3707240
Description
Flashcards by haley theel, updated more than 1 year ago
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Created by haley theel
over 8 years ago
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| Question | Answer |
| atmosphere | the gaseous envelope surrounding Earth |
| troposphere | the layer of atmosphere closest to Earth's surface, extends to a height of approximately 12 km (7.5 mi) |
| stratosphere | contains an ozone layer that absorbs much of the sun's UV radiation |
| Coriolis effect | the tendency of moving air or water to be deflected from its path and swerve to the right in the Northern Hemisphere and to the left in the Southern Hemisphere |
| air pollution | consists of various chemicals present in the atmosphere in high enough levels to harm humans, other organisms, or materials |
| primary air pollutants | harmful chemicals that enter the atmosphere directly due to either human activities or natural processes |
| secondary air pollutants | harmful chemicals that form in the atmosphere when primary air pollutants react chemically with each other or with natural components of the atmosphere |
| photochemical smog | brownish-orange haze formed by chemical reactions involving sunlight, nitrogen oxides, and hydrocarbons |
| temperature inversion | a layer of cold air temporarily trapped near the ground by a warmer upper layer; during a temperature inversion, polluting gases and particulate matter remain trapped in high concentrations close to the ground |
| urban heat island | local heat buildup in an area of high population |
| dust dome | a dome of heated air that surrounds an urban area and contains a lot of air pollution |
| Clean Air Act (CAA) | 1970 - authorizes the EPA to set limits on specific air pollutants |
| weather | the condition in the atmosphere at a given place and time; includes temperature, atmospheric pressure, precipitation, cloudiness, humidity, and wind |
| climate | the typical weather patterns that occur over a period of years determine a region's climate |
| greenhouse gases | gases that absorb infrared radiation - carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and tropospheric ozone |
| ultraviolet (UV) radiation | a high-energy form of radiation that can cause skin cancer in humans, and be lethal to organisms at high levels of exposure |
| ozone thinning | the natural and human-caused removal of ozone from the stratosphere |
| chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) | the primary chemicals responsible for ozone thinning in the stratosphere - human-made organic aerosol compounds that contain chlorine and fluorine |
| acid deposition | a type of air pollution that includes sulfuric and nitric acids in precipitation as well as dry acid particles that settle out of the air |
| forest decline | a gradual deterioration and eventual death of many trees in a forest |
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