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EARTH SCIENCE NOTES

The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

CONTENTS

UNIT I: COMPOSITION OF THE EARTH’S CRUST

UNIT II: THE DYNAMIC CRUST

UNIT III/A: SURFACE PROCESSES – WEATHERING AND EROSION

UNIT III/B: SURFACE PROCESSES – EROSIONAL-DEPOSITIONAL SYSTEMS

UNIT IV: LANDFORMS AND TOPOGRAPHIC MAPS

UNIT V: EARTH’S HISTORY

UNIT VI/A: METEOROLOGY – ATMOSPHERIC VARIABLES

UNIT VI/B: METEOROLOGY – WEATHER MAPS, ENERGY EXCHANGES, FORCASTS

UNIT VII: CLIMATE AND INSOLATION

UNIT VIII/A: THE EARTH IN SPACE – THE SOLAR SYSTEM

UNIT VIII/B: THE EARTH IN SPACE – STARS AND GALAXIES

UNIT I: COMPOSITION OFTHE EARTH’S CRUST


UNIT I: COMPOSITION OF THE EARTH’S CRUST

1. Identify the characteristics of matter.2. Explain the importance of chemical bonds.3. Identify the characteristics of minerals.4. Explain how minerals form.5. List the physical characteristics of minerals that are influenced by their crystalline structure.6. Identify rock-forming minerals by physical and chemical properties.7. List and describe different categories of minerals: silicates & carbonates.8. Compare renewable & nonrenewable resources.9. Determine the densities of known materials.10. Compare/contrast the density of continental/oceanic rock11. Explain the difference between a mineral and a rock.12. Differentiate among the three major types of rocks.13. Distinguish between intrusive and extrusive igneous rocks and how they form.14. Explain the relationship between crystal size and cooling time.15. Understand “interlocking” crystals.16. Distinguish among the types of sedimentary rocks and how they form.17. Discuss features typical of sedimentary rocks.18. Explain the processes involved in the formation of metamorphic rocks.19. Differentiate among different kinds of metamorphic rocks.20. Learn how to use the ESRT chart for mineral and rock identification.21. Compare/contrast the processes in the rock cycle. (Use ESRT)

1. Identify thecharacteristics of matter.


a. Measurements have anumber and a unit.


b. Matter is anything thathas mass and volume.


c. Weight is a measure ofthe pull of gravity.


d. Length- 1m=100cm;1cm=10mm (see ESRT p.1)


e. Mass (g) is the amountof matter in an object.


f. Volume (mL or cm3) isthe amount of space an

object takes up.


g. Density (g/mL or g/cm3)is the amount of mass in a

specific volume of asubstance (D=m/v… see

ESRT p.1)


h. Usually, heating asubstance makes it less

dense, and cooling itmakes it denser.


i. Increasing the pressureon a substance makes it

denser, and decreasing thepressure makes it less

dense.


j. Breaking a puresubstance into smaller

pieces will not change itsdensity.


k. Most substances aremost dense as solids.


l. Water is most dense as aliquid. At 3.98°C, the

density of water is exactly1g/mL (see ESRT p.1). Ice

is less dense than liquidwater.


m. Any measurement mustcontain some error (%

Deviation… see formula inESRT p.1)


2. Explain the importanceof chemical bonds.


a. The internalarrangement of atoms

determines what asubstance is like. Salt is

cubic because of the shapeof its molecules.


b. Diamonds and graphiteare both made of carbon.In a diamond, the carbon

atoms have strongerbonds.


c. Solids, liquids and gasesdiffer due to the speed that

the atoms are vibrating(temperature) and thestrength of the bonds.


3. Identify thecharacteristics of minerals.


a. Natural- not man-made


b. Inorganic- not alive, notfrom something alive, not

once alive


c. Solid- not liquid, not gas


d. Definite chemicalcomposition

(ex/halite=NaCl;galena=PbS)


e. Orderly atomicarrangement (crystalline)


4. Explain how mineralsform.


a. Magma is a “soup” ofmolten (melted) minerals

under ground. Aboveground, it is called lava.


b. As magma cools, someminerals crystallize

(solidify) before others.This allows different

minerals to formseparately from each

other.


5. List the physicalcharacteristics of mineralsthat are influenced by their

crystalline structure.


a. Color


b. Streak- color of mineralas a powder


c. Luster- how a mineral’ssurface reflects light

(metallic or nonmetallic)


d. Hardness- Diamonds arehardest (10), talc is softest

(1)


e. Density


f. Fracture- when a mineralbreaks irregularly.


g. Cleavage- the way amineral breaks alongplanes of weakness

creating flat surfaces


h. Crystal form


i. Others- bubbles withacid, magnetism, taste


6. Identify rock-formingminerals by physical andchemical properties- see

your Earth ScienceReference Tables (p.16).


7. List and describedifferent categories ofminerals: silicates &

carbonates.


a. Silicates- the mostcommon mineral group;

contain Si and O; ex/quartz, feldspar, mica


b. Carbonates- containCaCO3; ex/ calcite,

dolomite


c. Oxides- metal combineswith oxygen; ex/ hematite,

magnetite


d. Sulfides- metalcombines with sulfur; ex/

pyrite


8. Compare renewable &nonrenewable resources.


a. Chemical compositionand physical propertiesdetermine how humans

use minerals.


b. The properties of rocksdetermine how they areused and also influenceland usage by humans.


c. Renewable resource- aresource that can be

replaced in nature at a rateclose to its rate of use

(oxygen, trees, food, solarenergy).


d. Nonrenewable resource-a resource that is used up

faster than it can bereplaced in nature (iron,aluminum, sand, coal, oil,

natural gas, uranium).


9. Determine the densitiesof known materials.


a. Mass- triple beambalance


b. Mass of a liquid- findmass of container empty,

find mass of container withfluid, subtract mass of

container.


c. Volume of a regularobject- V = l x w x h


d. Volume of an irregularobject- graduated cylinder(displacement of water)


e. Volume of a liquid- pourit into a graduated

cylinder.


f. D=m/v


10. Compare/contrast thedensity of

continental/oceanic rock


a. Continental crust (morealuminum - felsic)=

2.7g/cm3


b. Oceanic crust (more ironand magnesium - mafic)=

3.0 g/cm3


11. Explain the differencebetween a mineral and a

rock.


a. Minerals are the“building blocks of rocks.”


b. Rocks are mixtures ofminerals. Rocks are usually

made of one or moreminerals.


12. Differentiate amongthe three major types of

rocks.


a. Rocks are classified onthe basis of their origin:igneous, sedimentary or

metamorphic.


b. Igneous rocks form bythe crystallization of

molten magma or lava.


c. Most sedimentary rocksform as a result of the

compression andcementing of sedimentsunder bodies of water.


d. Metamorphic rocks formas a result of crystal

growth without melting(recrystallization), usuallyunder conditions of high

temperature and pressure.


13. Distinguish betweenintrusive and extrusiveigneous rocks and how

they form.


a. Intrusive rocks havelarge (1mm or larger)

intergrown crystals. Ex/granite, dunite, gabbro,

pegmatite


b. Extrusive rocks havesmall (less than 1mm)intergrown crystals or

none at all (glassy). Somecooled so quickly that gasbubbles got trapped within

them (vesicular). Ex/pumice, obsidian, basalt,

scoriaThe Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

14. Explain the relationshipbetween crystal size and

cooling time.


a. Intrusive rocks formwhen magma cools slowlybeneath Earth’s surface,allowing enough time for

large crystals to grow. Ex/granite, dunite, gabbro,

pegmatite


b. Extrusive rocks formwhen lava cools quickly

above Earth’s surface, notallowing enough time for

large crystals to grow. Ex/pumice, obsidian, basalt,

scoria


15. Understand“interlocking” crystals-There is no cement or

matrix holding theindividual minerals crystals

together. They areintergrown.


Each crystal is touchinganother crystal, with

nothing between them.Interlocking crystals arefound in igneous rocks.


16. Distinguish among thetypes of sedimentary rocks

and how they form.


a. Inorganic land-derivedsedimentary rocks are

clastic (made of fragmentsof other rocks cemented

together).


b. Chemically formedsedimentary rocks arecrystalline and usually

form when waterevaporates, leaving

dissolved minerals behind.


c. Organically formedsedimentary rocks

(bioclastic) are the resultof living things. Coal ismade of plant remains.Limestone is made ofcemented seashells.


17. Discuss features typicalof sedimentary rocks.


a. Inorganic land-derivedsedimentary rocks arenamed by particle size.


Ex/ Shale is made of clay-sized particles cementedtogether. Sandstone is

made of sand sizedparticles cemented

together.


Conglomerates andbreccias are made of a

mixture of differentparticle sizes cemented

together.


b. Limestone has shellscemented together.


c. Fossils are found only insedimentary rocks.


18. Explain the processesinvolved in the formation

of metamorphic rocks.


a. Metamorphism results inthe rearrangement of

atoms in existing mineralssubjected to conditions of

high temperature andpressure.


b. Contact metamorphismoccurs when molten rock

comes in contact withsurrounding rocks.

Transition zones fromaltered to unaltered rocks

can be identified.


c. Regional metamorphismoccurs over large areas,

and is generally associatedwith mountain building.


The extreme pressuresassociated with the

collision of tectonic plates(mountain building) can

lead to the metamorphismof rock material.


19. Differentiate amongdifferent kinds of

metamorphic rocks.


a. Add pressure to clay(sediments), and shale (asedimentary rock) forms.

Add pressure to shale, andslate forms. Add pressure

to slate, and phyllite forms.Add pressure to phyllite,

and schist forms.


Add pressure to schist, andgneiss forms. These are

the events that turn a low-grade metamorphic rock

into a high-grademetamorphic rock.


b. Metamorphic rocks oftenshow banding or mineralalignment (foliations).


c. Metamorphic rocks oftenhave distorted structures.


20. Learn how to use theESRT chart for mineral and

rock identification- Seepages 6, 7 and 16.


21. Compare/contrast theprocesses in the rock cycle.

(Use ESRT p.6)


a. Any one type of rock canbe changed into any other

type of rock.


b. Many processes of therock cycle are the result of

plate motions.


c. When one plate divesbeneath another, it melts.This leads to igneous rock

formation and contactmetamorphism.


d. When plates collide,regional metamorphismoccurs due to the great

pressures exerted on largeareas.


e. Down-warping of thecrust leads to the creation

of major depositionalbasins.


UNIT II: THE DYNAMICCRUST


UNIT II: THE DYNAMIC CRUST

1. List direct/indirect evidence of crustal movement2. Describe evidence of continental drift3. Define terms regarding earthquakes4. Explain measurement of earthquake energy5. Compare & contrast earthquake waves6. Interpret inferred properties of earth’s interior using earthquake time/travel chart7. Explain the cause of plate tectonics8. Describe the types and features of plate boundaries9. Locate and identify plate boundaries and tectonic features

1. List direct/indirectevidence of crustal

movement


a. Sedimentary rocks athigh elevations suggestpast uplift of the crust.


b. Shallow-water marinefossils found today at both

high elevations and atgreat ocean depthsindicate changes in

elevation of the crust.


c. Tilted and folded rockstrata (sedimentary layers)

suggest past crustalmovement.


d. Rock faults, volcanoes,displaced strata, raisedbeaches, and changes in

bench mark elevations areall indications of crustalchange and movement.


2. Describe evidence ofcontinental drift


a. Zones of frequentearthquakes and volcanicactivity can be located onthe Earth’s surface. ex/

Ring of Fire


b. In many places thezones of crustal activity

are associated with high,young mountain ranges

and deep ocean trenches.


c. Igneous rock near thecenter of the ocean ridges

is younger than theigneous rock farther from

the ridges.


d. Mid-ocean ridges, thesites of sea-floor spreading,

are found in all majoroceans and represent morethan 20 percent of Earth's

surface.


These broad features arecharacterized by anelevated position,

extensive faulting, andvolcanic structures that

have developed on newlyformed oceanic crust.


Most of the geologicactivity associated withridges occurs along a

narrow region on the ridgecrest, called the rift zone,where magma from theasthenosphere movesupward to create new

slivers of oceanic crust.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

e. The Earth’s magnetismseems to have reverseditself many times in the

past.


Strips of rock parallel tothe ocean ridges showpatterns of reversal ofmagnetic polarity that

match the reversals of theEarth’s magnetism.


f. The shapes of thecontinents, combined withcomparisons of rocks and

minerals, mountainformations, fossils, past

climates, and rockmagnetism, suggest that…


… the continents wereattached at one time andhave since drifted apart.


3. Define terms regardingEarthquakes


a. Earthquake- the shakingof Earth's crust caused by

a sudden release ofenergy.


b. Fault- a crack in thecrust along which

movement has occurred.


c. Focus- the point withinthe Earth where an

Earthquake originates


d. Epicenter- the point onEarth’s surface directly

above the focus


4. Explain measurement ofEarthquake energy


a. Seismic wave- anEarthquake generated

wave


b. Seismology- the study ofEarthquakes


c. Seismologist- someonewho studies Earthquakes


d. Seismic station-someplace where seismicactivity is being recorded


e. Seismograph- aninstrument that detects

and records seismic waves


f. Seismogram- therecording of an Earthquake

(on paper) made by aseismograph


g. Richter scale- A scale,from 1 to 10, that

measures the amount ofenergy (magnitude)released during an

Earthquake on the basis ofthe amplitude (height of awave) of the highest peakrecorded on a seismogram.


It is a logarithmic scale,which means that a Richter3 is 10 times greater than

a Richter 2, and a Richter 4is 100 times as great as a

Richter 2.


Each unit increase in theRichter scale represents a

10X increase in theamplitude recorded on the

seismogram and a 32Xincrease in energy released

by the Earthquake:


1.0 = 30 poundsdynamite= Large Blast at a

Construction Site


1.5 = 320 poundsdynamite


2.0 = 1 ton dynamite=Large Quarry or Mine Blast


2.5 = 4.6 tons dynamite


3.0 = 29 tons dynamite


3.5 = 73 tons dynamite


4.0 = 1,000 tonsdynamite= Small Nuclear

Weapon


4.5 = 5,100 tonsdynamite= Average

Tornado (total energy)


5.0 = 32,000 tonsdynamite


5.5 = 80,000 tonsdynamite= Little Skull Mtn.,

NV Quake, 1992


6.0 = 1 million tonsdynamite= Double Spring

Flat, NV Quake, 1994


6.5 = 5 million tonsdynamite= Northridge, CA

Quake, 1994


7.0 = 32 million tonsdynamite= Japan Quake,

1995; Largest NuclearWeapon


7.5 = 160 million tonsdynamite= Landers, CA

Quake, 1992


8.0 = 1 billion tonsdynamite= San Francisco,

CA Quake, 1906


8.5 = 5 billion tonsdynamite= Anchorage, AK

Quake, 1964


9.0 = 32 billion tonsdynamite= Chilean Quake,

1960


10.0 = 1 trillion tonsdynamite= (San-Andreastype fault circling Earth)


h. Mercalli scale- a scale,from I to XII (1 to 12), of

Earthquake intensity(damage).


Scale I= Not felt except bya very few


Scale II= Felt only by afew persons on upper

floors


Scale III = Felt indoors


Scale IV = Hangingobjects swing


Scale V= Felt outdoors


Scale VI= Felt by all, manyfrightened & run outdoors


Scale VII= Difficult tostand


Scale VIII= Damage slightin specially designed

structures


Scale IX= Damageconsiderable in specially

designed structures


Scale X= Ground cracked,rails bent


Scale XI= Bridgesdestroyed, broad fissures

in ground


Scale XII= Damage total


i. Earthquakes andvolcanoes present geologichazards to humans. Loss ofproperty, personal injury,

and loss of life can bereduced by effective

emergency preparedness.


5. Compare & contrastEarthquake waves


a. P waves- Primary, orcompressional, Earthquakewaves formed by alternate

compression andexpansion of rock.


The vibration of theparticles is parallel to thedirection of travel of the

waves.


P waves travel faster thanany other seismic waves,and can travel through

solids, liquids and gases(sound waves).


b. S waves- Secondary, orshear, Earthquake waves,which can travel throughsolids, but not liquids or

gases. A seismic wave witha vibration that is

perpendicular to thedirection of wave travel.


S waves travel slower thanP waves.


6. Interpret inferredproperties of Earth’s

interior using Earthquaketime/travel chart


a. Differences in traveltimes of seismic waves canbe used to determine the

distance between a seismicstation and the epicenter

of an Earthquake.


b. Seismograms from atleast three seismic stations

are needed to find theexact location of an

epicenter.


c. The speed of a seismicwave varies with the

physical properties of thematerial through which the

wave is traveling. Ex/Waves travel faster

through denser rock.


d. Analysis of seismic dataleads to the inference thatsolid zones (crust, mantle,

and inner core) and aliquid zone (outer core)exist within the Earth.


e. The Mohorovicicdiscontinuity, or Moho, isthe boundary between the

crust and the mantle.


f. The average thickness ofthe continental crust is

greater than the averagethickness of the oceanic

crust.


g. The oceanic andcontinental crusts havedifferent compositions.

(Oceanic=mafic, basaltic,and high density;

Continental=felsic, granitic,and low density)


h. The shadow zone is abelt around the Earthwhere neither P nor S

waves are received from aparticular Earthquake.


i. Seismic data suggestthat the Earth’s core iscomposed of iron and

nickel. Denser elementssank to Earth’s center.


j. The density, temperature,and pressure of the Earth’s

interior increase withdepth.


7. Explain the cause ofplate tectonics


a. The theory of platetectonics states that thesolid lithosphere (crust

and rigid mantle) consistsof a series of plates that“float” on the partiallymolten asthenosphere

(plastic mantle).


b. Convection currentswithin the asthenosphereare thought to move the

plates.


c. Why is the Earth'sinterior hot?


The radioactive decay ofUranium (U), Thorium (Th)

and Potassium (K)


Leftover heat from Earth’sformation and meteorite

impacts


Plate friction


8. Describe the types andfeatures of plate

boundaries


a. Transform plateboundary- A boundary

between two lithosphericplates where the plates are

sliding horizontally pastone another. Ex/ San

Andreas Fault in California


b. Divergent plateboundary- A boundarywhere two lithosphericplates move away from

each other. Ex/ Mid-Atlantic Ridge


c. Convergent plateboundary- A boundarywhere two lithospheric

plates are comingtogether:


i. Oceanic-ContinentalPlate Boundary (Ex/ Peru-

Chile Trench)


ii. Oceanic-Oceanic PlateBoundary (Ex/ Aleutian

Trench)


iii. Continental-ContinentalPlate Boundary (Ex/

Himalayan Mountains)


d. Subduction Zones existat convergent plate

boundaries when one platedives down beneath

another plate. This processcreates trenches, island

arcs, and volcanicmountain ranges.


e. Hot spots- a geologic'hot spot' is an area in themiddle of a crustal platewhere magma is rising.

Hot spots are stationary asthe plates move above

them.


Magma breaks through andproduces undersea

volcanoes. Some of thesevolcanoes build up to thesurface of the ocean and

become islands. Overmillions of years the platemay move across the 'hot

spot.'The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

The original volcanobecomes extinct but a newvolcano will begin to form

in the area of the 'hotspot.' A hot spot can also

exist under the continentalcrust (Yellowstone

National Park innorthwestern Wyoming).


f. Hawaii’s Hot Spot- TheHawaiian islands get older

to the northwest,indicating that the Pacific

Plate is moving to thenorthwest.


The Hawaiian Ridge-Emperor Seamounts chainextends some 6,000 kmfrom the "Big Island" ofHawaii to the Aleutian

Trench off Alaska.


A sharp bend in the chainindicates that the motion

of the Pacific Plateabruptly changed about 43

million years ago, as ittook a more westerly turnfrom its earlier northerly

direction.


On the seafloor to thesoutheast of Hawaii is anactive volcanic area withperiodic eruptions. This

area is called Loihi and willbe the site of the next

Hawaiian Island more than10,000 years from now.


9. Locate and identify plateboundaries and tectonic

features- (See pages 5, 9and 10 in your Earth

Science Reference Tables.)


10. Understand that platemotions have resulted in

global changes ingeography, climate, andthe patterns of organic

evolution.


a. Earth looks verydifferent today than it did

in the past


b. Places near the equator(warm) today may have

been near the poles (cold)in the past, and vice versa.


c. When the platesseparated, unique life

forms were able to evolveon each continent.


UNIT III/A: SURFACEPROCESSES –

WEATHERING ANDEROSION


UNIT III/A: SURFACE PROCESSES – WEATHERING AND EROSION

1. Explain outgassing and the water cycle2. Explain the movement of water through the ground3. Compare and contrast methods of physical and chemical weathering4. List the end products of weathering5. Explain how different climates, particle sizes and composition & exposure affect weatheringprocesses6. Define and list the agents of erosion7. Understand the importance of gravity in erosional/depositional systems and give examples8. Explain the mechanism of wind erosion /deposition9. Explain the mechanism of erosion & deposition by ocean waves and currents10. Recognize features of erosional/depositional systems

1. Explain outgassing andthe water cycle


a. Outgassing is therelease of gas (watervapor, carbon dioxide,nitrogen, and lesser

amounts of other gases)from cooling molten rock

or the interior of the Earth.


b. Water vapor in theatmosphere condensed toform the oceans. Earth’s

oceans formed as a resultof precipitation over

millions of years.


The presence of an earlyocean is indicated bysedimentary rocks of

marine origin, dating backabout four billion years.


c. The water cycle is thecirculation of water fromthe surface of the Earthinto the atmosphere and

back again.


d. Precipitation mayinfiltrate the Earth’ssurface, run off, or

evaporate.


e. The release of water intothe atmosphere by plants

is called transpiration.


f. Earth has continuouslybeen recycling water since

the outgassing of waterearly in its history.


2. Explain the movement ofwater through the ground


a. Less than 3 percent ofEarth’s water is fresh, andover two thirds of that isfrozen. Most usable fresh

water is underground.


b. Infiltration can occur ifthe surface is permeable

and unsaturated, and if theslope of the land is gentle

enough.


c. The rate of infiltration isdetermined by the porosity

and permeability of thesoil.


d. Porosity is thepercentage of open space

in a sample compared withits total volume.


e. Porosity is determinedby the shape of the

particles, how they arepacked, and whether or

not they are sorted by size.


f. Size does not affectporosity. A 1000mL

container full of largebeads, and a 1000mLcontainer full of small

beads both have the sameporosity!


g. The permeability of amaterial is a measure ofthe rate at which water

can pass through it.


h. Permeability depends onpore size and on whether

or not the pores areinterconnected.


i. The permeability of loosematerials increases with

increased pore size.


j. Surface runoff can occurwhen rainfall exceeds thepermeability rate, whenthe soil is saturated, orwhen the slope of thesurface is too great to

allow time for infiltration.


k. Water moves upwardinto tiny pore spaces by

capillary action.


l. Zone of Saturation-Groundwater zone withinthe Earth's bedrock whereall available pores spacesare filled by water; foundbeneath the water table.


m. Zone of Aeration-Horizontal zone that

extends from the top of thewater table to the groundsurface; soil and rock porespaces in this zone are not

saturated with water.


n. Water Table- Topsurface of groundwater;top of zone of saturation;

the depth of the watertable depends on theclimate, season, and

location.


o. For a well to beproductive, it must extend

down below the watertable to the zone of

saturation.


3. Compare and contrastmethods of physical and

chemical weathering


a. Weathering is thephysical or chemicalbreakdown of rocks.


b. Weathering occurs whenthe lithosphere (rocks) is

exposed to the atmosphere(air) and the hydrosphere

(water).


c. Physical weatheringcauses a rock to crack or

break into pieces.


d. Physical weathering mayoccur as the result ofalternate freezing andmelting of water (frost

action), when plant rootswiden cracks (plant action),

and when the pressure ofoverlying material isremoved (pressure

unloading/exfoliation).The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

e. Chemical weatheringchanges the chemical

composition of theminerals in rocks, usually

weakening the rock.


f. Chemical weatheringmay occur when minerals

react with oxygen(oxidation), carbonic acid(carbonation), and water

(hydrolysis).


4. List the end products ofweathering


a. Weathering breaks downrocks into particles of

many sizes (clay, silt, sand,pebbles, cobbles, boulders)


b. Soil is a mixture of rockand organic material

(humus).


c. Soils are the result ofweathering and biologicalactivity over long periods

of time.


d. A mature soil profileshows three distinct

horizons. The A-horizon(topsoil) is dark and rich in

humus. The B-horizon(subsoil) is lighter in color,

has more clay, and lesshumus.


The C-horizon is made ofslightly weathered bedrock(rock fragments). Beneaththe three horizons is theunweathered bedrock.


e. Soils may be residual(form from underlying

bedrock) or transported(form from sediments that

have been carried fromsome other place).


5. Explain how differentclimates, particle sizes and

composition & exposureaffect weathering

processes


a. At high latitudes andhigh altitudes, where it is

cold and humid, frostaction is the major form of

weathering.


b. In warm and humidclimates chemical

weathering is mostimportant.


c. In dry climates, verylittle weathering takes

place.


d. Local climatic conditions(winds, nearness to cities,etc.) can affect the rate of

weathering.


e. Small rock particles willweather faster than a

single large sample of thesame mass because moresurface area is exposed by

the small particles.


f. Rocks containing moreresistant minerals will

weather at a slower rate.


g. Rocks that are notexposed to the atmosphere

and hydrosphere willweather at the slowest

rate.


6. Define and list theagents of erosion


a. Erosion is the movementof sediments from one

place to another.


b. Whatever is movingsediments is an agent of

erosion.


c. Most sediments on Earthare transported (have been

moved).


d. Running water is by farthe most important agent

of erosion.


e. Minor agents areglaciers, the wind, andwaves breaking against

the coast.


f. Gravity may act alone asan agent of erosion.


7. Understand theimportance of gravity inerosional/depositional

systems and give examples


a. Gravity is the maindriving force of erosion.


b. Mass Movement-General term that

describes the downslopemovement of sediment,soil, and rock material.


c. Landslides- a generalterm for the downslopemovement of sedimentsunder the influence of

gravity.


d. Slumping- thedownslope movement ofmaterial on a curved slip

surface.


e. Hillside creep- the slowmovement of sediments

downslope under theinfluence of gravity.


8. Explain the mechanismof wind erosion

/deposition


a. Erosion of sediments bywind is most common inarid climates and along

shorelines.


b. Wind-generatedfeatures include dunes and

sand-blasted bedrock.


c. Wind can transportsediment the size of sand

or smaller.


d. Wind can create featureslike sand dunes in deserts

and on beaches. Sanddunes are steeper on the

leeward side.


e. Dunes migrate as sandfrom the windward side

blows over to the leewardside.


f. Sediments eroded bywind are often rounded,and under magnification,

have frosted surfaces.


g. Wind-depositedsediments usually consist

of well-sorted, smallparticles in layers that may

be tilted.


h. Cross-bedding maydevelop when sedimentsare deposited by the wind

in leaning positions onsand dunes.


9. Explain the mechanismof erosion & deposition byocean waves and currents


a. Wave action haserosional affects on

shoreline rocks and onbeaches.


b. Most waves result fromwinds.


c. Swash- motion of waterup the beach


d. Backwash- motion of thewater running back down

the beach


e. Longshore current- acurrent that flows parallelto the shoreline, caused bywaves moving towards the

beach at an angle.


f. Longshore Drift- Themovement and deposition

of coastal sedimentsparallel to the beachbecause of longshore

currents.


g. Rip currents- strongsurface currents that flow

away from the beach.


h. Density currents resultwhen water in an area of

the ocean has becomedenser than the wateraround it. The denser

water moves beneath theless dense water forming a

current.


i. Sandbar- a bar of sandformed by ocean currentsdepositing sand near the

shore.


j. Spit- A long and narrowaccumulation of sand

and/or gravel that projectsinto a body of ocean water,attached at one end to the

beach.


k. Baymouth bar- a narrowdeposit of sand and/orgravel found across the

mouth of a bay.


l. Hook- A spit with acurved end.


m. Barrier island- a narrow,sandy coastal island builtthrough wave action and

separated from themainland. Such islands

form a barrier that protectsthe shore from the open

sea.


They are easily floodedduring storms or high

water, and are constantlyin the process of being

created, shifted, ordestroyed by wind and

waves.


10. Recognize features oferosional/depositional

systems.


a. You should be able toidentify the agent of

erosion responsible for theformation of the featureslisted above (dunes, spits,

etc.).


b. In certain erosionalsituations, loss of property,personal injury, and loss of

life can be reduced byeffective emergency

preparedness.


UNIT III/B: SURFACEPROCESSES – EROSIONAL-DEPOSITIONAL SYSTEMS


UNIT III/B: SURFACE PROCESSES – EROSIONAL-DEPOSITIONAL SYSTEMS

1. Define and calculate gradient2. Explain the factors that affect stream velocity and particle transport3. Describe the stages of stream development4. Compare & contrast factors which affect rates of deposition such as density, shape, size andenergy loss5. Describe horizontal and vertical sorting6. Differentiate between deltas & alluvial fans7. Explain glacier formation8. Recognize types and parts of glaciers9. Describe glacial motion10. Understand the erosional & depositional effect of glaciation on landscapes11. Recognize glacial erosional/depositional features12. Explain the effect of the Ice Ages on NYS

1. Define and calculategradient


a. Gradient- The steepnessof a slope.


b. Field Value- Informationmeasured at a specific

location (elevation,temperature, wind speed,

pressure, etc.)


c. Gradient can becalculated by dividing thechange in field value (ex/difference in elevation) bythe distance between the

two points where thevalues were measured.


d. Units such as m/kmmust be used.


2. Explain the factors thataffect stream velocity and

particle transport


a. Every steam and itsbranches make up a singlesystem that collects all the

runoff within a definitearea called the drainage

basin of the system.


b. A stream systemconsists of running water,the land surface it drains,the sediment it transports,

and the energy used todrive it.


c. As the gradient (slope)of the stream bed

increases, the averagevelocity of the stream

increases.


d. An increase in thedischarge (the volume of

water flowing past a givenpoint in a stream in a given

amount of time) of astream increases its

average velocity.


e. Streams transportsediments in solution

(dissolved salt), insuspension (silt and clay),by bouncing (sand), and

rolling or sliding (pebbles,cobbles and boulders).


f. The size of the sedimentsthat a stream can transport

increases as the velocityincreases (see ESRT p.6).


g. The total amount ofsediment that a stream cantransport increases as its

discharge increases.


h. Sediments transportedby streams tend to become

rounded as a result ofabrasion.


3. Describe the stages ofstream development


a. Youthful streamscarrying sediments downsteep gradients can cutthrough solid bedrock.


b. When youthful, streamshave V-shaped valleys.


c. In the stage of maturitythe valley of a stream

widens. The stream ceasesto cut through bedrock.


d. In old age, the streamdevelops a wide flood plain,across which it wanders in

a series of curves, ormeanders.


e. Erosion occurs on theouter curve of a meander,where the water is faster.


f. Deposition occurs on theinner curve of a meander,where the water is slower.


g. A cutoff occurs when ameander has almost

formed a complete loop,and the narrow neck ofland is eroded in flood

conditions, allowing theriver to by-pass the bend.


h. Oxbow Lake- a crescent-shaped lake formed when

a river meander getscompletely cut off from the

river.


4. Compare & contrastfactors which affect rates

of deposition such asdensity, shape, size and

energy loss


a. The processes by whichtransported materials areleft in new locations are

called deposition(sedimentation).


b. Rock particles that aretransported by erosional

processes are calledsediments.


c. As the velocity of astream decreases,sediments will be

deposited.


d. If all factors other thansize are equal, smallerparticles settle more

slowly in water than largerparticles.


e. Very small particles,such as clay, may remain

suspended in waterindefinitely.


f. If all factors other thanshape are equal, flatter

particles settle moreslowly in water thanrounded particles.


g. If all factors other thandensity are equal, particlesof higher density settle inwater faster than particles

of lower density.


5. Describe horizontal andvertical sorting


a. Patterns of depositionresult from a loss ofenergy within the

transporting system andare influenced by the size,shape, and density of the

transported particles.


b. When several events ofdeposition occur in quietwater, each involving amixture of sediments,

vertical sorting will takeplace and graded beds ofsediment will be formed.


c. As a stream graduallyslows down, it deposits the

larger, rounder, denserparticles first, upstream.


Smaller sediments arecarried farther

downstream. The smallestparticles are carried the

farthest, eventually to theocean.


This separation ofsediment sizes from

upstream to downstream iscalled horizontal sorting.


6. Differentiate betweendeltas & alluvial fans


a. A delta is a fan-shapeddeposit of sediment formed

where a stream or riverenters a quiet body ofwater, due a sudden

decrease in the velocity ofthe water.


b. An alluvial fan is a fan-like accumulation of

sediment created where asteep stream slows down

rapidly as it reaches arelatively flat valley floor.


7. Explain glacierformation


a. A glacier is a large massof snow and ice that is

moving because of gravity.


b. Glaciers occur where theamount of snowfall is

greater than the amountthat melts over many

years.


c. Glaciers are found onlyin polar regions and at

high altitudes.


8. Recognize types andparts of glaciers


a. Valley or alpine glaciersare found in mountain

areas where they usuallyfollow valleys that wereoriginally occupied by

streams.


b. Ice sheets or continentalglaciers exist on a much

larger scale, covering mostof Greenland and

Antarctica.


c. Front- The leading edgeof a glacier.


d. Crevasse- a crack in theglacial ice.


e. Tongue- At or near thecoast, some glaciers flow

directly into the ocean anddevelop floating

extensions, called "glaciertongues."


9. Describe glacial motion


a. Glaciers flow slowlydownhill and outward

under the force of gravity.


b. Research suggests thatmelting ice on the bottom

of a glacier lubricatesmovement.


c. Glaciers move fastestnear the center, away from

the friction of the valleywalls.


10. Understand theerosional & depositional

effect of glaciation onlandscapes


a. Glaciers leave behind U-shaped valleys.


b. Most glaciers push, carry,and drag great quantitiesof sediment known as till.The glaciers that shaped

New York State must havemoved huge amounts of

unsorted sediment.


c. Glacial deposits containmixed (unsorted) sizes of

sediments from clay tohuge boulders (erratics).The great sizes of some

erratics (like Indian Rockin Suffern) show thetremendous power of

moving ice.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

d. Glacial ice erodes solidrock by abrasion as the icedrags rocks over exposed

bedrock.


e. Glacial erosion of NewYork's highest mountainsshows that the ice was at

least a mile thick.


f. Erratics traceable tobedrock exposures in thenorth show the general

direction of ice flow. Somerock types are so distinctthat their origins can be

identified very confidently.


Many boulders in our areacome from the Adirondacks

and Canada.


g. Glacial erosion hasproduced characteristic

features throughout NewYork State such as north-south valleys, and thin,

rocky soils.


11. Recognize glacialerosional/depositional

features


a. Esker- a long, windingridge formed when sand

and gravel were depositedin meltwater tunnels

beneath a glacier.


b. Moraines- sedimentsdeposited beneath, alongthe sides, and/or at the

end of a glacier.


c. Kettle- a depressioncreated by the melting of a

large chunk of ice leftburied in the ground by aretreating glacier. The iceprevents sediment fromcollecting; when the ice

melts a lake or swamp mayfill the depression.


d. Drumlin- a long, canoe-shaped hill made of

unsorted sediments andshaped by an advancing

glacier. Drumlins point inthe direction of glacier

movement. The steep sideof a drumlin faces in thedirection from which the

glacier came.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

e. Glacial polish- a smoothpolish on bedrock created

when fine particlestransported at the base of

a glacier abrade thebedrock.


f. Glacial striation- parallelgrooves and scratches in

bedrock that form as rocksare dragged along at the

base of a glacier.


g. Outwash plain- asmooth plain covered by

deposits from waterflowing from melting

glaciers.


h. Glacial Valley (Glacialtrough)- a U-shaped valleyformed by glacial erosion.


i. Hanging valleys- asmaller valley that enters amain valley at an elevation

well above the mainvalley's floor. Hanging

valleys are often the sitesof spectacular waterfalls.


j. Cirque- a deep, steep-walled hollow on a

mountainside in which analpine glacier forms. The

walls and floor of thecirque are carved by glacialice to form a bowl shape.


k. Arête- a sharp narrowridge between neighboring

valleys.


l. Horn- a sharp, pyramid-shaped mountain peakwhere three or more

cirques intersect near thesummit. The Matterhorn ofthe Swiss Alps was formed

in this manner.


m. Fiord (fjord)- a long,deep, narrow inlet of the

sea bounded by steepwalls, generally formed bysubmergence of a glacially

eroded valley.


In the book "RoadsideGeology of New York" by

Bradford B. Van Diver, theauthor documents:


"The Hudson River has cuta narrow, 15-mile long

gorge through the rangebetween Peekskill and

Newburgh that served as achannelway for ice erosion

during Pleistoceneglaciation.


The gorge is a true fjord,like those of the

Norwegian coast, aglacially-gouged valley

now invaded by the sea,and through which daily

tides reach 160 milesinland to Troy!")


12. Explain the effect ofthe Ice Ages on NYS


a. Layer upon layer ofweathered till show thatthere have been several

major periods of glaciationin recent geologic past.


New York has beencovered by thick ice

repeatedly in thePleistocene Epoch (1.6mya). We live within a

period ofglacial/interglacial

alternations.


b. The Ice Ages resulted inmajor ecological changesand very different plant

and animal communities.The natural environment ofNew York State might have

looked like the tundra ofnorthern Canada, Alaska,

and Siberia.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

c. Nearly all of New YorkState displays evidence ofglaciation. Soils covering

most of New York State arecomposed of weathered till.Only the Allegheny regionand southern Long Island

may have escapedcovering ice.


d. Fossil and geologicevidence indicates periodic

changes in sea levelcoinciding with the

advancing and retreatingice sheets.


Terrestrial fossils of thePleistocene Epoch have

been found on thecontinental shelf off Long

Island.


e. Modern glacierspreserve samples of the

atmosphere and dust fromthe distant past. Modern

studies of current glaciersare used to investigate

prehistoric conditions onour planet.


Air samples, pollen, dustand meteorites are

regularly collected fromthe surface and deepwithin (core samples)

major glaciers.


f. The Ice Ages left anabundance of sand and

gravel as a naturalresource. Sand and gravelare our most economically

important geologicalresource in New York

State.


g. The Finger Lakes wereformed by glaciation.


UNIT IV: LANDFORMS ANDTOPOGRAPHIC MAPS


UNIT IV: LANDFORMS AND TOPOGRAPHIC MAPS

1. Understand how landscapes are classified2. Identify NYS landscape regions3. Interpret and apply isolines on topographic maps4. Draw profiles of topographic maps, calculate gradient and draw isolines5. Define uplift and leveling events6. Compare/contrast bedrock structure for mountains, plateaus and plains7. Explain the effect of climate on landscape development8. Identify the main watersheds/drainage basins of NYS and the USA9. How does human population growth affect pollution10. Discuss efforts to restore the environment

1. Understand howlandscapes are classified


a. Landscapes are areas ofland that are recognized by

their features (rugged,rolling, mountainous, flat,

high, low-lying, etc.).


b. Mountains (Highlands)-at least 300 meters above

the surrounding land.


c. Plateaus (Uplands)-large areas of flat land at

high elevation.


d. Plains (Lowlands)- largeareas of flat land at low

elevations.


e. Landforms are the resultof the interaction of

tectonic forces and theprocesses of weathering,erosion, and deposition.


2. Identify NYS landscaperegions (see ESRT p.2)


a. Atlantic Coastal Plain-the low, wide plain alongthe east coast of North

America, including StatenIsland and Long Island in

New York…


horizontal sedimentaryrocks; near sea level; Long

island consists of glacialdeposits; waves and oceancurrents have shaped the

shoreline.


b. Newark Lowlands(“DINOSAUR COUNTRY” -HOME OF EAST RAMAPO

CSD)- This region iscomposed of weak

sedimentary rocks datingfrom the Age of Dinosaurs

(Late Triassic-EarlyJurassic).


Footprints of Coelophysis,a meat-eating dinosaur

about three meters long,were found near Nyack in

Rockland County. Dinosaurfossils have not been found

in any other part of NewYork.


A volcanic intrusion calledthe Palisades Sill borders

the Hudson River. Becauseof its greater resistance, itforms a cliff that ranges upto more than 150 meters

above sea level.


c. Hudson Highlands-eroded roots of ancient

Precambrian mountains;metamorphic rocks used tobe sedimentary; part of the

New England Highlands;northwestern Rockland

County.


d. Manhattan Prong- theregion underlain by

metamorphic rocks in theNew York City-

Westchester County area.


e. Taconic Mountains-Highlands in eastern New

York and western NewEngland; highly folded andfaulted metamorphic rocks.


f. Hudson-MohawkLowlands- covers most ofHudson and Mohawk Rivervalleys; soft sedimentary

rocks.


g. Alleghany Plateau-northern end of

Appalachian Plateau;uplifted horizontalsedimentary rocks

deposited in a warmshallow sea that coveredmuch of New York Stateduring the Late Silurian

and Devonian.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

h. Erie-Ontario Lowlands-low, flat areas north and

west of the AlleghanyPlateau; horizontal

sedimentary rocks coveredby many glacial deposits.


i. Tug Hill Plateau-resistant horizontal

sedimentary rocks; one ofthe snowiest regions westof the Rocky Mountains;receives twenty feet of

snow annually.


j. Adirondack Mountains- acircular region that is partof the Grenville Province;Precambrian mountains

composed mostly ofmetamorphic rocks.


k. St. Lawrence andChamplain Lowlands- partof the Interior Lowlandsthat extend west throughthe Great Plains; mostlyhorizontal sedimentary

rock.


l. The Catskills- a deeplyeroded section of the

Alleghany Plateau; not truemountains.


3. Interpret and applyisolines on topographic

maps


a. The latitude-longitudesystem is a coordinate

system using two sets oflines that make a grid

covering Earth’s surface.


b. Earth’s coordinatesystem of latitude and

longitude, with the equatorand prime meridian as

reference lines, is basedupon Earth’s rotation andour observation of the Sun

and stars.


c. The east-west lines areparallels of latitude.


d. The north-south linesare meridians of longitude.


e. Latitude is ameasurement of angular

distance north or south ofthe equator.


f. Longitude is ameasurement of angulardistance east or west of

the prime meridian.


g. A topographic or contourmap is a map showing theelevations of a portion of

the Earth’s surface.


h. The contour lines on acontour map pass throughpoints that have the same

elevation.


i. Where contour lines areclosely spaced, the

gradient, or slope, of thesurface is steep.


j. Where contour lines arewidely spaced, the

gradient or slope is gradual(gentle).


k. A perfectly flat area hasno contour lines at all.


l. The contour interval isthe change in elevationbetween neighboring

contour lines.


m. Every contour lineencloses a definite area.

There are no loose or freeends dangling in mid-air.


n. When you approach aclosed contour from theoutside, you are going

uphill.


o. When you leave an areaenclosed by a contour line,

you are going downhill.


p. A contour line nevercrosses itself or any othercontour lines. They may

appear to touch on avertical slope, cliff, or

overhang.


q. Depressions in the landare shown by hachured

contour lines. The hachurelines point toward theinside of the hole. A

depression contour linealways has the same

elevation as the lower ofthe neighboring contour

lines.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

r. Contour lines pointupstream when they crossa stream or river. If the Vis sharp, the river valley

has steep walls.


4. Draw profiles oftopographic maps,

calculate gradient anddraw isolines


a. A profile shows thechanges in elevation (ups

and downs) of a line acrossany part of a contour map.


b. Place the edge of asheet of paper along the

line to be followed.


c. At each point where theline crosses a contour,

make a mark on the edgeof the paper.


d. Record the height of thecontour next to its mark on

the paper.


e. When all points aremarked, use the vertical

scale to raise each point toits proper height on the

graph or lined paper.


f. Finally, draw a smoothcurve connecting the

points.


g. Gradient (ESRT p. 1) canbe calculated by dividing

the difference in elevationby the distance betweenthe two points where the

elevations were measured.(Unit=m/km)


h. Contour lines (isolinesconnecting points of equalelevation) can be drawn on

a map by following thecontour line rules above

(3.g.-3.q.)


5. Define uplift andleveling events


a. Leveling orDestructional Forces-forces of weathering,

erosion, and deposition,which are reducing slopes

and making the surfacehorizontal. These forcesare acting constantly tobring the land down to a

uniform, flat surface.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

b. Uplifting orConstructional Forces-

forces, operating beneaththe surface, that undo the

work of leveling forces.Uplifting tends to increase

elevations and also toroughen, or increase the

relief of, the surface.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

Ex/ volcanic activity,isostasy (the verticalreadjustment of the

surface of the Earth due tothe addition or removal of

weight; the lithospherefloats on the

asthenosphere as aniceberg floats on water), …


… Earthquakes, seafloorspreading and continental

drift.


c. In a particular landscape,one of these forces may bedominant (occurring at a

faster rate).


d. In some places, therates of uplift and leveling

may be approximatelyequal, and the landscape

will be in a state ofdynamic equilibrium…


Dynamic equilibrium is asituation in which changes

are occurring, but abalance among the

changes keeps the overallconditions the same.


6. Compare/contrastbedrock structure for

mountains, plateaus andplains


a. Mountains usually havefolded or faulted rock

structure due to crustalmovements.


b. Plateaus usually havehorizontal rock structure

that was uplifted.


c. Plains are usuallyformed by the depositionof sediments in horizontal

layers at or below sealevel.


7. Explain the effect ofclimate on landscape

development


a. Arid (dry) landscapes-steep slopes, sharp and

angular landscape features;little vegetation to hold

sediments in place.


b. Humid landscapes-smoother and morerounded landscape

features; sediments arebetter held in place by

vegetation.


8. Identify the mainwatersheds/drainage

basins of NYS and the USA


a. The land area whereprecipitation runs off intostreams, rivers, lakes, and

reservoirs is called awatershed, or drainage

basin.


b. Watersheds can beidentified by tracing a line

along the highestelevations between twoareas on a map, often a

ridge.


c. Drainage basins come in allsizes, from the size of a book

(think about a littledepression that collects waterafter a rain) to thousands ofsquare miles (the area into

which water that falls drainsinto the Mississippi River).The Mississippi River basin

covers 48% of mainlandUnited States.


d. Divide- The ridge thatseparates drainage basins.


e. Continental Divide- Animaginary boundary line

that runs north-southalong the crest of the

Rocky Mountains,separating river and

drainage basins that flowwest to the Pacific Oceanfrom those that flow east

to the Atlantic Ocean.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

f. New York has manywatersheds: Long IslandSound Basin, DelawareRiver Basin, Hudson-

Mohawk River Basin, LakeChamplain River Basin, St.Lawrence River Basin, Lake

Ontario Basin,


… Lake Ontario Basin, LakeErie/Niagara River Basin,Susquehanna-Chesapeake

River Basin, Allegheny-Ohio River Basin (part of

The Mississippi River Basin:Water from here

eventually flows to theGulf of Mexico!), etc.


g. Drainage Pattern- thegeometric pattern that astream's channels take in

the landscape. Thesepatterns are controlled by

factors such as slope,climate, vegetation, and

bedrock resistance toerosion.


h. Dendritic DrainagePattern- resembles the

pattern of a branching tree;forms on horizontal strata.


i. Radial Drainage Pattern-a system of streams

running in all directionsaway from a central

elevated structure, such asa volcano.


j. Trellis Drainage Pattern-nearly parallel streamsoccupy valleys cut in

folded strata.


k. Rectangular DrainagePattern- numerous rightangle bends that develop

on faulted strata.


9. How does humanpopulation growth affect

pollution


a. Typically, higherpopulations result in more

pollution.


b. The results of humanactivities may be beneficialat first, but the long-termaffects are often harmful.


c. Excavation andagriculture often exposethe surface to agents oferosion and introduce

pollutants to theenvironment.


d. Highway constructioncan disrupt groundwater

flow and surface drainage.


e. Man-made chemicalscommonly pollute

groundwater and streams.


10. Discuss efforts torestore the environment


a. Certain measures, likecontour farming (each crop

row is planted across,rather than up and down,the slope, following thecontours of the land)…


crop rotation (alternating,every year, which crops

will grow in a certainarea)…


terracing (shaping a slopewith a series of “steps”.

The steps allow forplanting on level areas and

reduce the potential forerosion across a steep

slope)…


windbreaks (wind barriersof living trees and shrubs

planted to block wind flow,reducing soil erosion)…


and strip cropping (a cropthat leaves bare ground

between rows is alternatedwith a crop that completely

covers the ground), helpminimize erosion.


b. Wastewater treatmentfacilities can help reclaimor protect water quality.


c. Groundwater levels canbe maintained and surface

runoff controlled andconserved through the use

of such devices asrecharge basins, dams, and

stream bank protectors.


d. Sanitary landfillmethods can help reduce

the negative effects ofsolid-waste disposal, and

can be used to reclaimunusable areas for

recreational purposes.



1. Learn to sequence and correlate rocks using such rules as superposition, originalhorizontality, cross cutting relationships, included fragments, etc.2. Recognize unconformities, their formation and significance.3. Describe the processes of fossil formation.4. Understand how to interpret paleoclimate and environment from fossil evidence.5. Locate and interpret the fossil record and geologic history of New York State using theESRT.6. Understand that geologic time is determined by the fossil record.7. Understand that fossils reveal the process of evolution.8. Explain the significance of index fossils and volcanic ash in correlation.9. Understand that unconformities reveal an incomplete rock record.10. Understand that subsidence/ submergence leads to deposition; uplift/emergenceleads to erosion.11. Explain how radioactive decay causes heating in the earth’s interior.12. Using the ESRT, understand half-life as a tool for measuring actual age.13. Explain how the age of the earth has been determined.14. Know the evidence of past tectonic activity and interpret the sequence of platemotions using the ESRT.

1. Learn to sequence andcorrelate rocks using such

rules as superposition,original horizontality, cross

cutting relationships,included fragments, etc.


a. Relative dating is anattempt to put geologic

events or structures intoproper chronological order.


b. The Principal ofUniformitarianism states

that the geologic processesthat occurred in the pastare basically the same asthose that are occurring

now.


c. Original Horizontality-sedimentary rocksgenerally form in

horizontal layers, with newlayers forming on top of

existing layers.


d. The Principle ofSuperposition states that

the bottom layer of aseries of sedimentary

layers is oldest, unless theseries has been overturned

or has had older rockthrust over it.


e. Rock layers are olderthan igneous intrusionsthat cut through them or

igneous extrusions that areabove them.


f. Rocks are older thanfaults, joints, folds, or

veins that appear in them.


g. Fragments of unmeltedmaterial occurring within a

rock are older than therock.


h. In sedimentary rocks,the sediments are older

than the cements (matrix)that bind them and therock formation itself.


i. Correlation is the processof showing that rocks or

geologic events occurringat different locations are of

the same age.


j. In correlation, rocklayers may be traced from

one location to anotherdirectly by “walking the

outcrop,” thus showing thecontinuity of layers.


k. Rocks may be correlatedon the basis of similarities

in appearance, composition,and position in relation to

other layers.


2. Recognizeunconformities, their

formation and significance.


a. An unconformity is aburied erosional surface.


b. Where the surface hasbeen eroded away, there is

a gap, in the rock layer.


3. Describe the processesof fossil formation.


a. Fossils are the remainsor impressions of ancient

plants and animals.


b. Petrification- theprocess of turning plantmaterial into stone byinfiltration with water

carrying mineral particleswithout changing theoriginal shape; ex/

petrified wood


c. Carbonization- theweight of the sedimentssqueezes out the water

and gas from plant matterand leaves an imprint of

carbon.


d. Impressions- molds; ex/indentations left behind in

mud


e. Casts- a replica of anorganism created when

minerals use the organismas a mold to create thereplica. For example, ashell fills with minerals,the shell dissolves away

and the cast (inside of theshell) is left behind.


f. Preservation in amber- ahard, translucent, yellow,

orange, or brownish-yellow fossil resin.


Formed from hardened sap,resin, or gum from conifers(ex/pine trees); amber is a

valuable fossil record ofancient plants and animals- many species have been

found trapped insideamber chunks dating over

hundred of millions yrs old.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

g. Tracks- ex/ footprints


h. Burrows- tunnels orholes that small animals

dig in the ground; anexcellent last name.


i. Fossils are found insedimentary rocks.


j. The special conditionsthat favor preservation are

rapid burial and thepossession of hard partssuch as shells, bones, or

teeth.


4. Understand how tointerpret paleoclimate and

environment from fossilevidence.


a. Fossils in rocks provideinformation about the

environment in which theyformed.


b. Animals and plants thatlive in the ocean are verydifferent from those thatlive on land. The same istrue for fossils of ancient

life forms.


c. The presence of marinefossils at high elevationsindicates that uplift has

occurred.


d. The presence of shallowwater marine fossils at

great depths indicates thatsubsidence has occurred.


e. The presence of fossilcoral indicates that there

was once a shallowtropical sea. Coral needs

warm, shallow, clear, saltywater to live (not too

salty).


5. Locate and interpret thefossil record and geologichistory of New York State

using the ESRT (pages2,3,8 and 9).


a. You should be able todetermine the age the

rocks at any location in NY.


b. You should be able todetermine where specific

fossils may be found in NY.


c. You should be able todetermine when importantgeologic events occurred in

NY.


6. Understand thatgeologic time is

determined by the fossilrecord.


a. Long before geologistshad the means to

recognize and express timein numbers of years before

the present, theydeveloped the geologic

time scale.


b. Geologists have dividedthe Earth's history into

time units based upon thefossil record. These unitsof time often begin and

end with major extinctions.


c. The geologic time scaleis commonly presented inchart form, with the oldest

time and event at thebottom and the youngest

at the top.


d. Units of time, fromlargest to smallest: Eons,

Eras, Periods, Epochs.


e. The largest units of thegeologic time scale are calledeons. Together, the Archean

(Greek “ancient”) andProterozoic (Greek “earlier

life”) are commonly referredto as the Precambrian. ThePhanerozoic (Greek “visible

life") began about 544 millionyears ago.


f. The Phanerozoic eon isdivided into the followingeras: Paleozoic ("ancientlife"), Mesozoic ("middlelife" – Age of Reptiles),and Cenozoic ("recent

life").


g. Periods:


Quaternary Period andTertiary Period- The

several geologic eras wereoriginally named Primary,Secondary, Tertiary, and

Quaternary.


The first two names are nolonger used. Tertiary and

Quaternary have beenretained but used as period

designations.


Neogene- An Age ofGrasses


Paleogene- The Early Ageof Mammals


Cretaceous- NewDinosaurs - Flowering

Plants - Derived from Latinword for chalk (creta) andfirst applied to extensivedeposits that form whitecliffs along the English

Channel.


Jurassic Period- TheTriumph of the Dinosaurs-

Named for the JuraMountains, located

between France andSwitzerland, where rocks

of this age were firststudied


Triassic Period- Takenfrom the word “trias” inrecognition of the three

distinct layers within theserocks in Germany.


Permian Period- Namedafter the province of Perm,Russia, where these rocks

were first studied.


Carboniferous- means“coal bearing.” It is the

age of great forests.


Pennsylvanian Period-Named for the State of

Pennsylvania where theserocks have produced much

coal.


Mississippian Period-Named for the MississippiRiver Valley where theserocks are well exposed.


Devonian Period- "the ageof fishes" Named afterDevonshire, England,

where these rocks werefirst studied.


Silurian and OrdovicianPeriods- Named after Celtictribes, the Silures and the

Ordovices that lived inWales during the Roman

Conquest.


Cambrian Period- Takenfrom the Roman name forWales (Cambria) where

rocks containing theearliest evidence of

complex forms of life werefirst studied.


h. If you pretend thatEarth’s history took place

in a single day, eachminute on this twenty-fourhour clock would represent

about 3 million years:


Midnight (4.6 billion yearsago) — Earth forms from

cosmic dust


3:20 A.M. (3.96 billionyears ago) — age of oldest

rock ever found


9:23 P.M. (500 millionyears ago) — first animals

with backbones


11:00 P.M. (190 millionyears ago) — age of the

dinosaurs


11:35 P.M. (80 millionyears ago) — Rocky

Mountains start to form


11:58 P.M. (6 millionyears ago) — small stream

begins carving GrandCanyon


11:59 P.M. and 26 sec.(1.8 million years ago) —earliest humans appear


11:59 P.M. and 45 sec.(750 thousand years ago)— humans begin using fire


11:59 P.M. and 59 sec. (20thousand years ago) — last

Ice Age


i. You should be able todate rocks based upon thefossils within them using

the ESRT.


7. Understand that fossilsreveal the process of

evolution.


a. If we begin at thepresent and examine older

and older layers of rock,we will come to a level

where no fossils of humansare present.


b. If we continuebackwards in time, we willsuccessively come to levels

where no fossils offlowering plants arepresent, no birds, no

mammals, no reptiles, nofour-footed vertebrates, noland plants, no fishes, noshells, and no animals.


c. Evolution- the processby which all forms of plant

and animal life changeslowly over time becauseof slight variations in the

genes that one generationpasses down to the next…


Living beings havechanged through time andolder species are ancestors

of younger ones.


d. The pattern of evolutionof life-forms on Earth is atleast partially preserved in

the rock record.


e. Fossil evidence indicatesthat a wide variety of life-forms has existed in the

past and that most of theseforms have become

extinct.


f. Human existence hasbeen very brief comparedto the expanse of geologic

time.


8. Explain the significanceof index fossils and

volcanic ash in correlation.


a. Index fossils are theremains or imprints of

organisms that existed fora relatively short period of

time, but were widelydistributed over the Earth.They identify and date thelayers in which they are

found.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

b. Layers of volcanic ash inrock can be useful in

correlation because theywere deposited over a

large area in a very shortperiod of time.


c. An excess of the elementiridium, discovered in alayer of rocks formed at

the end of the Cretaceousperiod 65 million years ago,

suggests that an asteroidstruck the Earth at that

time.


The consequences of theimpact may have played a

role in the Cretaceousextinctions. This layer,

called the K-T Boundary,can be used to correlate

rock layers.


9. Understand thatunconformities reveal anincomplete rock record.


a. If rock layers are erodedaway, there is a gap in the

rock record.


b. Information is missingwhere unconformities are

found.


10. Understand thatsubsidence/ submergence

leads to deposition;uplift/emergence leads to

erosion.


a. When land subsides(lowers) or submerges(drops under water),deposited sediments

usually begin to build up.


b. The presence ofsedimentary rocks

indicates that subsidenceor submergence hasoccurred in the past.


c. When rocks are upliftedout of the water

(emergence), they areexposed to the agents ofweathering and erosion.


d. The presence of erosionor an unconformity

indicates that the crustuplifted/emerged in the

past.


11. Explain howradioactive decay causes

heating in the Earth’sinterior.


a. Most of Earth’s internalheat is created by thedecay of radioactiveelements that were

trapped in the interiorwhen the Earth first

formed.


These elements (forexample Uranium, Thorium,Cesium and many others)spontaneously split apartinto smaller elements andrelease energetic particlesin a nuclear process called

fission.


The energetic particlesreleased by fission collide

with other atoms andproduce heat.


b. The Earth can bethought of as a giantfission battery that is

slowly running down as ituses up its original chargeof radioactive elements.


Eventually (in a couple ofbillion years), the Earth’sinterior will cool and the

planet will becomegeologically dead - as the

Moon is today.


12. Using the ESRT,understand half-life as atool for measuring actual

age. (see ESRT p.1)


a. Some rocks containelements with atomicnuclei that undergospontaneous decay

(decrease of a radioactivesubstance).


b. An unstable radioactiveisotope, called the parent,will decay and form stable

daughter products.


c. The length of time forone-half of the nuclei of a

radioactive isotope todecay is called the half-life

of the isotope.


d. If the half-life of theisotope is known, and theparent/daughter ratio canbe measured, the age of asample can be calculated.

A table of half-lives ofcommonly used

radioisotopes is in theReference Tables.


e. The absolute age of arock can be determined

from the relative amountsof a radioisotope and its

decay product.


f. Each radioactive isotopehas unique properties and

uses. Carbon-14, theradioactive isotope of

carbon that is absorbed byliving matter, is used to

date very recent events. Itcan only be used to date

thing that were once living,recently.


g. Other elements occur inigneous and metamorphic

rocks.


h. Since sedimentary rockscontain pieces of other

rocks, they are difficult todate radioactively.


13. Explain how the age ofthe Earth has been

determined.


a. The oldest known rockson Earth have been dated

radiometrically at 3.96billion years, and the

oldest individual crystals at4.3 billion years.


b. Scientists believe thatthe Earth is older than this,

but that more ancientrocks did not survive themolten conditions that

prevailed after the planet'sbirth.


c. The oldest Moon rockshave been dated at about4.5 billion years, and the

oldest meteorites at 4.5 to4.6 billion years.


d. On the basis of theseresults, along with

calculations concerningradioisotopes in meteoritesand in the Earth, scientists

have concluded that theentire Solar System,

including Earth and all theother planets, formed

about 4.6 billion years ago.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

14. Know the evidence ofpast tectonic activity andinterpret the sequence ofplate motions using the

ESRT. (ESRT p.9)


UNIT VI/A: METEOROLOGY– ATMOSPHERIC

VARIABLES


UNIT VI/A: METEOROLOGY – ATMOSPHERIC VARIABLES

1. Explain how outgassing formed the earth’s original atmosphere and how it evolved throughtime.2. Describe the various temperature zones of the atmosphere and be able to interpret theESRT chart/graph on the atmosphere.3. Understand and interpret the various temperature scales using the ESRT.4. Understand that the sun is the earth’s main energy source.5. Understand how a barometer measures air pressure.6. Describe how temperature, humidity and altitude affect air pressure.7. Explain the relationship between uneven heating, density differences and convection.8. Explain that winds blow from high to low pressure and how the earth’s rotation/corioliseffect affects the motion of winds.9. Explain how pressure gradient affects wind speed.10. Explain the function of an anemometer and a wind vane.11. Explain how evaporating water affects humidity.12. Use a sling psychrometer and the ESRT to determine relative humidity and dew point.13. Explain how changes in humidity affect air pressure.14. Define condensation and understand the concept of saturation.15. Explain the factors cloud formation.16. Compare and contrast the formation of clouds, fog, dew and frost.17. Construct and interpret isotherms, isobars and station models.

1. Explain how outgassingformed the Earth’s original

atmosphere and how itevolved through time.


a. Earth's primitiveatmosphere probably

consisted of such gases aswater vapor, carbon

dioxide, nitrogen, andseveral trace gases that

were released in volcanicemissions, a process called

outgassing.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

b. The first life forms onEarth, probably anaerobicbacteria, did not require

oxygen.


c. As life evolved, plants,through the process ofphotosynthesis, used

carbon dioxide and waterand released oxygen into

the atmosphere.


d. Once the available ironon Earth was oxidized

(combined with oxygen),substantial quantities of

oxygen accumulated in theatmosphere.


e. About 4 billion yearsinto Earth's existence, the

fossil record revealsabundant ocean-dwellingorganisms that require

oxygen to live.


2. Describe the varioustemperature zones of the

atmosphere and be able tointerpret the ESRTchart/graph on the

atmosphere.


a. Weather is the state ofthe atmosphere at a

particular place for a shortperiod of time.


b. Climate, on the otherhand, is a generalization ofthe weather conditions of aplace over a long period of

time.


c. The most importantelements, those quantities

or properties that aremeasured regularly, of

weather and climate are…


1) air temperature, 2)humidity, 3) type and

amount of cloudiness, 4)type and amount ofprecipitation, 5) air

pressure, and 6) the speedand direction of the wind.


d. If water vapor, dust,ozone, and other variable

components of theatmosphere were removed,

clean, dry air would becomposed almost entirely

of nitrogen (N2), about 78%of the atmosphere by

volume, and oxygen (O2),about 21%.


e. Carbon dioxide (CO2),although present in minute

amounts (0.036%), isimportant because it hasthe ability to absorb heatradiated by Earth, thus

aiding atmosphericwarming.


f. Among the variablecomponents of air, watervapor is very important

because it is the source ofall clouds and precipitationand, like carbon dioxide, it

is also a heat absorber.


g. Ozone (O3), thetriatomic form of oxygen,is concentrated in the 10-to 50-kilometer altituderange (Stratosphere) ofthe atmosphere, and…


is important to life becauseof its ability to absorb

potentially harmfulultraviolet radiation from

the Sun.


h. Because the atmospheregradually thins with

increasing altitude, it hasno sharp upper boundary

but simply blends intoouter space.


i. Based on temperature,the atmosphere is dividedvertically into four layers.


j. The troposphere is thelowermost layer. In the

troposphere, temperatureusually decreases withincreasing altitude. The

rate is variable, butaverages about 6.5°C perkilometer (3.5°F per 1000

feet).The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

Essentially all importantweather phenomena occur

in the troposphere.


k. Above the troposphereis the stratosphere, whichexhibits warming becauseof absorption of ultraviolet

radiation by ozone.


l. In the mesosphere,temperatures again

decrease.


m. Upward from themesosphere is the

thermosphere, a layer withonly a minute fraction of

the atmosphere's mass andno well-defined upper

limit.


n. The boundaries or zonesof transition between thelayers are the tropopause,

stratopause, andmesopause.


o. You should be able todetermine the altitude,

temperature, atmosphericpressure, and water vaporconcentration within thelayers of the atmosphere

(ESRT p. 14).


3. Understand andinterpret the various

temperature scales usingthe ESRT (p.13).


a. Fahrenheit (°F)- Atemperature scale on

which water freezes at32ºF and water boils at

212ºF at sea level;

°F = (°C x 1.8) + 32


b. Celsius (°C)- Atemperature scale havingthe freezing point of pure

water at 0°C and theboiling point at 100°C at

sea level

°C = (°F - 32) ÷ 1.8


c. Kelvin (K)- Atemperature scale used in

science to measureextremely coldtemperatures.


The Kelvin temperaturescale is just like the Celsius

scale except that thefreezing point of water,zero degrees Celsius, is

equal to 273 K.


Absolute zero, the coldestknown temperature, is

reached at 0 K. There is nodegree (°) symbol usedwith the Kelvin scale.

K = °C + 273


4. Understand that the Sunis the Earth’s main energy

source.


a. Radiation from the Sunis the chief source of

energy for the atmosphere.


b. When energy from theSun reaches Earth’s

surface, the energy isabsorbed, heating the

surface.


c. The Earth’s surface thenreradiates the energy intothe atmosphere, heating it.


d. The general drop intemperature with

increasing altitude in thetroposphere supports the

fact that the atmosphere isheated from the ground

up.


5. Understand how abarometer measures air

pressure.


a. Barometric pressure isthe pressure exerted by

the atmosphere (weight ofthe atmosphere) at a given

point. Its measurementcan be expressed in

millibars (mb), or in inchesof mercury. Also known as

atmospheric pressure.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

b. A barometer is aninstrument used to

measure atmosphericpressure.


c. A standard mercurybarometer has a glass

column about 30 incheslong, closed at one end,

with a mercury-filledreservoir.


Mercury in the tube adjustsuntil the weight of the

mercury column balancesthe atmospheric force

exerted on the reservoir.


High atmospheric pressureforces the mercury higher

in the column. Lowpressure allows the

mercury to drop to a lowerlevel in the column.


d. An aneroid barometeruses a small, flexible metalbox called an aneroid cell.The box is tightly sealedafter some of the air isremoved, so that smallchanges in external air

pressure cause the cell toexpand or contract.


e. Decreasing air pressureoften brings warm and

unsettled or rainy weather.The movement of low

pressure into an area canbe associated with

overcast skies and possibleprecipitation.


f. If pressure is rising, theweather is clearing up.


6. Describe howtemperature, humidity andaltitude affect air pressure.


a. As air cools down, itcontracts. The air

molecules move closertogether, and the air

becomes denser. Therefore,cooler air is heavier and

causes higher air pressure.COLD AIR SINKS.


b. As air heats up, itexpands. The air molecules

move farther apart, andthe air becomes less dense.

Therefore, warmer air islighter and causes lowerair pressure. WARM AIR

RISES.


c. Since moist air is lessdense (lighter) than dry air,

an increase in humiditygenerally results in lower

air pressure.


(A water molecule has anatomic mass of 18. An airmolecule has an atomic

mass of approximately 28.When a water molecule

replaces an air molecule,the air becomes lighter.)


d. As you move higher intothe atmosphere, airpressure decreases.

Although the weight of theair pulls it down, the

pressure of theatmosphere is exerted in

all directions.


7. Explain the relationshipbetween uneven heating,density differences and

convection.


a. Dark and rough surfacesare excellent absorbers ofenergy, and heat up more

quickly than lighter,smoother surfaces that

reflect sunlight.


b. The land heats up andcools down much more

quickly than water.


c. Specific heat- theamount of heat (number ofcalories) required to raise

the temperature of onegram of substance one

degree Celsius (see ESRTp.1). A calorie is a unit of

heat energy.


To raise the temperature ofone gram of water one

degree Celsius, one calorieof heat must be added tothe water. The unit for

specific heat is (calories /gram x C°).


Water gains energy duringmelting (+80

calories/gram) andevaporation (+540

calories/gram), andreleases energy during

freezing (-80calories/gram) andcondensation (-540

calories/gram).The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

d. Water (as a liquid) has ahigher specific heat thanland. This means that it

takes more energy to raisethe temperature of water.

Water heats up slowly.


e. Air is heated mostly bythe surface beneath it.Most sunlight passes

through the air withoutchanging its temperature

much.


f. Air over the land willheat up faster during the

day, and cool faster duringthe night.


g. Air over the water willheat up slowly during the

day, and cool slowly atnight.


h. Warm (lower density)air rises. Cool (higher

density) air sinks. This isdue to the difference intheir densities. Oil floatson water since oil is less

dense.


i. Convection- the transferof heat through a liquid or

gas by the actualmovement of the liquid orgas; updrafts (warm airrising) and downdrafts

(cool air sinking) occur dueto convection in an

unstable atmosphere.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

8. Explain that winds blowfrom high to low pressure

and how the Earth’srotation/coriolis effectaffects the motion of

winds.


a. Wind is the horizontalmovement of air over

Earth’s surface.


b. Winds are named bywhere they are coming

from.


c. If you poke a hole in anew bottle of soda, the soda

squirts out of the bottle,from an area of high

pressure (inside) to an areaof lower pressure (outside).Once the pressure inside the

bottle is equal to thepressure outside the bottle,

the soda stops squirting.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

d. If a window in a high-flying airplane is broken,

air rushes out of theairplane, from an area ofhigh pressure (inside) toan area of lower pressure

(outside).


e. Wind always blows fromregions of higher pressure

to regions of lowerpressure. “Winds blow

from high to low.”


f. Coriolis Effect- the effectof the Earth's rotation onthe atmosphere and on all

objects on the Earth'ssurface including bodies of

water.


In the northernhemisphere it causesmoving objects and

currents to be deflected tothe right; in the southern

hemisphere it causesdeflection to the left.


g. Example- Imagine aspinning disk (like a CD orDVD). If you scratched a

line from the center to theedge while the disk was

spinning, the resulting linewould be curved.


h. Example- A missile islaunched from the North

Pole. As it heads south, theEarth turns to the east,causing the missile to

appear to deflect to thewest as viewed by anEarthbound observer.


9. Explain how pressuregradient affects wind

speed.


a. Pressure gradient- thechange in atmosphericpressure between twopoints. The greater thechange (the larger thedifference) in pressure

between these two points,the stronger the pressuregradient and the stronger

the wind.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

b. Strong pressuregradient: If city A has veryhigh pressure, and city B

has very low pressure, thewind will blow very quickly

from city A to city B.


c. Weak (gentle) pressuregradient: If the air

pressure at city A is just alittle greater than the air

pressure at city B, the windwill blow from city A to city

B slowly.


10. Explain the function ofan anemometer and a wind

vane.


a. Anemometer- Aninstrument used to

measure wind speed. Ananemometer usually hasfour cups placed at the

ends of two intersectingrods. As the wind blows,the cups catch the wind

and cause the cups to spin.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

The faster the wind isblowing, the greater the

spinning of theanemometer. Wind speedis measured in miles perhour and knots (nautical

miles per hour).One knot equals 1.15mi/hr (ESRT p.13).


b. Wind vane- aninstrument that

determines the directionfrom which a wind is

blowing. The part of thevane that turns into the

wind is usually shaped likean arrow. The other end is

wide so it will catch thesmallest breeze.


The breeze turns the arrowuntil it catches both sidesof the wide end equally.The arrow always pointsinto the wind. The arrow

tells you the direction fromwhich the wind is coming.


11. Explain howevaporating water affects

humidity.


a. Evaporation- liquidchanges to gas


b. Condensation- gaschanges to liquid


c. Melting- solid changes toliquid


d. Freezing- liquid changesto solid


e. Sublimation- solidchanges directly to gas


f. Deposition (orsublimation)- gas changes

directly to solid


g. Humidity is the generalterm used to describe theamount of water vapor in

the air.


h. Relative humidity- how“full” the air is with watervapor; the ratio (expressed

as a percent) of the air'swater vapor content to itswater vapor capacity at agiven temperature; the

most familiar term used todescribe humidity.


i. The water vapor capacity(how much it can hold) of

air depends ontemperature, with warm

air having a much greatercapacity than cold air.


Antarctica is the biggestdesert because the air is socold, and therefore, so dry.

If the air is hot, likedaytime in the Sahara

Desert, it CAN hold a lot ofmoisture, but may not be

holding much at all.


j. Relative humidity can bechanged in two ways. Oneis by adding (evaporation)

or subtracting(condensation) water

vapor to or from the air.


k. The second is bychanging the air's

temperature. When air iscooled, its relativehumidity increases.

Cooling air often leads tocondensation, which

creates clouds and fog.


This is why air conditionersdrip.


Heating air has theopposite effect. When air isheated, relative humiditydecreases. This is why theair can get so dry indoors

during the winter.


l. Air is said to besaturated when it containsthe maximum quantity ofwater vapor that it can

hold at any giventemperature and pressure.

When air is saturated,relative humidity is 100%.


m. Dewpoint is thetemperature to which air

would have to be cooled inorder to reach saturation(100% relative humidity).


12. Use a slingpsychrometer and the

ESRT to determine relativehumidity and dewpoint.


a. Sling psychrometer- aninstrument used to

measure the water vaporcontent of the atmosphere,in which wet and dry bulb

thermometers aremounted on a frame

connected to a handle atone end.


The psychrometer iswhirled by hand to providethe necessary ventilationto evaporate water from

the wet bulb.


b. Dry bulb- a normalthermometer that

measures air temperature.


c. Wet bulb- athermometer, with the

thermometer bulb wrappedin cloth, which is kept wet.


The evaporation of waterfrom the thermometer has

a cooling effect, so thetemperature indicated bythe wet bulb thermometer

is less than thetemperature indicated by a

dry-bulb thermometer.


d. The rate of evaporationfrom the wet-bulb

thermometer depends onthe humidity of the air -evaporation is slower

when the air is already fullof water vapor.


For this reason, thedifference in the

temperatures indicated bythe two thermometers

gives a measure ofatmospheric humidity.


e. If the air is completelysaturated with water vapor(100% relative humidity),

no water will evaporatefrom the wet-bulb, and the

two temperatures (wet-and dry- bulb) will be the

same.


f. Don’t ignore the word“DIFFERENCE” on the

charts on page 12 in theESRT! These charts can beused to determine relative

humidity and dewpoint.


To use the charts, find thedifference on top, and thedry-bulb temperature on

the left. Go down from thedifference and across fromthe dry-bulb temperature

to where the column meetsthe row. There should beONE number where they

meet.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

13. Explain the factorscloud formation.


a. For condensation tooccur, air must be

saturated.


b. Saturation takes placeeither when air is cooled toits dewpoint, which most

commonly happens, orwhen water vapor is added

to the air.


c. There must also be asurface on which the water

vapor may condense. Incloud and fog formation,

tiny particles calledcondensation nuclei

(microscopic particles ofdust, smoke or salt) serve

this purpose.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

d. The cooling of air as itrises and expands is the

basic cloud-formingprocess.


e. If air rises high enough,it will cool sufficiently tocause condensation and

form a cloud.


f. The condensing watervapor releases heat,

thereby reducing the rateat which the air cools.


g. Four ways that cloudscan form from rising air:


Orographic lifting- occurswhen elevated terrains,

such as mountains, act asbarriers to the flow of air.As air blows up the side of

a mountain, it cools,reaching the dewpoint and

forming clouds.


Frontal wedging- whencool air acts as a barrierover which warmer, less

dense air rises. A warm airmass always rises up and

over a cooler air mass. Thewarm air cools and reaches

the dewpoint, formingclouds.


Convergence- when airflows together and a

general upward movementof air occurs. The rising air

cools to the dewpoint,forming clouds.


Convection- when unequalsurface heating causes

localized pockets of air torise. The rising air cools to

the dewpoint, formingclouds.


14. Explain howprecipitation occurs.


a. For precipitation to form,millions of cloud droplets

must somehow jointogether (coalesce) into

large drops.


b. In clouds where thetemperatures are below

freezing, ice crystals formand fall as snowflakes. At

lower altitudes thesnowflakes melt and

become raindrops beforethey reach the ground.


c. Large droplets form inwarm clouds that containlarge condensation nuclei,such as salt particles. As

these big droplets descend,they collide and join withsmaller water droplets.

After many collisions thedroplets are large enough to

fall to the ground as rain.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

d. Precipitation cleans theatmosphere by bringing

down condensation nucleiand other suspended

material.


e. Precipitation gauge- aninstrument used to

measure the amount ofrain that has fallen.

Measurement is often donein hundredths of inches

(0.01").


f. Rain- Precipitation in theform of liquid water

droplets greater than 0.5mm.


g. Drizzle- Small, slowlyfalling water droplets, with

diameters less than 0.5mm.


h. Snow- precipitationfalling from clouds in the

form of ice crystals. Asnowflake forms first as a

very tiny crystal, thatgrows to become a larger

six-sided hexagonalcrystal.


i. Sleet- Raindrops thatfreeze into ice pellets

before reaching the ground.It forms when snow entersa warm layer of air abovethe surface and melts andthen enters a deep layer ofsub-freezing air near the

surface and refreezes.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

j. Hail- falling ice inroughly round shapes. Hailcomes from thunderstorms

and is larger than sleet.Hailstones form when

upward moving air(updrafts) in a

thunderstorm keeps piecesof ice from falling.


Drops of supercooledwater hit and freeze to the

falling ice, causing it togrow.


If the currents are strongenough, a hailstone willfall and rise many times,causing several layers ofice to build up until the

hailstone is heavy enoughto fall from the cloud.


15. Compare and contrastthe formation of clouds,

fog, dew and frost.


a. Cloud- a visible group oftiny water and/or ice

particles in theatmosphere.


b. Fog- a cloud on theground. Fog is composedof billions of tiny water

droplets floating in the air.


c. Smog- air pollution by amixture of smoke and fog.


d. Dew- condensation inthe form of small water

drops that forms on grassand other small objects

near the ground when thetemperature has fallen tothe dewpoint, generally

during the nighttimehours.


e. Frost- Deposits of whiteice crystals or frozen dew

drops on objects on ornear the ground. Formed

when the surfacetemperature falls below

freezing (0°C).


16. Construct and interpretisotherms, isobars and

station models.


a. Weather map- a mapshowing the weather at a

given time in a region.


b. Weather station- alocation wheremeteorological

observations aremeasured.


c. Station model- thelisting of many differentweather observations

around the location of aweather station on a

weather map (see ESRTp.13).


d. Isoline- a line on a mapconnecting points withequal value or common

characteristics (e.g.,rainfall intensity,

temperature, barometricpressure, etc.).


e. Isotherm- an isolineconnecting points of equal

air temperature on aweather map.


f. Isobar- an isolineconnecting points of equalair pressure on a weather

map.


g. Weather variables canbe represented in a varietyof formats including radar

and satellite images,weather maps (includingstation models, isobars,and fronts), atmospheric

cross-sections, andcomputer models.


UNIT VI/B: METEOROLOGY– WEATHER MAPS, ENERGY

EXCHANGES, FORCASTS


UNIT VI/B: METEOROLOGY – WEATHER MAPS, ENERGY EXCHANGES, FORCASTS

1. Explain how source regions influence air mass characteristics.2. Identify air mass symbols on a weather map using the ESRT and explain how air masses move.3. Understand that fronts form where air masses meet.4. Compare and contrast the characteristics of cold, warm, stationary and occluded fronts.5. Compare and contrast movement of air in regions of high and low pressure.6. Recognize the patterns of isobars and isotherms in highs and lows.7. Describe the arrangement of fronts and air masses in a typical low pressure system.8. Describe the frontal weather and patterns of movement.9. Predict future weather for any location within a mid-latitude cyclone.10. Explain the seasonal nature of hurricane formation.11. Explain the role of condensation/latent heat in hurricane sustenance.12. Explain how hurricanes lose and gain energy.13. Understand storm tracks of hurricanes.14. Compare and contrast hurricanes and tornadoes.

1. Explain how sourceregions influence air mass

characteristics.


a. An air mass is a largebody of air, usually 1600

kilometers (1000 miles) ormore across, which is

characterized by asameness of temperatureand moisture at any given

altitude.


b. When this air moves outof its region of origin,

called the source region, itwill carry these

temperatures and moistureconditions elsewhere,

perhaps eventuallyaffecting a large portion of

a continent.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

c. Air masses are classifiedaccording to:


1) the nature of thesurface (water or land) in

the source region.


2) the latitude of thesource region.


d. Continental (c)designates an air mass ofland origin, with the air

likely to be dry; whereas amaritime (m) air mass

originates over water, andtherefore will be relatively

humid.


e. Tropical (T) air massesform in low latitudes andare warm. Polar (P) air

masses originate in highlatitudes and are cold.Arctic (A) air massesoriginate in the Polar

Regions and are very cold.


f. According to thisclassification scheme, the

five basic types of airmasses are continentalpolar (cP), continentalarctic (cA), continentaltropical (cT), maritime

polar (mP), and maritimetropical (mT).


g. Continental polar (cP)air masses from Canada,

and maritime tropical (mT)air masses from the Gulf of

Mexico influence theweather of North America

most.


h. Maritime tropical air isthe source of much, if notmost, of the precipitationreceived in the easterntwo-thirds of the United

States.


i. You should be able toidentify air mass symbolson a weather map (ESRT

p.13).


j. Arctic and polar airmasses usually move

southeast over America.


k. Tropical air massesusually move northeast

over America.


l. Air masses move in thedirection of the planetary

winds and jet streams(ESRT p.14).


m. Jetstream- An area ofstrong winds that are

concentrated in a relativelynarrow belt in the upper

troposphere of theNorthern and Southern

Hemispheres.


Jetstreams flow in a bandaround the globe from

west to east. Jetstreamsform the dividing lines

between warm tropical airmasses and cold polar airmasses, and they steer

global weather systems.


2. Understand that frontsform where air masses

meet.


a. Front- the leading edgeof an advancing air mass.


b. When a cold air mass(cP, cA, or mP) moves

towards a warm air mass(mT or cT), the warm air

mass is forced to rise.


c. When a warm air massmoves towards a cold air

mass, the warm air mass isforced to rise up and over

the cold air mass.


d. Cold air is denser, so thewarm air mass is always

the one forced up and overcolder air.


3. Compare and contrastthe characteristics of cold,

warm, stationary andoccluded fronts (ESRT

p.13).


a. Cold front- The leadingedge of a quickly

(averaging 30 mph)advancing cold air mass

that is moving under, anddisplacing, the warmer air

in its path.


Generally, with thepassage of a cold front, thetemperature and humidity

decrease. Showers,thunderstorms, and

sometimes hail generallyoccur at and/or behind the

front.


b. Squall line- a line ofsudden, sometimes violent

thunderstorms thatdevelop along the leadingedge of a cold front, often

hundreds of kilometerslong.


c. Warm front- the leadingedge of a slowly

(averaging 15 mph)advancing warm air mass

that is rising up and over aretreating relatively colder

air mass.


Generally, with thepassage of a warm front,

the temperature andhumidity increase.

Precipitation, in the formof light rain, snow, or

drizzle, is generally foundahead of the front, andmay last for one to two

days.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

d. Stationary front- theboundary between two air

masses that are notmoving (moving less than

6 mph).


Also: two air masses aresliding past each other, in

parallel paths, and theboundary between them isnot moving. May last for

several days.


e. Occluded front: when acold front catches up witha warm front. It developswhen three different air

masses come together: Awarm air mass is pinchedbetween a cold and a cool

air mass. The warm airmass is lifted completely

off of the ground.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

f. Thunderstorms arecaused by the upward

movement of warm, moist,unstable air, associated

with frontal lifting.


g. Often, with the passageof a front, the pressure will

decrease then increase,and there will be a sharp

change in the winddirection.


4. Compare and contrastmovement of air in regionsof high and low pressure.


a. High pressure: cool,sinking air, diverging

(moving away from thecenter) at Earth’s surface,rotating clockwise north of

the equator.


b. Low pressure: warm,rising air, converging(moving towards the

center) at Earth’s surface,rotating counterclockwise.


5. Recognize the patternsof isobars and isotherms.


a. Isobar values increasetowards the center of a

high. Pressure is greatestat the center of a high.


b. Isobar values decreasetowards the center of a low.

Pressure is lowest at thecenter of a low.


c. Isotherms generallyincrease in value towardslower latitudes. Earth is

warmest near the equator.


d. Isotherms generallydecrease in value towardshigher latitudes. Earth iscoldest near the poles.


6. Describe thearrangement of fronts andair masses in a typical low

pressure system.


a. The primary weatherproducers in the middle

latitudes are large centersof low pressure that

generally travel from westto east, called middle-

latitude cyclones.


b. These bearers of stormyweather, which last from afew days to a week, have a

counterclockwisecirculation pattern in the

Northern Hemisphere, withan inward flow of airtoward their centers.


c. Most middle-latitudecyclones have a cold frontextending to the south anda warm front extending tothe east from the central

area of low pressure.


d. As the cold front catchesup with the warm front, an

occluded front forms.


e. A typical low pressuresystem has a cold air massmoving eastward towards

a warm air mass. Thewarm air mass typically

moves northward towardsa cooler air mass.


The warm air mass getspinched between the cold

and cool air masses, and isforced aloft.


7. Predict future weatherfor any location within a

mid-latitude cyclone.


a. Since most mid-latitudecyclones move from westto east, locations east ofthe cyclone will usually

experience stormy weatherin the future.


b. As the different frontsapproach an area, theweather will change

accordingly (see 4a-f).


c. Locations near the frontsexperience the stormiest

weather.


d. Weather patternsbecome apparent whenweather variables are

observed, measured, andrecorded.


These variables include airtemperature, air pressure,moisture (relative humidity

and dewpoint),precipitation (rain, snow,

hail, sleet, etc.), windspeed and direction, and

cloud cover.


e. Atmospheric moisture,temperature and pressuredistributions; jet streams,

wind; air masses andfrontal boundaries; and the

movement of cyclonicsystems and associated

tornadoes, thunderstorms,and hurricanes occur in

observable patterns.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

f. Loss of property,personal injury, and loss of

life can be reduced byeffective emergency

preparedness.


8. Describe hurricanes.


a. Hurricanes, the greateststorms on Earth, are

tropical cyclones with windspeeds in excess of 119

kilometers (74 miles) perhour.


b. They have diameters of250 to 500 miles, and a

calm central “eye” whereair is sinking.


c. These complex tropicaldisturbances develop overtropical ocean waters and

are fueled by the heatreleased when huge

quantities of water vaporcondense.


d. Hurricanes form mostoften in late summer when

ocean-surfacetemperatures reach 27°C(80°F) or higher and thus

are able to provide thenecessary heat andmoisture to the air.


e. Hurricanes diminish inintensity whenever they

move over cool oceanwater that cannot supply

adequate heat andmoisture, or move onto

land.


f. Hurricanes usually causethe most damage where

they first move over land.


g. Hurricane damage is ofthree types:


1) storm surge (the domeof water that builds up as a

hurricane moves overwater. As this water comesashore with the storm, itcauses flooding that isusually a hurricane's

biggest killer


2) wind damage, and

3) inland flooding.


9. Understand storm tracksof hurricanes.


a. The hurricanes thataffect us originate in theeastern tropical AtlanticOcean near the shores of

Africa.


b. They are drivenwestward towards the

Caribbean Islands, south ofAmerica, by easterly trade

winds in the tropics.


c. Eventually, these stormsturn northwestward and

migrate into higherlatitudes.


d. As a result, the Gulf ofMexico and East Coast ofthe United States are atrisk to experience one or

more hurricanes each year.


10. Describe tornadoes.


a. Tornadoes, destructive,local storms of shortduration, are violent

windstorms associatedwith severe thunderstorms

that take the form of arotating funnel of air thatextends downward from a

storm cloud.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

b. Tornadoes most oftenoccur during the spring

months.


c. They are most frequentin the United States, in thearea between the Rockies

and the Appalachians. ColdCanadian air moves

southward, and meetswarm Gulf air moving

northward. The warm air isforced to rise very rapidly,

causing tornadoes.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

d. Hail is commonlyproduced by tornadoes.


UNIT VII: CLIMATE ANDINSOLATION


UNIT VII: CLIMATE AND INSOLATION

1. Define climate.2. Understand that global wind circulation is the result of uneven heating, densitydifferences and the coriolis effect.3. Identify convergent and divergent belts and planetary winds using the ESRT.4. Define specific heat and explain the moderating effect of a nearby large body of water.5. Explain how land breezes, sea breezes and monsoons affect climate.6. Understand that density differences, wind and the coriolis effect cause ocean currents.7. Explain the climate affects of warm/cold currents (El Nino, Gulf Stream).8. Compare/contrast climate changes with altitude and latitude.9. Explain the differences between windward and leeward climate.10. Compare/contrast inland and coastal climates at the same latitude.11. Define insolation and explain how its intensity and duration affects temperature.12. Describe how daily/seasonal temperature cycles are affected by insolational variations.13. Understand that insolation variations change with latitude.14. Compare/contrast conduction, convection and radiation.15. Explain why cloudy days are cool and cloudy nights are warm.16. Compare/ contrast surfaces that absorb or reflect insolation.17. Understand that good absorbers are good radiators.18. Interpret the electromagnetic spectrum in the ESRT/19. Understand that visible light is the most intense form of energy radiated by the sun.20. List the greenhouse gases and explain their affect on global warming.21. Understand the greenhouse affect of the absorption, conversion and reflection ofinsolation.

1. Define climate.


a. Climate- the averageweather (usually taken

over a 30-year time period)for a particular region and

time period.


b. Climate is not the sameas weather, but rather, it is

the average pattern ofweather for a particular

region. (Weather describesthe short-term state of the

atmosphere.)


c. Climates are oftendescribed by amounts of

precipitation andtemperature. A location’sclimate is influenced by

latitude, proximity to largebodies of water, ocean

currents, prevailing winds,vegetative cover, elevation,

and mountain ranges.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

d. Temperature andprecipitation patterns are

altered by:


natural events such as ElNiño and volcanic

eruptions


human influencesincluding deforestation,urbanization, and the

production of greenhousegases such as carbondioxide and methane.


2. Understand that globalwind circulation is the

result of uneven heating,density differences and the

Coriolis effect.


a. Within the troposphereare six major convectioncells (ESRT p.14) located

at latitudes between:


0° and 30° (one north andone south)


30° and 60° (one northand one south)


60° and 90° (one northand one south)


b. Warm (low density) airat the equator rises to the

top of the troposphere.This creates a band of lowair pressure, centered onthe equator. As the risingair cools to the dewpoint,clouds and precipitation

form. This is why thetropics have so much rain.


c. At a height of about 14km, the air begins to movehorizontally to the northand south, away from the

equator.


Eventually, this cooled airsinks at 30° north andsouth of the equator,

creating two bands of highpressure. The sinking air

heats up, creating very dryconditions. Most majordeserts are located at

these latitudes.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

d. When this sinking airreaches the surface, it

travels in two directions,towards the equator or

towards 60° latitude. TheCoriolis effect causes thesesurface winds to curve to

the right (north of equator)or to the left (south of the

equator).The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

e. When sinking (cold anddense) air at the polesreaches the surface, it

moves away from the poles,towards 60° latitude, alsocurving due to the Coriolis

effect.


f. At 60° latitude, surfacewinds from the poles and

from 30° latitude converge.They are forced to rise,

creating two more bandsof low pressure with wet

climates.


3. Identify convergent anddivergent belts and

planetary winds using theESRT (p.14).


a. Zones of convergenceexist on the surface at theequator and 60°. Here, thewinds are coming together.


b. Zones of divergenceexist on the surface at thepoles and 30°. Here, thewinds are moving apart.


c. Remember:


North of the equator,surface winds curve to theright. If they are blowing

north, they will curve east.If they are blowing south,

they will curve west.


South of the equator,surface winds curve to the

left. If they are blowingnorth, they will curve to

the west. If they areblowing south, they will

curve to the east.


4. Define specific heat andexplain the moderatingeffect of a nearby large

body of water.


a. The land heats up andcools down much more

quickly than water.


b. Specific heat- theamount of heat (number ofcalories) required to raise

the temperature of onegram of substance one

degree Celsius (see ESRTp.1).


c. Water (as a liquid) has ahigher specific heat thanland. This means that it

takes more energy to raisethe temperature of water.

Water heats up slowly.


d. Throughout the year, thetemperature of the oceandoes not change as muchas the temperature of the

land.


e. Locations near largebodies of water usually

have cooler summers andwarmer winters.


f. Locations far from largebodies of water are usuallyhotter during the summer

and colder during thewinter.


5. Explain how landbreezes, sea breezes andmonsoons affect climate.


a. Air is heated mostly bythe surface beneath it.Most Sunlight passes

through the air withoutchanging its temperature

much.


b. Air over the water willheat up slowly during the

day, and cool slowly atnight.


c. Air over the land willheat up faster during the

day, and cool faster duringthe night.


d. Warm (low density) airrises. Cold (dense) air

sinks.


e. Convection- the transferof heat energy within the

atmosphere, thehydrosphere, and Earth’s

interior results in theformation of regions of

different densities. Thesedensity differences result

in motion.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

f. Sea breeze- a local windblowing from the sea to

the shore. Cooler air fromover the sea flows onto theshore to replace the warm

air rising over the land.


On Sunny days the landheats up more quickly thanthe sea. The air in contactwith the land warms andrises causing convection.

During the day, cloudsoften form over the land

where the warm air isrising and cooling to the

dew point.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

g. Land breeze- a localwind blowing from the land

to the sea, opposite of asea breeze.


During the night, the sea iswarmer than the land. Coolerair from over the land flows

out to sea to replace thewarm air rising over thewater. During the night,

clouds often form over thesea where the warm air is

rising and cooling to the dewpoint.


h. Monsoons are caused bya seasonal change in winddirection. Winds usuallyblow from land to sea in

winter, while in thesummer this reverses,

bringing heavyprecipitation.


During the winter, the landcools down quickly,

causing a large area ofhigh pressure. During thesummer, the land heats up

quickly, causing a largearea of low pressure.

Winds always blow fromhigh to low pressure.


i. Monsoons are mosttypical in India and

southern Asia.


For Arizona, the monsoonresults in westerly windsshifting to southerly or

southeasterly (winds arenamed by where they come

from); this shift bringsconsiderable moisture intothe state from the Gulf ofCalifornia and the Gulf of

Mexico.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

6. Understand that densitydifferences, wind and the

Coriolis effect cause oceancurrents.


a. Ocean currents arebasically rivers in the

ocean. They move around4 miles an hour.


b. Surface ocean currentsare parts of huge, slowly

moving, circular whirls, orgyres (pronounced “jires,”like tires), that begin nearthe equator in each ocean.


c. Currents moving awayfrom the equator are warm.

Currents moving awayfrom the poles are cold.


d. Wind is the driving forcefor the ocean's surface

currents. Where wind is incontact with the ocean, it

passes energy to the waterthrough friction and causesthe surface layer to move.


e. The most significant factorother than wind that

influences the movement ofsurface ocean currents is theCoriolis Effect, which causeswind (and therefore oceancurrents) to be deflected to

the right in the NorthernHemisphere and to the left in

the Southern Hemisphere.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

f. Because of the CoriolisEffect, surface currentsflow clockwise in the

Northern Hemisphere andcounterclockwise in theSouthern Hemisphere.


g. The world's oceans alsohave significant currents

that flow beneath thesurface. In contrast tosurface currents, deep-

ocean circulation iscontrolled by gravity and

driven by densitydifferences.


h. Cold water is very dense,and sinks.


i. Cold, dense water nearAntarctica sinks and

travels along the seafloortowards the equator,

where it will eventually(500 to 2000 years) return

to the sea surface.


j. Salty water is very dense,and sinks. Both the

evaporation and freezingof sea water leave behind

salt, increasing salinitylevels and water density.


k. In the summer theMediterranean Sea loses

more water by evaporationthan it gets back as rain.

The salinity and density ofthe Mediterranean Sea

increase.


As a result, deep currentsof dense water flow alongthe sea bottom from theMediterranean into theAtlantic Ocean. At the

same time, the less saltywater of the Atlantic Ocean

flows into theMediterranean at the

water's surface.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

7. Explain the climateaffects of warm/cold

currents (El Niño, GulfStream).


a. Ocean currents areimportant in navigationand travel and for the

effect that they have onclimates.


b. Cold currents, like theLabrador, California, and

Falkland Currents,decrease air temperaturesof nearby land and cause

increased fog.


c. Warm currents, like theGulf Stream, the North

Atlantic, and the KuroshioCurrent, warm the climates

of nearby land.


d. El Niño- The term ElNiño refers to a warm

ocean current thattypically appears aroundlate December and lastsfor several months, butmay persist into May or

June.


e. Starting up an El Niñoevent: The western PacificOcean warms and cools incycles. Normally, east-to-west winds pile up warm

water in the westernPacific, while cold waterfrom deep in the ocean

rises to the surface alongthe South American Coast.


Every few years, the tradewinds change, allowing the

pool of warm water tomove to the east where it

blocks the rising coldwater. These changes helptrigger the global weatherchanges associated with El

Niño.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

A strong El Niño has verynoticeable effects on theUSA's weather, which can

range from a stormywinter along the West

Coast, a wet winter acrossthe South, and a warmer-than average winter for

parts of the North.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

f. La Niña- conditionopposite of an El Niño. In aLa Niña, the tropical Pacifictrade winds become verystrong and an abnormal

accumulation of cold wateroccurs in the central and

eastern Pacific Ocean.


During a La Niña year,winter temperatures are

warmer than normal in theSoutheast and cooler thannormal in the Northwest.


g. El Niño and La Niñaevents tend to alternate

about every three to sevenyears. However, the time

from one event to the nextcan vary from one to ten

years.


8. Compare/contrastclimate changes withaltitude and latitude.


a. Places at low latitudes(near the equator) arewarm due to the high

angle of insolation(incoming solar radiation).


b. Places at high latitudes(near the poles) are colddue to the low angle of

insolation.


c. Locations at highaltitudes are cool. Quito,

Ecuador, is a city near theequator. It has a very cool

climate because it islocated high in the Andes

Mountains.


d. Locations at lowaltitudes are warm. DeathValley, California, and theDead Sea, between Israeland Jordan, are extremelyhot and dry since they are

both below sea level.


9. Explain the differencesbetween windward and

leeward climate.


a. The windward side of amountain is the side that

the wind is blowingagainst.


b. The leeward side of amountain is the side facing

away from the wind,opposite from the

windward side.


c. When wind blowstowards mountains, such

as the WashingtonCascades, it is forced to

rise.


d. When the rising airexpands and cools,

condensation occurs, and itrains on locations situatedon the windward slopes,like Seattle, Washington.


e. When the wind blowsdown the leeward side of

the mountain, like atSpokane, Washington, it iscompressed, warming and

drying it out.


f. This sinking, contracting,dry air produces a rainshadow, or area in theleeward of a mountain

with less rain and cloudcover.


10. Define insolation andexplain how its intensity

and duration affectstemperature.


a. Insolation- “IN”-coming“SOL”-ar radi-“ATION”


b. The higher the Sun is inthe sky, the stronger(more intense) the

sunlight is.


c. Places near the equatorreceive the most intense

insolation.


d. At places near the poles,the Sun never rises high inthe sky, so the sunlight isalways weak. The Polar

Regions receive the leastintense insolation.


e. During the summermonths, the duration,angle, and intensity ofinsolation are greatest.


f. Day= hot; Night= cold(no insolation)


g. Summer= hot; Winter=cold


11. Compare/contrastconduction, convection and

radiation.


a. Conduction- the transferof heat from one substance

to another by directcontact (touching); thetransfer is always from

warmer to coldersubstances.


b. Convection- the transferof heat in a fluid (such as

air, water, or magma),where a warm current

rises into a cool area, anda cool current descends to

take its place.


Convection is driven bygravity -- warm fluids are

usually lighter than densercold fluids, and gravity

drags the densest materialto the bottom.


c. Radiation- the transferof energy in the form ofelectromagnetic waves

that can travel through thevacuum of empty space, or

through anything that istransparent (air, glass,

water, etc.).


electromagnetic waves:radio, microwave, infrared

(heat), visible orultraviolet, x rays or

gamma rays


d. The transfer of heatenergy within theatmosphere, the

hydrosphere, and Earth’ssurface occurs as the

result of radiation,convection, and

conduction.


e. Heating of Earth’ssurface and atmosphere bythe Sun drives convectionwithin the atmosphere andoceans, producing winds

and ocean currents.


12. Explain why cloudydays are cool and cloudy

nights are warm.


a. Clouds block theSunlight. Much of the solarradiation hitting the cloudis reflected back to space.When this happens, less

solar radiation reaches theEarth. This makes the

Earth cooler thanexpected.


When the daily hightemperature is lower than

forecasted, unexpectedlow thick clouds may have

been the result.


b. Clear skies allow moresolar radiation to reach thesurface. This is why desertclimates are so hot during

the day. The lack ofmoisture results in the lack

of clouds.


c. On a cloudy night, theclouds will absorb most ofthe infrared radiation thatthe surface is attempting

to reradiate back intospace.


They will then radiate asignificant amount of this

energy back to the surface.The heat is trapped in thelower atmosphere, making

it warmer.


d. On clear nights there arefew clouds to absorb and

reradiate radiation back tothe surface.


Infrared energy (heat)escapes very quickly fromthe atmosphere with the

lack of cloud coverresulting in a cool night.

(This is why desert nightsare often very cold.)


13. Compare/ contrastsurfaces that absorb or

reflect insolation.


a. Dark and rough surfacesare excellent absorbers of

insolation.


b. Light and smoothsurfaces reflect more

Sunlight.


c. Clouds and snow canreflect much Sunlight.


d. Albedo- the amount oflight reflected from a

surface.


14. Understand that goodabsorbers are good

radiators.


a. Anything that heats upquickly cools down quickly.


b. Anything that heats upslowly cools down slowly.


15. Interpret theelectromagnetic spectrum

in the ESRT (p.14).


a. ElectromagneticSpectrum- the entire range

of wavelengths ofelectromagnetic radiation

extending from shortgamma rays to the longestradio waves and including

visible light.


b. Wavelength- thedistance between twocrests (high points) or

troughs (low points) of awave.


c. Short wavelength = Highenergy = Dangerous


d. All forms ofelectromagnetic energy

radiate at the same speed,the speed of light: 300,000km/s (186,000 miles persecond). At the speed of

light, an object could travelaround the Earth almost

eight times in one second.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

e. Types ofelectromagnetic energy:


Gamma rays- a form ofelectromagnetic radiation

with a large amount ofenergy. They have a large

penetrating anddestructive power.


X rays- wavelengthsbetween ultraviolet andgamma rays; X-radiation

can go through human skintissue but is stopped by

dense bones. This propertymakes X-rays valuable in

medicine.


Ultraviolet- a wavelengthjust too small to see; light

that is so blue humanscan’t see it; A band of theelectromagnetic spectrumbetween the visible and

the X-ray; known todamage eyes and cause

skin cancer.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

Visible light- visible lightis the most intense form ofenergy radiated by the Sun.

It is electromagneticradiation at wavelengthsthat the human eye cansee. We perceive thisradiation as colors.


The Sun emits most of itsradiation as visible light,

which is probably why oureyes can see it. From

longest to shortest: red,orange, yellow, green, blue,indigo, violet (ROY G. BIV)


Infrared- heat energy; awavelength just too long to

see; light that is so redhumans can’t see it; a band

of the electromagneticspectrum between the

visible and the microwave.


Microwaves- wavelengthbetween radio waves and

infrared radiation; very shortradio waves. A microwave

oven uses microwaves to heatfood. They are absorbed bywater, fats and sugars, and

converted directly into atomicmotion – high temperatures.


Radio waves- longestwavelength (lowest energy)electromagnetic radiation;

used on Earth tocommunicate over large

distances.


16. List the greenhousegases and explain their

affect on global warming.


a. Some greenhouse gasesoccur naturally in the

atmosphere, while othersresult from human

activities.


b. Naturally occurringgreenhouse gases include

water vapor, carbondioxide, methane, nitrous

oxide, and ozone.


c. Certain human activities,however, add to the levelsof most of these naturally

occurring gases:


Carbon dioxide is releasedto the atmosphere when

solid waste, fossil fuels (oil,natural gas, and coal), andwood and wood products

are burned.


Methane is emitted duringthe production and

transport of coal, naturalgas, and oil. Methane

emissions also result fromthe decomposition of

organic wastes inmunicipal solid waste

landfills, and the raising oflivestock.


Nitrous oxide is emittedduring agricultural and

industrial activities, as wellas during combustion of

solid waste and fossilfuels.


Very powerful greenhousegases that are not

naturally occurring includehydrofluorocarbons (HFCs),

perfluorocarbons (PFCs),and sulfur hexafluoride

(SF6), which are generatedin a variety of industrial

processes.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

d. Each greenhouse gasdiffers in its ability to

absorb heat in theatmosphere. HFCs and

PFCs are the most heat-absorbent.


Methane traps over 21times more heat per

molecule than carbondioxide, and nitrous oxideabsorbs 270 times moreheat per molecule than

carbon dioxide.


17. Understand thegreenhouse affect of the

absorption, conversion andreflection of insolation.


a. The solar energy,primarily in the form of the

shorter wavelengths(visible light), which

penetrates through theatmosphere, is ultimately

absorbed at Earth'ssurface.


b. Earth releases theabsorbed radiation

(reradiation) in the form oflong-wave radiation(infrared radiation).


c. The atmosphericabsorption of this long-

wave terrestrial radiationby greenhouse gases

(primarily by water vaporand carbon dioxide) is

responsible for heating theatmosphere.


d. This very importantphenomenon has beentermed the greenhouse

effect.


UNIT VIII/A: THE EARTHIN SPACE – THE SOLAR

SYSTEM


UNIT VIII/A: THE EARTH IN SPACE – THE SOLAR SYSTEM

1. Identify the seasonal changes in the Sun’s noon altitude, positions of sunrise/sunset, andamount of daylight.2. Recognize the path of the sun during each season at different latitudes.3. Explain the annual migration of the sun’s vertical ray as a result of revolution, tilt, andparallelism.4. Compare and contrast the evidences of revolution and rotation.5. Relate Earth’s rate of rotation to time keeping and longitude.6. Locate zenith, horizon, and compass directions on a celestial sphere model.7. Locate Polaris using the Big Dipper.8. Use the angle of Polaris to determine the observer’s latitude at different locations.9. Explain how Polaris is used as a navigational tool.10. Explain how the Moon’s rotation and revolution affects its appearance.11. Describe the changing phases of the moon.12. Explain why eclipses are rare events.13. Compare and contrast solar and lunar eclipses.14. Describe how the Moon and the Sun cause the tides.15. Understand the size, scale, and arrangement of the members of the solar system.16. Compare/contrast the geocentric and heliocentric models.17. Compare/contrast terrestrial and Jovian planets.18. Explain Newton’s Law of Gravitation with respect to mass and distance.19. Explain how distance from the Sun affects a planet’s orbital velocity (Kepler’s Laws).20. Diagram elliptical orbits and analyze their eccentricities (Kepler’s Laws).21. Understand that the apparent size of the Sun changes seasonally due to the Earth’selliptical orbit.22. Describe meteors, their origin, and cratering as an early geologic activity.23. Describe comets, the eccentricity of their orbits, and the Oort cloud.24. Describe the location of the asteroids and their past influence on the Earth.25. Describe other planetary satellites/rings

1. Identify the seasonalchanges in the Sun’s noon

altitude, positions ofSunrise/Sunset, andamount of daylight.


a. Most objects in the solarsystem are in regular and

predictable motion.


b. These motions explainsuch phenomena as theday, the year, seasons,

phases of the moon,eclipses, and tides.


c. Gravity influences themotions of celestial objects.

The force of gravitybetween two objects in theuniverse depends on theirmasses and the distance

between them.


d. The two principalmotions of Earth are:


Rotation- the spinning ofEarth about its axis, whichproduces the daily cycle of

daylight and darkness.


Revolution- the movementof Earth in its orbit around

the Sun.


e. Several factors acttogether to cause the

seasons (The seasons ARENOT caused by the

distance between the Earthand the Sun!!!):


Earth revolves around theSun.


Earth's axis is tilted 23.5°degrees (from the

perpendicular to the planeof its orbit around the

Sun).


Parallelism- The axisremains pointed in the

same direction (toward theNorth Star) as Earth

journeys around the Sun.The axis is parallel to itselfat any position in Earth’s

orbit.


f. As a result, Earth'sorientation to the Suncontinually changes.

Sometime the North Pole istilted toward the Sun, and

sometimes it is tilted away.


g. The yearly changes inthe angle of the Sun and

length of daylight broughtabout by Earth's changing

orientation to the Suncause seasons.


h. Summer Solstice- June 20or 21. The Earth’s axis is

tilted at its most towards theSun, and marks the longest

day and the beginning ofsummer (in the southern

hemisphere this is the wintersolstice). The Sun is directly

overhead at the Tropic ofCancer (23.5°N) at noon.


i. Winter Solstice- December21 or 22. The planet's axis istilted at its most away from

the Sun, and marks theshortest day and the

beginning of winter (in thesouthern hemisphere this isthe summer solstice). TheSun is directly overhead at

the Tropic of Capricorn(23.5°S) at noon.


j. Spring (Vernal) Equinox-March 20 or 21. The first

day of spring (in thesouthern hemisphere this

is the first day of fall.)There are 12 hours of

daylight and 12 hours ofdarkness. The Sun is

directly overhead at theEquator (0°N) at noon.


k. Fall (Autumnal)Equinox- September 22 or23. The first day of fall (inthe southern hemisphere

this is the first day ofspring.) There are 12 hoursof daylight and 12 hours of

darkness. The Sun isdirectly overhead at theEquator (0°N) at noon.


l. Seasonal changes can beexplained using concepts of

density and heat energy.These changes include the

shifting of global temperaturezones, the shifting of

planetary wind and oceancurrent patterns, the

occurrence of monsoons,hurricanes, flooding, and

severe weather.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

2. Recognize the path ofthe Sun during eachseason at different

latitudes.


a. Insolation (incomingsolar radiation) heatsEarth’s surface and

atmosphere unequally dueto variations in:


The intensity caused bydifferences in atmospherictransparency and the angle

of insolation, which varywith time of day, latitude,

and season.


Characteristics of thematerials absorbing the

energy such as color,texture, transparency,

state of matter, andspecific heat.


Duration, which varieswith seasons and latitude.


b. The Sun’s apparent paththrough the sky varies

with latitude and season.


c. North of the equator, theSun always rises in the

east, travels through thesouthern sky, and sets inthe west. (South of the

equator, it rises in the east,travels through the

northern sky, and sets inthe west.)


d. Altitude (ALT)- numberof degrees above horizon.

Straight up is 90°. Thehorizon is 0°.


e. Azimuth (AZ)- A way ofusing degrees to state a

compass direction:


North = 0°


East = 90°


South = 180°


West = 270°


f. The path of the Sun atSpring Valley, New York

(41°N latitude):


Summer Solstice- the Sunrises in the northeast

(AZ=58°), travels highestin the sky (ALT=72.5°),

and sets in the northwest(AZ=302°).


Winter Solstice- the Sunrises in the southeast

(AZ=121°), travels lowestin the sky (ALT=25.5°),

and sets in the southwest(AZ=239°).


Both Equinoxes- the Sunrises exactly in the east(AZ=90°), rises to its

average height (ALT=49°),and sets exactly in the

west (AZ=270°).


g. At the Equator: day andnight are each always 12

hours long. The Sun alwaystravels in a path

perpendicular (at a 90°angle) to the plane of the

horizon.


Only on the equinoxes, theSun rises exactly east and

sets exactly west, travelingdirectly overhead, through

the zenith at noon. Thenoon Sun is never lower

than 66.5° altitude.


h. At the Poles: on theequinoxes, the Sun movesalong the horizon, neverquite rising or setting. Atthe North Pole the Sun

“rises” on March 21st and“sets” on September 22.


The situation is reversed forthe South Pole. During the

summer, the Sun never sets.During the winter, the Sun

never rises. The Sun, when up,always travels in a circle

through the sky, parallel tothe horizon. The Sun never

rises more than 23.5° abovethe horizon.


i. The Sun can only bedirectly overhead, at the

zenith, at locationsbetween the Tropics ofCancer (23.5°N) and

Capricorn (23.5°S). TheSun is NEVER at the zenith

in New York!


3. Explain the annualmigration of the Sun’s

vertical ray as a result ofrevolution, tilt, and

parallelism.


a. The Sun’s rays arevertical when the Sunlight

is hitting Earth at a 90°angle.


b. Dates and locations ofSun’s vertical rays:


Summer solstice – Tropicof Cancer


Fall equinox - Equator


Winter solstice – Tropic ofCapricorn


Spring equinox – Equator


c. Throughout the courseof one year, the Sun’s

vertical rays migrate backand forth between theTropics of Cancer and

Capricorn.


4. Compare and contrastthe evidences of revolution

and rotation.


a. Two pieces of evidencefor Earth's Rotation:


Foucault Pendulum- Eachhour the pendulum shiftsapproximately 11 degrees

in a clockwise directionknocking over all the pinsthat surround it. The shift

is caused by Earth'srotation.


If the Earth did not rotateonly 2 pins (in a straightline from each other) willbe knocked down. At thenorth pole the apparentrotation would be a full

circle of 360° each 24-hourday, or about 15° per hour.


The further south you go,the slower the apparentrotation gets, and at the

equator there is norotation at all. Below the

equator the apparentrotation begins again, butin the opposite direction.


Coriolis Effect- Earth’srotation causes winds andany other freely movingobjects to curve in their

paths.


b. 2 pieces of evidence forEarth's Revolution:


Parallax Effect- Theapparent shift in a star's

position that occursbecause Earth has movedin its orbit. Parallax refersto the apparent shifting ofan object when viewed at

different angles.


If you view the same objectfrom two different angles, theperspective will change. Hold

your thumb out in front ofyou at arm's length and view

it first with your right eye(left eye closed), and then

with your left eye (right eyeclosed). Your thumb appears

to move.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

Astronomers view starsfrom one side of the

Earth's orbit and then fromthe other side to attempt

to detect parallax.


Seasonal changes inconstellations- During the

summer, certainconstellations are visible in

the nighttime sky. During thewinter, when the Earth is onthe opposite side of the Sun,the nighttime sky faces the

opposite side of the universe,so we see different

constellations.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

c. Computing the speed ofEarth's rotation (at the

equator):


Circumference of Earth =40,000 kilometers


Time for one rotation = 24hours


Speed of rotation =Distance/Time = 40,000

km / 24 hr = 1,670 km/hr(1,038 mi/hr)


d. Computing the speed ofEarth's rotation (at the

Spring Valley, NY):


Circumference of Earth at41°N latitude = 30,289

kilometers


Time for one rotation = 24hours


Speed of rotation =Distance/Time = 30,289

km / 24 hr = 1,262 km/hr(784 mi/hr)


Every second, the Earth'srotational motion carriesyou 351 meters, or about1,150 feet, through space.


e. Computing the speed ofEarth's revolution around

the Sun:


Circumference of Earth'sorbit = 940,000,000

kilometers


Time for one revolution =365 1/4 days = 8766 hours


Speed of revolution =Distance/Time =

940,000,000 km / 8766 hr= 107,000 km/hr = 30km/sec (66,490 mi/hr)


Every second, the Earth'sorbital motion carries you30 kilometers, or about 18

miles, through space.


5. Relate Earth’s rate ofrotation to time keeping

and longitude.


a. Earth rotates 360° every24 hours.


b. Earth rotates 15° perhour. (360°/24hr=15°/hr)


c. Earth is divided intotwenty-four time zones,

each 15° wide.


d. If you move 15° west,your time decreases by one

hour.


e. If you move 15° east,your time increases by one

hour.


f. Greenwich Mean Time(GMT)- The time at the

Prime Meridian (0°longitude).


g. Chronometer- a veryaccurate clock that can

keep time in all weather;used in navigation.


h. Longitude may bedetermined by calculating thetime difference between thelocation a person is in and

Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).So if the time zone a person is

in is three hours ahead ofGMT then that person is at 45°longitude (3 hours x 15° per

hour = 45°).The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

In order to perform thiscalculation, however, aperson needs to have achronometer set to GMTand needs to determine

local time by solarobservation or

astronomical observation.


i. California is three hoursearlier than New York. Its

longitude must be 45°west of New York.


j. London, England is fivehours later than New York.Its longitude must be 75°

east of New York.


k. If you are on a ship,your local time is 2pm, and

your chronometer reads8pm, your longitude mustbe 60°W. [(8-2)x15=60]


l. If you are on a ship, yourlocal time is 11am, andyour chronometer reads9am, you longitude must

be 30°E. [(11-9)x15=30]


m. International Date Line-imaginary line on the Earth'ssurface, generally following

the 180° meridian oflongitude, where, by

international agreement,travelers change dates.

Traveling eastward across theline, one subtracts onecalendar day; traveling

westward, one adds a day.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

6. Locate zenith, horizon,and compass directions ona celestial sphere model.


a. Zenith- the point on thecelestial sphere directly

above the observer.


b. Horizon- where the skymeets the Earth in the

distance.


c. Looking at a map withnorth at the top, south isdown, east is right, and

west is left.


7. Locate Polaris using theBig Dipper.


a. Polaris, or the NorthStar, is located at the end

of the handle of the LITTLEDIPPER.


b. To find Polaris, use theBig Dipper. The two stars

on the side of the cupopposite the handle are

called the “pointer stars.”Draw an arrow from thebottom star through the

top star, and it will point toPolaris.


8. Use the angle of Polaristo determine the

observer’s latitude atdifferent locations.


a. The altitude of Polaris =latitude.


b. An astrolabe (sextant) isan ancient scientific

instrument that the Greeksused in the second century

B.C. to determine thelatitude at which they were

located.


c. The astrolabe, whichallows the user to measurevertical angles, was very

important to sailors inancient times.


d. Determining the anglebetween your position on

Earth and Polarisdetermines your latitude.


e. A person standing at theNorth Pole will find Polarisstraight overhead (90°),

which is her latitude.


f. A person standing at theequator will find Polaris atthe horizon (0°), also her

latitude. Polaris is notvisible below the Equator.


g. To build an astrolabe:


You need these materials:


Protractor


Tape


Straw


12" of string


A weight (such as awasher, nut, or paper clip)


Directions:


Turn your protractorupside down so the

rounded part is facing theground


Tape the string on thecenter of the straight edge.


Tie the weight on the endof the string.


Tape the straw on thestraight edge of the

protractor.


h. To use your astrolabe,look at an object (Polaris)

through the straw, thesight, letting the string

hang down the front of theprotractor.


When the object is in thecenter of the sight, holdthe string tightly againstthe protractor. While youare still holding the stringagainst the protractor look

at the measure of theangle. This angle is your

latitude!The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

9. Explain how Polaris isused as a navigational tool.


a. Traveling north, Polarisrises in the sky.


b. Traveling south, Polarislowers in the sky.


c. Traveling east or west,the altitude of Polaris stays

the same.


10. Explain how the Moon’srotation and revolutionaffects its appearance.


a. Earth is orbited by onemoon and many artificial

satellites.


b. When we watch theMoon during the course ofa month, it looks like it ischanging shape. What we

are really seeing isSunlight reflected from themoon’s surface as it moves

around the Earth.


c. The Sun always shineson half of the moon, but

we cannot always see theentire half that is lit up.

The phases are the parts ofthe lit half that we can see.


d. It takes about onemonth (moonth) for theMoon to complete one

cycle of phases.


e. The shape varies from afull Moon (when the Earth

is between the Sun and themoon) to a new Moon

(when the Moon isbetween the Sun and the

Earth).


f. The phases of the Moonin order: new, waxingcrescent, first quarter,waxing gibbous, full,

waning gibbous, last (third)quarter, waning crescent,

new, etc.


g. Waxing= gettingbrighter


h. Waning= getting darker


i. Crescent= banana shape


j. Gibbous= more than halflit, less than full.


k. When the Right side is lit,it is getting Rounder.


l. When the Left side is lit,it is in its Last phases.


m. Looking at the shapesof the phases in order, canyou see the word, “DOC”?


D = first quarter


O = full moon


C = waning crescent


n. At the time of the newmoon, the Moon rises atabout the same time theSun rises, and it sets atabout the same time the

Sun sets.


As the days go by (as itwaxes to become a crescent

moon, a half moon, and agibbous moon, on the way toa full moon), the Moon risesduring the daytime (after theSun rises), rising later eachday, and it sets at nighttime,setting later and later each

night.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

o. At the full moon, thetimes of moonrise and

moonset have advanced sothat the Moon rises about

the same time the Sun sets,and the Moon sets at about

the same time the Sunrises.


As the Moon wanes(becoming a half Moon and

a crescent moon, on theway to a new moon), the

Moon rises during thenight, after sunset, risinglater each night. It then

sets in the daytime, afterthe Sun rises.


Eventually, the Moon risesso late at night that it'sactually rising around

sunrise, and it's settingaround sunset. That's

when it's a new Moon onceagain.


11. Explain why eclipsesare rare events.


a. During a new moon,when the Moon is betweenthe Earth and the Sun, theMoon usually doesn’t block

the Sun.


b. During a full moon,when the Earth is betweenthe Sun and the moon, the

Earth’s shadow usuallydoesn’t fall on the moon.


c. The Moon's orbit istipped by 5 degrees with

respect to the Earth's orbit.Therefore, eclipses do not

occur every month.


d. The three objects (Sun,Moon, Earth) are rarely

lined up perfectly.


12. Compare and contrastsolar and lunar eclipses.


a. Eclipses, be they solar orlunar, occur when the

Earth, Sun and Moon are ina line.


b. If the Moon is inbetween the Earth and theSun, it blocks the view of

the Sun from some parts ofthe Earth, and this

produces a solar eclipse.


c. If the Earth is inbetween the Sun and Moon,

then the Earth will blockthe light from the Sunbefore it can get to the

Moon. Since moonlight isjust the light the Moon

reflects from the Sun, thiswill darken the Moon, and

we get a lunar eclipse.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

d. Whether it is the Moonbetween the Earth and Sun,

or the other way around,the phenomenon is

basically the same: thebody in the middle casts acone of shadow, and if the

outer body happens tomove into this cone, we

have an eclipse.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

e. It is important to noticethat the shadow is morecomplicated than just a

cone: it actually consists ofa darker cone, or umbra,

where no Sunlight reaches,and a lighter region, thepenumbra, where onlysome of the Sunlight is

blocked.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

Whether you will be able toobserve a total or partial

eclipse will depend onwhich of the two regions

you are located in.


13. Describe how the Moonand the Sun cause the

tides.


a. Tides- The rise and fallof the surface of oceans,seas, bays, rivers, and

other water bodies causedby the gravitational

attraction of the Moon andSun occurring unequally ondifferent parts of the Earth.


b. Approximately 70percent of Earth’s surfaceis covered by a relativelythin layer of water, which

responds to thegravitational attraction of

the moon and the Sun witha daily cycle of high and

low tides.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

c. The moon’s gravity pullson the Earth, and pulls the

water towards it. Thewater moves up into a

slight bulge on the side ofthe Earth that faces the

moon.


d. At the same time, thereis a force pulling water outin the opposite direction ofthe moon. To understand

this force, you need topicture the Earth and the

Moon as one unit.


Picture two unequal balls onthe ends of a stick. If youspin this stick around, you

can imagine the force that aparticle might feel if it wereon the far end of either theMoon or the Earth. It wouldfeel a force outward, awayfrom the center of the spin.This is called the centrifugal

force.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

The water on the far end ofthe Earth, away from the

Moon, is always beingpulled out from the centerof the spinning Earth-moon

unit, like a person beingwhirled around on a

carnival ride.


e. In one rotation (one day),a point on Earth travels froman area of high tide (where

there is a force pulling wateroutward), through an area oflow tide, through an area ofhigh tide again (the oppositepull), and through anotherarea of low tide, before it

returns to the point of originat high tide.


This results in two hightides and two low tides in a

day (called semidiurnaltides).


f. The tides are causedmainly by the gravitationalattraction of the Moon andthe Earth, but there is alsoa gravitational attraction

between the Earth and theSun.


The effect of the Sun uponthe tides is not as significant

as the moon’s effects.Basically, the Sun’s pull canheighten the moon’s effects

or counteract them,depending on where the

Moon is in relation to the Sun.


g. Spring tides- especiallyhigh high tides and low lowtides that occur during fulland new moons, when theSun and the Moon are lined

up with the Earth.


h. Neap tides- especiallylow high tides and high low

tides that occur duringquarter moons, when thegravitational forces of the

Moon and the Sun areperpendicular to one

another with respect to theEarth.


14. Understand the size,scale, and arrangement ofthe members of the Solar

System (ESRT p.15).


a. The Solar System consistsof the Sun (our star), the nine

planets, more than 130satellites (moons) of the

planets, and a large numberof small bodies (the cometsand asteroids). (There areprobably also many more

planetary satellites that havenot yet been discovered.)


b. The inner Solar Systemcontains the Sun, Mercury,

Venus, Earth and Mars.


c. The asteroid belt liesbetween the orbits of Marsand Jupiter, separating the

inner planets from theouter planets.


d. The planets of the outerSolar System are Jupiter,Saturn, Uranus, Neptune

and Pluto.


e. The Solar System ismostly empty space. The

planets are very smallcompared to the space

between them.


f. The Sun contains 99.85%of all the matter in the

Solar System.


g. The planets contain only0.135% of the mass of the

Solar System.


h. Jupiter contains morethan twice the matter of all

the other planetscombined.


i. Satellites of the planets,comets, asteroids,

meteoroids, and theinterplanetary medium

constitute the remaining0.015%.


j. If the Sun had anequatorial diameter of

25cm (ESRT p.1 and 15),the planets would be this

big:


25 cm / 1,392,000 km =? cm / (actual planet

diameter) km

***CROSS MULTIPLY!


Mercury - 0.8mm


Venus - 2.1mm


Earth - 2.2mm


Mars - 1.2mm


Jupiter - 25mm (2.5cm)


Saturn - 20.9mm (2.1cm)


Uranus - 8.4mm


Neptune - 8.1mm


Pluto - 0.4mm


k. If the distance from theSun to Pluto is 25cm, thedistance from the planets

to the Sun would be:


25 cm / 5,900,000,000 km= ? cm / (actual planet

distance) km

***CROSS MULTIPLY!


Mercury - 2mm (0.2cm)


Venus - 4mm (0.4cm)


Earth - 6mm (0.6cm)


Mars - 9mm (0.9cm)


Jupiter - 32mm (3.2cm)


Saturn - 60mm (6cm)


Uranus - 121mm (12.1cm)


Neptune - 190mm (19cm)


Pluto - 250mm (25cm)


15. Compare/contrast thegeocentric and heliocentric

models.


a. Geocentric model- modelof the universe with the

Earth at the center and allother objects moving

around it.


b. Heliocentric model-model of the universe withthe Sun at the center andall other objects moving

around it.


c. The following is asummary of majorachievements in

astronomy.


Among the first peopleknown to have kept

astronomical records werethe Akkadians who livedsome 4,500 years ago innorthern Babylonia. The

Babylonians accumulatedrecords of astronomicalobservations for many

centuries.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

The records enabled themto see repeated patterns inthe motions of the celestial

objects. They used thepatterns to predict the

positions of the Moon andplanets.


The first record of aneclipse of the Sun was

made in China (2136 B.C.).The first calendars were

made in China (1300 B.C.).The Chinese recorded

sightings of many comets,including Halley’s comet

(466 B.C.)The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

The Mayans built manymonuments and buildings,which were aligned to the

position of Sunrise andSunset at the equinoxes and

solstices. Their calendarskept track of the Sun, Moonand Venus, as well as solarand lunar eclipses (1000-

2000 years ago).The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

Early Greeks held thegeocentric ("Earth-

centered") view of theuniverse, believing thatEarth was a sphere thatstayed motionless at the

center of the universe


Orbiting Earth were the sevenwanderers (planetai in Greek),which included the Moon, Sun,

and the known planets—Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter,

and Saturn. To the earlyGreeks, the stars traveled

daily around Earth on atransparent, hollow spherecalled the celestial sphere.


In A.D. 141, ClaudiusPtolemy presented the

geocentric outlook of theGreeks in its most

complicated form in a modelthat became known as the

Ptolemaic system. ThePtolemaic model had theplanets moving in circularorbits around a motionless

Earth.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

To explain the retrogrademotion of planets (theapparent westward, or

opposite motion planetsexhibit for a period of time asEarth overtakes and passes

them) Ptolemy proposed thatthe planets orbited in smallcircles (epicycles), revolving

along large circles(deferents).


In the fifth century B.C.,the Greek Anaxagoras

reasoned that the Moonshines by reflected

Sunlight, and because it isa sphere, only half is

illuminated at one time.Aristotle (384-322 B.C.)concluded that Earth is

spherical.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

The first Greek toacknowledge a Sun-

centered, or heliocentric,universe was Aristarchus(312-230 B.C.). The first

successful attempt toestablish the size of Earthis credited to Eratosthenes

(276-194 B.C.).The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

The greatest of the earlyGreek astronomers was

Hipparchus (secondcentury B.C.), best known

for his star catalog.


Modern astronomyevolved through the work

of many dedicatedindividuals during the

1500s and 1600s.


Nicolaus Copernicus(1473-1543) reconstructedthe Solar System with theSun at the center and theplanets orbiting around it,but mistakenly continuedto use circles to represent

the orbits of planets.


Tycho Brahe's (1546-1601)observations were farmore precise than any

made previously.


Johannes Kepler (1571-1630) ushered in the newastronomy with his threelaws of planetary motion.


After constructing his owntelescope, Galileo Galilei(1564-1642) made many

important discoveries thatsupported the Copernican

view of a Sun-centeredSolar System.


Sir Isaac Newton (1643-1727) was the first to

formulate and test the law ofuniversal gravitation, developthe laws of motion, and prove

that the force of gravity,combined with the tendency

of an object to move in astraight line (inertia), results

in the elliptical orbitsdiscovered by Kepler.


16. Compare/contrastterrestrial and Jovian

planets.


a. The terrestrial planets arethe four innermost planets inthe Solar System, Mercury,

Venus, Earth and Mars. Theyare called terrestrial becausethey have a compact, rockysurface like the Earth's. Theplanets, Venus, Earth, and

Mars have significantatmospheres while Mercury

has almost none.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

b. Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus,and Neptune are known as

the Jovian (Jupiter-like)planets, because they are all

gigantic compared with Earth,and they have a gaseousnature like Jupiter's. TheJovian planets are also

referred to as the gas giants,although some or all of themmight have small solid cores.


c. Mercury is a small,dense planet that has noatmosphere and exhibitsthe greatest temperature

extremes of any planet. Itssurface is covered by

craters, like our Moon.


d. Venus, the brightestplanet in the sky, has a

thick, heavy atmospherecomposed of 97 percentcarbon dioxide, a surface

of relatively subduedplains and inactive volcanic

features, …


… a surface atmosphericpressure ninety times that

of Earth's, and surfacetemperatures of 475°C

(900°F) due to a runawaygreenhouse effect.


e. Mars, the "Red Planet," hasa carbon dioxide atmosphere

only 1 percent as dense asEarth's, extensive dust

storms, numerous inactivevolcanoes, many large

canyons, and several valleysof debatable origin exhibitingdrainage patterns similar to

stream valleys on Earth.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

Mars is red due to thepresence of iron oxide(rust) on the surface.


f. Jupiter, the largest planet,rotates rapidly, has a bandedappearance caused by huge

convection currents driven bythe planet's interior heat, aGreat Red Spot (bigger thanEarth) that varies in size, a

thin ring system, and at leastsixteen moons (one of themoons, Io, is a volcanically

active body).The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

g. Saturn is best known forits system of rings. It alsohas a dynamic atmospherewith winds up to 930 miles

per hour and "storms"similar to Jupiter's Great

Red Spot.


h. Uranus and Neptune areoften called "the twins"

because of similarstructure and composition.A unique feature of Uranus

is the fact that it rotates"on its side."


Neptune has thin, white,wispy clouds above itsmain cloud deck and anEarth-sized Great DarkSpot, assumed to be alarge rotating storm

similar to Jupiter's GreatRed Spot.


i. Pluto, a small frozenworld with one Moon

(Charon), may have oncebeen a satellite of Neptune.

Pluto's noticeablyelongated orbit causes it tooccasionally travel insidethe orbit of Neptune, but

with no chance of collision.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

17. Explain Newton’s Lawof Gravitation with respect

to mass and distance.


a. The more mass an objecthas, the more gravity it

has.


b. All objects are attractedto each other by gravity.


c. The closer two objectsare to each other, the

greater the gravitationalattraction between them.


18. Explain how distancefrom the Sun affects a

planet’s orbital velocity(Kepler’s Laws).


a. The closer a planet is tothe Sun, the faster it

moves.


b. Mercury is the fastestplanet.


c. Pluto is the slowestplanet.


d. The orbits of all planetsare NOT perfect circles.

When a planet is closest tothe Sun, it moves fastest.


e. Earth moves fastestduring the winter, when it

is closest to the Sun.


f. A line connecting aplanet to the Sun will

sweep out equal areas inequal times.


19. Diagram ellipticalorbits and analyze theireccentricities (Kepler’s

Laws).


a. The orbits of all planetsare ellipses, with the Sun

at one focus.


b. Ellipse- A closed curveresembling a flattened

circle (oval).


c. Focus- one of twospecial points along themajor (long) axis of anellipse. A focus is not atthe center of an ellipse

unless the ellipse isperfectly circular. Plural =

foci (“foe-sigh”).


d. Eccentricity- Eccentricityis a measure of howcircular an ellipse is.


e. For a perfectly circularorbit the eccentricity is

zero; elliptical orbits haveeccentricities between zero

and one. The higher theeccentricity, the more

"squashed" the orbit is. Aline segment has aneccentricity of one.


f. Eccentricity of an ellipse(ESRT p.1) = the distancebetween the foci divided

by the length of the majoraxis.


g. The sum of the distancesfrom any point on the

curve to the two foci is aconstant (always the

same).


h. Here’s how to draw aperfect ellipse. You'll need:


A flat board, made of anymaterial into which pins ornails can easily be pushed


Two pins or nails


A loop of thread or string


A pen or pencil


Paper


Place a piece of paper on theboard, and stick in the two

pins (not too close together).Loop the thread around thepins and pull tight with the

tip of the pen. Now move thepen around, always keepingthe loop of thread tight. Asthe pen rotates around thetwo pins it will trace out an

ellipse.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

i. If you move the pinscloser together, the ellipse

becomes more circular(eccentricity decreases).


j. If you move the pinsfarther apart, the ellipse

becomes less circular(eccentricity increases).


k. If you leave the pins inthe same place, but use alonger piece of string, theellipse will become morecircular (less eccentric).


l. If you leave the pins inthe same place, but use

shorter string, the ellipsewill become less circular

(more eccentric).


20. Understand that theapparent size of the Sun

changes seasonally due tothe Earth’s elliptical orbit.


a. During the winter, whenEarth is closest to the Sun,the Sun appears largest in

the sky.


b. During the summer, theSun appears smallest.


21. Describe meteors, theirorigin, and cratering as an

early geologic activity.


a. Meteoroid- a rock inspace.


b. Meteor- a meteoroidthat has entered Earth’s

atmosphere.


c. Meteorite- a meteor thathas landed on Earth’s

surface.


d. A meteor occurs when ameteoroid enters the

Earth's atmosphere andvaporizes, heating itself

and atmospheric gases sothat they glow. Most

meteoroids are no morethan 1 cm in diameter.


e. High meteor rates occurduring meteor showers,

when the Earth runs into aswarm of meteoroids.

Showers take place on orclose to the same date

each year, when the Earthcrosses the common orbit

of the meteoroids.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

f. The number of recoveredmeteorites has risendramatically with the

discovery that Antarctic icefields collect and preservemeteorites for millions of

years.


g. Meteorites are classed asstones, irons, and stony-irons.Stones resemble Earth rocks

and are the most commonmeteorites. Carbonaceous

chondrites are a type of stonymeteorite and may representunaltered material from early

in the history of the SolarSystem.


Iron meteorites contain ofiron and nickel and stony-

iron meteorites aremixtures of stone and

metal.


h. The radioactiveelements in meteoritesshow that most of themsolidified at almost thesame time as the oldestMoon rocks, about 4.6

billion years ago (the ageof the Solar System).


i. The large number ofcraters on the Moon and

other Solar System objectsindicates that they

experienced an earlyperiod of intensebombardment.


j. Impact craters can beidentified in Earth’s crust.


22. Describe comets, theeccentricity of their orbits,

and the Oort cloud.


a. Comets are chunks of iceand dust. When they comeclose to the Sun, however,

the nucleus is warmedenough by Sunlight torelease gas and dust.

These flow away from thenucleus to produce the tailof the comet, which alwayspoints away from the Sun.


b. The Sun is surroundedby the Oort cloud, a swarmof comets beyond the orbitof Pluto. There may be asmany as 1 trillion comets

in the Oort cloud.


Passing stars alter theorbits of Oort cloud comets,

causing some of them toenter the planetary systemand become visible as newcomets. Other comets arethought to come from the

Kuiper belt, a disk ofcomets just beyond the

orbit of Neptune.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

c. A comet loses icy materialeach time it passes the Sun.Eventually, the ice is entirelyeroded. The dust particles left

behind form meteoroidswarms that produce meteorshowers. Some comet nuclei

may have rock cores thatbecome asteroids once the

surrounding ice is gone.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

d. If a large meteoroid orcomet struck the Earth,there would be serious

local and globalconsequences. The global

consequences mightinclude darkness for weeksor months, very acidic rain,and temporary heating of

the atmosphere.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

23. Describe the location ofthe asteroids and theirpast influence on the

Earth.


a. Most of the knownasteroids orbit in a belt

located between the orbitsof Mars and Jupiter. Theseasteroids are very widely

spread out.


b. Many asteroids are notfound in the asteroid belt.The Trojan asteroids, forexample, either follow or

go before Jupiter in itsorbit around the Sun. Inaddition, the asteroids

Hidalgo and Chiron haveorbits larger than Jupiter's.


c. Many asteroids haveorbits that carry theminside the orbit of theEarth. Within tens of

millions of years, theseasteroids are likely to bedestroyed by striking the

Earth.


d. Many asteroids arefragments of largerasteroids that were

shattered by impacts. Mostof the small asteroids arethe eroded cores of much

larger bodies.


e. An excess of the elementiridium, discovered in rocks

formed at the end of theCretaceous period 65 millionyears ago, suggests that anasteroid struck the Earth atthat time. The consequences

of the impact may haveplayed a role in the

Cretaceous extinctions.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

24. Describe otherplanetary satellites/rings


a. Our Moon's surface iscovered with craters fromimpacts with meteoroids.


b. The rotation period ofthe Moon is the same as

the period of its revolutionabout the Earth. This

arrangement keeps thesame face of the Moon

turned toward the Earth.


c. Phobos and Deimos, thesatellites of Mars, are

believed to be capturedasteroids.


d. The intense tidal heatingof Jupiter’s moon, Io,

makes it the mostvolcanically active body inthe Solar System. Volcanic

material is deposited sorapidly on Io's surface that

all evidence of impactcratering has been covered

up.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

e. Jupiter’s moon, Europa,has a very smooth, icy

surface even though it ismade mostly of rock. Europa's

surface has been smoothedby glacier-like flows and,

probably, by flows of waterfrom the interior. A thickocean of water probablyexists below its icy crust.


f. Saturn's largest satelliteis Titan. Its atmospherecontains mostly nitrogenand is thicker than theEarth's. Titan is cold

enough that atmosphericethane can condense to

liquid form. In fact, Titanmay have ethane rain andlakes or oceans of ethane.


g. Triton orbits Neptune ina retrograde direction andis slowly spiraling inward.

Triton probably formedelsewhere and was

captured into a retrogradeorbit.


h. The rings of Jupiter,Saturn, Uranus and

Neptune are very thin andconsist of many

individually orbitingparticles (rock and ice).


i. The 32 Largest Objects inSolar System


Rank Object DiameterYear of Discovery

Comment


1 Sun 1,392,000 kmStar


2 Jupiter 142,800 kmPlanet


3 Saturn 120,000 kmPlanet


4 Uranus 51,800 km1781 Planet


5 Neptune 49,500 km1846 Planet


6 Earth 12,756 kmPlanet


7 Venus 12,104 km Planet


8 Mars 6,787 km Planet


9 Ganymede 5,260 km1610 Moon of Jupiter


10 Titan 5,150 km1655 Moon of Saturn


11 Mercury 4,880 km Planet


12 Callisto 4,800 km1610 Moon of Jupiter


13 Io 3,630 km 1610Moon of Jupiter


14 Moon 3,476 kmMoon of Earth


15 Europa 3,140 km1610 Moon of Jupiter


16 Triton 2,700 km1846 Moon of

Neptune


17 Pluto 2,300 km1930 Planet?


18 Sedna 1,700 km2003 Inner Oort

Cloud


19 2004DW1,600 km2004 Kuiper Belt


20 Titania 1,580 km1787 Moon of Uranus


21 Rhea 1,530 km1672 Moon of Saturn


22 Oberon 1,520 km1787 Moon of Uranus


23 Iapetus 1,440 km1671 Moon of Saturn


24 Quaoar 1,300 km2002 Kuiper Belt


25 Charon 1,200 km1978 Moon of Pluto


26 Umbriel 1,170 km1851 Moon of Uranus


27 Ariel 1,160 km1851 Moon of Uranus


28 Dione 1,120 km1684 Moon of Saturn


29 Tethys 1,050 km1684 Moon of Saturn


30 Ixion 1,055 km2001 Kuiper Belt


31 Ceres 910 km 1801Asteroid


32 Varuna 900 km 2000Kuiper Belt


UNIT VIII/B: THE EARTHIN SPACE – STARS AND

GALAXIES


UNIT VIII/B: THE EARTH IN SPACE – STARS AND GALAXIES

1. Define and describe “galaxy”.2. Locate the sun’s position in the Milky Way Galaxy3. Understand why light years are used to measure distances in space.4. Explain the composition of the sun and other stars and the process of fusion.5. Explain the equilibrium between the inward pull of gravity and the outward pull of fusion.6. Describe the structure, color and temperature of the sun and other stars.7. Compare/contrast the temperature, color, mass and luminosity of the sun to other stars.8. Explain the how stars are plotted on the Temperature/ Luminosity Diagram (H-R Diagram).9. Locate the position and give characteristics of the Sun on the Temperature/ LuminosityDiagram.10. Describe the evolution of the Sun and different kinds of stars.11. Explain why larger/hotter stars burn their fuel faster and live shorter lives than the Sun.12. Explain why stars are considered to be “factories” which create elements needed forfuture stellar generation.13. Explain the importance of the electromagnetic spectrum in identifying some objects in theuniverse.14. Describe the Big Bang theory of the origin of the universe.15. Explain how red-shift (the Doppler Effect) and background radiation are evidence for anexpanding universe.16. Understand that scientists are searching for invisible mass that will explain continuedexpansion, implosion (Big Crunch), or oscillation of the universe.17. Describe how the Sun/solar system formed 4.6 billion years ago from the gas and dust(nebula) left behind by a previous star’s supernova.18. Explain how the planets were formed by accretion.19. Explain the theories of the origin of the moon.20. Explain why astronomers say, “we are made of star dust.”

1. Define and describe“galaxy”.


a. A galaxy is a very largecluster of stars (tens of

millions to trillions of stars)gravitationally bound

together.


b. There are billions ofgalaxies in the observable

universe.


c. The various types ofgalaxies include:


Spiral galaxies, which aretypically disk-shaped with

a somewhat greaterconcentration of stars near

their centers, oftencontaining arms of stars

extending from theircentral nucleus


Barred spiral galaxies, atype of spiral galaxy thathas the stars arranged inthe shape of a bar, whichrotates as a rigid system


Elliptical galaxies, themost abundant type, which

have an elliptical shapethat ranges to nearly

spherical, and lack spiralarms


Irregular galaxies, whichlack symmetry and accountfor only 10 percent of the

known galaxies.


d. Galaxies are notrandomly distributed

throughout the universe.They are grouped in

galactic clusters, somecontaining thousands ofgalaxies. Our own, calledthe Local Group, contains

at least 28 galaxies.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

2. Locate the Sun’sposition in the Milky Way

Galaxy.


a. The Sun is one of the200 billion stars that makeup the Milky Way galaxy.


b. The Milky Way galaxy isa large, disk-shaped, spiral

galaxy about 100,000light-years wide and about10,000 light-years thick at

the center (central“bulge”).


c. There are three distinctspiral arms of stars.


d. The Sun is positioned inone of these arms about

two-thirds of the way fromthe galactic center, at a

distance of about 30,000light-years.


e. Scientists suspect that asuper massive black hole –an immensely dense area

of space that sucks upmatter and light – lies at

the galaxy’s center


f. It takes about 200million years for the Sun torevolve around the galactic

center.


g. Surrounding the galacticdisk is a nearly spherical

halo made of gas andnumerous globular clusters(nearly spherically shapedgroups of densely packed

stars).


h. We see the Milky Way asa bright band of stars

across the sky. It looks likespilled milk!


i. Most of the points oflight in the night sky arestars in the Milky Way


3. Understand why lightyears are used to measure

distances in space.


a. A light-year is a unit ofdistance (NOT TIME!!!). Itis the distance that lightcan travel in one year.


b. Light moves at a velocityof about 300,000 km eachsecond (in a vacuum). Soin one year, it can travel

about 10 trillion km. Moreprecisely, one light-year is

equal to9,460,500,000,000

kilometers(5,880,000,000,000 miles).


c. Why would you wantsuch a big unit of distance?


In the Universe, thekilometer is just too smallto be useful. For example,the distance to the nextnearest big galaxy, the

Andromeda Galaxy, is 21quintillion km. That is

21,000,000,000,000,000,000

km.


This is a number so largethat it becomes hard to

write and hard to interpret.So astronomers use other

units of distance.


d. In our solar system, wetend to describe distances

in terms of theAstronomical Unit (AU).The AU is defined as the

average distance betweenthe Earth and the Sun.


It is approximately 150million km (93 million

miles). Mercury can be saidto be about 1/3 of an AUfrom the Sun and Pluto

averages about 40 AU fromthe Sun.


The AU, however, is not bigenough of a unit when we

start talking aboutdistances to objects

outside our solar system.


e. For distances to otherparts of the Milky Way

Galaxy (or even further),astronomers use the light-year. Using the light-year,

we can say that:


The Milky Way Galaxy isabout 150,000 light-years

across.


The Andromeda Galaxy(one of our nearest

neighboring galaxies) is2.3 million light-years

away.


Proxima Centauri, theclosest star, is 4.24 light

years away.


Sirius the “dog star” (thebrightest star in the sky) is

8.6 light years away.


Center of the galaxy isapproximately 30,000 light

years away.


The most distant galaxiesobserved are more than 12

billion light years away.


f. Light minute- thedistance light travels in a

vacuum in one minute,approximately 18 millionkilometers. The Sun is 8.3

light-minutes away.


g. Light second- thedistance light travels in a

vacuum in one second,approximately 300,000kilometers. The Moon isabout 1.3 light-seconds

away.


h. When we look up, wesee the Moon and sun, not

as they are now, but asthey were 1.3 seconds and

8.3 minutes ago.


i. Since it takes light timeto reach us, the further out

we look into space, thefarther back we see into

time.


4. Explain the compositionof the Sun and other starsand the process of fusion.


a. The Sun is actually astar of about medium size.It appears larger than theother stars because it is

closer to the earth.


b. By mass, the Sun is 73%hydrogen and 25% helium.


c. The Sun can be dividedinto four parts 1) the solar

interior, 2) thephotosphere (visiblesurface), and the two

layers of its atmosphere, 3)the chromosphere and 4)

corona.


d. The photosphere radiatesmost of the light we see.Unlike most surfaces, it

consists of a layer ofglowing gas less than 500

kilometers (300 miles) thickwith a grainy texture

consisting of numerous,relatively small, bright

markings called granules.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

e. Just above thephotosphere lies the

chromosphere, a relativelythin layer of hot, glowing

gases a few thousandkilometers thick.


f. At the edge of theuppermost portion of thesolar atmosphere, called

the corona, gases (mostlyprotons and electrons;

plasma) escape thegravitational pull of theSun and stream toward

Earth at high speedsproducing the solar wind.


g. Numerous features havebeen identified on the

active Sun. Sunspots aredark blemishes with a

black center, the umbra,which is rimmed by a

lighter region, thepenumbra.


The number of sunspotsobservable on the solar

disk varies in an 11-yearcycle. Sunspots are darkbecause they are cooler

than the surroundingareas.


h. Prominences, hugecloudlike structures best

observed when they are onthe edge, or limb, of the

Sun, are produced bygases trapped by magnetic

fields that extend fromregions of intense solar

activity.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

i. The most explosiveevents associated with

sunspots are solar flares.Flares are brief outbursts

that release enormousquantities of energy that

appear as a suddenbrightening of the regionabove sunspot clusters.


During the event, radiationand fast-moving atomic

particles are ejected, causingthe solar wind to intensify.When the ejected particlesreach Earth and disturb the

atmosphere, radiocommunication is disruptedand the auroras, also calledthe northern and southern

lights, occur.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

j. The source of the Sun'senergy is nuclear fusion.

Deep in the solar interior, ata temperature of 15 millionK, nuclear fusion convertsfour hydrogen atoms into

one helium atom. During thereaction some of the matteris converted to the energy

of the Sun.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

The weight of fourhydrogen atoms is slightlygreater than the weight of

one helium atom. This“missing weight” is

converted to energy,making the Sun shine!


k. A star the size of theSun can exist in its presentstable state for 10 billion

years. Since the Sun isalready 4.6 billion yearsold, it is a "middle-aged"

star.


5. Explain the how starsare plotted on the

Temperature/ LuminosityDiagram (H-R Diagram).


a. This diagram (ESRT p.15)is a graph of stars plottedwith luminosity and massalong the vertical axis andtemperature (decreasing)

and color along thehorizontal axis.


b. Its real name is the H-R(Hertzsprung-Russell)

Diagram.


c. The stars differ fromeach other in size,

temperature, and age.


d. Luminosity = Brightness


e. The Sun has a luminosityof 1. A star with a

luminosity of 100 is 100times brighter than the

Sun, etc.


f. More massive stars areusually brighter.


g. Hot stars are blue. Coolstars are red.


h. Typically, as a star getshotter, it gets brighter.

These stars are the MainSequence stars.


i. A Red Giant is a cool star,but it is bright because it is

so big.


j. A White Dwarf is a hotstar, but it is dim because

it is small.


k. The Sun is an averagesize star. It is located nearthe center of the graph. Itssurface is 5,500°C, which

makes it yellow.


l. Plotting stars on thisgraph causes certain typesand ages of stars to cluster

together.


6. Describe the evolutionof the Sun and different

kinds of stars.


a. A typical star (one likethe Sun) lives (producesnuclear energy) for about

10 billion years. Thisincredible length of time is

greater than 100 millionhuman lifetimes.


b. A cloud of dust in space(a nebula) begins to

contract due to gravity.


c. As it contracts, pressureand temperature increase

inside this “protostar.”


d. When the temperaturegets hot enough, fusion

begins, and a mainsequence star is born.


e. A star loses mass duringfusion as energy is

released. This decreasesthe star’s gravity.


f. A star will expand,becoming a red giant,

when the outward force offusion is greater than theinward force of gravity.


g. As fuel runs out in a star,fusion slows down. When

the outward force of fusionis less than the inward

force of gravity, the starwill shrink in size,

becoming a white dwarf.


h. A star like the Sun willrun out of fuel, and die,becoming a black dwarf.


i. Supernova- An explosionthat marks the end of a verymassive star's life. When itoccurs, the exploding star

can outshine all of the otherstars in the galaxy in totalfor several days and may

leave behind only a crushedcore (perhaps a neutron star

or black hole).The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

All of the heavy elements(heavier than iron) were

created in supernovaexplosions.


j. A larger, more massivestar will collapse violently,becoming a neutron star.


k. Neutron star- animploded core of an

exploded star made upalmost entirely of neutrons.

A teaspoonful of theirmaterial would weigh morethan all the automobiles in

the United States puttogether.


l. The largest stars collapseso violently that theybecome black holes.


m. Black hole- the remainsof the death and collapseof an extremely massive

star. The gravitational pullof a black hole is so strong

that light itself cannotescape.


7. Explain whylarger/hotter stars burntheir fuel faster and live

shorter lives than the Sun.


a. Large, more massivestars have much moregravity than the sun.


b. The great internalpressures, due to the

higher gravity, cause thefusion reaction to occur

more quickly.


c. This causes the largeststars to burn their fuel,and eventually run out,

much more quickly.


d. Larger stars live shorterlives.


e. Bigger stars are brighterand hotter due to the rapid

rate of fusion.


8. Explain why stars areconsidered to be “factories”

which create elementsneeded for future stellar

generation.


a. Stars of all massesspend the majority of their

lives their lives fusinghydrogen into helium: wecall this stage the main

sequence.


b. When all of thehydrogen in the central

regions of a star isconverted into helium, thestar will begin to "burn"

helium into carbon.


c. However, the helium inthe stellar core will

eventually run out as well;so in order to survive, a

star must be hot enough tofuse increasingly heavierelements, as the lighter

ones become used up oneby one.


d. Stars heavier than about5 times the mass of theSun can do this with no

problem: they burnhydrogen, and then helium,and then carbon, oxygen,silicon, and so on... until

they attempt to fuse iron.


e. Iron is special in that itis the lightest element in

the periodic table thatdoesn't release energy

when you attempt to fuseit together. In fact, insteadof giving you energy, youend up with less energythan you started with!


This means that instead ofgenerating additional

pressure to hold up thenow extended outer layersof the aging star, the iron

fusion actually takesthermal energy from the

stellar core.


Thus, there is nothing leftto combat the ever-presentforce of gravity from these

outer layers. The result:

collapse!


f. The lack of outwardpressure generated by theiron-fusing core causes theouter layers to fall towardsthe center of the star. Thisimplosion happens very,

very quickly: it takes about15 seconds to complete.


During the collapse, thenuclei in the outer parts ofthe star are pushed veryclose together, so close

that elements heavier thaniron are formed.


9. Explain the importanceof the electromagneticspectrum in identifying

some objects in theuniverse.


a. We have only recentlybeen able to look at theUniverse over the entire

electromagnetic spectrum.Our Universe contains

objects that produce a vastrange of radiation withwavelengths either tooshort or too long for our

eyes to see.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

b. Some astronomicalobjects emit mostly infrared

radiation, others mostlyvisible light, and still othersmostly ultraviolet radiation.Temperature determines the

type of electromagneticradiation emitted byastronomical objects.


c. Type of radiationradiated by objects and

typical sources:


Gamma-rays: accretiondisks around black holes


X-rays: gas in clusters ofgalaxies; supernova

remnants; stellar corona


Ultraviolet: supernovaremnants; very hot stars


Visible: planets, stars,some satellites


Infrared: cool clouds ofdust and gas; planets


Microwaves: Sun, comets,planets, molecular clouds,galaxies, quasars and the

cosmic backgroundradiation


Radio: radio emissionproduced by electrons

moving in magnetic fields


10. Describe the Big Bangtheory of the origin of the

universe.


a. The Big Bang Theory isthe leading scientific

theory about the origin ofthe universe.


b. According to the BigBang, the universe was

created around 15 billionyears ago from a cosmic

explosion that hurledmatter and energy in all

directions.


c. The universe wasoriginally a single tiny

dense sphere of hydrogenthat exploded into a

gigantic expanding cloudthat eventually condensed

into separate galaxies.


d. After the Big Bang,matter, energy, space and

time came into being.


e. By "running the filmbackward'' (theorizing the

galaxies' motionsbackward in time)

astronomers can estimatewhen the universe was

born.


11. Explain how red shift(the Doppler Effect) andbackground radiation areevidence for an expanding

universe.


a. The Big Bang wasinitially suggested because

it explains why distantgalaxies are traveling away

from us at great speeds.


b. Red shift- thelengthening (or

"stretching") of lightwaves coming from a

source moving away fromus.


c. If a source of light ismoving toward us, the

opposite effect — called a"Blue Shift'' — takes place.


d. Light from ALL galaxiesoutside our Local Group is"red-shifted,'' indicating

that they are moving awayfrom us (and from each

other).


e. Actually, it is the spacethat is expanding, carryingthe galaxies along with it!This phenomenon is called

the "expansion of theuniverse.''


f. Spectral lines are red-shifted from distant

galaxies, indicating thatthe galaxies are movingaway from us due to the

expansion of the Universe.


g. The Big Bang Theoryalso predicts the existence

of cosmic backgroundradiation (the glow leftover from the explosion

itself).


h. The Big Bang Theoryreceived its strongest

confirmation when ArnoPenzias and Robert Wilson,

who later won the NobelPrize for this discovery,

discovered this radiation in1964.


They detected backgroundnoise using a special low

noise antenna. The strangething about the noise wasthat it was coming from

every direction and did notseem to vary in intensity

much at all.


If this static were fromsomething on our world,like radio transmissionsfrom a nearby airport

control tower, it wouldonly come from one

direction, not everywhere.


The scientists soonrealized they had

discovered the cosmicmicrowave background

radiation. This radiation,which fills the entire

Universe, is believed to bea clue to it's beginning:

The Big Bang.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

12. Understand thatscientists are searching for

invisible mass that willexplain continued

expansion, implosion (BigCrunch), or oscillation of

the universe.


a. The fate of the universedepends upon the balancebetween the outward force

of expansion, and theinward pull of gravity.


b. The inward pull ofgravity depends on the

total amount of matter inthe universe. More matter

has more mass and greatergravity.


c. If there is not enoughmatter in the universe, theoutward force of expansion

will be greater, and theuniverse will expand

forever. It will get colderand darker.


d. The “Big Crunch,” theopposite of a big bang, will

occur if there is enoughmatter (and therefore

gravity) in the Universe toslow down and reverse its

present expansion.Everything will come back

together again.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

e. Dark matter is materialthat is believed to make up

more than 90% of themass of the universe, but

is not readily visiblebecause it neither emits

nor reflectselectromagnetic radiation,

such as light or radiosignals.


Its composition isunknown. It can be

detected by itsgravitational effect on

objects in space.


f. If we can determine theamount of matter in theuniverse, we can predict

its future.


g. The universe mayoscillate. This means that

it may go through cycles ofBig Bangs and Big

Crunches, over and overagain (almost like the

universe is breathing!).


13. Describe how theSun/Solar System formed4.6 billion years ago fromthe gas and dust (nebula)left behind by a previous

star’s supernova.


a. The nebular hypothesisdescribes the formation of

the solar system.


b. The planets and Sunbegan forming about 4.6billion years ago from alarge cloud of dust and

gases composed ofhydrogen and helium, withonly a small percentage of

all the other heavierelements.


c. As the cloud contracted,it began to rotate andassume a disk shape.


d. Material that wasgravitationally pulled

toward the center becamethe protosun.


e. Within the rotating disk,small centers, called

protoplanets, swept upmore and more of the

cloud's debris.


f. The characteristics of theplanets of the solar system

are affected by eachplanet’s location in

relationship to the Sun.


g. The inner planets aredenser. The lighter

elements were blown, bythe solar wind, to the outerplanets, making them lessdense. Heavier substances

like metals, oxides andsilicates stayed near theSun, forming the inner

planets.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

14. Explain how theplanets were formed by

accretion.


a. The concept of planetarydevelopment by accretion is a

theory that cosmic dustlumped together (gravity) to

form particles, particlesbecame gravel, gravel

became small balls, then bigballs, then tiny planets, orplanetesimals, and, finally,dust became the size of the

moon.The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

b. As the planetesimalsbecame larger, their

numbers decreased, andthe number of collisions

between planetesimals, ormeteorites, decreased.


c. Fewer items available foraccretion meant that it took along time to build up a large

planet. One calculationsuggests that about 100million years would pass

between the formation of anobject measuring 10

kilometers in diameter and anobject the size of the Earth.


15. Explain the theories ofthe origin of the moon.


a. Most scientists believethat the Moon was formedfrom the ejected material

after the Earth collidedwith a Mars-sized object.


b. This ejected materialclumped together to formthe moon, orbiting around

the Earth.


c. This catastrophiccollision occurred about

4.3 billion years ago. Theage of the Moon isdetermined by the

radioactive dating of Moonrocks.


d. Another theory is thatthe Moon was captured by

Earth’s gravity.


16. Explain whyastronomers say, “we are

made of star dust.”


a. The atoms that make upyour body come from the

Earth itself. (You are whatyou eat!)


b. The atoms that make upthe Earth came from thecloud of dust (nebula) in

space that formed ourSolar System.


c. Where did this cloudcome from?


d. The fact that there aremany heavy elements hereon Earth is evidence that asupernova occurred in the

past. (Remember: anyelements heavier than iron

can only form during asupernova, when a

massive star explodes.)The Physical Setting: Earth Science by Charles A. Burrows

e. This indicates that adifferent star once existedthat ended its life with a

bang (supernova) leavingbehind a cloud of dust in

space.


f. The dust, from a starthat exploded in the past,is where the atoms in your

body came from.


g. YOU ARE MADE OF STARDUST!


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