AP Environmental Science: Earth's Interdependent Systems
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jhshosabowl on January 26, 2012
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Princeton Review Chapter 3
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101 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 Time for Earth to complete one full orbit around the sun | 365 and 1/4 days |
| Core | innermost zone of the earth |
| Solid Inner Core | Composed mostly of nickel and iron, and is solid due to tremendous pressure |
| Molten Outer Core | Composed mostly of iron and sulfur, and is semi-solid due to lower pressures |
| Mantle | Middle layer of the Earth composed of mostly solid rock and the asthenosphere |
| Asthenosphere | Area of slowly flowing rock |
| Lithosphere | The thin, rigid layer of rock that is the outermost layer on Earth |
| Crust | solid surface of the earth |
| Tectonic Plates | individual sections of the lithosphere of the earth. They fit together in a way similar to a jigsaw puzzle, but are always moving very slowly, floating on the molten rock of the lower mantle. |
| Plate Boundary | Edges of the plates where two plates abut each other |
| Convergent Boundary | Two plates are pushed toward each other. One of the plates will be pushed deep into the mantle |
| Divergent Boundary | Two plates are moving away from each other. This causes a gap that can be filled with magma(molten rock) and when it cools new crust is formed |
| Transform fault boundary | Two plates slide from side-to-side relative to each other |
| Subduction | A heavy ocean plate is pushed below the other plate and melts as it encounters the hot mantle |
| Volcanoes | Mountains formed by magma from the Earth's Interior |
| Active Volcanoes | Those that are currently erupting or have erupted in recorded history |
| Dormant Volcanoes | Not been known to erupt |
| Extinct Volcanoes | Will never erupt again |
| Rift Volcanoes | occur when plates move away from each other, forms new ocean floor when it erupts as magma fills in where plates have separated |
| Subduction Volcanoes | Occur where plates collide and slide over each other |
| Hot Spot Volcanoes | Found over "hot spots" which are areas where magma can rise to the surface through plates, and example would be the Hawaiian islands |
| Earthquakes | Result of vibrations due to plate movements deep in the earth releasing energy |
| Focus | location where an earthquake begins within earth |
| Epicenter | Initial surface location of the earthquake |
| Seismograph | Created by Charles Richter in 1935, measures the magnitude of an earthquake |
| Tsunami | a giant wave usually caused by an earthquake beneath the ocean floor |
| Sedimentary Rock | Formed as sediment(eroded rocks and the remains of plants) builds up and compresses. Ex. Limestone |
| Metamorphic Rock | Formed as a great deal of pressure and heat is applied to rock. Ex. Slate |
| Igneous Rock | Results when rock is melted into a liquid then re-solidifies, ex. basalt |
| Abiotic | Nonliving components of the world |
| Biotic | Living components of the world |
| Clay | Has the smallest particles, about 0.002 mm in diameter |
| Silt | Second largest particles, about 0.002-0.05 mm in diameter |
| Sand | Largest and most coarse soil, particles about 0.05-2.0 mm in diameter |
| Soil pH | Generally in the range between 4-8 |
| Physical Weathering | any process that breaks down rock into smaller pieces without changing the chemistry of rock |
| Chemical Weathering | occurs as a result of chemical interactions between water and other atmospheric gases |
| Biological Weathering | Weathering that takes place as the result of the activities of living organisms |
| O horizon | uppermost layer of soil |
| Humus | dark, crumbly material that results from the decomposition of organic matter |
| A Horizon | made up of weathered rock, referred to as topsoil, considered the zone of leaching |
| B Horizon | Called the zone of illuviation, below the A horizon |
| C Horizon | bottommost layer of soil, composed of larger pieces of rock that have not undergone much weathering |
| R Horizon | the bedrock, lies below all other layers of soil |
| Arable | suitable for plant growth |
| Loamy | soil made up of the same amount of clay, silt, and sand. best for plant growth |
| Monoculture | the planting of just one type of plant in a large area |
| Crop Rotation | different crops are planted in the area in each growing season |
| Green Revolution | Boom in agricultural productivity |
| Salinization | A process in which mineral salts accumulate in the soil, killing plants; occurs when soils in dry climates are irrigated profusely |
| Land Degradation | result of salinization |
| Drip Irrigation | allots an area only as much water as is necessary, delivers water directly to the roots |
| Atmosphere | Layer of gas that's held close to Earth by the force of gravity |
| Troposphere | layer of gas that lies closest to the earth, where all the weather occurs, contains the majority of atmospheric water vapor and clouds, becomes colder with latitude |
| Greenhouse effect | warming that results when solar radiation is trapped by the atmosphere |
| Tropopause | a layer that acts as a buffer between the troposphere and the next layer up; the stratosphere |
| Stratosphere | Gases not well-mixed, gets warmer as distance from earth increases, has a thin band of ozone |
| Mesosphere | Area where meteors usually burn up |
| Thermosphere | Thinnest gas layer, place where auroras take place |
| Ionosphere | region where ionization takes place in the atmosphere |
| Weather | the day-to-day properties such as wind speed, direction, temperature, amount of sunlight, pressure, and humidity |
| Climate | The patterns that are constant over many years |
| Meteorologist | Scientists who study weather and climate |
| Coriolis Effect | The way Earth's rotation makes winds in the Northern Hemisphere curve to the right and winds in the Southern Hemisphere curve to the left. |
| Convection Currents | the upward movement of warm air and the downward movement of cool air |
| Dew Point | the temperature at which water vapor condenses into liquid water |
| Wind | Air that is moving as a result of the unequal heating of Earth |
| Trade Winds | Prevailing winds that blow northeast from 30 degrees north latitude to the equator and that blow southeast from 30 degrees south latitude to the equator |
| Westerly | the west-to-east winds that occur in the temperate zones of the Earth |
| Polar Easterlies | Prevailing winds that blow from east to west between 60degrees-90degrees latitude in both hemisphere. |
| Horse Latitudes | are regions of high pressure and gentle winds at about 30 degrees north and south latitude |
| Doldrums | air near the equator that is still |
| ITCZ | intertropical convergence zone |
| Jet Stream | high-speed currents of win that occur in the upper troposphere |
| Monsoon | a seasonal wind pattern in southern Asia that blows warm, moist air from the southwest during the summer, bringing heavy rains, and cold, dry air from the northeast during the winter |
| Rain Shadow Effect | Low precipitation on the far side (leeward side) of a mountain when prevailing winds flow up and over a high mountain or range of high mountains. This creates semiarid and arid conditions on the leeward side of a high mountain range. |
| Hurricane | a severe tropical cyclone usually with heavy rains and winds moving a 73-136 knots (12 on the Beaufort scale) |
| El Nino | abnormal warming of surface ocean waters in the eastern tropical Pacific that reduces the number of nutrients |
| La Nina | Abnormal cooling of surface ocean waters in the eastern tropical Pacific that increases nutrients |
| Watershed | the land area that drains into a particular stream |
| Delta | flat, low-lying land built up from soil carried downstream by a river and deposited at its mouth |
| Estuary | Where the "arm" of the ocean extends inland to meet the mouth of a river |
| Wetlands | Ecosystems of several types in which vegetation is surrounded by standing water during part or most of the year |
| Littoral Zone | Begins with very shallow water at the shoreline, receive abundant sunlight |
| Limnetic Zone | surface of open water, depth that sunlight can penetrate |
| Profundal Zone | Water that is too deep for sunlight to penetrate |
| Aphotic | a zone that light cannot reach |
| Benthic Zone | deepest layer in a body of water, characterized by very low temperatures and low oxygen levels |
| Barrier Islands | landforms that lie off coastal shores |
| Coral Reef | A structure of calcite skeletons built up by coral animals in warm, shallow ocean water. |
| Coastal zone | zone consists of the water closest to land |
| Euphotic Zone | upper layers of water, warmest region of ocean water, highest levels of dissolved oxygen |
| Bathyal Zone | Middle Region, receives insufficient light for photosynthesis and is colder then the euphotic zone |
| Abyssal Zone | deepest region of the ocean, extremely cold, low levels of dissolved oxygen, high level of nutrients |
| Upwelling | the movement of deep, cold, and nutrient-rich water to the surface |
| Red Tide | a population explosion of certain marine dinoflagellates that causes the water to turn a red or red-brown color and to contain poisonous alkaloids produced by the dinoflagellates |
| Interbasin Transfer | Water is transferred very long distances from its source; used to combat water shortages |
| Ground Water | any water that comes from the ground |
| Aquifers | underground beds or layers of Earth that yield water |
| Riparian Right | the right of people who have legal rights to use an area |
| Prior appropriation | water rights given to those who have historically used the water in a certain area |
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