Earth2 Chapter 4 Worksheet GS
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Apr 3, 2024
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Chapter 4 Worksheet Gavin Sebastian
1. What has been the mean temperature on earth for most of its history (and even now)?
For the majority of Earth's history, the average temperature has been between 59 and 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Identify: The faint young sun paradox
The question of how life and liquid water may have existed on Earth when the sun was significantly fainter than it is now is known as the "faint young sun paradox." If the sun wasn't as brilliant, it begs the question of why the Earth wasn't frozen for two thirds of its history.
3. Why is Venus so much hotter than Earth?
Venus has an atmosphere that is 96% carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that effectively traps heat, which explains why Venus is so much hotter than Earth. Venus becomes a significantly hotter planet as a result. 4. What do we mean by the term “reservoir of carbon”? Name at least 4 of these “reservoirs of carbon”. Where is the largest reservoir of carbon on earth?
A carbon reservoir is a location where carbon is kept in various states of storage. The oceans, rocks and sediments, the atmosphere, and flora and fauna are four examples of these reservoirs. Rocks and sediments contain most of Earth's carbon reserves. 5. What are the two main ways carbon is transferred from the land to the atmosphere?
Respiration and combustion are the two main processes that move carbon from the land into the atmosphere.
6. What is the main mechanism for removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere (and bringing it back to the land)?
Photosynthesis is the primary process that pulls carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and returns it to the land.
7. What are the 2 major types of chemical weathering that occurs on continents?
Hydrolysis and oxidation are the two main forms of chemical weathering that take place on continents.
8. Hydrolysis is the main mechanism for what? (Make sure you understand Figure 4-5.)
The primary process by which CO2 is eliminated from the Earth is hydrolysis.
9. Identify: dissolution
The process that erodes limestone bedrock and creates caves in some places is called dissolution.
10. What role do moisture, temperature, and vegetation play in chemical weathering? What environmental conditions are most conducive to chemical weathering?
The kinds of weathering processes that take place can be influenced by temperature, moisture content, and vegetation. All three types of weathering processes can be influenced by warm, humid temperatures, which are the most conducive to chemical weathering.
11. Identify: the chemical weathering thermostat (Make sure to look over Figure 4-7).
The Earth's natural thermostat, the chemical weathering thermostat regulates both the pace of weathering and future climates.
12. What does the author describe as the “minimum form” of the Gaia hypothesis? Do most scientists agree with this?
The Gaia hypothesis's bare minimum is that all life on Earth has made a significant contribution to the planet's chemical process history. Most scientists will concur on the hypothesis's most basic version.
13. What does the author describe as the “maximum form” the Gaia hypothesis? Do most scientists agree with this?
According to the most extreme version of the Gaia hypothesis, every living creature advances the planet's welfare through its own evolution. Most scientists will disagree with the Gaia theory in its most extreme form.
14. What is the snowball earth hypothesis? (Use the information on p.95 and make sure to look at the last paragraph.)
The main idea of the snowball earth concept is that Earth was once almost completely covered in ice and frozen. These ideas supporters believe that ice sheets covered nearly the entire surface of the Earth, with climate models indicating that they reached at least the middle latitudes but not the tropics.
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