Plate Tectonics
Describe Convergent plate boundaries
Plates push together, which then causes volcanoes and it will release magma from the earth's surface
What areas tend to have the most soil erosion?
Farm land because they don't have great coverage so the soil will erode away
What are the gases in the Earth's atmosphere?
Nitrogen, Oxygen, and trace gases
What are two other factors that affect weather and climate?
Geology- rock formations and geography- natural and human made borders
What does insolation mean?
Solar radiation received
Describe Divergent plate boundaries
Plates push away from each other, which then typically causes sea floor spreading.
If I have 35% silt, 35% sand, and 30% clay, then what soil type is it?
Clay loam
How does global wind patterns affect environmental conditions?
The earth is unevenly heated which causes the different poles and equator to have different temperatures which causes different biomes and ecosystems
How does the sun's energy affect the earth's surface?
Insolation from incoming solar radiation becomes the main source of the Earth's energy. The latitude that is directly horizontal to solar radiation gets the most solar energy.
What are the environmental effects of La Nina
Extreme version of normal conditions
Dry areas are too dry
Wet areas are too wet/stormy
Describe Transform plate boundaries
Plates tend to slide past each other, which causes earthquakes from the pressure building and then releasing underground.
What is erosion and what are negative effects from it?
The movement of soil. This can cause flooding, pollution, and can damage infrastructures
Explain the atmospheric layers and how temperature correlates with them
Stratosphere has a rise in temp due to the ozone. Troposphere has a higher temp in the lower part than the upper part due to the suns rays. The mesosphere temperature drops again due to thinning atmosphere. Thermosphere receives UV and X-ray radiation, so the temp rises, but still thin air
How do we get seasons?
The tilt of the earth leads to seasons. This is because then as the earth rotates different parts will be closer or farther from the sun and will experience the different wind patterns.
Explain El Nino
Warm water builds up along the equator. This warms the atmosphere which allows the moisture rich air to rise and develop into rainstorms. Trade winds weaken and warm water is pushed back east. Colder water doesn't upwell as much
How does an earthquake form?
When two plates slide past each other, plates lock up at the fault lines. Energy will then build which then will release which causes the earhquake.
Describe the 3 types of soil particles and how they correspond to water holding capacity
Sand is the largest particle size so its easiest for water to pass through it. Silt is the second largest, so water still passes through. Clay is a very small particle size so water doesn't pass through as well. So water passes through easiest in soils that have more sand than the other two
Explain the factors that determine global wind patterns
The earth's rotation (Coriolis effect) circulates air, uneven heating due to solar radiation, and the different cells that move cold air and heat from the different poles
Describe the mountains and rain shadow effect
It creates a region of land to become drier. This is because the windward side is blocked by mountains and air loses moisture. This results in a desert/drier area
Explain La Nina
Trade winds become stronger which pushes cold water up due to upwelling and then pushes warm water towards the west. Rainfall increases
What place is experiencing a ton of volcanic pop-ups?
Hawaii
Describe the soil horizons and how they are characterized
O- organic matter, A- surface horizon, B- Subsoil, C- Substrata, R- Bedrock. As you go down the soil horizons, the organic matter is not as soluble and organic
What are the characteristics of a watershed?
Area – how much space it covers
Length – how far source and final location of drainage
Slope – topography of the watershed
Soil – amount of sand or clay
Vegetation – determines amount/type of runoff
Adjoining watersheds – where these drain into
How do the oceans transfer and hold heat?
Oceans absorb large amounts of heat from solar radiation and will transport it between poles
What are the environmental conditions of El Nino
Trade winds shift
Surface near South America is warmer, less oxygen, fishing is bad
Rainy conditions is US, South America can experience mudslides due to storms
Upwelling occurs off Australian coast