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Unit 9
7.8ABC, 7.9AB Catastrophic Events, TX Ecoregions, Watersheds, & Space
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Catastrophic Events | Extreme weather events such as floods, hurricanes, & tornadoes; classified by the extent & intensity of their impact on the ecosystem. |
| Ecosystem | System consisting of all the interactions that occur between the abiotic & biotic factors within an environment. |
| Flood | Rising body of water that submerges normally dry land. |
| Hurricane | Large, tropical weather system in the northeastern Pacific or northern Atlantic Oceans consisting of an extreme low-pressure air mass with heavy rains & wind speeds of at least 119 km/h (74 mph). |
| Tornado | Violently rotating column of air extending from a thunderstorm to the ground with wind speeds from 40 to 318 mph. |
| Haboob | Large-scale dust storm. |
| Wildfire | Large fire that spreads quickly over a natural area. |
| Tsunami | Giant wave usually caused by an earthquake beneath the ocean floor. |
| Drought | Long period of dry weather. |
| Earthquake | Shaking that results from the movement of rock beneath Earth's surface. |
| Volcano | Vent in the surface of Earth that emits ash, gases, &/or molten lava. |
| Avalanche | Slide of large masses of snow, ice, & mud down a mountain. |
| Landslide | Sudden movement of rock & soil down a slope. |
| Sinkhole | A hole formed when limestone is dissolved, causing the land above to collapse. |
| ECOREGION | Relatively large area characterized by distinctive plant & animal communities, climate, & ecological features. |
| TOPOGRAPHY | Description of land surface area with reference to elevation variations. |
| WEATHERING | Mechanical or chemical processes that break rock into smaller pieces. |
| SEDIMENT | Earth material broken down by processes of weathering; can be eroded & deposited by agents of water, wind, ice, & gravity. |
| EROSION | Process by which water, ice, wind, & gravity remove & transport sediment from 1 place to another. |
| DEPOSITION | Process by which gravity, water, wind, & ice deposit weathered & relocated sediment. |
| CANYON | Deep gorge in the Earth, typically 1 with a river flowing through it. |
| SAND DUNE | Hill of sand near an ocean or in a desert formed by the wind. |
| RIVER DELTA | Landform made of sediment deposited where a river flows into an ocean or lake. |
| GLACIER | Large mass of moving ice and snow on land. |
| VALLEY | Area of low land between hills or mountains. |
| ICE WEDGING | Process that splits rock when water seeps into cracks then freezes & expands. |
| HOODOO | Column of weathered rock with a capstone on the top. |
| PLAINS | Large area of flat land with few trees. |
| LANDFORM | Natural features of the earth's surface. |
| WATERSHED | Area of land where surface water & groundwater drain into a particular body of water separated from each other by drainage divides. |
| DRAINAGE DIVIDE | Geographical barrier, such as a ridge, hill, or mountain, separating 1 watershed land area from another. |
| SURFACE WATER | Water from precipitation that drains into a gully that flows into a stream, which then flows into a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, or ocean. |
| GROUNDWATER | Water that collects in cracks & pores in underground soil & rock layers. |
| WATER TABLE | Top of the saturation zone, below which water fills all open spaces between the rock. |
| SATURATION ZONE | Below the water table where all spaces not filled with solid material fill with water. |
| AQUIFER | Layer of permeable rock that allows water to flow through. |
| PERMEABLE ROCK | Allows water movement to flow through the material; opposite of impermeable. |
| SUBSIDENCE | Sunken land surface due to underlying compression of earth material as a result of the removal of groundwater. |
| POINT SOURCE WATER POLLUTION | Single identifiable & localized source of water pollution, such as waste-water discharge into a stream. |
| NON-POINT SOURCE WATER POLLUTION | Pollutants introduced into surface or groundwater that are without a specific location source, such as water flowing over a lawn that has been fertilized & then into a drain. |
| PERCOLATION/INFILTRATION | Downward movement of water through soil & rock due to gravity. |
| IMPERMEABLE ROCK | Rock that does not allow liquid to flow through it. |
| NATURAL DISASTER | Great destruction or loss of life caused by natural forces rather than by human actions. |
| MAN-MADE DISASTER | Widespread damage or loss of life brought about by the action of humans. |
| RECHARGE ZONE | An area in which water travels downward to become part of an aquifer. |
| DISCHARGE ZONE | Area where groundwater flows back up to the surface of Earth. |
| WATER WELL | A well made by digging or drilling into the zone of saturation. |
| WASTE TREATMENT PLANT | Facility used to purify contaminated water sources. |
| Astronaut | A person trained to be part of a spacecraft crew. |
| Space Walk | An activity in which an astronaut moves around and does work outside a spacecraft while in space. |
| Space Suit | A complex system of garments that allow astronauts to work safely outside their spacecraft. |
| Micrometeoroids | Tiny meteoroids traveling fast enough to damage spacecraft. |
| Microgravity | The condition in which people or objects appear to be weightless. |
| Vacuum | A volume of space mostly empty of matter, such as oxygen to breathe. |
| Atmosphere | The entire mass of air that surrounds Earth, made up of 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, and trace amounts of other gases. |
| Ozone Layer | Gas in Earth’s atmosphere that absorbs most of the damaging high-energy ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. |
| Ultraviolet Radiation | A portion of the electromagnetic spectrum emitted by the Sun; can cause tanning, sun burning, and skin cancers. |
| Solar Winds | A continuous stream of charged particles from the Sun, with variations in the stream causing beautiful aurora displays (northern lights), as well as geomagnetic storms that knock out power grids on Earth. |
| Earth's Magnetic Field | Magnetic lines of force from Earth’s polar north and south, acting like a giant magnet. |
| Magnetosphere | An area that deflects and traps harmful particles; resulting from an interaction of Earth’s magnetic field with solar “wind” (charged plasma) streaming from the Sun. |
| Solar System | The collection of planets and their moons in orbit around a sun, together with smaller bodies in the form of asteroids, meteoroids, and comets. |
| Composition | The combination of parts or elements that make up something; e.g., Earth's atmosphere is composed mostly of nitrogen (78%), oxygen (21%), and trace amounts of argon, carbon dioxide, ozone, water vapor, and other gases. |
| Proximity | Nearness in space, time, or relationship; e.g., Earth's proximity to the sun allows it to maintain proper temperatures to sustain life. |
Created by:
trauberk
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