OCE1001 Exam Two Study Guide Fall 2014 Ch 6 9 Chapter 6 Study Questions 1 The intensity of radiation per square meter of ground varies with latitude because as it increases the Sun s rays and Earth s surface become more nearly parallel and the solar radiation received on equal surface areas decrease Also the rays have to travel a longer distance with increasing latitude 2 A heat budget is the gains and losses of heat by the Earth and its atmosphere in order to maintain a constant temperature 3 Total energy absorbed in the sea surface loss of energy due to evaporation transfer of heat into and out of areas by the currents to name a few of the processes of heat budget which vary with time 4 Land and sea respond differently to solar radiation because of the difference of the specific heat of land materials and water Land has typically low heat capacity and thus undergoes large changes in temperature whereas water has a high heat capacity and is more resilient to temperature change 5 Sea ice is a thin sheet of newly formed ice that comes about when seawater begins to freeze in the polar winters Icebergs are massive irregular in shape and float with about 12 of their mass above the sea surface 6 Structure of the Atmosphere lowest to highest YOU NEED TO KNOW THE ORDER Troposphere temperature decreases with altitude changing from a mean Earth surface temperature of 16 Celsius to 60 Celsius at an altitude of 12km 90 of atmosphere Stratosphere temperature increases with increasing altitude Mesosphere temperature decreases with altitude higher than 50km Thermosphere temperature increases goes to a height of 500km 7 The temperature decreases with altitude in the troposphere because it is warmed from below by energy reradiated and conducted from Earth s surface and by condensation 8 The major gases that make up the composition of the atmosphere are oxygen and nitrogen 9 The Greenhouse Effect is atmospheric CO2 reducing the amount of outgoing long wave radiation from Earth by absorption therefore heating the planet An example of this would be the increase in CO2 particles in the atmosphere and warming climate 10 The Ozone Layer is a highly reactive form of oxygen that occurs primarily in the stratosphere and absorbs ultraviolet radiation from the Sun protecting living organisms from harmful rays 11 Winds are formed from vertical air movements due to changes in air density Areas of rising air are associated with low pressure and areas of descending air are associated with high pressure 12 A convection cell is formed in the atmosphere when air is warmed at one location and cooled at another 13 If there were no land masses and Earth did not circulate then the wind pattern would be very simple with warm air rising to the equator and goes toward the North where it is cooled and returns down toward the Equator Warm air rises and cool air sinks 14 Earth s rotation affects wind direction by creating apparent forces that appear to deflect moving air masses from their intended direction 15 The Coriolis Effect is the deflection of moving air relative to Earth s surface The magnitude of the effect increases with increasing latitude increases with the speed of moving air and is dependent on the variation in rotation rate of Earth s surface with latitude 16 The Earth s major wind bands are the polar easterlies at the north and south the westerlies after and the Southeast and Northeast trade winds centered on the Equator 17 The Intertropical Convergence Zone is the formal name for the zone of low pressure and rising air near the equator 18 The Monsoon Effect occurs in the summer along the west coast of India the air rises over the hot land creating a low pressure system then the rising air is replaced by cool moist air from the Indian Ocean which results in heavy rainfall during the summer 19 An onshore breeze is formed during the day because during daylight the land is warmed faster than the water and the air over the water moves over the land to replace it An offshore breeze is formed because at night the land cools rapidly and the water becomes warmer than the land and the air from the land replaces the air from the water 20 Winds circulate clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere around a high pressure system because winds are deflected to the right in the north 21 A rain shadow occurs because the upward deflection caused by the continents cools the air causing rain on the windward side of the mountain and on the sheltered side there is a low precipitation zone which is the rain shadow 22 A sea surge is found at the center of an intense low pressure storm where the sea surface rises up forming a mound or hill 23 The source of energy for intense tropical storms is at first the two low pressure systems colliding but if the storm does not have a source of water to draw energy from the storm will dissipate 24 During an El Nino the surface pressure in the area of the Indonesian Low is unusually high and the surface pressure of the South Pacific High is unusually low A movement of high pressure moves into the east traveling Indonesian Low reversing the normal pressure gradient across the Pacific Ocean This periodic reversal is called the Southern Oscillation 25 Some effects of El Nino are raising the surface temperature gradient a few degrees in the Peruvian Coast and shutting down the upwelling of water there The Northern US experiences warmer temperatures and the eastern dry US experiences rainfall 26 Between El Nino events surface temperatures drop below normal off Peru in an event called La Nina Chapter 8 Study Questions 1 As wind blows across a water surface the friction between the air and the water tends to stretch the surface resulting in wrinkles 2 A gravity wave is a wind generated wave 3 A shallow water wave is a wave that travels in water that is shallower than one twentieth of their wavelength Defined mathematically as D L 20 4 A deep water wave is a wave that travels in water that is deeper than one half of their wavelength Defined mathematically as D L 2 5 Anatomy of a Wave Crest part of the wave that is elevated highest above the undisturbed sea surface Trough part of the wave that is depressed the lowest below the undisturbed sea surface Wavelength distance between two successive wave crests or wave troughs Wave height vertical distance from the elevation of the crest to the depth of the trough Amplitude equal to one half the wave heights Wave steepness equal to wave height divided by the
View Full Document
Unlocking...