Download Earth`s Atmosphere - Ballard County Schools

Earth’s Atmosphere
• Water Cycle
– Evaporation, Condensation, Precipitation
Be sure you can label each step of the water cycle and describe each
process. Know what is happening to the water molecules at each phase.
Liquid to gas, gas to liquid, etc. Is energy required for this change or is
energy removed?
• The atmosphere acts like a blanket. It
holds in heat, but also protects the Earth
from the Sun’s radiation.
• The atmosphere reflects and absorbs
some of this harmful radiation.
• Know the defintion of radiation:
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Winds
• The uneven heating of the Earth is
responsible for the wind patterns.
– The doldrums are the windless zones near
the equator.
– The prevailing westerlies are responsible for
the movement of the weather across the U.S.
– These predictable movement of winds allow
us to forecast weather.
Heat Transfer
• Radiation- transfer of heat through empty
space
• Conduction- transfer of heat when
particles collide and touch
• Convection- transfer of heat by the flow of
a heated material (warm rises, cool sinks)
Land and Sea Breezes
• Convection Currents are responsible for
these two types of breezes.
• The sun’s radiation heats up the sand and
the water, but the sand heats up much
faster during the day, and cools down
much faster than the water during the
night. (WHY?)
• The breeze is named for the direction from
which the wind is coming from.
Land and Sea Breezes
Land & Sea Breezes Continued
• When the warm air rises, it creates an
area of LOW pressure (less air, empty
space). So the area of HIGH pressure,
where the air molecules are clumped
together (more dense, more pressure)
over the cool area will blow towards the
newly created “empty space.”
• Day = Sea Breeze
• Night = Land Breeze
Earth’s Patterns
• Earth completes one rotation on its axis
every day. This is 24 hours.
– Rotation causes day and night.
• Earth completes one revolution each year.
This takes approx. 365 days.
– Revolution causes seasons.
Earth
• Since Earth is tilted on its axis, the equator
receives more direct sunlight than any
other place.
• The Earth follows an elliptical path on its
orbit around the Sun.
Moon Phases
Instead of half-moon waxing, please label it first quarter moon.
half- moon waning, please label it third quarter moon.
Moon Phases Tip: Remember
* Wax On, Wane Off
* Light begins from the Right
ECLIPSES
• Solar Eclipse- when the moon casts a
shadow on the Earth (Earth is in the
moon’s shadow)
• Lunar Eclipse- when the Earth is casting a
shadow on the moon (moon is in the
Earth’s shadow)
Mass vs Weight
• Mass is the amount of matter in an object
– It does not change no matter where you go.
• Weight is a measure of gravity’s force
– It changes depending on what planet you are
on.
– Gravity is a force that tries to pull two bodies
together. Gravity increases when the mass of
the objects increase, or when the distance
between the objects decrease.
Tides
• The moon is responsible for the tides.
• Each location on Earth will have 2 high
tides and 2 low tides each day.
• This is because the moon’s gravity causes
the ocean waters to bulge, while pulling on
the solid Earth causing the other side to
bulge also. This bulge of water travels
across the Earth as the Earth turns
underneath it.