Water and Carbon Cycle

• What is an aquifer?

  Underground reservoir of groundwater
• How do aquifers form?


  Water infiltrates porous and permeable rock
• What is the water table?

  Area of ground saturated with water
• What causes the water table to rise and fall?

  Groundwater flow, abstraction, or recharge
• What does saturated mean in terms of water?

  Capacity for holding water is reached
• What is percolation?

  Movement of water down through porous rocks
• What are the three types of properties that make up a system?

  • Elements
  • Attributes
  • Relationships
• What are elements in a system?

  What makes the system
• What are attributes in a system?

  Perceived characteristics of the system
• What are relationships in a system?

  Descriptions of how elements work together
• What is positive feedback?

  Action gets amplified by its own effects
• What is negative feedback?

  Action is nullified
• What is dynamic equilibrium?

  Balance in inputs and outputs of the system
• What is an isolated system?

  No input or output of energy and matter
• What is a closed system?

  Transfer of energy but no matter
• What is an open system?

  Both energy and matter can be transferred
• What is latent heat?

  Energy absorbed or released during phase change
• What is a phase change?

  Process of change of state
• What are the two cryospheric processes?

  • Accumulation: Ice mass increases
  • Ablation: Ice melts and releases outputs
• What is an inter-glacial period?

  Warmer periods in the Quaternary period
• How many inter-glacial periods have there been in the Quaternary period?

  Five
• What is a drainage basin?

  • An open system
  • Collects precipitation and runoff
• What is the albedo effect?

  Ability to reflect sunlight and heat
• How is the albedo effect changing?

  Reflective surfaces shrink, absorbing more heat
• What is Stratospheric Aerosol Injection?

  Releases sulfur dioxide to reflect sunlight
• What are criticisms of Stratospheric Aerosol Injection?

  Doesn't address root cause of global warming
• What is throughflow?

  Flow through soil
• What is groundwater flow?

  Flow through soil and rock
• What is stemflow?

  Precipitation flows down the stem of a plant
• What are farming practices that affect carbon emissions?

  • Irrigation
  • Land drainage
  • Deforestation
• What does a river regime show?

  River's discharge over a year
• What is the lithosphere?

  Largest store of carbon
• What factors drive the change in magnitude of carbon stores?

  • Photosynthesis
  • Respiration
  • Decomposition
  • Burial and compaction
  • Combustion
  • Carbon sequestration
  • Weathering
• What is ocean acidification?

  Reduction in pH of the ocean over time
• How does ocean acidification affect marine calcifiers?

  Fewer carbonate ions available for shells
• What percentage of Earth's greenhouse effect is due to water vapor?

  50%
• What role does the ocean play in carbon storage?

  It is a store of carbon
• What does dimethylsulphide promote?

  Condensation and cloud formation
• What is the Inter Tropical Convergent Zone?

  Creates low pressure with cloud cover and rain
• What are the impacts of changing carbon budgets on land, oceans, and atmosphere?

  • Altered ecosystems
  • Changes in climate patterns
  • Ocean health deterioration