Unit 4 Vocab Flashcards
thin outer layer of mantle, convection begins here
Asthenosphere
thin solid layer floating on asthenosphere, broken into techtonic plates
Lithosphere
plates move away from each other, where mid ocean ridges, seafloor spreading
Divergent Boundary
plates collide with each other, where mountains, islands, and subduction
Convergent Boundary
an area where there is a mantle plume (hotter magma under crust) with high volcanic activity.
(Hawaii)
Hot Spot
tectonic plates slide past each other, where faults form and create earthquakes
Transform Boundary
cracks in the earth’s crust along which there is movement
Faults
ring of seismic activity around the edges of the Pacific Ocean
Ring of Fire
amount of pore space a soil has
Most: gravel, sand, silt, clay : Least
Porosity
how easily water drains through a soil
Most-gravel, sand, silt, clay-Least
Permeability
the desired soil type for most crops. 20% clay, 40% silt and 40% sand
Loam
least permeable, highest porosity, highest water capacity
Clay
Most permeable, lowest porosity, lowest water capacity
Sand
mid-permeability, mid-porosity, mid-water capacity
Silt
main organic part of soil (decomposed biomass, leaves, animals, waste, etc.)
Humus
added to soil naturally through fixation by soil bacteria and legumes and through rainfall, or artificially through manure, fertilization or organic materia
Nitrogen
necessary nutrient in soil, or else root death
Oxygen
essential for cell division and development of the growing tip of the plant
Phosphorus
where atmosphere merges with space
Exosphere
hottest layer, absorbs x-rays and uv rays, northern lights/aurora borealis
Thermosphere
less dense, less mass pushing down
Mesosphere
dense ozone layer, absorbs UV-B and UV-C,
Stratosphere
where weather takes place, densest layer (majority water vapor), gravity strongest, ozone (O3) = pollutant, damages respiration, plant stomata and forms smog
Troposphere
Atmospheric Circulation
atmospheric convection cell in which air rises at the equator and sinks at medium latitudes (30), responsible for global wind patterns
Hadley Cell
deflection of objects traveling through atmosphere due to spin of earth, air moves from high to low pressure
Coriolos Effect
a global belt of light, variable winds near the equator, resulting from the vertical force of low density air masses upward within this equatorial belt. Associated with much precipitation.
Doldrums
Winds that start in the east and blow west, (0-30, 60-90)
Easterlies
winds that start in the west and blow east (30-60)
Westerlies
prevailing easterly winds that blow from east to west between 30-0 degrees
Trade Winds
have more air pressure than surroundings, pushes air away from them lower pressure areas
High pressure system
lower pressure at center than. Winds blow towards the low pressure, air rises where they meet, condenses, forming clouds and precipitation, associated with bad weather.
Low pressure system
all of the land that drains into a specific body of water
Watershed
excessive nutrients in a body of water, due to runoff, causes growth of plant life (algae) and death of animal life from lack of oxygen (hypoxia)
Eutrophication
amount of solar radiation reaching an area watts/m^2.
Insolation
proportion of light reflected by a surface
Albedo
side of mountain receiving warm moist air from the ocean, lush,
Windward
side opposite of the coast recieves dry cool sinking air, arid
Leeward
a region with little rainfall due to shelter from prevailing moist winds
Rain Shadows
pattern of water circulation, moves clockwise in the northern hemisphere, counterclockwise in the southern hemisphere
Gyers
rise of cool nutrient rich water and sediments
Upwelling
a warming of the ocean surface temperatures, in Pacific Ocean
EL Nino
a cooling of the ocean surface temperatures, in Pacific Ocean
La Nina
El Nino Southern Oscillation
patter of shifting atmospheric pressure and ocean currents in the pacific ocean between S America and Australia/SE Asia
ENSO
