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Air Pressure, definition
force exerted by the weight of the atmosphere
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barometer
instrument used to determine air pressure
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two units that can be used to measure air pressure
inches of mercury, and millibars (unit that measures actual force of atmosphere pushing down on surface)
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What air temperature and density is associated with low pressure?
Warm air, less dense than cool air
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What air temperature and density is associated with high pressure?
cold, dense air
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wind, definition
horizontal movement of air, initiated because of horizontal pressure difference
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direction of wind is influences by...
Coriolis effect
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Water vapor, definition
odorless, colorless gas produced by evaporation of water
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humidity, direction
any measure of water vapor in the air
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relative humidity
ratio of air's actual water vapor content compared with amount of water vapor required for saturation at that temperature
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dew-point temperature
temperature at which relative humidity of air is 100%
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magma, definition
substantial proportion of melted rock from Earth's outer core
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3 factors that cause it
temperature (melting point), pressure, pressure-temperature diagrams
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tectonics
study of the earth's structural features
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Plate Tectonics Hypothesis
prevailing model of Earth's global tectonism; Earth's lithosphere is broken into at least a dozen major plates that move about on weak asthenosphere
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topographic map
used for investigating many kinds of landforms that exist on Earth's surface, produced in late 1800s
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contour lines
line drawn on topographic map that connects all points that have equal elevation above or below a datum or reference place on Earth's surface
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drawing contour lines
EX: 20-foot contour interval, draw contour line for each 20-foot change in elevation below and above 100 feet
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topographic profiles
"side-view", provide a more useful representation of the elevations and slopes of an area; guideline map
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hydrologic cycle
describes continuous movement of water from oceans to atmosphere--> to land--> to sea
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infiltration
portion of precipitation that falls on land will soak into ground
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runoff
when rate of rainfall > surface's ability to absorb it, additional water flows over surface
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Infiltration and runoff influenced by two factors
porosity and permeability
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porosity
total volume of available pore space in soil, result of texture and structure of soil
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permeability
ability of water to flow through soil or rock; function of texture and structure of medium
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how does a river valley change at its different stages?
rivers & streams responsible for producing vast array of erosional & depositional landforms in both humid & regions
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