Transcript Physical Geography

Physical Geography
What is Physical Geography?
• Examines the relationships among
patterns and processes within the physical
environment
• Study of earth’s physical processes
• Geology – rocks and earth formations
• Environmental science – human interaction
with the environment
• Topography – earth’s features
• Cartography – map making.
How are Physical Factors spatially defined?
Location: The location of a place or thing on the earth’s surface
Absolute Location:
The exact spot of a
place on the earth’s
surface
-Use Latitude and
Longitude to define
it
Ex. - Toyko, Japan
is at 36° N Latitude
and 140° E
Longitude
Relative Location:
The location of a
place in relation to
another place or
thing
Globe: Scale model of the earth
Ex.) Sonic is across
the street from
Kroger
AKA: Parallels
Numbers get higher the further North or South
you move away from the Equator
Latitude lines measure North or
South of the Equator
Zero Degrees Latitude is the
Equator
90 Degree North (North Pole)
90 Degrees South (South Pole)
KNOW THESE LINES
and their latitude
measurements!!
Equator
2 Tropics
2 Circles
2 Poles
Zero Degrees longitude is the Prime Meridian. 180
degrees East or West is the International Date Line
By international agreement - 0 degrees longitude runs
through the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, England
Numbers get higher the farther you
move either East of West
Longitude lines measure East or
West of the Prime Meridian
AKA- Meridians
Where lines of latitude and longitude cross they form a pattern known as:
(a global address)
Each degree of the earth is equal to 1/360 of the earth.
Each degree is divided into 60 minutes (‘). Each minute = 60 seconds (“)
Hemispheres
If you cut the Earth through
the Equator you would get two
halves, the Northern and
Southern Hemisphere
If you cut the Earth through
the Prime Meridian you would
get two halves, the Western
and Eastern Hemisphere
The US is in the Western Hemisphere
and the Northern Hemisphere
Basic Geography
0
• 0 latitude –
Equator
– (Distance from
it has large
effect on
climate)
• 0 longitude –
Prime Meridian
– (Distance from
it has no effect
on climate)
Rotation
• The spinning of
the earth on its
axis
• Takes 24 hours
• Creates night &
day
Revolution
• The orbit of the earth around the sun
• Takes 365 ¼ days
• Creates the seasons
Polar Night
• When the polar region is tilted away from the sun – the
polar area receives 24 hours of darkness. When it is
pointed toward the sun the area receives 24 hours of
daylight.
EQUINOX
• Direct rays of the sun
are located on the
EQUATOR
• Days and nights are
equal in length
• Spring (Vernal) and Fall
(Autumnal)
• When it is Spring in the
northern hemisphere it
is Fall in the southern
hemisphere (the
opposite is also true)
SOLSTICE
• Direct rays of the sun
are located on the
TROPIC OF CANCER
OR CAPRICORN
• Days and nights are not
equal in length –
summer days are
longer – winters nights
are longer
• Summer and Winter
• When it is Winter in the
northern hemisphere it
is Summer in the
southern hemisphere
(the opposite is also
true)
Red – LOW LATITUDES
0 – 23 ½  North & South
Tropics
Hot and Humid
Green – MID LATITUDES
23 ½ - 66 ½  North & South
Temperate
Mild
THE MAJORITY OF THE WORLD’S
PEOPLE LIVE IN THE TEMPERATE
ZONE!!
Blue – HIGH LATITUDES
66 ½ - 90 North & South
Polar
Cold and Dry
LITHOSPHERE
Solid, rocky crust
covering entire planet.
http://mediatheek.thinkquest.nl/~ll125/images/struct.jp
g
ATMOSPHERE
The air surrounding Earth
• 78% Nitrogen
• Just under 21% Oxygen
• less than 1% argon,
carbon dioxide & other
gasses
www.space.gc.ca
HYDROSPHERE
All the water in or near the Earth
BIOSPHERE
Composed of all living organisms
• Plants
• Animals
• One-celled organisms
How do physical process affect:
•7 continents – Africa, Asia, Antarctica, South America,
North America, Europe & Australia
•5 Oceans – Southern, Arctic, Pacific, Indian, Atlantic
FACTORS THAT
AFFECT CLIMATE
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/The_Earth_seen_from_Apollo_17.jpg/3
00px-The_Earth_seen_from_Apollo_17.jpg
LACEMOPS
Weather –
The daily condition of the
atmosphere which includes
temperature and precipitation.
Precipitation Moisture that falls from the sky.
Precipitation has 4 forms: rain,
snow, sleet, and hail.
http://www.mnh.si.edu/archives/garden/images/4seasons.gif
Climate Average weather. Measured
over an extended period of
time (usually 30 years).
L - LATITUDE - The most important factor!
The farther from the Equator - the colder and drier it becomes.
Direct rays of the sun are always between the Tropics. Areas
not in the tropics receive indirect sun rays.
A - AIR MASSES
In the Northern
Hemisphere, cold air
from the Polar
Regions comes from
the north. Hot air
from the tropics
comes from the south,
Mountains to the
north of a city could
block the cold air from
reaching the city.
(opposite in the
Southern
Hemisphere).
C - CONTINENTALITY
Water moderates climate. Water takes longer to heat and cool
than land. Areas inland from the coast will be hotter in the
summer and colder in the winter than areas with the same
latitude on the coast.
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://edc.usgs.gov/imagegallery/imageSrc/United%2520StatesNED500.jpg&imgrefurl=http://edc.usgs.gov/imagegallery/imageDetail.php%3Fpage%3D18%26img%3DUnited%2BStates-NED%26id%3D2071%26col%3DStates%2B%2BNED%2BShaded%2BRelief&h=353&w=500&sz=121&hl=en&start=17&um=1&tbnid=tsJBVC5mQRiZ6M:&tbnh=92&tbnw=130&prev=/images%3Fq%3Duni ted%2Bstates%2B%26svnum%3D10%26
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E - ELEVATION It gets colder as you go up a mountain. The
formula for vertical climate is: Temperature decreases 3.5º F for
every 1,000 feet increase in elevation (the opposite is also true).
You can work out the temperature at the top of a tall mountain.
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.savetibet.org/images/images/MountEverest.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.savetibet .org/news/new
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It is 75º at the base of a 15,000 ft. tall mountain. What is the temperature
on top of the mountain?
First, count the
thousands…
(15,000)
Second,
multiply that
number by
3.5…
Third,
Subtract that
number from the
temperature at
the base to get
the answer…
3.5° (from formula)
X 15 (how many thousands of feet the mountain is tall)
52.5° (how much colder at the top than the bottom)
75° (temperature at bottom)
- 52.5° (how much colder at the top)
22.5 ° (temperature at the top)  Answer
M - MOUNTAIN BARRIERS
Orographic effect:
Wind containing moisture hits the
windward side of a mountain (the
side facing the wind).
Moisture-full clouds are too heavy to
get over the mountain so precipitation
occurs, after they’re empty, they are
able to rise over the mountain.
The side facing away from the wind is
called the leeward side. The leeward
side of a mountain is arid.
The windward side has lush
vegetation.
The leeward side of a mountain is in
the rain shadow and is usually a
desert.
O - OCEAN CURRENTS
Cold currents bring dry, cool air to the coastal areas.
Warm currents bring warm, wet air to coastal areas.
http://go.owu.edu/~jbkrygie/krygier_html/geog_111/geog_111_lo/geog_111_lo05_gr/3-16.jpg
P - PRESSURE AND PREVAILING WINDS:
Pressure
High pressure is
heavy, cold air. Low
pressure is warm,
light air.
Heat rises. There
are some fairly
constant air
pressure systems.
Notice that these lines are located at
0, 30, 60, 90 (not 0, 23 ½, 66 ½, and 90)
Prevailing Winds
The Equator is surrounded by
an area of calm called the
Doldrums (ITCZ).
The Trade Winds (Tropical
Easterlies) blow from east to
west (generally warm and
moist).
Westerlies (Prevailing
Westerlies). They blow from
west to east.
The Polar Easterlies blow from
90º in an eastward direction
toward the Westerlies. There
are serious thunderstorms
Notice that these lines are
around the 60º latitude line
located at 0, 30, 60, 90 (not 0, 23
where the two wind patterns
collide
½, 66 ½, and 90)
http://www.worldstats.org/general_world/maps/prevailing_winds_big.gif
S - STORMS
Where the Polar
Easterlies meet the
Westerlies there are
thunderstorms.
When hot air masses
and cold air masses
collide - there are storms.
Cyclonic storms
(hurricanes, typhoons,
etc.) in the Northern
Hemisphere spin
counter-clockwise.
In the Southern
Hemisphere cyclones
spin clockwise.
Continental Drift
The theory that the land of the earth was once connected as one
large super continent (Pangaea) and has moved “drifted” to its
current locations (still moving)
Plate Tectonics
The theory that the crust of the earth is broken up into plates (8
major and many minor) that “float” on the mantle
The plate boundaries of the world.
Subduction
When a sea plate and continental plate collide, the heavier sea plate
DIVES under the lighter continental plate. The sea plate then is
heated and becomes magma which escapes through volcanoes.
Spreading
When sea plates pull apart leaving a rift, or deep crack.
Magma wells up between the two plates to make
underwater volcanoes and ridges.
Volcano
mountain
formed by
lava (magma)
that breaks
through the
earth’s crust.
Ring of Fire
area along the edge of the Pacific Ocean that is a zone
of frequent earthquakes and volcanoes.
Folding
when moving plates squeeze the earth’s surface until it
bends the layers of rock.
Faulting
When moving plates
grind past each other,
creating cracks in the
curst.
Earthquake
sudden, violent moving of plates along a fault where
built up pressure suddenly snaps and shifts.
Water erosion
fast-moving water cuts into
the land as it flows
downstream. Ocean waves
can also erode coastal cliffs.
WATER is the most
significant cause of erosion.
Water Erosion creates
canyons
Delta
the flat, low-lying plain that
sometimes forms at the
mouth of a river from
deposits of sediments.
Deltas form as rivers
empty their water and
sediment into another
body of water, such as an
ocean, lake, or another
river.
They are called deltas
because the alluvial
deposit at the river’s
mouth looks like the Greek
letter delta (∆)