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Earth Science exam 1
the science that studies the whole planet as a system of innumerable interacting parts and
focuses on the changes within and among those par
earth system science
the continuous or repetitive collection of information about a target—Earth, in this
case—from a distance.
remote sensing
any portion of the universe that can be isolated from the rest of the universe for the purpose of
observing and measuring changes.
system
4. The amount of matter (or energy) that is transferred from one reservoir to another, and the
rate at which it is transferred
flux
The nearest thing to an isolated system in the real world is a _ in which the boundary permits the
exchange of energy, but not matter.
closed system
simple, convenient graphical representation of a system.
box model
When the flux of matter into a reservoir matches the flux out of that reservoir, we say that the
reservoir is at
steady state
If the flux of some substance into a reservoir is greater than the flux of that substance out of
it, then we refer to the resevoir as a
sink
The average length of time material spends in a reservoir is called its
residence time
the totality of Earth’s water, including oceans, lakes, streams, underground water, and all
the snow and ice.
hydrosphere
the mixture of gases—predominantly nitrogen, oxygen, argon, carbon dioxide, and water
vapor—that surrounds Earth.
atmosphere
this includes all of Earth’s organisms, as well as any organic matter not yet decomposed.
biosphere
17. A system that is self-regulating is said to have the property of homeostasis, which
implies a state of
equilibrium
this cycle describes the movement of any chemical element or compound that cycles through the
biosphere and plays a role in its stability
biogeochemical
the capacity to do work, to move matter, to make things happen
energy
Thermal energy, or _, is the vibrational movement of atoms and molecules.
heat
a measure of heat, the vibrational motion of particles
temperature
the process by which heat moves directly from one object to an adjacent object with which it
isin contact.
conduction
a mechanism of heat transfer in which heat content is physically carried from one location to
another.
covection
the process in which energy in the electromagnetic spectrum is transferred from a radiating
or emitting body
radiation
The place where Earth’s four reservoirs interact most intensively is called the _because it
supports life on this planet
life zone
the solid Earth, composed principally of rock and regolith
geosphere
The perennially frozen parts of the hydrosphere are collectively referred to as the
cryosphere
this occurs when the output of the system also serves as an input and leads to changes in the
state of the system.
feed back
A group of electromagnetic rays arranged in order of increasing or decreasing wavelength is
called a
spectrum
A perfect _is one that absorbs all light that strikes it, and reflects none
blackbody
the mutual physical attraction between the masses of the Moon and Earth.
gravity
The increase in temperature as you go deeper is called the_ gradient.
geothermal
this heat is produced by the spontaneous breakdown, of radioactive elements such as uranium
and thorium that naturally occur inside earth
radiogenic
For any planetary body, the percentage of incoming radiation that is reflected unchanged is
called the
albedo
these gases selectively absorb radiation in the longer-wavelength, infrared portions of
the spectrum of outgoing terrestrial energy.
radiactively active
this cycle encompasses the inputs and outputs, pathways, and reservoirs for the energy that
drives the other cycles of the Earth system.
energy
these come from the remains of plants and animals that have been trapped in sedimentary rocks
and chemically altered to form fuels.
fossel fuels
this energy is drawn from Earth’s own internal heat sources.
geothermal
this energy is the heat energy produced during controlled splitting, or fission, of
radioactive isotopes.
nuclear
The three common _ of matter with which we are most familiar in our everyday lives are solid,
liquid, and gas.
states
these are homogeneous masses of material that can be separated from one another by a definable
boundary.
phases
Colloids that consist of microparticles or nanoparticles suspended in a gas (such as air) are
called
aerosols
this is the smallest individual particle that retains the distinctive properties of a given
chemical element.
atom
these are atoms with the same atomic number and hence essentially the same
chemicalproperties, but different mass numbers.
isotopes
these form when one or more kinds of anion combine chemically with one or more kinds of cation in
a specific ratio
compounds
smallest unit that retains all the properties of a compound.
molecule
The term _ is specifically applied to compounds consisting of carbon atoms that are joined to
other carbon atoms by a strong covalent bond
organic
these are long, chainlike polymers made of amino acids bonded together.
proteins
The _ of the Earth is a spherical mass composed largely of metallic iron, with smaller amounts
of nickel and other elements.
core
The thick shell of dense, rocky matter that surrounds the Earth’s core is called the
mantle
Above the mantle lies the thinnest and outermost layer of the Earth, the _, which consists of
rocky matter thats less dense than mantle rock
crust
Within the upper mantle, from 350 to about 100 km below the surface is a region called the_ the
balence of pressure and temp makes rock weak
asthenosphere
This hard outer layer, which includes the uppermost mantle and all of the crust, is called the
lithosphere
A mineral’s tendency to break in preferred directions along bright, reflective planar
surfaces is called
cleavage
this refers to the relative resistance of a mineral to being scratched.
hardness
any naturally formed, nonliving, firm, coherent aggregate mass of solid matter that
constitutes part of a planet (or asteroid, moon)
rock
The product of rock weathering is a layer of broken-up, disintegrated rock matter called
regolith
As the Earth revolves around the Sun, the seasons on Earth are caused by the
tilt
Nuclear fusion occurs in the _ of the Sun
core
Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars are called the _ planets.
terrestrial
these are subplanetary objects orbiting the Sun.
asteroids
The atmospheres of the Jovian planets are composed mainly of
hydrogen and helium
The length of a stars life is primarily determined by its
mass
Our solar system formed from a large cloud of gas and dust called a
nebula
this a "guesstimate" to the number of civilizations in our galaxy.
drake equation
With only a few exceptions, _ is the source of energy that sustains life on Earth.
sunlight
there are _ planets in our solar system
eight
in this model of the solar system, the Earth and the other planets revolve around the Sun.
heliocentric
the moon is aproximatly_ the size of the earth
one-forth
Surrounding the solar system in a spherical mass is the Oort Cloud. The Oort Cloud contains
long-period _ that orbit around the
comets
this can be used to describe the history of a star
H-R diagram
A small-mass star will lead a_ life than a large-mass star. longer
longer
the sun is _ years old
4.7 billion
what has been used to determine the age of Earth and other objects in the solar system.
radiometric dating
For the principle of _, the present is the key to the past.
uniformitarianism
this has emerged as a unifying theory that explains hundreds of years of independent
observations of Earth's topographic features
plate tectonics
who realized that the Andes Mountains were slowly being pushed upward.
charles darwin
Alfred Wegener suggested _ in which the worlds landmasses were once connected together in a
super continent called_
continental drift pangaea
this is the preservation of Earth's magnetic field locked in minerals at the time of rock
formation.
paleomagnetism
Earth is like a giant magnet, surrounded by an invisible_ that permeates everything placed in
the field.
magnetic field
Through detailed paleomagnetic studies, scientists have been able to determine a
chronology of _ reversals of Earth's magnetic field.
magnetic
The principle mechanism by which heat is transferred from deep inside Earth to the base of the
lithosphere is
convection
these plate margins are fractures in the lithosphere where two plates move apart.
divergent
these plate margins occur where two plates are moving toward each other.
convergent
these plate margins are fractures in the lithosphere where two plates slide past each other.
transform fault
large, flat areas known as _ are a major topographic feature of the seafloor.
abyssal plains
these mark the place where oceanic-capped lithosphere sinks into the asthenosphere.
oceanic trench
The Atlantic Ocean margins of the Americas, Africa, and Europe are examples of _ continental
margins.
passive
this is a stable core of very ancient rock.
craton
The lithosphere behaves as if it were _ on the asthenosphere
floating
this gravity anomalies result from concentrations of high-density rock under the surface.
positive
Gases from _ continue to play an important role in the climate and the long-term composition of
the atmosphere.
volcanoes
this has influenced virtually every part of the Earth system over the history of planet Earth.
plate tectonics