Grade 6
Weather and Climate: Study Guide
Chapter 1.1-1.3 Test: Wednesday, January 12, 2017
Textbook: p. 3-35
Write down the definitions of the following:
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Altitude
Atmosphere
Atmospheric pressure
Condensation
Conduction
Convection
Convection current
Coriolis effect
Electromagnetic radiation
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evaporation
glacier
Greenhouse effect
Groundwater
Hydrosphere
infiltration
Mesosphere
precipitation
Ozone
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salinity
Stratosphere
sublimation
Thermosphere
Troposphere
Water cycle
watershed
Sec. 1.1 – Earth’s Atmosphere (p.4-9)
POINTS:
1. Identify the components of the atmosphere and their effect of life on Earth. (p.4)
a. The blanket of gases that surround the Earth is called the ____________________________. (p.4)
b. Fill in the pie chart with the main gases that make up the atmosphere and their percentages.
Atmospheric Gases
_________
_________
_________
c. What other gases are included in the 1% ‘Other’ gases? (p.4)
d. List TWO things the atmosphere does for Earth (p.4)
e. Give a reason why each of the following gases are important for Earth’s atmosphere (p.4)
i.
ii.
Oxygen –
Carbon dioxide –
2. Describe what scientists study about the Earth’s layers of Earth’s atmosphere and how they explore
them.
a. Label the five distinct layers of Earth’s atmosphere in the figure below, it’s approximate altitude,
and describe each layers relative temperature(p.5):
b. Answer the following questions about ozone: (p.5 & p.8)
i.
In what layer of Earth’s atmosphere is the ozone located?
ii.
What is ozone?
iii.
How does ozone protect Earth?
iv.
What chemical can destroy the ozone layer, why was it in the atmosphere, and is it legal to
continue to put it in the atmosphere? (p.8)
v.
What condition makes ozone a pollutant? (p.8)
c. What are TWO ways in which scientists explore the Earth’s atmosphere?(p.5)
3. Explain the cause of atmospheric pressure. (p.6-7)
a. Define atmospheric pressure:
b. Since gas molecules move in ______ directions, they exert the ________ amount of pushing
__________ in all directions --- down, _____, and sideways.
c. Atmospheric pressure also depends on the ________ of air above the area. Like all matter, gas
molecules and other particles in the atmosphere are pulled downward by the force of __________,
which gives them weight.
d. Air that is under _______ pressure is __________ than air that is under less pressure. The
molecules are pushed more closely together.
e. On the side of a mountain as you go up in altitude, atmospheric pressure ______________ which
results in a decrease in air __________. Why does this happen?
f. Is there enough oxygen in the air to support life on the top of Mount Everest or 3,000 meters
above sea level in an airplane? Why or why not? What do we do about it in each case?
g. Draw a line on the graph below showing how pressure changes with altitude. (p.7)
Altitude (km)
30 25 20 15 10 50 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800
Atmospheric pressure (mmHg)
4. Describe how pollutants affect the atmosphere. (p.8)
a. Define air pollution –
b. The main cause of air pollution is due to the burning of __________ _______ by cars, trucks, etc.
When burned, they release harmful ________ like sulfur oxides, carbon _____________ and many
others. ________, a harmful brown haze, may be the result of this burning. Some of these gases
combine with water vapor in the air to form _______ rain, causing __________ of stone
monuments.
5. Understand the greenhouse effect and recognize when it becomes harmful for life on Earth. (p.8-9)
a. Define greenhouse effect –
b. Fill in the figure below with A-D to show how the greenhouse effect works:
A. Atmosphere with carbon dioxide
C. Heat reflected back into space
B. Radiation from the Sun
D. Heat trapped near Earth’s surface
c. The greenhouse effect is important for keeping the _________________ on Earth warm enough to
support life. When is the greenhouse effect considered harmful?
Sec. 1.2 – Earth’s Hydrosphere (p.10-15)
POINTS:
1. Describe the distribution of water in Earth’s hydrosphere. (p.10)
a. What is the hydrosphere?
b. List the six main places water is present using Figure 10 on page 10 and describe them.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
2. Recognize the importance of water’s role on Earth. (p.11)
a. The two main reasons most living things cannot survive for more than a few days without water is:
1. Living things are ____________________; about _____% of the human body is water.
2. Water takes part in most of an organism’s _______________________; plants require water to
make food by ______________________.
b. ____________water can ________ Earth’s surface. Water in rivers causes soil to be ____________
from some places and ___________________ in other places. Water can change the path of rivers
by moving soil around. Floodwater can enrich soil for plants. Caves and caverns may be carved
from rock by flowing ___________________. Water eroding rocks can create new soil.
c. Water in the atmosphere plays an important role in changing daily _______________. _________
are made of water droplets.
3. Identify the composition and the properties of the oceans’ layers. (p. 12)
a. Fill in the pie chart with the relative amounts of minerals that are dissolved in seawater.
b. The zones of the ocean are determined by
- The _____________________ of the water.
- The amount of ____________ that can infiltrate.
- The amount of dissolved ____________.
c. The THREE zones of the ocean include:
1. Upper (surface) zone – goes down to about _______meters from the surface. It is the
______________ layer because the sun’s heat and _______ penetrate the water. Plants and
________ grow here, using _______ and dissolved carbon dioxide to photosynthesize. _______
are also plentiful where food and ___________is abundant.
2. Middle (twilight) zone - ________________ decreases, light gets ____________, and dissolved
gases ______________.
3. Bottom (deep ocean) zone – this zone is very _________, with near freezing temperature; very
few life forms exist. Scientists have mapped this deep dark place using ________ technology
which uses ___________ waves that bounce off the ocean seafloor.
4. Describe the characteristics and the formation of waves. (p. 13)
a. Ocean waves are formed by ___________ blowing across the water’s ____________ at sea. Some
of the wind’s energy is ______________ to the water. The energy the water picks up causes water
molecules to move ____ and _________ but not forward! Only the ____________ moves forward.
5. Describe the characteristics and the formation of streams, rivers, and lakes.
a. What happens to the water that reaches Earth’s surface as rain or snow (precipitation)? (p.14)
Some of it soaks into the ground and becomes ________________________. The rest of the water,
flows down slopes along Earth’s surface and it is called
Runoff:
1. Contains: Water & substances it carries such as_____________________________________.
2. Can form streams and even lakes!
b. Slow-moving water:
- tends to deposit the ___________ it carries.
- can create a ____________ which is a low, flat area formed by sediments where a river flows
into a body of water, such as a lake or ocean.
c. Fast-moving
- Can wear away ________ and erode ________, cutting a narrow channel into Earth’s surface.
- May form a V-shaped valley if it flows through _______ rock.
d. A __________ is a depression in Earth’s surface that fills with rainwater or water from rivers.
Almost all lakes are __________________ lakes like those formed by glaciers.
e. Two salty lakes are ___________________Lake and the ____________ Sea. They formed because
the salty water does not flow out into a larger body of water like the ocean. As water evaporates in
the warm climate, the salt builds up.
Sec. 1.3 – Atmosphere and Hydrosphere (p.16-21)
POINTS:
1. Describe what happens to energy that is transferred from the sun to Earth.
a. Energy that is transferred from a substance at a higher temperature to a substance at a lower
temperature is called _________. (p.16)
b. Solar energy is transferred through space to Earth’s surface and atmosphere by electromagnetic
________________________ (p.16)
c. Electromagnetic radiation travels in waves such as ____________, visible light, & ______________
d. __________________ is the transfer of energy between two objects that are TOUCHING, and have
different temperatures.
e. __________________ is the transfer of energy by the flow of gases or liquids. Warm gases and
liquids are ________ dense than cold gases and liquids. Thus warm gases and liquids tend to
_____, while cold gases and liquids tend to _______. The rising and sinking of a gas or liquid form
________________ currents, the movement of gas or a liquid due to the flow of heat. These
currents transfer energy through Earth’s atmosphere and _________________.
2. Explain how water is cycled on Earth. (p.18-19)
a. Fill in the term that describes each of the following:
(watershed, sublimation, evaporation, condensation, water cycle, infiltration, precipitation)
1. ______________________Change from liquid to gas state.
2. ______________________Change from solid directly to gas state.
3. ______________________Change from gas state to liquid state.
4. ______________________When water falls to Earth as rain, snow, or hail.
5. ______________________Process in which surface water enters soil to become groundwater.
6. ______________________Movement of water between the hydrosphere & the atmosphere.
7. ___________________ An is an area of land in which the water drains to a common location.
3. Summarize the role of Earth’s atmosphere in balancing energy gain and loss.
a. The surface of the Earth absorbs about _______ of the solar energy it receives.
b. The energy absorbed by Earth’s surface is converted to ________________ energy and is
transferred to the atmosphere by radiation, conduction, and __________________.
c. The atmosphere absorbs _____% of the sun’s energy.
d. Heat is transferred from Earth’s surface to the atmosphere by ________________. Earth’s surface
cools releasing ______ into the atmosphere. Most of the heat passes through the atmosphere and
returns to _________. However, some heat is trapped by gases in the atmosphere and results in
the ____________________ effect. The greenhouse effect causes the temperature of the
atmosphere and the Earth to ______.
e. Earth’s atmosphere balances the ______energy received from the sun and the ______ energy lost.
f. The atmosphere helps control the amount of energy absorbed and _______.
g. The atmosphere is largely responsible to regulating the Earth’s __________________. This balance
makes it possible for ______ to exist.