AP Environmental 4.1- 4.3 notes quiz Flashcards

dense mass of nickel, iron, and radioactive elements that release massive amounts of heat; inner core is solid outer core is liquid

soft solid of magma surrounding core, kept soft by intense heat from the core

solid, flexible outer layer of mantle, beneath the lithosphere

thin, brittle layer or rock floating on top of mantle (broken up into tectonic plates)

very outer layer of the lithosphere

mostly granitic rock

mostly basaltic rock

plates move away from each other, rising magma plume from mantle forces plates apart, forms mid- oceanic ridges, volcanos, seafloor spreading, and rift vallys (on land)

plates slide past each other in opposite directions, forms earthquakes

plates move toward each other, leads to subduction (one plate being forced beneath another) when one plate is oceanic, forms mountains, islands, arcs, earthquakes, and volcanos

heated by the earth's core, rises toward the lithosphere, when cooled and expanded it forces oceanic plates apart (subduction zone), leads to mid-ocean ranges, volcanos, or seafloor spreading

one plate subducts underneath the other

dense oceanic plate subducts beneath cont. plate melts back into magma

one plate subducts underneath other, forcing surface crust (mountains)

pattern of volcanos all around pacific plate

likely location of earthquakes

areas of esp. hot magma rising up to lithosphere

mix of geologic (rock) and organic (living) components, sand, silt, clay

main organic part of soil (broken down biomass like leaves, dead animals, waste, etc.)

ammonium, phosphates, nitrates

filters rain water+ runoff by traping pollutants in pore spaces+ plant roots

home to decomposers that break down dead organic matter+ return nutrients to the soil

provides habit for organisms like earthworms, fungi, bacteria, moles, slugs

breakdown of rocks into smaller pieces physical, biological (roots of trees cracks rocks), chemical (acid rain, acids from moss/ lichen)

transport of weathered rock fragments by wind and rain,carried to new location and deposited (deposition)

soil pH, nutrient content

steep slope= too much erosion; more level ground= deposition

warmer= faster breakdown of organic matter; more precipitation= more weathering, erosion and deposition

soil organisms like bacteria, fungi, worms breakdown organic matter

a layer of organic matter (plant roots, dead leaves, animal waste, etc) on top soil

aka top soil (layer of humus (decomposed organic matter) and minerals from parent material)

aka subsoil; lighter layer below topsoil, mostly made of minerals with little to no organic matter

least weathered soil that is closest to the parent material, sometimes called bedrock

tiling (turning soil for ag.) and loss of vegetation disturb soil and make it more easily eroded by wind and rain

the loss of the ability of soil to support plant growth

compression of soil by machines( tractors, bulldozers, etc) grazing livestock, and humans reduces ability to hold moisture

repeatedly growing crops on the same soil removes key nutrients (N, P, K, Na, Mg) over time

made up of 3 particles (sand> silt> clay)

The percent of sand silt and clay in soil (always adds to 100%)

The amount of pore space a soil has more sand in soil= more porous/ higher porosity (easier for water and air to enter) more clay in soil= less porous/ higher porosity (harder for water and air to enter) nthe pore space within a soil

How easily water drains through soil, more porous/ higher porosity= more permeable/ higher permeability

how well water is retained or held by soil, more porous/ higher permeability= lower H20 holding capacity

ability of soil to support plant growth