topic 4.1.a - water Flashcards
Why is water important in supporting life on the planet?
Scientists believe it is key to understanding the evolution of life as it provides a medium that allows organic molecules to mix and form more complex structures
What is the goldilocks zone?
planets in these zones are ones that could harbour life as the positioning in the atmosphere is neither too hot nor cold to harbour life.
atmospheric
Why is water important on earth?
- Oceans Moderates temperatures by absorbing,storing, slowly reflecting heat
- Clouds made up of tiny water droplets reflect ⅕ of solar radiation and lower surface temp
- Water vapour ( potential greenhouse gas) absorbs long wave radiation helping to maintain global average temp
why is water important for plants?
- Water makes up 65-95% of all living organisms
- Plants —> need it for photosynthesis, respiration and transpiration.
- Photosynthesis takes place in the leaves of plants combining CO2 and sunlight and water to make glucose
- Plants require water to maintain their rigidity
to transport mineral nutrients from the soil
how is water important to people?
People
* Water is medium used for all chemical reactions - circulation of O2 etc
* sweating - cooling process
Economic activity
* Essential economic resource for agruculture,manufacture and domestic purposes
what is carbon stored in ?
- Sedimentary rocks
- Oceans
- Sea fuel sediments
- Fossil fuels -oil coal ga
- soil
- atmosphere
- land plants
How important is carbon?
- Life is carbon based - built on large molecules of carbon atoms
used as an economic resource - fossil fuels such as oil, coal , gas used to power the economy - oil as a raw material in manufacturing
- agricultural store large amounts of carbon available for humans to use as food, timber and paper etc
Water and carbon cycling?
- At global scale they flow in closed systems over time periods from days to millions of years.
- There is an important link between the flow of water and carbon and the atmosphere
What is the largest store of water on earth ?
Oceans
% of oceans as a store of water
holds 97% of water
% of glaciers and ice as a store of water
stores 2% of the global water
% of water held in the atmosphere
0.0001%
What does residence time mean?
The time for a water molecule to enter and leave part of a system
What is the average residence time of water molecules within the atmosphere?
9 days
what type of system is a drainage basin ?
open system
