Earth Science APSC 151 | Questions & Answers (100 %Score) Latest Updated 2024/2025
Comprehensive Questions A+ Graded Answers | With Expert Solutions
Steps to assess future of non-renewable resources (4) - 1) Assess the rate of usage
2) Make a geological estimate of the total amount of the resource that is available
3) Extrapolate rate into future to find time of expiry
4) Model the different future rates to determine ultimate limits
Five reservoirs of Earth System - 1) Atmosphere
2) Hydrosphere (water + ice)
3) solid Earth (rocks + soil)
4) life (biota)
5) stars and planets
How has the plate tectonic cycle affected the Earth? - 1) joined North and South America -> which
affected ocean currents
2) pushed up Himalayan mountains -> which affected the air flow, and increased rates of weathering -
>increased weathering provided nutrients washed to the sea (dramatically increasing number of micro
organisms)
Rock Weather Cycle - CaSiO3 (rock) + CO2 (in air) -> CaCO3 + SiO2 (washed in solution to the sea -> life
forms build shells of CaCO3
Times of Coal Formation Peaks - 1) 300 million years ago (first major land plants)
2) 80 million years ago (first flowering plants)
Ways to know CO2 and O2 levels 300 million years ago (3) - 1) computer modelling
2) Evidence in rocks (eg charcoal in coal beds indicates high O2)
3) air bubbles trapped in amber
Gaia hypothesis - -views Earth as 'living organism' -James Lovelock
, Effects of Impact of meteorite - -dark skies
-acid rain
-ozone destruction
-long-term greenhouse heating
Steps to modelling the Earth - 1) recognize that there are continents and oceans, and mountains and flat
lands
2) determine sphericity and size of Earth & Earth's place in universe
3) determine mass & density
4) determine density distribution of Earth
5) heat flow studies (internal & external)
6) Earth's magnetic field
7) seismic studies (study of earthquakes)
density of Earth, density of surface rock - Earth ~5.5 g/cm3
Surface rock ~ 2.7-3.3 g/cm3
Earth is denser at depth
gravimeter - used for gravity studies, can be used for ore deposits
ultramafic - high in magnesium and iron
sources of external energy (that wear down Earth's surface) - a) Sun has most affect (**6000 times more
energy comes from the Sun than from inside of Earth)
b) Gravity (mainly the moon) has some affect
c) meteorites have small affect on average
Comprehensive Questions A+ Graded Answers | With Expert Solutions
Steps to assess future of non-renewable resources (4) - 1) Assess the rate of usage
2) Make a geological estimate of the total amount of the resource that is available
3) Extrapolate rate into future to find time of expiry
4) Model the different future rates to determine ultimate limits
Five reservoirs of Earth System - 1) Atmosphere
2) Hydrosphere (water + ice)
3) solid Earth (rocks + soil)
4) life (biota)
5) stars and planets
How has the plate tectonic cycle affected the Earth? - 1) joined North and South America -> which
affected ocean currents
2) pushed up Himalayan mountains -> which affected the air flow, and increased rates of weathering -
>increased weathering provided nutrients washed to the sea (dramatically increasing number of micro
organisms)
Rock Weather Cycle - CaSiO3 (rock) + CO2 (in air) -> CaCO3 + SiO2 (washed in solution to the sea -> life
forms build shells of CaCO3
Times of Coal Formation Peaks - 1) 300 million years ago (first major land plants)
2) 80 million years ago (first flowering plants)
Ways to know CO2 and O2 levels 300 million years ago (3) - 1) computer modelling
2) Evidence in rocks (eg charcoal in coal beds indicates high O2)
3) air bubbles trapped in amber
Gaia hypothesis - -views Earth as 'living organism' -James Lovelock
, Effects of Impact of meteorite - -dark skies
-acid rain
-ozone destruction
-long-term greenhouse heating
Steps to modelling the Earth - 1) recognize that there are continents and oceans, and mountains and flat
lands
2) determine sphericity and size of Earth & Earth's place in universe
3) determine mass & density
4) determine density distribution of Earth
5) heat flow studies (internal & external)
6) Earth's magnetic field
7) seismic studies (study of earthquakes)
density of Earth, density of surface rock - Earth ~5.5 g/cm3
Surface rock ~ 2.7-3.3 g/cm3
Earth is denser at depth
gravimeter - used for gravity studies, can be used for ore deposits
ultramafic - high in magnesium and iron
sources of external energy (that wear down Earth's surface) - a) Sun has most affect (**6000 times more
energy comes from the Sun than from inside of Earth)
b) Gravity (mainly the moon) has some affect
c) meteorites have small affect on average
