Notes, abstracts, papers, exams and problems of Geology

White dwarfs are the stars near the lower left that are small in radius and appear white in color because of their high temperatures. A main-sequence star’s mass determines both its luminosity and its surface temperature. More massive stars live much longer lives because they fuse hydrogen at a much greater rate. Giants and supergiants are stars that are nearing the ends of their lives. White dwarf stars are the cooling embers of stars that have exhausted their nuclear fusion fuel. Stars are born in cold, dense clouds of gas whose pressure cannot resist gravitational contraction. A molecular cloud fragment heats up as gravity makes it contract, producing a protostar at its center. Conservation of angular momentum ensures that protostars rotate... Continue reading "The Life Cycle of Stars" »

Climate Change

Climate Change is the global variation in the Earth's climate. These changes can be caused by processes internal to the Earth, external forces or human activities. However, the influence that our activities have on the planet is called global warming. Because of this, the temperature has increased two degrees in the last thirty years and it will go on increasing in the future if we don't do anything. On the one hand, thousands of people have some responsibility for this change, but on the other hand there are other reasons, as for example: The greenhouse effect, To burn fossil's combustibles, The felling and burning of trees, The pollution that is caused by cars and factories. Some of these activities are giving off so much carbon... Continue reading "The Impact of Climate Change and How to Address It" »

HUMAN IMPACT

Acidic rain: It is a broad term that includes any form of precipitation with acidic components and results when dioxide (So2) and nitrogen oxides (NO) are emitted into the atmosphere and transported by wind and air currents. Acid rain is caused by the burning of fossil fuels to generate electricity, the chemical releases of vehicles and from manufacturing. There are two forms of acid rain: dry deposition which is crust in a sheltered area and wet depositions that are raindrops of sulphurous acid. Acid rain can be very harmful to the environment because it takes away minerals from the leaves and soil and without them plants cannot grow properly. Even if this rain doesn’t fall straight into lakes it can get there through rivers... Continue reading "Human Impact: Acid Rain, Climate Change, Overfishing, and More" »

EARTH INTERNAL LAYERS: Compositional : Crust (oceanic, continental) Mantle, Core. Phisical: Lithospere (rigid), Low velocity zone (ductile and partially molten), Lower molten (solid), Core (outer molten, inner solid).

 EV OF THE THEORY OF CONT DRIFT: Paleolithic evidence: Fossils. Biological ev: Living beings. Geological ev: Continents fit. Paleoclimatic ev: Glacier rests. BENIOFF ZONE: Area of seismic activity in a subducting plate. WILSON CYCLE: Rift Valley Stage: Magma rises up through fractures making the lithosphere thinner and lower. Red Sea St: Deep lakes are formed at the bottom of the valley, which spreads. Atlantic Ocean st: New oceanic lithosphere is being produced and the Atl Oc is expanding. Pacific Ocean st: The Oc lithosphere... Continue reading "Mnemonic for lithosphere,asthenosphere,mesosphere,outer core and inner core" »

Weathering and Erosion

Weathering is the process which causes rocks and minerals to break down and disintegrate into smaller pieces. This can occur through chemical, biological, and mechanical processes influenced by temperature and humidity. Erosion by water forms gullies in the land, which can gradually deepen into ravines and gorges.

Landscapes and Tectonic Plates

Landscapes produced under the surface of the earth are known as karst landscapes. The solid part of the earth is divided into different layers separated by areas known as discontinuities, such as the Mohorovičić discontinuity, Repetti, Gutenberg, and Lehmann. Tectonic plates, made up of the crust and the upper mantle, are massive slabs of solid rock. Volcanoes are cracks or openings... Continue reading "Understanding Weathering, Erosion, and Tectonic Plates" »

Properties of Minerals

Loads of things are made of minerals. Rocks are a mixture of minerals and minerals are a mixture of chemical elements. Every mineral has properties. A mineral has the physical properties (you can see from the outside): colour, shape, size, shine, hardness, cleavage (how does the mineral break). And it also has the chemical properties (you can’t see from the outside): carbon dioxide…(minerals). Crystals can form from freezing and cooling, and we know that because the video shows us that if you mix sugar (or magnesium sulphate as we did in the lab which are crystals already) with hot water, and then we cool the water down we will obtain a bigger crystal. This process is called re-crystallization. The video also teaches... Continue reading "Understanding Minerals and Rocks: Properties, Formation, and Uses" »

   anticyclone->air mass with high atmosph. Pressure

depression->air mass with LOW

S-H-depression->clockwise * N-H-anticyc->clock

isobar-lines of equal pressure/const.Pressure on weathe map

*heated air rises>air condenses,clouds form>descending air is dry>little rain falls here>sun heats ground>air rises cool>warm moist winds>rain falls

*Precipitation zones>humid warm,dry warm,humid tempe,dry cold

*clouds>cirrus,stratus,cumulus,nimbus,altocumulus,numbostratus

*precipitation factors>air pressure,humidity,ocean currents,atmospheric circulation,

*air mass>arctic and antarctic->cold and dry, polar air mass, tropical, equatorial

*fronts->warm,cold,stationary,occluded

*cyclone>N.H.-anti,  S.H.-clock

*... Continue reading "Given dry operating mass 5210 zero fuel mass" »