12 15 2011 What was the composition of the early atmosphere Early Atmosphere o Consisted of hydrogen H helium He methane CH4 and ammonia NH3 o Volcanic eruptions introduced nitrogen carbon dioxide and water vapor into the atmosphere o Molecular oxygen introduced from photosynthesis of algae that s how we got oxygen o The oxygen produced ozone which trapped UV radiation and allowed for plant growth on land stops us from frying up Of the atmosphere today o Molecular Nitrogen N2 78 o Molecular Oxygen O2 21 o The remaining 1 is mostly Argon Traces of carbon dioxide methane water vapor etc These trace gases are important because they are highly reactive What are the sources and sinks of atmospheric carbon dioxide Sources o Volcanic Activity o Respiration o The burning of fossil fuels pollution o Plant Decay o Deforestation Sinks o Photosynthesis o Oceans o Carbonates carbon in the rock in the earth which creates limestone limestone caves are big depositories of carbon How does the hydrological cycle work and what are the different phases of water Hydrologic Cycle o Fueled by incoming solar energy o Exchange of water between reservoirs o Evaporation Transpiration plants release water vapor into the air Condensation Precipitation Know the layers of the atmosphere Troposphere where we live temperature decreased with height Tropopause where temperature increases with height Statosphere temperature increases Statopause point where it beings to decrease Mesophere decrease Mesopause point where it begins to increase In which layers does the temperature increase with height o Tropopause Stratosphere Mesopause Decrease with height o Troposphere Stratopause Mesophere What are the 5 main processes of energy transfer How does each work All weather events require an energy source Conduction o Transfer of energy through matter air is a poor conductor If you hold a metal rod in a fire eventually the heat will rise to the top of the rod and burn your hand o Transfer of energy by movement of mass liquids and air Convection Advection In liquids o Energy transfer by horizontal movement of air Cold front cold air taking over the warm air Latent Heating the heat absorbed or released per unit mass when water changes phases ice to liquid water o Latent heat of melting energy absorbed by water to change o Latent heat of fusion amount of energy released to the environment when water freezes o Latent heat of vaporization amount of heat required to evaporate liquid water o Latent heat of condensation the amount of energy released when water vapor condenses to liquid form Deposition Phase change from gas to solid Sublimation Phase change from solid to gas Define latent heat Know that latent heat is released during cloud formation condensation During what phase changes is latent heat released And taken in Sublimation Evaporation and Melting are all cooling processes removes energy from the atmosphere Condensation Freezing and Deposition are all warming processes add energy to atmosphere How does the intensity of incoming radiation change with latitude Remember this involves the area over which the radiation is spread o energy in the form of waves that are not composed of matter o all objects with a temperature above absolute zero emit Radiation Radiation Law radiation Wien s Law o the hotter the object the shorts the wavelength of maximum emission of radiation When radiation interacts with an object it can be o Absorbed Reflected or Transmitted ART Albedo o Describes the percentage of light an object reflects snow has a high albedo The amount of radiation energy the atmosphere absorbs depends on radiative properties of the material amount of time exposed to energy the amount of material the proximity to the energy source and the angle at which radiation occurs Know that seasons occur due to the tilt of the Earth which is tilted at 23 5 degrees Why do the tropics receive an energy surplus and the poles an energy deficit How is heat distributed from the tropics to the poles Polar Regions emit more than they absorb energy deficit Tropics Absorb more than they emit energy surplus Ocean currents and atmosphere distribute heat poleward keeping the poles from cooling and the tropics from warming The further poleward you travel the more daylight you have during the summer and the fewer daylight hours in the winter At what time of day is the temperature the greatest Remember this occurs right before sunset where the sun has been out for the longest period of time Diurnal Temperature Cycle o Has air temperature increasing all morning long to an incoming solar peak at noon o After noon the energy gains still exceed the losses until around 4pm when maximum daily temperature is reached sunset o The energy losses then exceed the gains all night long with a minimum temperature around sunrise Know the 5 controls of temperature Why do coastal areas have more moderate temperatures Specific heat of land vs water Latitude o Angle of inclination affects incoming solar energy and causes the seasonal cycle in temperature o Insolation the amount of energy at the top of the atmosphere o Higher insolation higher temperature o Insolation levels affected by latitude o Because the atmosphere is heated by the Earth s surface the surface type plays an important role in the surface air Surface Type temperature Elevation and Aspect o Higher altitude colder temperature B c the air is less dense and there are fewer molecules to absorb incoming solar radiation o Aspect is the direction that a mountain slope faces South facing slopes receive more solar energy and are warmer than north facing slope Relation to Large bodies of water o Thermally stabilize the temperature of the surrounding air so that the difference between months are reduced o Due to water s high specific heat more heat required to increase the temp of water and it cools down much slower than land Cloud cover o Temperature of nearby water also modifies a region s temp o Clouds reflect and absorb solar energy o They reduce the amount of solar radiation at the surface causing daytime cooling and have a warming effect which can very pronounce at night when they emit longwave radiation toward the surface What is a dry adiabatic lapse rate and how is the moist adiabatic lapse rate different These define the rate of cooling for a rising bubble of air Lapse rate change of temperature with height Air that moves up and down in the atmosphere undergoes A rising parcel always expands before