Earth's Subsystems and Feedback Loops

Where the effects of an action are amplified by a knock on or secondary effect.

False

<p>The tendency towards a natural state of balance within a constantly changing system.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>97%</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The portions of Earth's surface where water is in solid form, including ice sheets, ice caps, sea ice, glaciers, and permafrost.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Cooling and warming periods.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The solid outer layer of the Earth's crust and upper mantle, holding water and storing carbon for the longest time.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Water vapor.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Increased melting of ice, leading to rising sea levels and positive feedback loops, as well as influencing regional climates.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Steeper sides mean the water flows quicker, leading to a higher volume of overland flow and flashy hydrographs.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Natural vegetation increases interception, root uptake, and evapotranspiration, reducing surface runoff and the chance of flooding.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Deforestation reduces interception, infiltration, and evapotranspiration, resulting in more rapid overland flow and flashy hydrographs. It also increases soil erosion and can lead to sedimentation in channels.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Urbanization increases impermeable surfaces, leading to no infiltration and a higher volume of overland flow, resulting in flashy hydrographs. Drainage systems accelerate water removal but can cause flooding downstream.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Arable farming increases interception and infiltration, reducing surface runoff. Ploughing can improve infiltration and reduce runoff.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The downward movement of water from the surface into the soil.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Coarse soils have larger pores and a higher infiltration rate, while saturated, baked, or frozen soil is impermeable and has a much lower infiltration capacity.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The speed at which the soil can absorb water.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The maximum rate at which soil can absorb water.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The sum of evaporation and plant transpiration from the Earth's land and ocean surface to the atmosphere.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The change of state from a gas to a liquid, occurring when air cools and its ability to hold water vapor decreases.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>When energy from solar radiation hits the surface of water or land, it causes liquid water to change state to water vapor.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The area that supplies a river with its water supply, separated by high land called a watershed.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The downward movement of water through soil and rock due to gravity.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Water flowing through the top soil layer parallel to the surface, a slower process than overland flow.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Water being prevented from reaching the surface by trees or grass, where it is stored temporarily.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The River Exe drainage basin has 82% woodland or grassland, leading to high levels of interception, root uptake, and evapotranspiration. Peaty moorland soils have high infiltration, resulting in slow water transfer. However, 84.4% of the rock is impermeable, leading to rapid overland flow and a flashy hydrograph.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>To restore the peatlands by refilling drainage ditches, which had been dug to increase agricultural productivity, but led to high levels of overland flow, silt transport, and reduced water storage.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The project has resulted in increased infiltration capacity, reduced flood risks, improved water quality due to reduced silt transport, increased biodiversity, and job creation related to the restoration effort.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>It regulated discharge patterns, making both floods and droughts less frequent, reducing storm flow.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>An area near the equator where warm, moist air rises, creating an area of low pressure.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Large-scale movement of air, driven by convection, which redistributes thermal energy across the Earth's surface.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The bending of currents of air due to Earth's rotation.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Precipitation (P) = discharge (Q) + evapotranspiration (E) +/- storage changes (S).</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A condition where there is more precipitation than evapotranspiration, resulting in soil recharge and surplus water storage.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Recharge, Surplus, Utilisation, Deficit.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The balance between inputs and outputs to the soil in a drainage basin; it can be positive or negative, depending on various factors such as soil type, depth, and permeability.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Overland flow that occurs when water enters the soil faster than the soil can absorb or move it, often occurring in the summer when rainfall exceeds the infiltration capacity.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Overland flow that occurs when the soil spaces are so full of water that no more rain can be absorbed, often occurring in winter.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The part of a river's discharge that is provided by groundwater seeping into the river bed, a very slow process.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A more circular drainage basin shape means that water reaches the channel more quickly, resulting in a shorter lag time and a higher peak discharge, creating a flashy hydrograph.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Impermeable soil and rock types, such as clay soils or shale rock, lead to higher overland flow and less throughflow and infiltration, creating a flashy hydrograph.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Heavy rainfall leads to rapid soil saturation and high infiltration excess overland flow, resulting in a shorter lag time and higher peak discharge. Prolonged rainfall can also lead to saturation excess overland flow and a flashy hydrograph.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Water abstraction can deplete aquifers and potentially contaminate them with saltwater if the water table drops below sea level. This reduces the amount of water available in the drainage basin, impacting ecosystems and human activities.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Drought can reduce water stores in rivers and lakes, damage vegetation, and reduce evapotranspiration rates. It also decreases soil moisture, reducing throughflow and impacting water availability.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The seasonal variation in a river's discharge over the course of a year.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Rainfall that occurs when warm, moist air is forced to rise as it encounters a mountainous area, leading to condensation and precipitation.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>This rainfall occurs when the ground surface is heated by the sun, warming the air above it, causing it to rise, cool, condense, and form clouds that produce heavy rainfall and thunderstorms.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Rainfall that occurs when a warm front meets a cold front, forcing the warmer air to rise, cool, condense, and form clouds, producing significant rainfall.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The Amazon rainforest is facing significant deforestation, with estimates suggesting that 27% of the forest could be lost by 2030 if current rates continue.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Reduced evapotranspiration can lead to decreased precipitation and a risk of drought, while increased soil erosion can cause local flooding.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A natural environment that absorbs more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than it releases, offsetting greenhouse gas emissions.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The movement of carbon between stores, involving processes such as photosynthesis, respiration, decomposition, and combustion.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Living organisms convert CO2 from the atmosphere and water from the soil into oxygen and glucose using light energy.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Plants and animals convert oxygen and glucose into energy, producing CO2 and water as waste products.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>When living organisms die, they are broken down by decomposers, which release CO2 into the atmosphere and return organic matter to the soil.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Burning fossil fuels and organic matter, releasing CO2 into the atmosphere.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The process of carbon being absorbed into the ocean, increasing its acidity, with potential negative impacts on marine ecosystems.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The capture and storage of carbon from the atmosphere, either through natural processes or human intervention, such as carbon capture and storage.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Acidic rain can dissolve rocks, releasing carbon from the lithosphere, transferring it to the hydrosphere and atmosphere.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Organic matter is buried by sediment and compacted, over millions of years forming hydrocarbons such as coal and oil. Shelled organisms absorb carbon and form calcium carbonate, which becomes compacted and forms limestone, storing carbon for long periods.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Marine sediments and sedimentary rock, the ocean, fossil fuel deposits, soil organic matter, the atmosphere, and terrestrial plants.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The rate of flow of carbon between Earth's stores, essential for maintaining equilibrium within the cycle, but human activities are altering these fluxes, leading to changes in the ecosystem.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Erosion involves the transportation of sediment, while weathering is the process of breaking it down. Erosion occurs in marine environments, while weathering is a subaerial process.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A theory that proposes that Earth's living matter regulates conditions necessary for the continuation of life, suggesting the planet is a self-regulating organism in a state of dynamic equilibrium.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A measure of how ecologically active an area is, representing the amount of organic matter produced by plants.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Sedimentary rocks and deep marine sediments.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Carbon is dissolved in ocean water, but rising ocean temperatures reduce its capacity to absorb CO2, leading to more atmospheric CO2.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A stage of a succession.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The development of vegetation in a previously uncolonised area, involving changes within each sere.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Rock is weathered, pioneer species (lichens) appear, soil develops, plant species diversify, and a climax community forms.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The final stage of a sere where an ecosystem achieves environmental equilibrium and is fully developed and stable, limited by the climate.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A succession occurring on sand dunes.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The first species to populate an area during succession.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Species in a community that have the highest abundance or biomass.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>An area or habitat where human influences have prevented the ecosystem from developing further.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A situation where there are many different types of vegetation present in a climatic zone.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Deforestation can increase the albedo effect, reflecting more solar radiation back into space and potentially reducing global warming.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The Arctic Circle is warming at twice the rate of the global average, leading to rapid melting of ice and thawing permafrost.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Thawing permafrost releases greenhouse gases (CO2 and methane), contributing to further warming. Increased ice melt leads to sea level rise and reduced reflectivity, creating a positive feedback loop. Wildfires are more frequent due to higher temperatures.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The hockey stick graph shows a sharp rise in Earth's temperature in the past 100 years, contrasting with the relatively stable temperatures of the past 1000 years, highlighting the rapid warming trend in the Anthropocene.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Changing land from a carbon sink to a carbon source, due to activities like agriculture, can increase carbon emissions and accelerate climate change.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The livestock sector is responsible for 44% of human-induced methane emissions and 5% of CO2 emissions.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Enteric fermentation in cattle, rice paddies, and fossil fuel extraction and processing.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Fertilizers, manure, and engines burning fossil fuels.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Destruction of natural ecosystems, soil erosion, and compaction, impacting biodiversity, water quality, and long-term land productivity.</p> Signup and view all the answers