Notes, abstracts, papers, exams and problems of Geology

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Climate Change: Feedbacks, Processes, and History

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Climate Feedbacks and Their Impact on Climate Change

Feedbacks within the climate system amplify climate changes initially caused by external factors. This can be visualized as:

  • Initial climate forcing → Initial climate response → Response amplified

Example: An increase in heat energy sent to Earth by the Sun causes high-latitude snow and ice to retreat. This allows more sunlight to be absorbed by the Earth's surface, leading to further climatic warming (amplifying the changes underway). Another example is delayed bedrock rebound.

Negative Feedback Mechanisms in Climate Change

Initial climate changes can also lead to a reduced response:

  • Initial climate forcing → Initial climate response → Response reduced

Example: Chemical weathering acts... Continue reading "Climate Change: Feedbacks, Processes, and History" »

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Stars, Galaxies, and the Universe

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Metal in Astronomy

In astronomy, "metal" refers to any element other than hydrogen or helium. These are the only elements that occur naturally without the nuclear fusion activity of stars.


Galactic Disk vs. Galactic Halo

  • Galactic Disk:
    • Highly flattened
    • Contains both old and young stars
    • Gas and dust are present
    • Ongoing star formation
    • Gas and dust have circular orbits in the galactic plane
    • Spiral-like structure
  • Galactic Halo:
    • Roughly spherical
    • Contains only old stars
    • No gas and no dust
    • No ongoing star formation
    • Stars have random orbits in three dimensions
    • No obvious structure

Henrietta Leavitt's Discovery

Henrietta Leavitt discovered the relationship between the luminosity and the period of Cepheid variable stars. She was examining photographic plates in order

... Continue reading "Stars, Galaxies, and the Universe" »

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Types of Oil Well Separators: Horizontal, Vertical, and Spherical

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The fluids produced from oil wells are normally complex mixtures of hundreds of different compounds. A typical oil well stream is a high-velocity, turbulent, constantly expanding mixture of gases and hydrocarbon liquids, intimately mixed with water vapor, free water, and sometimes solids. Three types of separators are generally available from manufacturers. Selection of separator type is based on several factors including characteristics of production steam to be treated, floor space availability at the facility site, transportation, and cost.

Horizontal separator:

Horizontal separators are usually the first choice because of their low costs. Horizontal separators are almost widely used for high-GOR well streams, foaming well streams, or liquid-
... Continue reading "Types of Oil Well Separators: Horizontal, Vertical, and Spherical" »
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A laminar boundary layer is a layer

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GROUNDWATER:water stored beneath the surface of the Earth.

Wells can be built to extract groundwater from aquifers for use by human beings as a source of drinking water.
Ground water accumulates from rainwater. The water penetrates the Earth through porous sand and rock until it is stopped by a layer of impermeable material,exhale:clay
Groundwater can escape from the Earth springs. These occur where the impermeable  ayer is cracked or mixed with permeable rock.
Upper level groundwater forms the water table.
The rain water accumulates in areas of permeable rock,sand or gravel known as aquifers
GLACIERS:large masas of slow-moving ice
Glaciares move downhill very slowly.This´s because their immense weight and the force of gravity.U-
... Continue reading "A laminar boundary layer is a layer" »
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Marine Life: Habitats, Adaptations, and Symbiotic Relationships

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Marine Animal Characteristics and Habitats

  • Ectothermic Reptiles: Cold-blooded, live in warm tropical waters.
  • Carapace Turtles: Upper shell; sea turtles cannot retract into their shells.
  • Sea Gulls: Eat anything.
  • Penguins: Found in Antarctica.

Tides and Marine Mammals

  • Tide Control: Influenced by the moon.
  • Carnivora Mammals: Examples include sea otters and polar bears.
  • Seals vs. Sea Lions: Sea lions can walk on their back flippers; seals cannot.
  • Walrus Food: Mostly invertebrates.
  • Pinnipeds: Examples include seals, sea lions, and walruses.

Whales and Other Marine Life

  • Tusked Whale: Narwhal.
  • Sirenian Ancestors: Manatees (sea cows), related to elephants.
  • Dolphins: Are they whales? Yes.
  • Blowholes: Toothed whales have one; baleen whales have two.
  • Echolocation: Used
... Continue reading "Marine Life: Habitats, Adaptations, and Symbiotic Relationships" »
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Effects of Ozone Depletion, Water and Noise Pollution

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Effects of Ozone Depletion

When the ozone layer is depleted, the ultraviolet radiations of the sun can reach the earth's surface in greater proportion. This results in damage to animal and plant life on the earth. Ultraviolet rays cause skin cancer and cataracts in human beings. The ozone hole is seen in the stratosphere above Antarctica.

Main Sources of Water Pollution

There are two main sources of water pollution: natural and manmade sources. They can be further categorized into various types. Mineral from land that are washed off due to heavy rains, dead animals, animal waste, ash, chemical after forest fires, sulfur compounds after an earthquake, etc. are natural sources of water pollution. City sewage and industrial waste are the manmade... Continue reading "Effects of Ozone Depletion, Water and Noise Pollution" »

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Types of Architectural Structures

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Types of Artificial Structures

The main types of structures that have appeared throughout the history of construction are the following:

Massive and Lintelled Structures

These structures were built by stacking rock or other materials, leaving little space between them. For example, to build the pyramids in Egypt, stone or clay blocks were stacked on top of each other. The first human-made structures were carved from rock or larger spaces and increase the size of the openings in the built structure.

Vaulted Structures

The arch was invented later, and vaults enabled builders to cover. Because of their shape, arches and vaults can only resist compression stresses and are self-supporting. They stay in position without mortar or cement. This type of... Continue reading "Types of Architectural Structures" »

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The Four Spheres of the Earth and Earthquake Study

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The Four Spheres of the Earth

The Earth can be divided into four systems or spheres: geosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere. They all interact very closely with each other.

Geosphere

Scientists theorize that about 4.5 billion years ago, the Earth was a large ball of molten rock. The molten state was due to three processes that generated heat:

  • The continuous impacts of planetesimals during accretion
  • The differentiation of materials, due to gravity, into three layers of increasing density: crust, mantle, and core

Atmosphere

During the gravitational differentiation process, large quantities of gas were emitted. Hydrogen and helium escaped into space. Others, such as carbon dioxide and water vapor, were trapped in the crust. A primitive atmosphere... Continue reading "The Four Spheres of the Earth and Earthquake Study" »

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Air Pollution and Climate Change: Causes and Effects

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Ozone and UV Radiation

  1. Ozone in the stratosphere is important for absorbing and scattering much of the UV radiation coming into Earth's atmosphere from the sun.

Temperature Inversion

  1. Occasionally, a layer of cool air forms under a layer of warmer air in the troposphere. This change from the normal temperature profile in the troposphere is called a temperature or thermal inversion.

Natural Air Pollution

  1. Natural sources of air pollution include soil dust, wildfires, and volcanic dust.

Lead Pollution

  1. Lead pollution is a problem because lead causes central nervous system damage in humans.

Photochemical vs. Industrial Smog

  1. Photochemical smog differs from industrial smog in that it is formed only in the presence of sunlight.

Greenhouse Gases

  1. The most abundant
... Continue reading "Air Pollution and Climate Change: Causes and Effects" »
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Climate Change and Energy: Impacts and Solutions

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Hydroelectric Power Generation

Hydroelectric power generation is an alternative to fossil fuels that produces fewer greenhouse gases. It does not produce high quantities of greenhouse gases.

Global Climate Change Definition

Global climate change is defined as modifications in Earth's climate.

Cap-and-Trade Program

In a cap-and-trade program, industries must buy permits for their emissions.

Carbon-Based Fuels in the Lithosphere

Carbon-based fuels in the lithosphere have been slowly sequestered over many millions of years.

Positive Feedback Mechanism in Climate Change

Warmer temperatures result in the melting of permafrost, which may result in a positive feedback mechanism that would intensify climate change.

US Senate's Stance on Emission Reductions

The... Continue reading "Climate Change and Energy: Impacts and Solutions" »

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