Sun-Earth Relationship

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Sun-Earth Relationship
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Weather?

• Condition of the atmosphere at a given time and
  place

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Climate?

• Condition of weather in a geographic region over
  a long period of time

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Temperature?

• Measurement of heat

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Tilt of the Earth

• Axis- an imaginary line running from the North
  Pole, through the center of the Earth, to the
  South Pole.
• Located at 23 ½ degrees upon the axis
• Effects temperature depending upon tilt of the
  Earth towards or away from the sun.

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Rotation

• The spinning of the Earth on its axis.
• 1 rotation 24 hours

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Revolution

• Orbit of the Earth around the sun.
• 365 ¼ days in one year

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The Seasons

• Equinoxes- Equal Night 12 hrs. of day/night
• Neither Pole is pointed toward or away from sun
• Autumnal Equinox (September 21/22)
• Vernal Equinox (March 21/22)

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Cancer and Capricorn

• 23 ½ degrees North- Tropic of Cancer
• Northernmost point on Earth to receive direct
  sunlight
• 23 ½ degrees South- Tropic of Capricorn
• Southernmost point on Earth to receive direct
  sunlight

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The Seasons

• Summer Solstice- North pole is pointed toward the
  sun at 23 ½ degrees North
• Winter Solstice- South pole is pointed toward the
  sun at 23 ½ degrees South

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The Poles

• Each pole receives continuous sunlight for 6
  months of the year
• When one pole receives sunlight the other
  receives little to no sunlight

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5 Factors that Affect Climate

• 1. Latitude
• 2. Elevation
• 3. Wind
• 4. Ocean Currents
• 5. Landforms

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Latitude
90 N
High Latitude
60 N
Middle Latitude
30 N
Low Latitude
0
Low Latitude
30 S
Middle Latitude
60 S
High Latitude
90 S
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Low Latitude

• Located between 0-30 degrees North/South
• Called the Tropics
• Receives sunlight all year
• Very hot temperatures
• Lush vegetation
• Abundant Precipitation

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Middle Latitude

• Located between 30-60 degrees North/South
• Summers Hot, Dry
• Winters Cold, Rainy
• Dramatic Seasons

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High Latitude

• Located between 60-90 degrees North/South
• Poles located here
• Cold Temperatures year round

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Elevation

• As air rises it cools and dries
• Basically
• As you go up from the ground, the air gets colder
  and drier.

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Elevation

• Urban Heat Island- cities or urban areas are
  hotter because
• 1. Evaporation is less
• 2. Land surface (concrete) stores heat
• 3. More fossil fuels add CO2 which stores heat
• 4. More pollution which stores heat

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Global Wind Belts

• What is wind?
• The horizontal flow of air

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Types of Wind

• Prevailing Winds- winds which blow from the same
  direction
• Doldrums- Windless areas around the equator
• Westerly- Prevailing winds, in the mid latitudes,
  which blow from the west
• Easterly- Prevailing winds, in the mid latitudes
  which blow from the east

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Types of Wind Cond

• Front- two air masses of widely different
  temperatures and moisture levels meet
• Polar Front- occurs between 40-60 degrees
  North/South, warm air meets cold air
• Jet Stream- Fastest westerly wind which moves
  heat and steer weather.

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Types of Wind Cond

• Coriolis Effect- causes prevailing winds to blow
  at a diagonal
• Right in the northern hemisphere
• Left in the southern hemisphere

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Global Wind Belt Diagram
90 N
Polars
60 N
Westerlies
30 N
Northeast Tradewinds
0
Doldrums
Southeast Tradewinds
30 S
Easterlies
60 S
Polars
90 S
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Ocean Currents

• Water heats/cools more slowly on land
• Current- A great river of seawater which moves in
  a circular flow
• Upwelling- cold water from the ocean floor rises
  to the surface

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Landforms

• As warm, moist air flows from the water and rises
  up the mountain it begins to cool. The cool air
  then evaporates which causes precipitation. The
  precipitation allows the windward side of the
  mountain to have lush vegetation.
• As the air pushes over the mountain it dries and
  heats up. This causes the leeward side of the
  mountain to be hot, dry.

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Rain shadow Effect/Orographic Uplift
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Bodies of Water

• Oceans
• Covers 70 of Earth
• 97 of all Earths water
• Largest is the Pacific Ocean

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Seas, Gulfs, Bays

• All Saltwater
• Usually partly enclosed by land
• Largest Mediterranean Sea

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Lakes, Rivers, Streams

• Lakes- a body of water which is completely
  surrounded by land.
• Fresh and Salt Water
• Most were made by glaciers cutting a valley into
  the Earth
• In Texas, all lakes are man-made
• Except Lake Caddo on the Texas-Louisiana border

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Rivers

• All civilizations begin near water (usually
  river)
• Mesopotamia- (Fertile Crescent)- the land between
  the two rivers Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
• Headwater- beginning of a river (usually a
  mountain)
• Mouth- end of a river (usually in a larger body
  of water)
• Groundwater- wells, springs, aquifers

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Freshwater

• 3 of Earths water
• 2 frozen in glaciers and icecaps
  (meltsaltwater)
• 0.5 found in aquifers- water below the Earths
  surface
• 0.5 found on the surface

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Desalinization

• The process of turning salt water into fresh
  water
• Boil salt water and use condensation as the fresh
  water
• Problem expensive, very little freshwater from
  process

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Planet Earth

• 93 million miles from sun
• 8,000 miles in diameter

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Atmosphere

• Air which surrounds Earth 19 miles above the
  surface
• 78 Nitrogen
• 21 Oxygen
• 1 other gases

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Biosphere

• All life on Earth

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Hydrosphere

• All water on Earth
• Solid- Glaciers, Icebergs
• Liquid- oceans, rivers, lakes.
• Gas- Fog
• a cloud that has come to Earths surface

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Lithosphere

• Solid crust of the planet
• Continents- 7 large landmasses
• Australia, Asia, Antarctica, Africa, Europe,
  North and South America

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Europe
North America
Asia
Africa
South America
Australia
Antarctica
The Continents
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Lithosphere

• Highest point- Mount Everest
• Himalaya mountains in South Asia
• 29,035 feet above sea level (asl)
• Lowest point- Dead Sea
• Southwest Asia (Middle East)
• (-)1,349 feet below sea level (bsl)
• Deepest point- Mariana Trench
• Pacific Ocean
• 38,827 feet

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Mount Everest
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Shoreline of the Dead Sea
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Inside the Earth

• Crust- Made up of huge, plate-like sections of
  rock
• Mantle- Hot dense rock
• Outer Core- melted nickel and iron
• Inner Core- solid iron and nickel

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Layers of the Earth
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Continental Drift

• Theory that the continents were all once joined
  in a super continent called Pangaea but slowly
  drifted apart

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Plate Tectonics

• Movement of plates

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Weathering

• The chemical or physical process of breaking down
  rocks
• Physical weathering- large pieces of rock are
  physically broken off
• Chemical weathering- changes on the rocks
  chemical makeup causes changes to the rock

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Physical
Weathering
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Chemical weathering
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Erosion

• Wearing away of the Earths surface by wind,
  water, glaciers

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Wind Erosion

• Movement of dust, sand, or soil from one place to
  another

Wind created alcove in Utah
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Glacial Erosion

• Wearing away of the Earths surface by moving ice

Baltoro Glacier, Pakistan
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Water Erosion

• Wearing away of the Earths surface by flowing
  water

Cliffs cut by waves in South Wales
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Sediment

• Small particles of sand and gravel flow through a
  body of water which aids in water erosion

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Types of Weather
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Tornado

• Twisting spirals of wind
• Occurs in the middle latitudes
• USA has more than any other country
• Does not follow a pattern
• April-June usually between 3-7 pm

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Tornado Cond

• Fujita Scale- measurement of the intensity of
  tornado
• F0- 40 to 70 mph
• F1- 71 to 112 mph
• F2- 113 to 157 mph
• F3- 158-206 mph
• F4- 207-260 mph
• F5- 261 mph

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Tropical Cyclones (Hurricanes/Typhoons)

• Most powerful and destructive force of nature in
  the Atlantic Ocean (Hurricane) or Pacific Ocean
  (Typhoon)
• Tropical wave
• Tropical depression
• Tropical Storm
• Hurricane (74 mph)

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Cyclone Cond

• Produce powerful winds, torrential rains, high
  waves and damaging storm surges
• Can also produce tornadoes
• Develop over large bodies of warm water
• Lose strength once they move onto land
• Named alphabetically, alternating female/male by
  years.

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Monsoon

• Seasonal reversing wind accompanied by seasonal
  changes in precipitation.
• Rainy phase
• Drought Phase

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El Nino

• Periodic change in the pattern of ocean currents
  and water temperature in the Pacific Ocean
• Changes in wind currents cause warm water from
  Indonesia to move along the South American Coast
  towards the US coast.

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Effects of El Nino

• Precipitation increases along North and South
  America coasts (floods)
• Precipitation decreases along SE Asia, Australia,
  and East Asia (Drought)
• Has been linked to Global Warming

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Greenhouse Effect

• Earths atmosphere traps heat and filters the
  rays pf the sun which help keep the Earth warm.

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Global Warming

• The burning of fossil fuels (gasoline, oil,
  coal) causes gases to be emitted into the
  atmosphere which trap and store heat which
  increases the greenhouse effect and causes the
  Earth to warm at a faster rate.

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Effects of Global Warming

• Rising sea levels
• Increased global temperatures
• Extreme weather events (drought, hurricanes,
  tsunamis)
• Arctic ice shrinking
• Greenland ice sheets shrinking/breaking off
• Dramatic effect on future food supplies