Unit 3: Earth & Space

Question 1

How illuminated are the following moon phases? Full, New, Gibbous, Crescent

Answer 1

Fully illuminated, not illuminated, more than half illuminated, less than half illuminated

Question 2

When do solar eclipses occur?

Answer 2

When there’s BOTH a new moon (between the Earth and the Sun) and when the moon’s orbit crosses the ecliptic

Question 3

What shapes the Earth surface, magnetic field, and atmosphere?

Answer 3

-Surface: Plate tectonics, vulcanism, impacts from space, erosion
-Magnetic field: caused by motions in Earth’s interior and heat
-Atmosphere: Heat in the earth’s interiors allows for plate tectonics

Question 4

Explain the greenhouse effect.

Answer 4

Gases like water vapor and carbon dioxide absorb and re-emit thermal radiation. They radiate heat back and warm the surface. The greenhouse effect enables Earth and Venus’ surface to be above freezing.

Question 5

What is carbon cycling?

Answer 5

The stabilizing feedback acts as a thermostat.
Earth = warm –> rains more –> more carbon dioxide drawn-down from the atmosphere –> cools the climate
Earth = cold –> rains less –> carbon dioxide builds up in atmosphere –> warms climate over geological timescales

Question 6

What is the name of the 23.5 degree tilt in Earth’s rotation axis?

Answer 6

The obliquity

Question 7

What two things do we mark the seasons with?

Answer 7

Solstices and equinoxes