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FLASHCARDS REVIEW
1. Nutation is the rocking or swaying of Earth caused by the continuous changing in Earth’s tides which is caused by
the gravitational pull of the moon.
2. Barycenter- the balance or center of gravity between two objects.
3. Kepler’s Law- States every planet’s orbit is an ellipse (egg or oval) with the sun.
4. Revolution- a full lap around an object. The Earth’s revolution around the sun is 365 days or a year.
5. Sun’s revolution- planets tug on the sun causing it to orbit the solar system’s barycenter.
6. Radiation- is the transfer of energy through space (sun’s energy travels this way)
7. Nuclear Fusion- When two atomic nuclei combine or “fuse” together creating a heavier element. The source of
power for stars.
8. Nuclear fission- When two nuclear atoms split into a smaller element.
9. Seasons- Caused by the tilt of Earth’s axis creating more or less direct sunlight.
10. Differential heating- objects heat up at different rates. Water takes more energy to heat than land or air.
11. Photosynthesis- the process of using sunlight and Carbon dioxide to create chemical energy, releasing oxygen.
12. Earth’s magnetic field- protects and deflects harmful solar radiation from the sun.
13. Rock Cycle- continuous cycle of materials forming different rocks through heat, pressure, and weathering
14. Plate tectonics- Theory that states lithospheric plates move 5cm/year
15. Convergent boundary- when two tectonic plates collide (forms mountains)
16. Divergent boundary- When two tectonic plates separate (volcanoes)
17. Transform boundary- When two tectonic plates rub or move parallel or horizontally
18. Igneous Rock- rock from cooled magma or lava
19. Intrusive- when magma cools inside Earth’s surface
20. Extrusive- when lava cools outside/on Earth’s surface
21. Sedimentary Rock- compacted weathered material or sediments
22. Metamorphic Rock- transformation of one rock to another through extreme pressure and temperature
23. Weathering- the breaking down of rocks, creating sediments
24. Urbanization- The process in which humans move to a densely populated area
25. Deforestation- the removal of trees for human purposes
26. Mining and drilling- ways of obtaining resources (very destructive and harmful to the planet)
27. Alternative energy- energy that is not burning fossil fuels
28. Ocean currents- caused by density and wind. Density is effected by the temperature and the salinity rate (the
colder and more salty the water the more dense/they will sink) Wind Zones
29. Evaporation- liquid changes to a gas
30. Condensation- gas changes into a liquid
31. Accumulation- water gathers
32. Infiltration- water soaks into the ground, groundwater or aquifers
33. Human water uses- wells for drinking and freshwater, dams for power (hydropower), agriculture
34. Aquifer depletion- running out of water, saltwater intrusion
35. Population growth- requires more demand on water, fuel, food, etc. we do not have unlimited supply
36. Atmosphere layers- Trojans, Study, More, Than, Everyone: troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere,
thermosphere, exosphere
37. Troposphere- we live in, weather occurs
38. Stratosphere- most ozone
39. Air mass- a body of air which forms over land or water
40. Air mass modification- when an air mass adjusts temperature and pressure to the surrounding area
41. Warm front- when a warm air mass overtakes a cold air mass
42. Cold front- when a cold air mass overtakes a warm air mass
43. Occluded front- When a cold air mass overtakes a warm air mass and continues moving until meeting another
cold air mass
44. Stationary front- When a cold and warm air mass meet and undergo air mass modification becoming equal in
pressure and temperature
45. Isobar- contour lines on a pressure map, the closer the lines the lower the pressure and the farther the lines the
higher the pressure
46. El nino- the irregular warming of the equatorial pacific. Causes opposite weather patterns.
47. La nina- the irregular cooling of the equatorial pacific. Causes weather patterns to shift.
48. Biosphere- all life on Earth
49. Damaged biomes- Human destruction and severe storms can wipeout a biome. If we lose certain species, this
can directly affect the other species who rely on eating them.
50. Invasive species- a species that is nonnative or not originally from the area is brought into the biome. Can cause
disruption in the food chain by eating or killing certain organisms, both plants and animals.
51. Humans alteration- Humans change the habitat for animals, cities, deforestation, etc.
52. Solar, wind, biofuels, nuclear fission, geothermal- are various forms of alternative energy. Can be beneficial
because emissions of greenhouse gases are minimal or stopped. However, they are not as powerful and can
have their own pollution such as nuclear fission.
53. Solar energy- panels convert solar radiation into energy. They need to be placed in an area with lots of sun to be
useful.
54. Carrying capacity- the limit an environment can hold.
55. Human population growth- we may be reaching the Earth’s carrying capacity.
56. Ecological footprints- are the effect we have and leave on Earth. Even as individuals we have our own impact.
57. Personal choices- we have the choice to reduce, reuse, and recycle. This is important because the more we use
the more we take or damage the Earth. The more we drive, buy, and litter the more the Earth is altering with
greenhouse gases, pollution, and poisonous toxins being emitted into the planet.
58. Future sustainability- we have to change. We are damaging Earth to the point where we must find ways to use
less material, recycle more material, burn less fuel, and allow Earth to recover or we may destroy the planet.