of capturing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and storing it in solid or liquid form.

53
Q

how much CO2 stays in the atmosphere

A

45% - the rest is sequestered naturally

54
Q

how much CO2 (from fossil fuels) is taken in by the oceans

A

30% - of CO2 from fossil fuels is taken in by the upper layer of the oceans.

55
Q

how much CO2 is taken in by Earth’s forests, farms and grasslands

A

25%

56
Q

what is the residence time of deep oceans

A

1250 years

57
Q

what are the two main ways the ocean acts as a carbon sink

A

physical carbon pump
biological carbon pump

58
Q

what is a summary of the processes in a biological pump

A

driven by phytoplankton and autotrophs which absorb CO2 through photosynthesis, converting it into organic matter

59
Q

what are the 3 main steps in a biological pump

A
  1. carbon moves up the food chain.
  2. when plants & animals die they sink into deeper water then decompose releasing CO2 into the water.
  3. carbon is also stored in hard body parts like shells in the form of calcium carbonate
60
Q

what does the biological pump do

A

transports carbon to the deep ocean

61
Q

what is the thermohaline circulation

A

an ocean current pattern:
- lower temperatures at poles so ocean waters sink as they are dense which is called downwelling
- higher temperatures at equator so ocean waters rise as they are less dense which is called upwelling

61
Q

what are the main steps in a physical pump

A
  1. atmospheric circulation pattern and resultant regional air temperature differences affect ocean temperatures
  2. water temperatures determine circulation patterns: cool water sinks, warm water rises.
61
Q

what is a summary of the processes in the physical pump

A

refers to carbon dissolving into the ocean surface and then being driven deep down into the lower oceans by currents and downwelling

62
Q

which percentage of the ocean is surface currents

A

10%

63
Q

which percentage of the ocean is deep ocean currents

A

90%

64
Q

what do surface currents do by the shore

A

driven by winds and tides - drawing waters back and fourth as the water levels rise and fall

65
Q

what do surface currents do in the open ocean

A

wind is the main force - as wind blows it drags the top layer of the ocean along with it - this then moves the water below it

66
Q

what do surface currents form

A

huge loops called gyres - travel clockwise in northern hemisphere - travel anticlockwise in the southern hemisphere

67
Q

what is the Coriolis effect

A

when major streams of wind form loop like patters around the ocean basin.

68
Q

what do deep ocean currents do

A

are driven primarily by changes in density of seawater - as water moves north it gets colder and had a higher concentration of salt - this water is dense so sinks - warmer surface water takes its place

68
Q

what do current help to do globally

A

redistribute warmth around the globe

69
Q

what is the global conveyor belt

A

the combination of thermohaline circulation of deep water and wind driven currents forming a large winding loop

70
Q

what affect does increasing temperatures have on the ocean currents

A

they are slowing down

71
Q

what is downwelling

A

CO2 dissolved at surface is brought down and stored in deep water - This occurs when winds push water towards the coastline, where it is forced downwards and cools as it sinks, This sequesters CO2 where it will stay for hundreds of years.

72
Q

what is upwelling

A

currents bring nutrients and carbon to the surface - this occurs when winds push surface water away from the coastline, leading to carbon-rich deeper ocean currents rising to replace the water, increasing surface water dissolved CO2 transfer to the atmosphere.

73
Q

what happens in locations with upwelling

A

cold deep ocean water is nutrient rich - upwelling provides high biological productivity due to the nutrient rich water rising from the deep ocean

74
Q

where do Phytoplankton blooms form

A

nutrient rich areas

75
Q

why is downwelling important

A

it supplies the deeper ocean with dissolved gases such as CO2 where it stays as a carbon sink

76
Q

what is a phytoplankton bloom

A

when phytoplankton photosynthesise and act as a biological carbon pump - absorbing and storing carbon

76
Q

what type of changes are el Nino and La nina

A

seasonal changes

77
Q

what is el nino

A

if conditions are right - trade winds can be weakened or reversed - this means there’s less warm water to the western side of the ocean and less cold water to the eastern side of the ocean - this allows colder parts of the ocean to warm - this affects temperature and rainfall around the world.

77
Q

where are the main impacts of el nino

A

around the tropics

Geography - A LEVEL (15 decks)

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