TECTONIC PLATES
Explain why earthquakes commonly occur at plate boundaries.
Earthquakes occur at plate boundaries because plates grind, collide, or separate, creating stress that is released as seismic energy.
Identify which atmospheric layer contains most weather and explain why.
Weather occurs in the troposphere because it contains most of the atmospheric mass and nearly all water vapor.
Which way do the trade winds blow from 0-30 degrees N?
East to West
What is upwelling?
Cold, nutrient-rich deep water rising to replace surface water pushed away by wind.
Explain why deserts occur at 30° latitude.
Dry, descending air from Hadley cells creates high pressure and low precipitation.
Identify which soil particle (sand, silt, or clay) has the highest permeability.
Sand
Compare tectonic activity at a convergent plate boundary vs. a transform boundary.
Convergent boundaries produce subduction, volcanoes, and strong deep earthquakes; transform boundaries produce only shallow earthquakes as plates slide past each other.
Explain how temperature changes with altitude in the stratosphere and how this relates to the ozone layer.
Temperature increases with altitude in the stratosphere due to the ozone layer absorbing UV radiation, warming the air.
Describe how global wind patterns help transport heat from equatorial to polar regions.
They transport warm air toward the poles and cold air toward the equator.
Explain why upwelling produces high biological productivity along the coast of Peru.
It delivers nutrients that fuel phytoplankton growth, supporting a rich food web.
Describe how the rain shadow effect creates dry conditions on the leeward side of mountain ranges.
Moist air rises and cools on mountains’ windward side (rainfall), while descending air on the leeward side is dry.
Explain why soils rich in organic matter (humus) hold water well.
It adds pore space, increases soil structure, and holds water through adhesion.
Describe how seafloor spreading at mid-ocean ridges creates new oceanic crust.
At mid-ocean ridges, magma rises as plates diverge; it cools and solidifies into new oceanic crust, pushing older crust outward.
Describe how the greenhouse effect works and identify which atmospheric layer is primarily involved in trapping heat.
Greenhouse gases absorb and re-radiate infrared radiation emitted from Earth’s surface, trapping heat in the troposphere. This natural process keeps Earth warm enough to sustain life.
Explain the Coriolis effect in one sentence.
The deflection of moving air due to Earth’s rotation—right in the Northern Hemisphere, left in the Southern.
Compare normal Pacific Ocean circulation to circulation during an El Niño event.
Normally, warm water is pushed west and cold water upwells in the east; during El Niño, trade winds weaken, warm water shifts east, and upwelling declines.
Explain how Earth’s axial tilt causes seasons.
Earth’s tilt causes different hemispheres to receive varying solar angles and day lengths throughout the year.
How do you use a soil texture triangle, and why does texture matter?
You plot percentages of sand, silt, and clay until lines intersect; texture determines water retention, permeability, and drainage.
Explain why subduction zones produce both volcanic arcs and deep earthquakes.
Subduction forces oceanic crust downward, melting it into magma that forms volcanic arcs; the collision also builds pressure that causes deep, powerful earthquakes.
Explain why temperature decreases with altitude in the troposphere but increases with altitude in the stratosphere.
In the troposphere, air is heated from the Earth’s surface, so temperature decreases as you move upward and farther from the heat source. In the stratosphere, temperature increases with altitude because the ozone layer absorbs UV radiation, warming the surrounding air.
Explain how differential heating between the equator and poles (how the heats the earth differently at different latitudes) creates the Hadley, Ferrel, and Polar cells.
Warm equatorial air rises and circulates in Hadley cells, mid-latitude air circulates in Ferrel cells, and cold dense polar air sinks to form Polar cells.
Explain why the anchovy fishery in Peru collapses during El Niño.
Warm surface water blocks nutrient-rich upwelling, collapsing phytoplankton and the anchovy food web.
Describe why deserts experience large temperature swings from day to night.
Low humidity and little vegetation allow heat to escape quickly at night.
Explain why vegetation cover greatly reduces soil erosion during rainfall.
Roots bind soil, absorb water, and reduce surface runoff.
A chain of volcanic islands forms far from any plate boundary. Explain the tectonic process responsible and how the age pattern of islands provides evidence.
A mantle hot spot melts through the lithosphere, forming volcanoes as the plate moves over it; the islands get progressively older the farther they are from the active hot spot.
Explain why temperature decreases in the mesosphere?
In the mesosphere, there is little ozone to absorb solar radiation, so temperature drops with altitude.
Explain why warm, moist air rises at the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) and how this contributes to high rainfall near the equator.
Intense heating at the equator warms air, making it less dense so it rises. As the rising air cools, water vapor condenses and produces frequent rainfall, creating tropical climates.
Analyze how changes in sea surface temperature during El Niño influence atmospheric pressure patterns and global climate.
Warm eastern Pacific waters lower atmospheric pressure, shift wind patterns, and alter rainfall and storms worldwide.
Describe why the Atacama Desert on the west coast of South America receives very little precipitation.
The Atacama lies in the rain shadow of the Andes Mountains. Moist air from the east loses precipitation on the windward side, and dry air descends on the leeward side, creating an extremely arid climate.
Compare the water-holding capacity and erosion risk of sandy vs. clay soils.
Sandy soil drains quickly and erodes easily; clay holds water, drains slowly, and resists erosion but can get waterlogged.