Unit 1 : Environment-General issues Flashcards
0Environment Origin
The word environ means, in French, to surrond, envelop encircle or enclose. Environ means surrounding and “ment” means action, i.e., environment is the interaction between man and nature.
Components of Environment
Spheres
- Lithosphere
- Biosphere
- Atmosphere
- Biosphere
Lithosphere word origin
“Lithos” is a Greek word for rock and “sphere” refers to the region or realm where rocks and rock-like structures are available.
Its the crust and has a depth of 100km; Land and sea bed
Lithosphere that exists in oceanic beds is called
Oceanic crust
in land is called continental crust
How many major techtonic plates are there in the lithosphere
10
Hydrosphere orgin and composition of earth
Hydro- greek word meaning water
71% of the surface of the earth
% of water forms and state
97.5% of water found on Earth is saltwater
2.5% fresh water
30.8% groundwater
68.9% frozen
0.3% is available in river, reservoirs and lakes and is easily accessible to man.
% of water forms and state
97.5% of water found on Earth is saltwater
2.5% fresh water
30.8% groundwater
68.9% frozen
0.3% is available in rivers, reservoirs and lakes and is easily accessible to man.
Atmosphere word origin
Atmos- greek for vapour or gases
Composition of Atmospheric gases
78.08% Nitrogen
20.95% Oxygen
0.93% Argon
0.4% Carbondioxide
What has the Ozone layer
Stratosphere
Down to top atmosphere layers order
- Troposphere 16km at the equator and 7km at the poles
- Stratosphere 50kms
- Mesosphere 85kms
- Thermosphere 690kms; contains ionosphere. Auroras are seen at the poles
- Exosphere begins @690km and goes up to 10,000km
- Earth’s magnetosphere
Auroras in the northern and southern hemisphere is called
Aurora borealis
Aurora Australis
What separates the outer space from earth
Karman Line
Where is Karman line located
100km from earth
