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UNIVERSE & ORIGIN made that support it. In the beginning of our time frame,
all of the matter that exists today in the universe was
The origin of the Universe is unknown — it is the
packed into a single point in
ultimate mystery of this whole story OF UNIVERSE. The
space-time, known as a
laws of physics which applied in the beginning are not
singularity.
clear, so it is hard to guess where it might have come from.
There are several theories of how the Universe began. But A singularity is a point that
the one most acceptable and plausible is BIGBANG has infinite density and is infinitely
THEORY. The Universe is what we can see from Earth - small. At one moment, all of this
sometimes called the observable Universe. The Universe is matter exploded outward in what
just a tiny part of the Cosmos. It is because the Cosmos is called a Big Bang. This matter
inflated that the Universe seems flat. Space in the has been expanding and forming different structures like
Macrocosms might have been curved, so that, for example, galaxies and other celestial bodies ever since. Depending
the angles in a triangle did not add up to 180 degrees. But on the average density of matter and energy in the universe,
as the tiny region, which would eventually become the it will either keep on expanding forever or it will be
Universe was expanded, this curvature was almost entirely gravitationally slowed down and will eventually collapse back
flattened out, in the same way as the curvature of the on itself in a “Big Crunch”. Currently the evidence
surface of a soccer ball would be flattened out if you blew suggests not only that there is insufficient mass/energy to
it up to the size of the Earth. We use the word cause a recollapse, but that the expansion of the universe
Macrocosm0s to mean “everything there is”. We will see seems to be accelerating and will
that the Cosmos and the Universe are just small parts of accelerate for eternity.Up until
the Macrocosmos. cosmic inflation removes vast parts of the 1920s, it was believed that
the total universe from our observable horizon, most UNIVERSE was static and
cosmologists accept that it is impossible to observe the everlasting. But until Edwin
whole continuum and may use the expression our universe, Hubble came along. In 1929,
referring to only that which is knowable by human beings Edwin Hubble made a
in particular. In cosmological terms, the universe is thought monumental observation that
to be a finite or infinite space-time continuum in which all changed the course of astronomy.
matter and energy exist. Some scientists hypothesize that He discovered that galaxies far away from us have a red
the universe may be part of a system of many other shift. This means that they are moving away from us and
universes, known as the multiverse. thus, must have been closer together at some point; and
so, ultimately they must have existed in one point in space,
MULTIVERSE a singularity. According to the Big Bang, the universe
There is some speculation that emerged from an extremely dense and hot state (bottom).
multiple universes exist in a higher-level Since then, space itself has expanded with the passage of
multiverse (also known as a megaverse), time, carrying the galaxies with it. A fundamental aspect
our universe being one of those of the Big Bang can be seen today in the observation that
universes. For example, matter that falls the farther away from us galaxies are, the faster they move
into a black hole in our universe could emerge as a Big away from us. The Big Bang is the scientific theory that
Bang, starting another universe. However, all such ideas the universe emerged from a tremendously dense and hot
are currently untestable and cannot be regarded as anything state about 13.7 billion years ago. The theory is based on
more than speculation.. the observations indicating the expansion of space (in
accord with the Robertson-Walker model of general
BIG BANG THEORY: relativity) as indicated by the Hubble redshift theory,
It explains how everything we see today was created which can be explained by DOPPLER’S EFFECT.
by a single point of matter.The Big Bang was the Hubble’s law is the statement in physical cosmology
beginning of space and time, as many physicists believe that the redshift in light coming from distant galaxies is
today. Note that this is only a theory and has not yet proportional to their distance. The law was first formulated
been proven, but several key observations have been by Edwin Hubble and Milton Humason.
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CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
particles. Many nebulas throughout the universe exist from the sun
in galaxies. There are many types of nebulas; more
• Collisions and perturbations by the planets of our
specifically, four main types. The categories are
solar system are believed to be the reasons for the
Planetary, Diffuse, Supernova Remnants and Dark
ejection of bodies from this belt.
Nebulas. There are also nebulas under the category
Herbig-Haro. These types are very bright and small. • Comet Halley or Halley’s Comet (its official
This effect is due to jets of gas and other particles, which designation is 1P/Halley). Its next appearance is due
are expelled by a star during its stages of formation. in 2061.
Planetary Nebulas, as their name suggests, resemble • The second comet to be discovered to have a periodic
planets. In actuality, however, these nebulas are the orbit was Comet Encke.
shells of star material a red giant sheds during its death
stages (when it transforms into a white dwarf star). Since METEORS AND METEORITES
these red giants shed A meteor is the visible path of a meteoroid that
layers, or clouds of gas enters the Earth’s (or another body’s) atmosphere,
and other material, this commonly called a shooting star or falling star. It is
goes along with the probably a piece of remnant piece of comets, which
definition of a nebula. are scattered in interplanetary spaces. They give off a
COMETS : streak of bright light when it burns up in Earth’s
atmosphere
A comet is
Meteorite:
basically a ball of ice
and dust that looks like A meteorite is an extraterrestrial body that survives
a star with a tail. Some its impact with the Earth’s atmosphere without being
comets do not have destroyed. While in space it is called a meteoroid. When
tails, looking like hazy, it enters the atmosphere, air resistance causes the body to
round spots of light. heat up and emit light, thus forming a fireball, also known
Comets are believed to as a meteor or shooting star.
originate in a cloud (the Oort cloud) at large distances • A very bright meteor may be called a fireball or
from the sun consisting of debris left over from the bolide. The International Meteor Organization
condensation of the solar nebula; the outer edges of defines fireballs as being meteors of magnitude -3
such nebulae are cool enough that water exists in a or brighter.
solid (rather than gaseous) state. Asteroids originate via • A meteor striking the Earth or other object is called
a different process, but very old comets which have Meteorite and may produce an impact called crater.
lost all their volatile materials may come to resemble Ex Baringer crater near flag staff
asteroids. Most comets have three parts: a nucleus, a • Molten terrestrial material “splashed” from such a
head (coma), and a tail. The comets in our solar system crater can cool and solidify into an object known as a
usually have very long orbits and spend most of this tektite.
time away from the sun. During these periods, comets
appear to be just simple heaps of rock, dust and ice • The only known examples of meteorites that didn’t
traveling through the cosmos. But when a comet is fall on Earth are Heat Shield Rock, which was found
traveling towards and near the sun, it has several clear on Mars, and two tiny fragments of asteroids that were
parts: the nucleus, coma, hydrogen cloud, dust tail and found among the samples collected on the Moon by
ion tail. Many comets in our solar system often have Apollo 12 (1969) and Apollo 15 (1971) astronauts.
huge orbits; some even exceed the orbit of Pluto. Today, • Meteor shower can be seen when Earth passes
most comets are located outside our solar system in through a trail of dust left by any comet in
part of the original cloud of dust and gas that has interplanetary spaces.
remained virtually untouched for billions of years. These • Leonid Shower was a meteor shower, which
regions are referred to as the Oort cloud and the Kuiper originated in the constellation LEO and actually
Belt. The total number of comets within this belt was caused by the dust of comet Temple turtle.
estimated as a trillion.
THE STARRY WORLD
• The Oort Cloud was first theorized by the Dutch
STARS : Scientifically, stars are defined as self-
astronomer Jan Oort in 1950.
gravitating spheres of plasma in hydrostatic equilibrium,
• The Kuiper Belt is a region first theorized by the which generate their own energy through the process of
Dutch-American astronomer Gerard Kuiper in 1951. nuclear fusion. Stars are not spread uniformly across the
Kuiper conjectured that a belt of comets probably universe, but are typically grouped into galaxies. A typical
existed outside the orbit of Neptune within the range galaxy contains hundreds of billions of stars. The energy
of 30 to 50 astronomical units (2.8 to 4.6 billion miles)
VENKAT RAMAN REDROWTU 5
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
produced by stars radiates into space as electromagnetic An X-Ray binary system is made up of a normal,
radiation, as a stream of neutrinos* from the star’s core, living star and a collapsed star, which could be a white
and as a stream of particles from the star’s outer layers dwarf, a black hole or a neutron star. If these two stars
(its stellar wind). The peak frequency of the light depends are close enough to each other, the collapsed star will begin
on the temperature of the outer layers of the star. to suck material away from the normal one. As the
Besides the emitted visible light, the ultraviolet and matter is sucked into the white dwarf, black hole or
infrared components are typically far from negligible. neutron star, an immense amount of heat is produced,
The apparent brightness of a star is measured by its which results in the emissions of x-rays.
apparent magnitude. Stellar astronomy is the study of
Pulsar: A rotating Neutron star, which generates
stars and the phenomena exhibited by the various
regular pulses of radiation. Pulsars were discovered by
forms/developmental stages of stars There are many
observations at radio wavelengths but have since been
types of stars ranging from the very small and dense, to
observed at optical, X-ray, and gamma-ray energies.
the very large and hot. All have different properties as
well and are categorized into four main groups: Dwarfs, Nova (plural: novae): A star that experiences a
Giants, Binary stars and Neutron stars. sudden outburst of radiant energy, temporarily increasing
its luminosity by hundreds to thousands of times before
* Neutrino: A fundamental particle produced in
fading back to its original luminosity
massive numbers by the nuclear reactions in stars.
SUPERNOVA (PLURAL : SUPERNOVAE)
Dwarf stars are classified in four groups: red,
yellow, white and brown dwarfs. Red dwarfs are small, (a) The death explosion of a massive star, resulting in a
somewhat cool stars; yellow dwarfs are relatively small and sharp increase in brightness followed by a gradual
not very hot, like our sun. These stars are very common fading. At peak light output, these types of supernova
throughout our universe. White dwarfs are small, very hot explosions (called Type II supernovae) can outshine
and very dense stars; their sizes are close to that of Earth. a galaxy. The outer layers of the exploding star are
White dwarfs are mainly composed of carbon and are the blasted out in a radioactive cloud. This expanding
remnants of a Red Giant that has lost its outer layers cloud, visible long after the initial explosion fades from
during the final stages of its life. Brown dwarfs are stars view, forms a supernova remnant (SNR).
that do not have enough mass to continue nuclear fusion (b) The explosion of a white dwarf, which has
within the core. accumulated enough material from a companion star
to achieve a mass equal to the *Chandrasekhar limit.
Giant stars: There are three main categories of giants:
These types of supernovae (called Type Ia) have
red, blue and super-giants. A Red giant is a star that
approximately the same intrinsic brightness, and can
has expanded from its original size in the last stages of its
be used to determine distances.
life. If they become cooler and are usually orange in color.
Blue giants are also very large and very massive, but unlike • Chandrasekhar limit A limit, which mandates that no white
red giants, they are very hot as well. Super-giants are dwarf (a collapsed, degenerate star) can be more massive than
extremely large stars, sometimes the size of our solar about 1.4 solar masses. Any degenerate object more massive
system. These stars are rare in the universe and they die in must inevitably collapse into a neutron star
the form of a cataclysmic explosion called a supernova
Black hole: Black hole formation owes some thing
and result in the formation of a black hole.
to supernova. A black hole is the result of the collapse
Neutron stars form in the aftermath of a supernova of a very massive star. A supernova, however, does not
explosion. They are extremely dense and very small, about always lead to the formation of a black hole. White dwarfs
5-16 kilometers in diameter. The reason why they do not and neutron stars are the products of these explosions as
become black holes is because the star they formed from well. A black hole is only created when the star is
was not massive enough to create such an effect. Pulsars extremely massive and large called super giants. Under
are also neutron stars, only they spin very rapidly and normal conditions, a star will burn hydrogen fuel,
emit short but strong bursts of energy. If one notices converting it into helium. During the last stages of the
a pulsar in the night sky, it will look like an ordinary star star’s life, when the hydrogen fuel runs out, the star begins
that is simply flashing. to burn helium into a heavier element. These elements that
are burned, other than hydrogen, create an imbalance
A Binary star system is one that contains two stars
between the gravitational forces and the nuclear forces that
orbiting around a common center of mass larger than
under normal conditions keep the star stable. Due to this
theirs. An eclipsing binary system is one that contains a
imbalance, gravity takes over and the star begins to collapse
large star and a smaller star orbiting it. This type of system
upon itself until it reaches a point of infinite density and
produces either a brightening or occluding effect, depending
infinitely small size, in other words, a singularity. This
on whether the smaller star enhances the larger star’s
singularity, now known as a black hole, creates a massive
brightness or occludes it; this depends on the position of
gravitational effect unlike any other. This effect is so great,
the smaller star in its orbit.
that even light cannot escape its gravitational pull.
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CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
A black hole also has an event horizon, the Way.
boundary of the black hole from where anything can • The smallest known star undergoing fusion in its
be pulled in with enormous gravitational pull. core is AB Doradus C, a companion to AB
QUASARS are enormously bright object at the edge Doradus A, which has a mass only 93 times that
of our universe, which emits massive amounts of energy. of Jupiter.
In an optical telescope, they appear point-like, similar to • High mass stars powerfully illuminate the clouds
stars, from which they derive their name (quasar = from which they formed. One example of such a
quasi-stellar). Quasars are thought to be the most distant nebula is the Orion Nebula.
objects yet discovered by mankind. The name quasar is • A black dwarf constitutes the remains of a Sun-
short for the term: ‘quasi stellar radio source.’ The sized star, which has evolved to a white dwarf and
reason why this celestial body has this full name is subsequently cooled down such that it only emits black
because the method at first used to discover these objects body radiation.
involved a relationship between radio-sources and
The sun: The Sun is the closest star to Earth. The
optical-sources. Astronomers have discovered that
strong gravitational pull of the Sun holds Earth and the
Quasars are enormously red shifted. What this means
other planets in the solar system in orbit. The Sun’s light
is that as the universe is expanding, the light waves from
and heat influence all of the objects in the solar system
a Quasar are being stretched. The more the red shift,
and allow life to exist on Earth. The Sun is an average
the farther they are away. Hence, the farther they are
star its size, age, and temperature fall in about the middle
away, the longer it takes for its light to reach us. So
of the ranges of these properties for all stars. Astronomers
Quasars basically give scientists a view of the early,
believe that the Sun is about 4.6 billion years old and will
primordial universe. Quasars produce enormous amounts
keep shining for about another 7 billion years.
of energy. These values can be as much as 100 galaxies
Mean distance from
combined. Quasars also can be as bright as a trillion of
Earth : 149.6×10 6 km(92.95×10 6
our suns. In other words, in one second, a Quasar produces
mi)(8.31 minutes at the speed
enough power to satisfy the electrical needs of earth for
of light)
the next billion years. The reason for this amazing power
Visual brightness (V) : “26.8m
and illumination is because in the center of a Quasar there
Absolute magnitude : 4.8m
may be a super-massive black hole with many stars
Spectral classification : G2V
surrounding it. Current theories hold that quasars are one
Orbital characteristics
type of AGN.
Mean distance from the
Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) Milky Way core : ~2.5×1017 km(26,000-28,000
light-years)
A class of galaxies, which spew massive amounts of
Galactic period : 2.25-2.50×108 a
energy from their centers, far more than ordinary galaxies.
Velocity : 217 km/s orbit around the
Many astronomers believe super massive black holes may
center of the Galaxy, 20 km/s
lie at the center of these galaxies and power their explosive
relative to average velocity of
energy output.
other stars in stellar
Quasi-Stellar Source (QSS) neighborhood
Sometimes also called quasi-stellar object (QSO); A Physical characteristics
stellar-appearing object of very large red shift that is a Mean diameter : 1.392×10 6 km(109 Earth
strong source of radio waves; presumed to be extragalactic diameters)
and highly luminous. Circumference : 4.373×10 6 km(342 Earth
diameters)
• A star generates energy through nuclear fusion and Oblation : 9×10"6
therefore emits light. Surface area : 6.09×1012 km²(11,900 Earths)
• All stars except the Sun appear as shining points in Volume : 1.41×10 18 km³(1,300,000
the nighttime sky that twinkle because of the effect Earths)
of the Earth’s atmosphere and their distance from us. Mass : 1.988 435×1030 kg(332,946
• The nearest star to the Earth, apart from the Sun, is Earths)
Proxima Centauri, which is 39.9 trillion kilometers, Density : 1.408 g/cm³
or 4.2 light years away (light from Proxima Centauri Surface gravity : 273.95 m s-2(27.9 g)
takes 4.2 years to reach Earth).
IN SIDE THE SUN
• Astronomers estimate that there are at least 70
sextillion (70×1021) stars in the known universe. That Core :
is 70 000 000 000 000 000 000 000, or 230 billion
The core of the Sun is considered to extend from
times as much as the 300 billion in our own Milky
the center to about 0.2 solar radii. It has a density of up
VENKAT RAMAN REDROWTU 7
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
to 150,000 kg/m (150 times the density of water on
3
During a total solar eclipse, the sun’s atmosphere is
Earth) and a temperature of close to 13,600,000 Kelvins more apparent to the eye.The parts of the Sun above
(by contrast, the surface of the Sun is close to 5,785 the photosphere are referred to collectively as the solar
Kelvins (1/2350th of the core)). Through most of the atmosphere. They can be viewed with telescopes operating
Sun’s life energy is produced by nuclear fusion through across the electromagnetic spectrum, from radio through visible
a series of steps called the p-p (proton-proton) chain; this light to gamma rays, and comprise five principal zones:
process converts hydrogen into helium. The core is the only
The Chromosphere, the Transition region, the
location in the Sun that produces an appreciable amount
Corona, and the Heliosphere.
of heat via fusion: the rest of the star is heated by energy
that is transferred outward from the core. All of the The Heliosphere, which may be considered the
energy produced by tenuous outer atmosphere of the Sun, extends outward past
fusion in the core must the orbit of Pluto to the heliopause, where it forms a sharp
travel through many shock front boundary with the interstellar medium. The
successive layers to the Chromosphere, the Transition region, and Corona are
solar photosphere much hotter than the surface of the Sun; the reason why
before it escapes into is not yet known.
space as sunlight or The Chromosphere : The coolest layer of the Sun
kinetic energy of is a temperature minimum region about 500 km above the
particles. photosphere, with a temperature of about 4,000 K.Above
Radiation zone : the temperature minimum layer is a thin layer about
2,000 km thick, dominated by a spectrum of emission and
From about 0.2 to about 0.7 solar radii, solar
absorption lines. It is called the chromosphere from the Greek
material is hot and dense enough that thermal radiation
root chroma, meaning color, because the chromosphere
is sufficient to transfer the intense heat of the core
is visible as a colored flash at the beginning and end of
outward.
total eclipses of the Sun. The temperature in the
Escape velocity from
chromosphere increases gradually with altitude, ranging up
the Surface : 617.54 km/s (55 Earths)
to around 100,000 K near the top.
Surface temperature : 5785 K
Temperature of corona : 5 MK Transition region :Above the chromosphere is a
Core temperature : ~13.6 MK transition region in which the temperature rises rapidly from
Luminosity (Lsol) : 3.827×1026 W~3.75×1028 lm around 100,000 K to coronal temperatures closer to one
(~98 lm/W efficacy) million K. The increase is because of a phase transition as
helium within the region becomes fully ionized by the high
STRUCTURE OF THE SUN
temperatures.
Convection zone :
The corona:It is the extended outer atmosphere of
From about 0.7 solar radii to the Sun’s visible surface, the Sun, which is much larger in volume than the Sun itself.
the material in the Sun is not dense enough or hot enough The corona merges smoothly with the solar wind that fills
to transfer the heat energy of the interior outward via the solar system and heliosphere. The dark linesin the corona
radiation. As a result, thermal convection occurs as thermal are called FRAUNHOFER LINES.
columns carry hot material to the surface (photosphere)
The heliosphere:It extends from approximately 20
of the Sun. Once the material cools off at the surface, it
solar radii (0.1 AU) to the outer fringes of the solar system.
plunges back downward to the base of the convection zone,
to receive more heat from the top of the radiative zone. SOLAR ACTIVITY :
Convective overshoot is thought to occur at the base of
Sunspots : When observing the Sun with appropriate
the convection zone, carrying turbulent downflows into the
filtration, the most immediately visible features are usually
outer layers of the radiative zone.
its sunspots, which are well-defined surface areas that
Photosphere : appear darker than their surroundings because of lower
temperatures. Sunspots are regions of intense magnetic
The visible surface of the Sun, the photosphere, is
activity where convection is inhibited by strong magnetic
the layer below which the Sun becomes opaque to visible
fields, reducing energy transport from the hot interior to
light. Above the photosphere visible sunlight is free to
the surface.
propagate into space, and its energy escapes the Sun entirely.
The change in opacity is because of the decreasing overall Solar cycle : The number of sunspots visible on the
particle density: the photosphere is actually tens to hundreds Sun is not constant, but varies over a 10-12 year cycle
of kilometers thick. known as the Solar cycle. The solar cycle has a great
influence on space weather, and seems also to have a strong
Atmosphere :
influence on the Earth’s climate. Solar minima tend to be
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CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
correlated with colder temperatures, and longer than can ‘leak out’ of the belts and strike the Earth’s upper
average solar cycles tend to be correlated with hotter atmosphere, causing a bright streak of light that sweeps
temperatures. In the 17th century, the solar cycle appears the sky, known by name aurorae borealis in the northern
to have stopped entirely for several decades; very few hemisphere and aurorae australis in the southern
sunspots were observed during this period. During this hemisphere.
era, which is known as the Maunder minimum or Little • Apastron : The point of greatest separation between
Ice Age, Europe experienced very cold temperatures. two stars, which are in orbit around each other. (In
Solar flare : It is a violent explosion in the Sun’s case of Binary stars) Opposite of periastron
atmosphere with an energy equivalent to a billion megaton • Cataclysmic variable (CV) : Binary star systems with
nuclear bombs, traveling at about 1 million km per hour. one white dwarf star and one normal star, in close orbit
Solar flares take place in the solar corona and chromosphere, about each other. Material from the normal star falls
heating plasma to tens of millions of kelvins and onto the white dwarf, creating a burst of X-rays.
accelerating the resulting electrons, protons and heavier ions • Cepheid variables are a type of variable stars, which
to near the speed of light. They produce electromagnetic exhibits a regular pattern of changing brightness as a
radiation across the electromagnetic spectrum at all function of time. The period of the pulsation pattern
wavelengths from long-wave radio to the shortest wavelength is directly related to the star’s intrinsic brightness. Thus,
Gamma rays. Most flares occur around sunspots, where Cepheid variables are a powerful tool for determining
intense magnetic fields emerge from the Sun’s surface into distances in modern astronomy
the corona.
• S.Chandrasekhar, (1910-1995) Indian astrophysicist
A solar wind is a stream of charged particles (i.e., a renowned for creating theoretical models of white
plasma) which are ejected from the upper atmosphere of dwarf stars, among other achievements. His equations
a star. When originating from stars other than the Earth’s explained the underlying physics behind the creation
Sun, it is sometimes called a stellar wind.It consists mostly of white dwarfs, neutron stars and other compact
of high-energy electrons and protons (about 1 keV) that objects. Chandra X–ray Observatory (CXO) One
are able to escape the star’s gravity in part because of the of NASA’s Great Observatories in Earth orbit,
high temperature of the corona and the high kinetic energy launched in July 1999, and named after S.
particles gain through a process that is not well understood Chandrasekhar. It was previously named the Advanced
at this time. Many phenomena are directly related to the X-ray Astrophysics Facility (AXAF).
solar wind, including: geomagnetic storms that can knock • Evolved star: A star near the end of its lifetime when
out power grids on Earth, auroras, why the tail of a comet most of its fuel has been used up. This period of the
always points away from the Sun, and the formation of star’s life is characterized by loss of mass from its surface
distant stars. in the form of a stellar wind.
• Flux : A measure of the amount of energy given off by
solar constant is the amount of incoming solar an astronomical object over a fixed amount of time and
radiation per unit area, measured on the outer surface of area. Because the energy is measured per time and area,
Earth’s atmosphere, in a plane perpendicular to the rays. It flux measurements make it easy for astronomers to
is measured by satellite to be roughly 1366 watts per square compare the relative energy output of objects with very
different sizes or ages.
metre.Thus, for the whole Earth, with a cross section of
127,400,000 km², the power is 1.740×1017 W. The solar • Hawking radiation (S.W. Hawking; 1973) :A theory
first proposed by British physicist Stephen Hawking,
constant is not quite constant that due to a combination of properties of quantum
VAN ALLEN RADIATION BELT mechanics and gravity, under certain conditions black
holes can seem to emit radiation.
Solar activity has several effects on the Earth and its • Hawking temperature: The temperature inferred for a
surroundings. Because the Earth has a magnetic field, black hole based on the Hawking radiation detected from
charged particles from the solar wind cannot impact the it.
atmosphere directly, but are instead deflected by the • Spörer’s law states that ‘as the sunspot cycle
magnetic field and aggregate to form the Van Allen belts. progresses, the number of sunspots increases and they
move closer to the equator of the Sun.
The Van Allen Radiation Belt is a torus of energetic
• Most of solar flares occur around sunspots, where
charged particles (plasma) around Earth, trapped by Earth’s intense magnetic fields emerge from the Sun’s surface
magnetic field. The Van Allen belts are closely related to into the corona.
the poles where particles strike the upper atmosphere and • The Schwabe solar cycle or Schwabe-Wolf cycle is the
fluoresce.The Van Allen belts consist of an inner belt eleven-year cycle of solar activity of the sun by way of
composed primarily of protons and an outer belt composed solar spots,solar flares etc.
mostly of electrons. Radiation within the Van Allen belts • Spörer’s law predicts the variation of sunspot latitudes
can occasionally damage satellites passing through them.The during a solar cycle. It was discovered by English
Van Allen belts form arcs around the Earth with their tips astronomer Richard Christopher Carrington around 1861.
Carrington’s work was refined by German astronomer
near the north and south poles. The most energetic particles Gustav Spörer.
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CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
in a region called the scattered disc. Of the known dwarf and dwarf planets is that while both are required to
planets, only Ceres has no moons. orbit the Sun and be of large enough mass that their
own gravity pulls them into a nearly round shape,
LAYOUT :
dwarf planets are not required to clear their
Most objects in orbit round the Sun lie within the neighborhood of other celestial bodies. Three objects
same shallow plane, called the ecliptic, which is roughly in the solar system are currently included in this
parallel to the Sun’s equator. category; they are Pluto (formerly considered a planet),
The planets lie very close to the ecliptic, while comets the asteroid Ceres, and the scattered disc object Eris.
and kuiper belt objects often lie at significant angles to it. The IAU will begin evaluating other known objects
All of the planets, and most other objects, also orbit with to see if they fit within the definition of dwarf planets.
the Sun’s rotation in a counter-clockwise direction as viewed The most likely candidates are some of the larger asteroids
from a point above the Sun’s north pole. and several Trans-Neptunian Objects such as Sedna, Orcus,
There is a direct relationship between how far away a and Quaoar.
planet is from the Sun, and how quickly it orbits. Mercury, The remainder of the objects in the Solar System were
with the smallest orbital circumference, travels the fastest, classified as small solar system bodies. A small solar
while Neptune, being much farther from the Sun, travels system body (SSSB) is a term defined in 2006 by the
more slowly. International Astronomical Union to describe Solar System
objects which are neither planets nor dwarf planets.
A planet’s distance from the Sun varies in the course
of its year. Its closest approach to the Sun is known as its All other objects ... orbiting the Sun shall be referred to
perihelion, while its farthest point from the Sun is called collectively as “Small Solar System Bodies” .... These currently include
its aphelion. most of the Solar System asteroids, most Trans-Neptunian Objects
(TNOs), comets, and other small bodies.
Though planets follow nearly circular orbits, with
perihelions roughly equal to their aphelions, many comets, AGE
asteroids and objects of the Kuiper belt follow highly
Using radiometric dating, scientists can estimate that
elliptical orbits, with large differences between perihelion
the solar system is 4.6 billion years old.
and aphelion.
The oldest rocks on Earth are approximately 3.9 billion
Astronomers most often measure distances within the
years old. Rocks this old are rare, as the Earth’s surface is
solar system in astronomical units, or AU. One AU is the
constantly being reshaped by erosion, volcanism and plate
average distance between the Earth and the Sun, or roughly
tectonics.
149 598 000 km (93,000,000 mi).
To estimate the age of the solar system scientists must
Informally, the Solar System is sometimes divided into
use meteorites, which were formed during the early
separate “zones”; the first zone, known as the inner Solar
condensation of the solar nebula. The oldest meteorites
System, comprises the inner planets and the main asteroid
(such as the Canyon Diablo meteorite) are found to have
belt.
an age of 4.6 billion years, hence the solar system must be
The outer solar system is sometimes defined as at least 4.6 billion years old.
everything beyond the asteroids; however, it is also the name
The current hypothesis of Solar System formation is
often given to the region beyond Neptune, with the gas
the nebular hypothesis, first proposed in 1755 by Immanuel
giants as a separate “middle zone.
Kant and independently formulated by Pierre-Simon
Planets, dwarf planets, and small solar system bodies Laplace.
In a decision passed by the International Astronomical Inner planets :
Union General Assembly on August 24, 2006, the objects
The four inner or terrestrial planets are characterised
in the Solar System were divided into three separate groups:
by their dense, rocky composition, few or no moons, and
planets, dwarf planets and small solar system bodies.
lack of ring systems.
Under this classification, a planet is any body in orbit
They are composed largely of minerals with high
around the Sun that a) has enough mass to form itself
melting points such as silicates to form the planets’ solid
into a spherical shape and b) has cleared its immediate
crusts and semi-liquid mantles, and metallic dust grains such
neighborhood of all smaller objects. Eight objects in the
as iron, which forms their cores.
Solar System currently meet this definition; they are
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Three of the four inner planets have atmospheres. All
and Neptune. have impact craters, and all but one possess tectonic surface
Dwarf planet is a newly defined classification for
astronomical objects. The key difference between planets
12 srivenraman@gmail.com
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
spacecraft routinely pass through without incident. superior planet, which designates those planets which
Asteroids with a diameter of less than 50 m are called lie outside Earth’s orbit (thus consisting of the outer
meteoroids. planets plus Mars).
Ceres : Jupiter :
Ceres (2.77 AU) is the largest astronomical body Jupiter (5.2 AU), at 318 Earth masses, is 2.5 times
in the asteroid belt and the only known dwarf planet in the mass of all the other planets put together. Its
this region. composition of largely hydrogen and helium is not very
different from that of the Sun, and the planet has been
It has a diameter of slightly under 1000 km, large
described as a “failed star”.
enough for its own gravity to pull it into a spherical shape.
Jupiter’s strong internal heat creates a number of semi-
Ceres was considered a planet when it was discovered
permanent features in its atmosphere, such as cloud bands
in the nineteenth century, but was reclassified as an asteroid
and the Great Red Spot.
as further observation revealed additional asteroids. It has
since been again reclassified as a dwarf planet. The four largest of its 63 satellites, Ganymede,
Callisto, Io, and Europa (the Galilean satellites) share
Asteroid groups :
elements in common with the terrestrial planets, such as
Asteroids in the main belt are subdivided into asteroid volcanism and internal heating. Ganymede, the largest
groups and families based on their specific orbital satellite in the Solar System, has a diameter larger than
characteristics. Mercury.
Asteroid moons are asteroids that orbit larger asteroids. Saturn :
They are not as clearly distinguished as planetary moons,
Saturn (9.5 AU), famous for its extensive ring system,
sometimes being almost as large as their partners.
has many qualities in common with Jupiter, including its
The asteroid belt also contains main-belt comets which atmospheric composition, though it is far less massive, being
may have been the source of Earth’s water. only 95 Earth masses.
Trojan asteroids are located in either of Jupiter’s L4 Two of its 56 moons, Titan and Enceladus, show signs
or L5 points, (gravitationally stable regions leading and of geological activity, though they are largely made of ice.
trailing a planet in its orbit) though the term is also
Titan, like Ganymede, is larger than Mercury; it is
sometimes used for asteroids in any other planetary
also the only satellite in the solar system with a
Lagrange point as well.
substantial atmosphere, similar in composition to that of
The inner solar system is also dusted with rogue the atmosphere of the early Earth.
asteroids, many of which cross the orbits of the inner
Uranus :
planets.
Uranus (19.6 AU) at 14 Earth masses, is the lightest
Outer planets :
of the outer planets. Uniquely among the planets, it orbits
The four outer planets, or gas giants, (sometimes the Sun on its side; its axial tilt lies at over ninety degrees
called Jovian planets) are so large they collectively make to the ecliptic.
up 99 percent of the mass known to orbit the Sun.
Its core is remarkably cold (compared with the other
Jupiter and Saturn are true giants, at 318 and 95 Earth gas giants; it is still several thousand degrees Celsius) and
masses, respectively, and composed largely of hydrogen and radiates very little heat into space.
helium.
Uranus has 27 satellites, the largest being Titania,
Uranus and Neptune are both substantially smaller, Oberon, Umbriel, Ariel and Miranda.
being only 14 and 17 Earth masses, respectively.
Neptune :
Their atmospheres contain a smaller percentage of
Neptune (30 AU), though slightly smaller than Uranus,
hydrogen and helium, and a higher percentage of “ices”,
it is denser and slightly more massive, at 17 Earth masses, and
such as water, ammonia and methane.
radiates more internal heat than Uranus, but not as much as
For this reason some astronomers suggested that Jupiter or Saturn.
they belong in their own category, “Uranian planets,”
Its peculiar ring system is composed of a number of
or “ice giants.”
dense “arcs” of material separated by gaps.
All four of the gas giants exhibit orbital debris rings,
Neptune has 13 moons. The largest, Triton, is
although only the ring system of Saturn is easily observable
geologically active, with geysers of liquid nitrogen, and is
from Earth.
the only large satellite to revolve around its host planet
The term outer planet should not be confused with in a prograde (clockwise) motion.
14 srivenraman@gmail.com
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
The object has many similarities with Pluto: its orbit turbulent, forming a great oval structure known as the
is highly eccentric, with a perihelion of 38.2 AU heliosheath that looks and behaves very much like a comet’s
(roughly Pluto’s distance from the Sun) and an aphelion tail; extending outward for a further 40 AU at its stellar-
of 97.6 AU, and is steeply inclined to the ecliptic plane, windward side, but tailing many times that distance in
at 44 degrees, more so than any known object in the the opposite direction.
solar system except the newly-discovered object 2004
The outer boundary of the sheath, the heliopause,
XR190 (also known as “Buffy”) and is believed to consist
is the point at which the solar wind finally terminates,
largely of rock and ice.
and one enters the environment of interstellar space.
Farthest regions :
Beyond the heliopause, at around 230 AU, lies the
The point at which the solar system ends and bow shock, a plasma “wake” left by the Sun as it travels
interstellar space begins is not precisely defined, since its through the Milky Way.
outer boundaries are delineated by two separate forces: the
Galactic context
solar wind and the Sun’s gravity.
The solar system is located in the Milky Way
The solar wind extends to a point roughly 130 AU
galaxy, a barred spiral galaxy with a diameter estimated
from the Sun, whereupon it surrenders to the surrounding
at about 100,000 light years containing approximately
environment of the interstellar medium.
200 billion stars.
It is generally accepted, however, that the Sun’s gravity
Our Sun resides in one of the Milky Way’s outer
holds sway to the Oort cloud. This great mass of up to a
spiral arms, known as the Orion Arm or Local Spur.
trillion icy objects, currently hypothetical, is believed to be
the source for all long-period comets and to surround the The immediate galactic neighborhood of the solar
solar system like a shell from 50,000 to 100,000 AU beyond system is known as the Local Fluff, an area of dense cloud
the Sun, or almost a quarter the distance to the next star in an otherwise sparse region known as the Local Bubble,
system. an hourglass-shaped cavity in the interstellar medium
roughly 300 light-years across.
The vast majority of the solar system, therefore, is
completely unknown; however, recent observations of both The bubble is suffused with high-temperature plasma
the solar system and other star systems have led to an that suggests it is the product of several recent supernovae.
increased understanding of what is or may be lying at its Estimates place the solar system at between 25,000
outer edge.
and 28,000 light years from the galactic center. Its speed is
Sedna : about 220 kilometres per second, and it completes one
revolution every 226 million years.
Sedna is a large, reddish Pluto-like object with a
gigantic, highly elliptical orbit that takes it from about 76 The apex of solar motion—that is, the direction in
AU at perihelion to 928 AU at aphelion and takes 12,050 which the Sun is heading—is near the current location of
years to complete. the bright star Vega. At the galactic location of the solar
system, the escape velocity with regard to the gravity of
Mike Brown, who discovered the object in 2003,
the Milky Way is about 1000 km/s.
asserts that it cannot be part of the scattered disc or the
Kuiper Belt as it has too distant a perihelion to have been Presumed location of the solar system within our
affected by Neptune’s migration. galaxy
He and other astronomers consider it to be the first Discovery and exploration
in an entirely new population, one which also may include The first exploration of the solar system was
the object 2000 CR105, which has a perihelion of 45 AU, conducted by telescope, with astronomers learning that the
an aphelion of 415 AU, and an orbital period of 3420 Moon and other planets possessed such Earthlike features
years. as craters, ice caps, and seasons.
Sedna is very likely a dwarf planet, though its shape Galileo Galilei was the first to discover physical details
has yet to be determined with certainty. about the individual bodies of the Solar System. He
Heliopause : discovered that the Moon was cratered, that the Sun was
marked with sunspots, and that Jupiter had four satellites
The heliosphere expands outward in a great bubble
in orbit around it.
to about 95 AU, or three times the orbit of Pluto.
Christiaan Huygens followed on from Galileo’s
The edge of this bubble is known as the termination
discoveries by discovering Saturn’s moon Titan and the
shock; the point at which the solar wind collides with the
shape of the rings of Saturn.
opposing winds of the interstellar medium.
Giovanni Domenico Cassini later discovered four more
Here the wind slows, condenses and becomes more
Mean Temperature (C) 167 464 15 -20 -65 -110 -140 -195 -200 -225
Surface Pressure (bars) 0 92 1 0 0.01 Unknown* Unknown* Unknown* Unknown* 0
Number of Moons 0 0 1 0 2 63 56 27 13 3
Ring System? No No No No No Yes Yes Yes Yes No
Global Magnetic Field? Yes No Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes Unknown
srivenraman@gmail.com
MERCURY VENUS EARTH MOON MARS JUPITER SATURN URANUS NEPTUNE
PLUTO
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
Astronomical symbols are symbols used to represent various celestial objects, theoretical constructs and observational
events in astronomy. The symbols listed here are commonly used by professional and amateur astronomers.
PLANETS
Name symbol Unicode image Represented by image
DWARF PLANETS
Name symbol Unicode image Represented by image
6 Hebe Cup
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CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
The dates can vary by as much as 2 days from year to year, depending on the cycle of leap years.
22 srivenraman@gmail.com
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
The center of our galaxy, the Milky Way, is about STRUCTURE OF THE EARTH
8 kiloparsecs (26,000 light years) away. The Galaxy is about
100,000 light years across.
The Earth is an oblate spheroid. It is composed of
The Triangulum Galaxy (M33), at 3.14 million light
a number of different layers as determined by deep drilling
years away, is the most distant object visible to the naked
and seismic evidence.
eye.
These layers are:
The nearest large galaxy cluster, the Virgo Cluster,
is about 60 million light years away. The core, which is approximately 7000 kilometers in
diameter (3500 kilometers in radius) and is located at the
The particle horizon (observable part) of the
Earth’s center. The mantle, which surrounds the core and
universe has a radius of about 46 billion light years, but
has a thickness of 2900 kilometers.
light from the edge of the observable universe was emitted
only 13.7 billion years ago (the age of the universe). The The crust floats on top of the mantle. It is composed
figures differ because distant objects have continued to of basalt rich oceanic crust and granitic rich continental
recede from us due to cosmological expansion (see crust.
Hubble’s law). The structure of the interiors
In the Disney movie Toy Story one character was Our knowledge of the interiors of the earth, , is
named Buzz Lightyear. Buzz referring to Buzz Aldrin - derived from analyses of earthquake waves and the way
one of the first men on the moon, and Lightyear referring they behave. Several kinds of wave motions (P and S
to astronomical distance
The symbol “ua” is recommended by the Bureau
International des Poids et Mesures , but in the United
States and other anglophone countries the reverse usage
is more common. The International Astronomical Union
recommends “au” and international standard ISO 31-1
uses “AU”.
24 srivenraman@gmail.com
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
layer account for the 83% of volume and 68% of the The continental crust is 20 to 70 kilometers thick
mass of the earth. and composed mainly of lighter granite.The density of
This region of the Earth’s interior is thought to be continental crust is about 2.7 grams per cubic centimeter.
composed of peridotite, an ultramafic rock made up of It is thinnest in areas like the Rift Valleys of East Africa
the minerals olivine and pyroxene. and in an area known as the Basin and Range Province in the
western United States.Continental crust is thickest beneath
Asthenosphere: The top layer of the upper mantle,
mountain ranges and extends into the mantle. Both of these
100 to 200 kilometers below surface, is called the
asthenosphere. Scientific studies suggest that this layer has
physical properties that are different from the rest of the
upper mantle.
The rocks in this upper portion of the mantle are
more rigid and brittle because of cooler temperatures and
lower pressures. Below the upper mantle is the lower
mantle that extends from 670 to 2900 kilometers below
the Earth’s surface. This layer is hot and plastic. The higher
pressure in this layer causes the formation of minerals that
are different from those of the upper mantle.
Lithosphere is a layer that includes the crust and the
upper most portion of the asthenosphere. This layer is crust types are composed of numerous tectonic plates
about 100 kilometers thick and has the ability to glide over that float on top of the mantle. Convection currents within
the rest of the upper mantle. Because of increasing the mantle cause these plates to move slowly across the
temperature and pressure, deeper portions of the Asthenosphere.
lithosphere are capable of plastic flow over geologic time. Figure: Structure of the Earth’s crust and top most
The lithosphere is also the zone of earthquakes, layer of the upper mantle. The lithosphere consists of the
mountain building, volcanoes, and continental drift. oceanic crust, continental crust, and uppermost mantle.
CRUST : Beneath the lithosphere is the asthenosphere. This layer,
which is also part of the upper mantle, extends to a depth
The topmost part of the lithosphere consists of crust. of about 200 kilometers. Sedimentary deposits are
This material is cool, rigid, and brittle. The crust is commonly found at the boundaries between the continental
distinguished from the mantle by the presence of abrupt and oceanic crust.
change in the velocity of seismic waves.
This corresponds to the abrupt change in rigidity of
Depth
the rock from crust to mantle. The change in rigidity in Layer
turn is due to change in mineral composition or in physical Kilometers Miles
state of the rocks. Lithosphere (locally varies
0–60 0–37
The P waves near the surface travel at about 6 km between 5 and 200 km)
per second and this velocity increases gradually or abruptly ... Crust (locally varies
to the base of the crust, where it is 7 km per second. 0–35 0–22
between 5 and 70 km)
The surface of sudden increase in wave velocity, which
... Uppermost part of
separates the crust above from the mantle below, is the 35–60 22–37
mantle
Mohorovicic discontinuity, also called Moho discontinuity
or M discontinuity. It is named after the Yugoslav 35–2890 22–1790 Mantle
seismologist, Mohorovicic, who first recognised the 100–700 62–435 ... Asthenosphere
discontinuity in 1909.
2890–5100 1790–3160 Outer core
Two types of crust can be identified: continental
5100–6378 3160–3954 Inner core
crust. And oceanic crust, both of these types of crust
are less dense than the rock found in the underlying upper
mantle layer. These layers consist of lighter SIAL
(Silica+Aluminium) and denser SIMA
(silica=magnesium) respectively. The continental crust
is covered by SIAL AND oceanic crust covered by
SIMA.
Ocean crust is thin and measures between 5 to 10
kilometers thick. It is also composed of basalt and has a
density of about 3.0 grams per cubic centimeter.
26 srivenraman@gmail.com
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
Andesite. (Volcanic arcs) Density >2.8. Low silica Medium (0.25 - 0.5 mm)
content (basic) = sodium feldspar + amphibole. Fine (0.125 - 0.25 mm)
Dark, dense.
Very fine (0.0625 - 0.125 mm)
Basalt. (Ocean crust) Density 2.9. Low silica
o Shales (<0.0062 mm) consolidated mud, rich in
content. (basic). Dark, dense. = olivene + pyroxene
organic matter.
+ Ca-Feldspar in solid solution. Basaltic rocks
(gabbro & basalt) are made up of feldspars and Silt (0.0039 - 0.0625 mm)
other minerals common in planetary crusts. They Clay (0.0002 - 0.0039 mm)
have been identified as major surface rocks on the Argillite. A sedimentary rock, composed of clay
dark lunar planes and much of Mars, Venus and particles which have been hardened and
the asteroid Vesta. cemented.
• Pyroclastic rocks: debris ejected by volcanoes Illite (muscovite). K2Al4(Si6Al2)O20(OH)4. is
o Tuff is made of compacted debris from old a sedimentary fine-grained rock, equivalent to
volcanic ash showers. ordinari mica (muscovite).
o Volcanic breccia is composed of angular mineral Colloid (<0.0002 mm)
fragments embedded in a matrix, the product of
explosive eruptions.
o Ignimbrites are sheets of coalesced fine particles
which once flowed at high speed, extremely hot,
fluid avalanches.
32 srivenraman@gmail.com
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
Amazon, the Ganges/Brahmaputra combination (this North America, Lake Chicot (located near Lake Village,
delta spans most of Bangladesh and West Bengal), the Arkansas), was originally part of the Arkansas River.
Niger, the Mississippi, the Sacramento-San Joaquin, the Cuckmere Haven in Sussex, England contains a
Rhine, the Rhône, the Danube, the Ebro, the Volga, the widely meandering river with many oxbow lakes, often
Lena, the Tigris-Euphrates, the Indus, the Krishna- referred to in physical geography textbooks.
Godavari, the Kaveri, the Ayeyarwady, and the Mekong.
In rare cases the river delta is located inside a large
River :
valley and is called an inverted river delta. Sometimes a A river is a large natural waterway. The source of
river will divide into multiple branches in an inland area, a river may be a lake, a spring, or a collection of small
only to rejoin and continue to the sea; such an area is streams, known as headwaters.
known as an inland delta, and often occur on former lake From their source, all rivers flow downhill, typically
beds. The Niger Inland Delta is the most notable terminating in the ocean. The mouth, or lower end, of a
example. These rock formations, which sometimes river is known as its base level.
contain coal, cap the thick series of sedimentary rocks Rivers that carry large amounts of sediment develop
of the Allegheny Plateau in eastern North America. conspicuous deltas at their mouths. Rivers whose mouths
List of deltas are in saline tidal waters may form estuaries.
Camargue (Rhône River Delta), Colorado River There are different stages of river course.
Delta, Danube Delta, Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta, Indus Youthful river - a river with a steep gradient that
River Delta, Lena Delta, Mekong Delta, Mississippi has very few tributaries and flows quickly. Its channels
River Delta, Niger Inland Delta (inland delta), Niger erode deeper rather than wider.
River Delta (Oil Rivers), Nile Delta, Okavango Delta
(inland delta), Paraná Delta, Pearl River Delta, Rio Mature river - a river with a gradient that is less
Grande Valley, Rhine-Meuse-Scheldt Delta, Sacramento steep than those of youthful rivers and flows more
River Delta, Volga Delta, Yangtze River Delta, Yukon slowly than youthful rivers. A mature river is fed by
Delta. many tributaries and has more discharge than a youthful
river. Its channels erode wider rather than deeper.
Oxbow lake
Old river - a river with a low gradient and low
An oxbow lake is a type of lake which is formed erosive energy. Old rivers are characterized by flood
when a wide meander from a stream or a river is cut plains.
off to form a lake. They are called oxbow lakes due to
the distinctive curved shape that results from this Rejuvenated river - a river with a gradient that is
process. In Australia, an oxbow lake is called a raised by the earth’s movement.
billabong. Where a river descends quickly over sloped
topography,as rapids with whitewater or even waterfalls
When a river reaches a low-lying plain in its final
occur. Rapids are often used for recreational purposes.
course to the sea or a lake, it meanders widely.
Deposition occurs on the convex bank because of the Rivers begin at their source in higher ground, either
‘slack water’, or water at low velocity. In contrast, both rising from a spring, forming from glacial meltwater, flowing
lateral erosion and undercutting occur on the concave from a body of water such as a lake, or simply from damp,
bank where the stream’s velocity is the highest. boggy places where the soil is waterlogged.
Continuous erosion of a concave bank and deposition They end at their base level where they flow into a
on the convex bank of a meandering river cause the larger body of water, the sea, a lake, or as a tributary
formation of a very pronounced meander with two to another (usually larger) river.
concave banks getting closer. The narrow neck of land In arid areas rivers sometimes end by losing water
between the two neighbouring concave banks is finally to evaporation and percolation into dry, porous material
cut through, either by lateral erosion of the two concave such as sand, soil, or pervious rock. The area drained
banks or by the strong currents of a flood. When this by a river and its tributaries is called its watershed,
happens, a new straighter river channel is created and catchment basin or drainage basin. (Watershed is also
an abandoned meander loop, called a cut-off, is formed. used however to mean a boundary between drainage
When deposition finally seals off the cut-off from the basins.)
river channel, an oxbow lake is formed.
Starting at the mouth of the river and following it
Examples upstream as it branches again and again, the resulting
The Reelfoot Lake in west Tennessee is an oxbow river network forms a dendritic (tree-like) structure.
lake formed when the Mississippi River changed course Rivers have been important historically in
following the New Madrid Earthquake of 1811–1812. determining political boundaries. For example, the
There are many oxbow lakes alongside the Mississippi Danube was a longstanding border of the Roman
River and its tributaries. The largest oxbow lake in Empire, and today forms most of the border between
34 srivenraman@gmail.com
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
52. The Susquehanna River, the principal river of reflection of radiation from the Sun back into space -
Pennsylvania and the Chesapeake Bay and thus cool the Earth’s lower atmosphere or
53. Tajo, the largest river in the Iberian Peninsula troposphere; however, they also absorb heat radiated
up from the Earth, thereby warming the stratosphere.
54. The River Tay, the largest river in Scotland
Several eruptions during the past century have
55. The Tennessee River, an important tributary of the
caused a decline in the average temperature at the
Mississippi that flows through Eastern/Western
Earth’s surface of up to half a degree (Fahrenheit scale)
Tennessee, Northern Alabama, and Kentucky
for periods of one to three years. The sulphate aerosols
56. The Thames, the river that runs through London also promote complex chemical reactions on their
57. The Tiber, the river that runs through Rome surfaces that alter chlorine and nitrogen chemical species
58. The Tigris, one of the twin principal rivers of Anatolia in the stratosphere. This effect, together with increased
(Turkey) and Mesopotamia (Iraq) stratospheric chlorine levels from chlorofluorocarbon
pollution, generates chlorine monoxide (ClO), which
59. Tonegawa, one of the largest rivers in Japan
destroys ozone (O3).
60. The Vistula, the principal river of Poland
As the aerosols grow and coagulate, they settle
61. The Vltava, the river that runs through Prague down into the upper troposphere where they serve as
62. The Volga River, the principal river of Russia nuclei for cirrus clouds and further modify the Earth’s
63. The Wabash River, the principal river of Indiana radiation balance. Most of the hydrogen chloride (HCl)
64. The Yangtze (Chang Jiang), the longest river in and hydrogen fluoride (HF) are dissolved in water
China droplets in the eruption cloud and quickly fall to the
ground as acid rain.
65. The Yenisei, a large river in Siberia
Gas emissions from volcanoes are a natural
66. The Yukon, the principal river of Alaska and the contributor to acid rain. Volcanic activity releases about
Yukon Territory 130 to 230 teragrams (145 million to 255 million short
67. The Zambezi, the principal river of southeastern tons) of carbon dioxide each year.
Africa Pacific Ring of Fire
The Pacific Ring of Fire is a zone of frequent
The 16 current Decade Volcanoes earthquakes and volcanic eruptions encircling the basin of
• Avachinsky-Koryaksky, Kamchatka, Russia the Pacific Ocean. In a 40,000 km horseshoe shape, it is
• Colima, Mexico associated with a nearly continuous series of oceanic
• Mount Etna, Italy trenches, island arcs, and volcanic mountain ranges and/
• Galeras, Colombia or plate movements. It is sometimes called the circum-
• Mauna Loa, Hawai»i, USA Pacific belt or the circum-Pacific seismic belt.
• Merapi, Indonesia 90% of the world’s earthquakes and 81% of the
• Nyiragongo, Democratic Republic of the Congo world’s largest earthquakes occur along the Ring of Fire.
• Mount Rainier, Washington, USA The next most seismic region (5–6% of earthquakes and
• Sakurajima, Japan 17% of the world’s largest earthquakes) is the Alpide
• Santamaria/Santiaguito, Guatemala belt which extends from Java to Sumatra through the
• Santorini, Greece Himalayas, the Mediterranean, and out into the Atlantic.
• Taal Volcano, Philippines The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is the third most
• Teide, Canary Islands, Spain prominent earthquake belt.
• Ulawun, Papua New Guinea
Countries of the Pacific Ring of Fire
• Mount Unzen, Japan
• Vesuvius, Italy • Argentina • Belize • Bolivia • Brazil • Brunei •
Canada • Colombia • Chile • Costa Rica • Ecuador •
Effect of Volcanoes East Timor • El Salvador • Micronesia • Fiji • Guatemala
Large, explosive volcanic eruptions inject water • Honduras • Indonesia • Japan • Kiribati • Malaysia •
vapor (H2O), carbon dioxide (CO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), Mexico • New Zealand • Nicaragua • Palau •
hydrogen chloride (HCl), hydrogen fluoride (HF) and Papua New Guinea • Panama • Peru • Philippines •
ash (pulverized rock and pumice) into the stratosphere Russia • Samoa • Solomon Islands • Tonga • Tuvalu •
to heights of 10-20 miles above the Earth’s surface. United States •
The most significant impacts from these injections Volcanoes of the Pacific Ring of Fire
come from the conversion of sulphur dioxide to • Mount Baker • Mount Bulusan •
sulphuric acid (H2SO4), which condenses rapidly in the Cold Bay Volcano • Concepción • Volcán de Fuego •
stratosphere to form fine sulfate aerosols. Mount Fuji • Galeras • Mount Hood • Krakatoa •
The aerosols increase the Earth’s albedo—its Mayon Volcano • Mount Merapi • Momotombo •
38 srivenraman@gmail.com
side.
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY Rift lakes: A lake which forms as a result of
Lake Vostok is an subglacial lake in Antarctica, subsidence along a geological fault in the Earth’s
possibly the largest in the world. The pressure from tectonic plates. Some examples are the Rift Valley lakes
ice and the internal chemical composition means that of eastern Africa.
if the lake were drilled into, it may result in a fissure Underground: A lake which is formed under the
which would spray in a similar fashion to a geyser. surface of the Earth’s crust. Such a lake may be associated
Some lakes, such as Lake Baikal and Lake with caves and aquifers and springs. The crater lake of
Tanganyika lie along continental rift zones, and are Volcán Irazú, Costa Rica.
created by the crust’s subsidence as two plates are Crater: A lake which forms in volcanic calderas
pulled apart. These lakes are the oldest and deepest in or craters after the volcano has been inactive for some
the world, and may be destined over millions of years time. Water in these types of lakes may be fresh, or
to become oceans. The Red Sea is thought to have highly acidic, and may contain various dissolved
originated as a rift valley lake. minerals. Some also have geothermal activity, especially
Crater Lake in Oregon is a lake located within the if the volcano is merely dormant rather than extinct.
caldera of Mount Mazama. The caldera was created in a Former: A lake which is no longer in existence.
massive volcanic eruption that lead to the subsidence of Such lakes include prehistoric lakes, and lakes which
Mount Mazama around 4860 BC. Since that time, all have permanently dried up through evaporation or
eruptions on Mazama have been confined to the caldera. human intervention. Owens Lake in California is an
Some lakes, such as Lake Jackson come into example of a former lake. Former lakes are a common
existence as a result of sinkhole activity. feature of the Basin and Range area of south-western
North America.
Types of lakes
Shrunken: Closely related to former lakes, a
Periglacial: Part of the lake’s margin is formed by
shrunken lake is one which has drastically decreased
an ice sheet, ice cap or glacier, the ice having obstructed
in size over geological time. Lake Agassiz is a good
the natural drainage of the land.
example of a shrunken lake, which covered much of
Subglacial: A lake which is permanently covered central North America. Some notable remnants of this
by ice. They can occur under glaciers and ice caps or lake are Lake Winnipeg, and Lake Winnipegosis.
ice sheets. There are many such lakes, but Lake Vostok
Limnology : Limnology is the study of inland
in Antarctica is by far the largest. They are kept liquid
bodies of water and related ecosystems.a
because the overlying ice acts as a thermal insulator
retaining energy introduced to its underside by friction, Some lakes can also disappear seasonally; they are
water percolating through crevasses, by the pressure called intermittent lakes and are typical of karstic
from the mass of the ice sheet above or by geothermal terrain. A prime example of this is Lake Cerknica
heating below. in Slovenia.
Artificial, also called a reservoir: A lake created Extraterrestrial lakes :
by flooding land behind a dam, by human excavation, At present the surface of the planet Mars is too
or by the flooding of an open pit mine. Some of the cold and has too little atmospheric pressure to permit
world’s largest lakes are reservoirs. Husain Sagar is a pooling of liquid water on the surface.However geologic
reservoir in India built in 1562. evidence appears to confirm that ancient lakes once
Endorheic, also called terminal or closed: A lake formed on the surface. It is also possible that volcanic
which has no significant outflow, either through rivers, activity on Mars will occasionally melt the subsurface
or underground diffusion. Any water within an ice, forming large lakes. Under current conditions this
endorheic basin leaves the system only through water will quickly evaporate or freeze unless insulated
evaporation. These lakes are most common in desert in some manner, such as by a coating of volcanic ash.
locations, such as Lake Eyre in central Australia or the Jupiter’s small moon Io is volcanically active due
Aral Sea in central Asia. to tidal stresses, and as a result sulfur deposits have
Meromictic: A lake which has layers of water which accumulated on the surface. Some photographs taken during
do not intermix. The deepest layer of water in such a the Galileo mission appear to show lakes of liquid sulfur
lake does not contain any dissolved oxygen. The layers on the surface.
of sediment at the bottom of a meromictic lake remain There are dark basaltic plains on the Moon, similar
relatively undisturbed because there are no living to lunar maria but smaller, that are called lacus
organisms to stir them up. (singular lacus, Latin for “lake”). They were once
Oxbow: A lake which is formed when a wide thought by early astronomers to be literal lakes.
meander from a stream or a river is cut off to form a
lake. They are called oxbow lakes due to the distinctive
curved shape that results from this process.
40 srivenraman@gmail.com
33. Great Salt Lake, U.S.
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY surrounded by water. Very small islands such as
34. Kioga, Uganda emergent land features on atolls are called islets. A key
or cay is another name for a relatively small island or
By continent
islet. An island in a river or lake is called an eyot.
Africa - Lake Victoria There are two main types of islands: continental
Antarctica - Lake Vostok (Subglacial lake) islands and oceanic islands. There are also artificial islands.
Asia - Caspian Sea A grouping of related islands is called an archipelago.
Australia - Lake Eyre
Also, when defining islands as pieces of land that are
Central America -Lake Nicaragua (second largest
completely surrounded by water, narrow bodies of water
in Latin America, first in Central America)
like rivers and canals are generally left out of
Europe - Lake Ladoga
consideration. For instance, in France the Canal du
North America - Lake Superior
Midi connects the Garonne river to the Mediterranean
South America - Lake Maracaibo
Sea, thereby completing a continuous water connection
List of world’s deepest lakes from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea.
1. Baikal Siberia, Russia So technically, the land mass that includes the
2. Tanganyika Africa Iberian Peninsula and the part of France that is south
(Tanzania,Zaire & of the Garonne River and the Canal du Midi is
Zambia) completely surrounded by water. However, generally
cases such as these are not considered islands.
3. Caspian Sea Iran and Russia
Other examples of such coast-to-coast
4. Nyasa Africa (Mozambique,
watersystems that are not considered to cut a land mass
Tanzania & Malawi) in two are the Caledonian and Forth and Clyde canals
5. Issyk Kul Kyrgizstan, Central Asia in Scotland and the Volga-Baltic Waterway in Russia.
6. Great Slave Northwest This also helps explain why Africa-Eurasia can be
Territories, Canada seen as one continuous landmass (and thus technically
7. Crater Oregon, U.S.A. the biggest island): generally the Suez Canal is not seen
as something that divides the land mass in two.
8. Matano Indonesia
TYPES OF ISLANDS :
9. Hornindalsvatnet Norway
Continental islands
10. Toba Indonesia
Continental islands are bodies of land that lie on
10. Sarez Tajikistan the continental shelf of a continent. Examples include
12. Tahoe California & Greenland and Sable Island off North America; Barbados
Nevada, U.S.A. and Trinidad off South America; Sicily off Europe; Sumatra
13. Argentino Argentina and Java off Asia; and New Guinea and Tasmania off
Australia.
14. Chelan Washington, U.S.A.
A special type of continental island is the
15. Kivu Congo
microcontinental island, which results when a continent
(Democratic Republic), is rifted. Examples are Madagascar off Africa; the
Rwanda Kerguelen Islands; and some of the Seychelles.
16. Quesnel British Columbia, Another subtype is an island or bar formed by
Canada deposition of sediment where a water current loses
17. Hauroko New Zealand some of its carrying capacity. An example is barrier
islands, which are accumulations of sand deposited by
18. Adams British Columbia,
sea currents on the continental shelf. Another example
Canada
is islands in river deltas or in large rivers. While some
19. Poso Indonesia are transitory and may disappear if the volume or speed
20. Mjosa Norway of the current changes, others are stable and long-lived.
By continent Oceanic islands
Africa - Tanganyika, Antarctica - Vostok (Subglacial Oceanic islands are ones that do not sit on
lake) , Asia - Baikal , Australia - St Clair (200 m.), Central continental shelves. They are volcanic in origin. One
America - Nicaragua, Europe -Hornindalsvatnet, North type of oceanic island is found in a volcanic island arc.
America - Great Slave Lake, South America - Argentino. These islands arise from volcanoes where the subduction
Island : of one plate under another is occurring. Examples
include the Mariana Islands, the Aleutian Islands,
An island or isle is any piece of land that is completely
Republic of Mauritius and most of Tonga in the Pacific
VENKAT RAMAN REDROWTU 41
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
Ocean. Some of the Lesser Antilles and the South 7 Honshû 225,800 Japan
Sandwich Islands are the only Atlantic Ocean examples. 8 Great Britain 218,595 United Kingdom
Another type of oceanic island occurs where an 9 Victoria Island 217,291 Canada
oceanic rift reaches the surface. There are two examples: 10 Ellesmere Island Canada
Iceland, which is the world’s largest volcanic island, and 11 Sulawesi 180,681 Indonesia
Jan Mayen — both are in the Atlantic. 12 South Island
Wake Island is a volcanic island that has become of New Zealand145,836 New Zealand
an atoll.A third type of oceanic island is formed over
13 Java 138,794 Indonesia
volcanic hotspots.An example is the Hawaiian Islands,
14 North Island of
from Hawaii to Kure, which then extends beneath the
sea surface in a more northerly direction as the New Zealand 111,583 New Zealand
Emperor Seamounts. Another chain with similar 15 Luzon 109,965 Philippines
orientation is the Tuamotu Archipelago; its older, 16 Newfoundland 108,860 Canada
northerly trend is the Line Islands. The southernmost 17 Cuba main island 105,806 Cuba
chain is the Austral Islands, with its northerly trending 18 Iceland main island 101,826 Iceland
part the atolls in the nation of Tuvalu. Tristan da Cunha 19 Mindanao 97,530 Philippines
is an example of a hotspot volcano in the Atlantic
20 Ireland 81,638 Republic of Ireland
Ocean. Another hot spot in the Atlantic is the island of
Surtsey, which was formed in 1963. and United
Kingdom
An atoll is an island formed from a coral reef that
has grown on an eroded and submerged volcanic island.
The reef rises to the surface of the water and forms a
new island. Atolls are typically ring-shaped with a central
lagoon. Examples include the Maldives in the Indian Ocean
and Line Islands in the Pacific.
List of Islands by Area
This is a list of islands in the world ordered by area.
It includes all islands with an area greater than 2,500 km²
(970 square miles). For comparison, continental landmasses
are also shown.
Continental land masses
These figures are rough approximations only.
Rank Continent Area(km²) Area(sq mi)
1 Africa-Eurasia 84,000,000 32,000,000
2 The Americas 41,000,000 16,000,000
3 Antarctica 13,000,000 5,000,000
4 Australia 7,600,000 2,900,000
Note: Australia, at 7,600,000 km², is considered to be a
continental landmass, rather than an island. Australia is
much larger than Greenland, the largest island.
Islands over 2,500 km²
Rank Island’s Name Area Country/
(km²) Countries
1 Greenland 2,130,800 Greenland, a self-
governed territory of
Denmark
2 New Guinea 785,753 Indonesia and Papua
New Guinea
3 Borneo 748,168 Brunei, Indonesia
and Malaysia
4 Madagascar 587,713 Madagascar
5 Baffin Island 507,451 Canada
6 Sumatra 443,066 Indonesia
42 srivenraman@gmail.com
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
EARTH REVOLUTION AND ROTATION
from 66.5° above the northern end of the horizon during in sun angle occurs poleward of these latitudes. The
the summer solstice, to directly overhead on the fall greater the variation in sun angle, the greater the
equinox, and then down to 66.5° above the southern variation in surface heating.
end of the horizon during the summer solstice
On about June 21st or June 22nd the Northern
hemisphere is tipped toward the sun. At noon, the subsolar
point, or place where the sun lies directly overhead at noon,
is located at 23 1/2o north latitude. This date is known as
the summer solstice, the longest day of the year for places
located north of Tropic of Cancer. The 23 1/2o parallel
was so named because it is during the astrological sign
Cancer when the Sun’s rays strike at their highest angle of
the year north of this line. The North pole tips into the
Sun and tangent rays strike at the Arctic and Antarctic
Circles. (A tangent ray is one that meets a curve or surface
in a single point). This creates a 24 hour period of daylight
(“polar day”) for places located poleward of 66 1/2o north. Day length and seasons
We find the South Pole tipped away from the Sun, sending Day length is determined by the length of time the
places poleward of 66 1/2o south into 24 hours of darkness Sun is above the horizon. Day length changes through
(“polar night”). the year as the orientation of the Earth to the Sun
On Sept 22nd or 23rd, the Earth has moved around changes. The circle of illumination is the imaginary
the Sun such that the poles are neither pointing toward or circle that separate day from night.
away from the sun. On this day, the Sun is directly overhead Figure shows two extreme cases, the December and
0 degrees, the equator, at noon. Tangent rays strike at the June solstices. Note during December that more of a
poles. It is the autumnal equinox and all places experience given latitude in the Southern hemisphere is exposed to
12 hours of day light and 12 hours of darkness. the Sun. This is the longest day of the year for those
The winter solstice occurs on December 21st or living poleward of the Equator. In June the opposite
22nd when the Earth has oriented itself so the North occurs with longer day length in the Northern
Pole is facing away from, and the
March DECEMBER SEPTEMBER
South Pole into the Sun. Again, EQUINOX SOLSTICE EQUINOX
JUNE SOLSTICE
tangent rays strike at the Arctic
Date March 21 December 22 Sept. 23 June 21
and Antarctic circles. Places
Subsolar
poleward of 66 1/2o north are in Point
0o 23 1/2o S 0o 23 1/2o N
the grips of the cold, polar night. Tangent North and South Arctic and Antarctic North and South Arctic and Antarctic
Places poleward of 66 1/2o south Rays Poles Circles Poles Circles
experience the 24 hour polar day. 24 hours of darkness 12 hour day length 24 hours of darkness
The Sun lies directly over 23 1/2o 12 hour day
at North Pole; 24 everywhere at South Pole; 24
Day length hours day light at hours day light at
south. Occurring during the length everywhere
South Pole; 12 hours North Pole; 12 hours
astrological sign of Capricorn, 23 day light at Equator day light at Equator
1/2o south latitude is called the
44 srivenraman@gmail.com
LATITUDE
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY where the sun may be seen directly overhead
Latitude, usually denoted symbolically by the (midsummer and midwinter respectively). Note that the
latitude of is equal to the axial tilt.
Greek letter phi, , gives the location of a place on
NOTABLE PARALLELS
Earth north or south of the Equator.
Parallel Description
Latitude is an angular measurement in degrees 49th parallel north Part of the border between the
(marked with °) ranging from 0° at the Equator to 90° United States and Canada, from
at the poles (90° N for the North Pole or 90° S for the Washington to western Minnesota.
South Pole). The distance between the successive 45th parallel north The border between Vermont and
Latitudes, always corresponds to exactly sixty nautical Quebec.
miles or about 111 km (69 statute miles, each of 5280 42nd parallel north The border between California and
feet). Oregon.
Circles of latitude 41st parallel north Parts of the borders of Colorado,
All locations of a given latitude are collectively Utah, Wyoming, and Nebraska.
referred to as a circle of latitude or line of latitude or parallel, 40th parallel north The line originally chosen for the
because they are coplanar, and all such planes are Mason-Dixon Line, but the line was
parallel to the Equator. moved several miles south to avoid
bisecting the city of Philadelphia.
Lines of latitude other than the Equator are
39° 432 19.922163N Mason-Dixon line
approximately small circles on the surface of the Earth;
38th parallel north Boundary between the Soviet and
they are not geodesics since the shortest route between
American occupation zones in Korea
two points at the same latitude involves moving farther
in 1945.
away from, then towards, the equator ( great circle).
37th parallel north North-south border between Utah &
A specific latitude may then be combined with a Arizona, and Colorado & New
specific longitude to give a precise position on the Mexico respectively.
Earth’s surface . 33rd parallel north The border between Louisiana and
Circle of latitude Arkansas
On the Earth, a circle of latitude or parallel is an 30th parallel north ?
imaginary east-west circle that connects all locations with 28th parallel north Boundary between Baja California
a given latitude. and Baja California Sur in Mexico.
The position on the circle of latitude is given by the 22° 19' 35.6736" N Boundary Street - Boundary between
longitude. Each is perpendicular to all meridians at the Kowloon and New Kowloon of
intersection points. New Territories
17th parallel north Division between Republic of
Those parallels closer to the poles are smaller than Vietnam (South Vietnam) and
those at or near the Equator. Democratic Republic of Vietnam
For a low latitude a circle of latitude can be said to (North Vietnam) during the Vietnam
be a line around the Earth, while at a high latitude it is a war.
circle around a pole. 45th parallel south ?
MAJOR LATITUDES 60th parallel south Area south of which is considered
Equator Antarctica for the purposes of the
Antarctic Treaty System (see map)
The equator is the circle that is equidistant from both
the North Pole and South Pole. It splits the Earth into the Important named circles of latitude
Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere. Four lines of latitude are named because of the role
Arctic and Antarctic Circles they play in the geometrical relationship with the Earth
and the Sun:
The Arctic Circle represents the southernmost location
in the Northern Hemisphere where it is possible to have a • Arctic Circle — 66° 332 393 N
day without a sunrise (see midnight sun). • Tropic of Cancer — 23° 262 223 N
Respectively, the Antarctic Circle represents the • Tropic of Capricorn — 23° 262 223 S
northernmost location in the Southern Hemisphere where • Antarctic Circle — 66° 332 393 S
it is possible to have a day without a sunrise. Only at latitudes between the Tropics is it possible
The latitude plus the axial tilt is equal to 90°. for the sun to be at the zenith. Only north of the Arctic
Tropic of Cancer and Capricorn Circle or south of the Antarctic Circle is the midnight sun
The Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn possible.
represent the northernmost and southernmost locations The reason that these lines have the values that they
46 srivenraman@gmail.com
•
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
There are about 39 time zones instead of 24 (as the date line from crossing nations internally.
popularly believed). This is due to fractional hour In the north, the date line swings to the east through
offsets and zones with offsets larger than 12 hours Bering Strait and then west past the Aleutian Islands in
near the International Date Line. Some micronations order to keep Alaska (part of the United States) and Russia
may use offsets that are not recognized by all on opposite sides of the line and their territories due
authorities. north and south of each other in concert with the date
• The largest time gap along a political border is the of the rest of each respective country.
3.5 hour gap along the border of China (UTC +8) In the central Pacific, the date line was moved in
and Afghanistan (UTC+4:30). 1995 to extend around, rather than through, the islands
• One of the most unusual time zones is the Australian of the Republic of Kiribati. As a British colony, Kiribati
Central Western Time zone (CWST), which is in effect was centered in the Gilbert Islands, just west of the
in a small strip of Western Australia from the border International Dateline. Upon independence in 1979, the new
of South Australia west to just before Caiguna. It is republic acquired the Phoenix and Line Islands from the
8¾ hours ahead of UTC (UTC+8:45) and covers an United States and the country found itself straddling the
area of about 35,000 km², larger than Belgium, but date line. Government offices on opposite sides of the line
has a population of about 200. Although unofficial, could only communicate on the four days of the week when
it is universally respected in the area. See Time in both sides experienced weekdays simultaneously. A
Australia. consequence of this time zone revision was that Kiribati,
Prime Meridian by virtue of its easternmost possession, uninhabited
Caroline Atoll at 150°25’W, started on its territory the year
The Prime Meridian, also known as the
2000 before any other country on earth, a feature which
International Meridian or Greenwich Meridian, is the
the Kiribati government capitalized upon as a potential
meridian (line of longitude) passing through the Royal
tourist draw. However, even into the 21st century, many
Greenwich Observatory, Greenwich, England — it is the
mapmakers are not aware of this Kiribati dateline shift
meridian at which longitude is defined to be 0 degrees.
and continue to represent the International Date as a
The prime meridian, and the opposite 180th meridian (at
straight line in the Kiribati area.
180° longitude), which the International Date Line generally
follows, separate the Eastern and Western Hemispheres. In the South Pacific, the dateline swings east such that
various islands administered by New Zealand (which lies
Heading south from the North Pole, the Prime
west of 180°) are on the same date with New Zealand.
Meridian passes through the following countries:
The International Date Line can cause confusion
• United Kingdom (The most northernly land on the
among airline travelers. The most troublesome situation
meridian is the shore (53°45’34"N) southeast of the
usually occurs with short journeys from west to east. For
Sand-le-Mere caravan park east of Kingston upon
example, to travel from Tonga to Samoa by air takes
Hull, England.) ,France ,Spain ,Algeria ,Mali ,Burkina
approximately two hours, but involves crossing the
Faso, Togo Ghana ,Antarctica to the South Pole
international date line, causing the passenger to arrive the
The zero meridian used by satellite navigation systems day before they left. This often causes confusion in travel
(on the WGS84 datum) is 102.5 metres (336.3 feet) to the schedules.
east of the line marked at Greenwich.
If someone circumnavigates the globe in an airplane
International Date Line from east to west (the same direction as Magellan), he
The International Date Line (IDL), also known as should subtract one hour for every 15° of longitude
just the Date Line, is an imaginary line on the surface of crossed, losing 24 hours for one circuit of the globe. But
the Earth opposite the Prime Meridian which offsets the 24 hours are added when crossing the International Date
date as one travels east or west across it. Line (from east to west). The International Date Line must
Roughly along 180° longitude, with diversions to pass therefore be observed in conjunction with earth’s time
around some territories and island groups, it corresponds zones: the net adjustment to one’s watch is zero. If one
to the time zone boundary separating +12 and -12 hours crosses the date line at precisely midnight, going westward,
GMT (UT1). one skips an entire day; while going eastward, one repeats
the entire day.
For the most part, the International Date Line follows
the meridian of 180° longitude, roughly down the middle
of the Pacific Ocean. However, because the date to the
east of the line is one day earlier than that to the west of
the line, the line deviates to pass around the far east of
Russia and various island groups in the Pacific, no country
wanting to have, at least during ordinary daytime hours, its
citizens functioning on two different dates. Thus, the two
largest deviations from this meridian both occur to keep
50 srivenraman@gmail.com
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
absorbs solar ultraviolet radiation, heating the upper poorly understood in the atmosphere. This has led the
layers of the stratosphere. mesosphere and the lower thermosphere to be jokingly
Commercial airliners typically cruise at an altitude referred to by scientists as the ignorosphere.
near 10 km in temperate latitudes, in the lower reaches Temperatures in the upper mesosphere fall as low
of the stratosphere. This is to avoid atmospheric as -100°C (-146°F or 173 K) varying according to latitude
turbulence from the convection in the troposphere. and season.
Turbulence experienced in the cruise phase of Millions of meteors burn up daily in the mesosphere
flight is often caused by convective overshoot from the as a result of collisions with the gas particles contained
troposphere below. Similarly, most gliders soar on thermal there, leading to a high concentration of iron and other
plumes that rise through the troposphere above warm metal atoms. The collisions almost always create enough
patches of ground; these plumes end at the base of the heat to burn the falling objects long before they reach
stratosphere, setting a limit to how high gliders can fly in the ground.The stratosphere and mesosphere are
most partsof the world. (Some gliders do fly higher, using referred to as the middle atmosphere.
wave lift from mountain ranges to lift them into the This is also around the same altitude as the
stratosphere.) turbopause, below which different chemical species are well
The stratosphere is a region of intense interactions mixed due to turbulent eddies. Above this level the scale
among radiative, dynamical, and chemical processes, in heights of different chemical species will differ.
which horizontal mixing of gaseous components proceeds Noctilucent clouds of thin layers are located in
much more rapidly than vertical mixing. the mesosphere.Their presence can be attributed to the
An interesting feature of stratospheric circulation is meteoric dust which act as a nucleus for ice crystals
the quasi-Biennial Oscillation (QBO) in the tropical when some amount of traces of water vapour are carried
latitudes, which is driven by gravity waves that are up by convection currents and making up some clouds.
convectively generated in the troposphere MESOPAUSE: The mesopause, at an altitude of
The QBO induces a secondary circulation that is about 80-85 km, separates the mesosphere from the
important for the global stratospheric transport of tracers thermosphere—the second-outermost layer of the Earth’s
such as ozone or water vapor.In northern hemispheric winter, atmosphere. Noctilucent clouds with the increasing altitude.
sudden stratospheric warmings can often be observed which This is also around the same altitude as the
are caused by the absorption of Rossby waves in the turbopause*, below which different chemical species are well
stratosphere. mixed due to turbulent eddies. Above this level the scale
The stratopause is the level of the atmosphere heights of different chemical species will differ.
which is the boundary between two layers, stratosphere *Turbopause:The turbopause marks the altitude in
and the mesosphere. In the stratosphere the temperature the Earth’s atmosphere below which turbulent mixing
increases with altitude, and the stratopause is the section dominates. The region below the turbopause is known as
where a maximum in the temperature occurs.This the homosphere, where the chemical constituents are well
occurs not only on Earth, but on other planets with an mixed and display identical height distributions; in other
atmosphere as well. words, the chemical composition of the atmosphere remains
On Earth, the stratopause is 50 to 55 km high above constant in this region.
the earths surface. The atmospheric pressure is around 1/ The region above the turbopause is the heterosphere,
1000th of the pressure at sea level. where molecular diffusion dominates and the chemical
Mesosphere composition of the atmosphere varies according to
The mesosphere (from the Greek words mesos = middle chemical species.The turbopause lies near the
and sphaira = ball) is the layer of the Earth’s atmosphere mesopause, at the intersection of the mesosphere and
that is directly above the stratosphere and directly below the thermosphere, at an altitude of roughly 100 km.
the thermosphere. Thermosphere:
The mesosphere is located about 50-80/85km above The thermosphere is the layer of the earth’s
Earth’s surface. Within this layer, temperature decreases with atmosphere directly above the mesosphere and directly
increasing altitude. below the exosphere. Within this layer, ultraviolet
The main dynamical features in this region are the radiation causes ionization. It is the fourth atmospheric
atmospheric tides which are driven by momentum layer from earth.
propagating upwards from the lower atmosphere and The thermosphere, named from the Greek (thermos)
extending into the lower thermosphere. for heat, begins about 85 km above the earth. At these
Because it lies between the maximum altitude for most high altitudes, the residual atmospheric gases sort into
aircraft and the minimum altitude for most spacecraft, this region strata according to molecular mass .
of the atmosphere has only been accessed through the use of Thermospheric temperatures increase with altitude
sounding rockets. As a result the region is one of the most due to absorption of highly energetic solar radiation by
VENKAT RAMAN REDROWTU 51
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
the small amount of residual oxygen still present. outer space. The main gases within the exosphere are
Temperatures are highly dependent on solar the lightest gases, mainly hydrogen and helium, with
activity, and can rise to 2,000°C. Radiation causes the some atomic oxygen near the exobase.
air particles in this layer to become electrically charged , The atmosphere in this layer is sufficiently
enabling radio waves to bounce off and be received rarefied for satellites to orbit the Earth, although they
beyond the horizon. still receive some atmospheric drag.
Even though the temperature is so high, one will Exobase, also called the critical level, the lowest
not feel warm in the thermosphere due to lack of altitude of the exosphere, is defined in one of two ways:
atmospheric density. A normal thermometer would read The height above which there are negligible
significantly below 0°C. This is due to the distance atmospheric collisions between the particles and The
between the present molecules. height above which the constituent atoms are on purely
The MIR and International space stations have ballistic trajectories.
stable orbits within the upper part of the thermosphere,
between 320 and 380 kilometers.
The Northern Lights also occur in the upper
thermosphere.
Thermopause
The Thermopause is the atmospheric boundary of
Earth’s energy system, located at the top of the
thermosphere.
Below this, the atmosphere is defined to be active
on the insolation received, due to the increased presence
of heavier gases such as monoatomic oxygen.
The solar constant is thus expressed at the thermopause.
Beyond (above) this, the exosphere describes the
thinnest remainder of atmospheric particles with large
mean free path, mostly hydrogen and helium.
The exact altitude varies by the energy inputs of
location, time of day, solar flux, season, etc. and can be between
500-1000 km high at a given place and time. because of
these,a portion of the magnetosphere dips below this
layer as well.
Althought these are all named layers of the
atmosphere, the pressure is so negligible that the chiefly-
used definitions of outer space are actually below this
altitude.
Orbiting satellites do not experience significant
atmospheric heating, but their orbits do decay over time,
depending on orbital altitude. Space missions such as
the ISS, space shuttle, and Soyuz operate under this layer.
Atmosphere diagram showing the exosphere and
other layers. The layers are not to scale: from Earth’s
surface to the top of the stratosphere (50km) is just
under 1% of Earth’s radius.
The Exosphere
Exosphere is the uppermost layer of the
atmosphere.
On Earth, its lower boundary at the edge of the
thermosphere is estimated to be 500 km to 1000 km
above the Earth’s surface, and its upper boundary at
about 10,000 km.
It is only from the exosphere that atmospheric gases,
atoms, and molecules can, to any appreciable extent, escape into
52 srivenraman@gmail.com
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
EARLY HISTORY OF THE EARTH Approximate origin time of the major plant and
animal groups
Scientists believe the Earth began its life about 4.6
Organism Group Time of Origin
billion years ago. The Earth formed as cosmic dust lumped
together to form larger and larger particles until 150 million Marine Invertebrates 570 Million Years Ago
years had passed. At about 4.4 billion years, the young
Earth had a mass similar to the mass it has today. The Fish 505 Million Years Ago
continents probably began forming about 4.2 billion years
ago as the Earth continued to cool. The cooling also Land Plants 438 Million Years Ago
resulted in the release of gases from the lithosphere, much
of which formed the Earth’s early atmosphere. Most of Amphibians 408 Million Years Ago
the Earth’s early atmosphere was created in the first one
Reptiles 320 Million Years Ago
million years after solidification (4.4 billion years ago).
Carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and water vapor dominated this Mammals 208 Million Years Ago
early atmosphere. Table below describes the three major
stages of development of the atmosphere Flowering Plants 140 Million Years Ago
Name of Stage Duration of Stage Main Constituents of the Dominant Processes and Features
(Billions of Years Ago) Atmosphere
Early Atmosphere 4.4 to 4.0 H2O, hydrogen cyanide (HCN), Lighter gases like hydrogen and
ammonia (NH3), methane helium escaped to space.
(CH4), sulfur, iodine, bromine, All water was held in the atmosphere
chlorine, argon as vapor because of high temperatures.
Secondary 4.0 to 3.3 At 4.0 billion H2O, CO2, and Continued release of gases from the
Atmosphere nitrogen (N) dominant. Cooling lithosphere.
of the atmosphere causes Water vapor clouds common in the
precipitation and the lower atmosphere.
development of the oceans. Chemosynthetic bacteria appear on the
By 3.0 billion CO2, H2O, N2 Earth at 3.6 billion. Life begins to
dominant. O2 begins to modify the atmosphere.
accumulate.
Living Atmosphere 3.3 to Present N2 - 78%, O2 - 21%, Argon - Development, evolution and growth of
0.9%, CO2 - 0.036% life increases the quantity of oxygen in
the atmosphere from <1% to 21%.
500 million years ago concentration of
atmospheric oxygen levels off.
Humans begin modifying the
concentrations of some gases in the
atmosphere beginning around the year
1700.
60 srivenraman@gmail.com
wind.
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY isobars above the level of friction is called a gradient
Coriolis force only acts on air when it has been sent wind.
into motion by pressure gradient force. Finally, Coriolis Gradient winds are slightly more complex than
force only influences wind direction and never wind geotropic winds because they include the action of yet
speed another physical force. This force is known as centripetal
Centripetal acceleration is the force that can act on force and it is always directed toward the center of rotation.
moving air. It acts only on air that is flowing around centers Around a low, the gradient wind consists of the
of circulation. pressure gradient force and centripetal force acting
Centripetal acceleration is also another force that can toward the center of rotation, while Coriolis force acts
influence the direction of wind. Centripetal acceleration away from the center of the low.
creates a force directed at right angles to the flow of the In a high pressure center, the Coriolis and centripetal
wind and inwards towards the centers of rotation (e.g., low forces are directed toward the center of the high, while
and high pressure centers). the pressure gradient force is directed outward.
This force produces a circular pattern of flow around The following figure describes the forces that
centers of high and low pressure. produce gradient winds around high and low pressure
Centripetal acceleration is much more important for centers
circulations smaller than the mid-latitude cyclone. Circulation patterns of high and low pressure
The other force that can influence moving air is systems in the North and South Hemisphere.
frictional deceleration. Friction can exert an influence on
wind only after the air is in motion.
Frictional drag acts in a direction opposite to the path
of motion causing the moving air to decelerate (According
to Newton’s first and second laws of motion). Frictional
effects are limited to the lower one kilometer above the
Earth’s surface.
Geotropic Wind
Air under the influence of both the pressure gradient
force and Coriolis force tends to move parallel to isobars
in conditions where friction is low (1000 meters above the
surface of the Earth) and isobars are straight. Winds of
this type are usually called geostrophic winds. Local and Regional Wind Systems
Geostrophic winds come about because pressure Winds blow because of differences in atmospheric
gradient force and Coriolis force come into balance after pressure. Pressure gradients may develop on a local to
the air begins to move. a global scale because of differences in the heating and
A geostrophic wind flows parallel to the isobars. In cooling of the Earth’s surface. Heating and cooling cycles
this model of wind flow in the Northern Hemisphere, wind that develop daily or annually can create several common
begins as a flow of air perpendicular to the isobars local or regional thermal wind systems.
(measured in millibars) under the primary influence of Sea and Land Breezes
the pressure gradient force (PGF).
Sea and land breezes are types of thermal
As the movement begins, the Coriolis force (CF) circulation systems that develop at the interface of land
begins to influence the moving air causing it to deflect to and ocean.
the right of its path. This deflection continues until the
At this interface, the dissimilar heating and cooling
pressure gradient force and Coriolis force are opposite
characteristics of land and water initiate the development
and in balance with each other.
of an atmospheric pressure gradient, which causes the air
Finally, Buy Ballot’s Law states that when you stand in these areas to flow.
with your back to a geotropic wind in the Northern
During the daytime land heats up much faster than
Hemisphere the center of low pressure will be to your left
water as it receives solar radiation from the sun. The
and the high pressure to your right. The opposite is true
warmer air over the land then begins to expand and rise
for the Southern Hemisphere.
forming a thermal low.
Gradient Wind
At the same time, the air over the ocean becomes a
Wind above the Earth’s surface does not always travel cool high because of water’s slower rate of heating.
in straight lines. In many cases winds flow around the
Air begins to flow as soon as there is a significant
curved isobars of a high (anticyclone) or low (cyclone)
difference in air temperature and pressure across the
pressure center. A wind that blows around curved
64 srivenraman@gmail.com
THE HYDROSPHERE
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY effectively nonrenewable.
The Hydrologic Cycle: Reservoir Average Residence Time
Glaciers 20 to 100 years
The hydrologic cycle is a conceptual model that
Seasonal Snow Cover 2 to 6 months
describes the storage and movement Water moves from
Soil Moisture 1 to 2 months
one reservoir to another by way of processes like
Groundwater: Shallow 100 to 200 years
evaporation, condensation, precipitation, deposition,
Groundwater: Deep 10,000 years
runoff, infiltration, sublimation, transpiration, melting,
Lakes 50 to 100 years
and groundwater flow.
Rivers 2 to 6 m
The oceans supply most of the evaporated water
Atmospheric Humidity:
found in the atmosphere. Of this evaporated water, only
91 % of it is returned to the ocean basins by way of The water vapor CONTENT of the atmosphere is
precipitation. called Humidity.
The remaining 9 % is transported to areas over The amount of humidity found in air varies because
landmasses where climatological factors induce the of a number of factors. Two important factors are
formation of precipitation. evaporation and condensation.
At the water/atmosphere interface over our planet’s
oceans large amounts of liquid water are evaporated into
atmospheric water vapor. This process is mainly caused by
absorption of solar radiation and the subsequent generation
of heat at the ocean’s surface.
In our atmosphere, water vapor is converted back
into liquid form when air masses lose heat energy and cool.
This process is responsible for the development of most
clouds and also produces the rain that falls to the Earth’s
surface.
Scientists have developed a number of different
measures of atmospheric humidity such as mixing ratio,
saturation mixing ratio, and relative humidity.
Mixing ratio is a measure that refers to the mass
The resulting imbalance between rates of evaporation of a specific gas component relative to the mass of the
and precipitation over land and ocean is corrected by runoff remaining gaseous components for a sample of air.
and groundwater flow to the oceans.
When used to measure humidity mixing ratio would
The planetary water supply is dominated by the oceans. measure the mass of water vapor relative to the mass of
Approximately 97 % of all the water on the Earth is in all of the other gases.
the oceans. The other 3 % is held as freshwater in glaciers
and icecaps, groundwater, lakes, soil, the atmosphere, and In meteorological measurements, mixing ratio is
within life. usually expressed in grams of water vapor per kilogram
of dry air.
Water is continually cycled between its various
reservoirs. This cycling occurs through the processes of Saturation mixing ratio refers to the mass of water
evaporation, condensation, precipitation, deposition, vapor that can be held in a kilogram of dry air at saturation.
runoff, infiltration, sublimation, transpiration, melting, Saturation can be generally defined as the condition
and groundwater flow. where any addition of water vapor to a mass of air leads
On average water is renewed in rivers once every 16
days.
Water in the atmosphere is completely replaced once
every 8 days.
Slower rates of replacement occur in large lakes,
glaciers, ocean bodies and groundwater.
Replacement in these reservoirs can take from
hundreds to thousands of years.
Some of these resources (especially groundwater) are
being used by humans at rates that far exceed their renewal to the condensation of liquid water or the deposition of
times. ice at a given temperature and pressure.
This type of resource use is making this type of water The warmer air has a higher saturation-mixing ratio
than cooler air at a constant atmospheric pressure. It is
VENKAT RAMAN REDROWTU 65
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
important to note that this relationship between the concentration of water in the troposphere at
temperature and water vapor content in the air is not altitudes between 4 and 12 kilometers. Satellites that can
linear but exponential. measure water vapor have sensors that are sensitive to
In other words, for each 10° increase in temperature, infrared radiation. Water vapor specifically absorbs and
saturation mixing ratio increases by a larger quantity. re-radiates radiation in this spectral band. Satellite water
vapor imagery plays an important role in monitoring
The most commonly used measure of humidity is
climate conditions (like the formation of
relative humidity.
thunderstorms) and in the development of future
Relative humidity can be simply defined as the weather forecasts.
amount of water in the air relative to the saturation amount
Dew Point and Frost Point
the air can hold at a given temperature multiplied by 100.
Associated with relative humidity is dew point (if
Air with a relative humidity of 50 % contains a half
the dew point is below freezing, it is referred to as the
of the water vapor it could hold at a particular temperature.
frost point). Dew point is the temperature at which
The following illustration describes how relative water vapor saturates from an air mass into liquid or
humidity changes in a parcel of air with an increase in air solid usually forming rain, snow, frost, or dew.
temperature. At 10° Celsius, a parcel of dry air weighing
Dew point normally occurs when a mass of air
one kilogram can hold a maximum of 7.76 grams of water
has a relative humidity of 100 %. This happens in the
vapor. In this state, the parcel of air would be at saturation
atmosphere as a result of cooling through a number of
and its relative humidity would be 100 %. Increasing the
different processes.
temperature of this parcel, without adding or removing any
water, would increase its ability to hold water vapor. Condensation, Freezing, and Deposition
According to Table, a 10 degree Celsius rise in temperature The three processes of phase change of water
would increase the saturation-mixing ratio of this parcel within the atmosphere are:
of air to 14.85 grams. Since no water has been added or Condensation - water moving from a vapor to a
removed, the actual amount of water in the parcel would liquid state.
remain 7.76 grams. This quantity is known as the mixing
Freezing - water moving from a liquid to a solid
ratio. Dividing the mixing ratio by the saturation mixing
state.
ratio and then multiplying this number by 100 determines
the relative humidity of the parcel of air (7.76/14.85 x Deposition - water moving from a vapor to a solid
100 = 52 %). At a temperature of 20° Celsius, relative state.
humidity would be 52 %. Raising the temperature of the For a phase change to occur heat energy must be
parcel of air by another 10° Celsius would again lower its added to or removed from water molecules.
relative humidity. In this state, the actual mixing ratio would The formation of water droplets and ice crystals
still be 7.76 grams, while the saturation mixing ratio would takes place when the water in the atmosphere is cooled.
increase to 27.69 grams. Relative humidity would drop to As air containing water vapor cools, the relative
28 % at a temperature of 30° Celsius (7.76/27.69 x 100 = humidity of the air parcel increases until the dew or
28 %). frost point is reached.
Measuring Humidity At dew point (relative humidity = 100 %) water
Humidity can be measured using a variety of begins to condense into droplets. If 100 % relative
instruments. Relative humidity is often determined using a humidity is reached below 0° Celsius deposition occurs
sling psychrometer or a hair hygrometer. and ice crystals form.
A sling psychrometer is a device that consists of Formation of water droplets and ice crystals also
two thermometers joined to a piece of plastic or metal. requires a surface for condensation, freezing, or
One of the thermometers, called the wet-bulb deposition. In the atmosphere, these surfaces are
thermometer, has small cloth hood (wick) that is pulled microscopic particles of dust, smoke, and salt commonly
over the reservoir bulb. The other thermometer has no called condensation nuclei.
hood and is called the dry-bulb thermometer. Deposition nuclei, six sided particles, are needed
Hair hygrometers work on the fact that hair changes for the formation of ice crystals.
its length when humidity varies. This device usually consists If there is a deficiency of nuclei, super-saturation
of a number of human or horse hairs connected to a can result and condensation, freezing, or deposition can
mechanical lever system. When humidity increases the only occur with a relative humidity that is greater than
length of the hairs becomes longer. This change in length 100 %
is then transmitted and magnified by the lever system into
Cloud Formation Processes
a measurement of relative humidity.
Condensation or deposition of water above the
Humidity is also measured on a global scale using
Earth’s surface creates clouds.
remotely placed satellites. These satellites are able to detect
66 srivenraman@gmail.com
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
In general, clouds develop in any air mass that aqueous deposit that forms in a saturated atmosphere
becomes saturated (relative humidity becomes 100 %). (relative humidity equals 100 %) and falls from clouds to
Saturation can occur by way of atmospheric mechanisms the ground surface.
that cause the temperature of an air mass to be cooled to A necessary initial requirement for this process is
its dew point or frost point. the presence of both condensation nuclei and deposition
The following mechanisms or processes can achieve nuclei. While deposition nuclei form ice crystals at
this outcome causing clouds to develop: temperatures just below zero degrees Celsius,
(1). Orographic uplift occurs when air is forced to rise condensation nuclei can remain liquid (super cooled)
because of the physical presence of elevated land. As to temperatures as low as -40° Celsius depending on
the parcel raises it cools as a result of adiabatic size. Because of this phenomenon, cold clouds can
expansion at a rate of approximately 10° Celsius per contain both ice crystals and super cooled water
1000 meters until saturation. The development of droplets.
clouds and resulting heavy quantities of precipitation The relative proportion of these two types of
along the west coast of Canada are mainly due to particles determines whether snow crystals grow to a size
this process. to overcome atmospheric updrafts.
(2). Convectional lifting is associated with surface heating The following list describes the various types of
of the air at the ground surface. If enough heating precipitation that can form in the atmosphere:
occurs, the mass of air becomes warmer and lighter Rain is any liquid deposit that falls from the
than the air in the surrounding environment, and just atmosphere to the surface and has a diameter greater than
like a hot air balloon it begins to rise, expand, and 0.5 millimeters. The maximum size of a raindrop is about
cool. When sufficient cooling has taken place 5 millimeters. Beyond this size inter-molecular cohesive
saturation occurs forming clouds. This process is forces become too weak to hold the mass of water together
active in the interior of continents and near the as a single drop.
equator forming cumulus clouds and or
Freezing rain takes place when falling liquid water
cumulonimbus clouds (thunderstorms). The rain that
droplets encounter a surface with a temperature below 0°
is associated with the development of thunderstorm
Celsius. Upon contact with this surface, the rain quickly
clouds is delivered in large amounts over short periods
turns into ice. Another important condition required for
of time in extremely localized areas.
freezing rain is that the atmosphere where rain develops
(3). Convergence or frontal lifting takes place when two must be above freezing. A situation where warm air is found
masses of air come together. In most cases, the two on top of cold air is called a temperature inversion.
air masses have different temperature and moisture Temperature inversions are not the common state of the
characteristics. One of the air masses is usually warm lower atmosphere. Usually, air temperature decreases with
and moist, while the other is cold and dry. The leading an increase in altitude in the troposphere. In the mid-
edge of the latter air mass acts as an inclined wall or latitudes, we often find temperature inversions developing
front causing the moist warm air to be lifted. Of along the moving front edge of a cold air mass that is
course the lifting causes the warm moist air mass to overtaking warmer air. This condition causes the less dense
cool due to expansion resulting in saturation. This warm air to be pushed up and over the more dense cold
cloud formation mechanism is common at the mid- air.
latitudes where cyclones form along the polar front
Ice pellets or sleet are transparent or translucent
and near the equator where the trade winds meet at
spheres of frozen water. They have a diameter smaller than
the intertropical convergence zone.
5 millimeters. This form of precipitation develops first
(4). Radiative cooling occurs when the sun is no longer as raindrops in a relatively warm atmosphere where
supplying the ground and overlying air with energy the temperature is above freezing. These raindrops then
derived from solar insolation (e.g., night). Instead, the descend into a colder lower layer of the atmosphere
surface of the Earth now begins to lose energy in the where freezing temperatures occur. In this layer, the
form of long wave radiation, which causes the ground cold temperatures cause the raindrops to freeze into
and air above it to cool. The clouds that result from ice pellets during their transit to the ground surface.
this type of cooling take the form of surface fog. Similar to freezing rain, an air temperature inversion is
These causes of cloud development do not always act required for the formation of ice pellets.
in a singular fashion. It is possible to get combinations of Snow is a type of precipitation common to the mid
all four types, such as when convection and orographic and high latitudes snow develops when water vapor deposits
uplift cause summer afternoon cloud development and itself (skipping the liquid phase) directly on a six-sided
showers in the mountains. (hexagon) deposition nuclei as a solid crystals, at
Precipitation and Fog temperatures below freezing. The unique form of
Precipitation can be defined as any liquid or solid snowflakes occurs because ice crystal growth is most
rapid at the six points associated with geometric shape
68 srivenraman@gmail.com
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
Polar areas are dry because cold air cannot hold ‘Acid Rain’ in 1872.
as much moisture as warm air. In the 1960s, the problems associated with acid
Areas near the equator achieve high rainfall amounts deposition became an international problem when
because constant solar heating encourages convection, and fishermen noticed declines in fish numbers and diversity
global circulation patterns cause northern and southern air in many lakes throughout North America and Europe.
masses to converge here causing frontal lifting. Acid Rain Formation
Mid-latitudes experience cyclonic activity and Acid Rain can form as a result of two processes.
frontal lifting when polar and subtropical air masses In some cases, hydrochloric acid can be expelled
meet at the polar front. Further, the air masses in this directly into the atmosphere.
region generally move from West to East, causing levels
More commonly it is due to secondary pollutants
of precipitation to decrease East of source regions.
that form from the oxidation of nitrogen oxides (NOx)
Mountain ranges near water sources can receive or sulfur dioxide (SO2) gases that are released into the
high rainfalls because of orographic uplift, if and only atmosphere.
if the prevailing winds are in their favor. This can also
Reactions at the Earth’s surface or within the
result in a sharp reduction in rainfall in regions adjacent
atmosphere can convert these pollutants into nitric acid
or on the leeward slopes of these areas. This
or sulfuric acid.
phenomenon is commonly known as the rain shadow
effect. Acid precipitation formation can also take place
at the Earth’s surface when nitrogen oxides and sulfur
Acid Precipitation
dioxide settle on the landscape and interact with dew
The term acid precipitation is used to specifically or frost.
describe wet forms of acid pollution that can be found in
Emissions of sulfur dioxide are responsible for 60-
rain, sleet, snow, fog, and cloud vapor.
70 % of the acid deposition that occurs globally. More
An acid can be defined as any substance that when than 90 % of the sulfur in the atmosphere is of human
dissolved in water dissociates to yield corrosive hydrogen origin. The main sources of sulfur include:
ions. The acidity of substances dissolved in water is
Coal burning - coal typically contains 2-3 % sulfur
commonly measured in terms of pH (defined as the
so when it is burned sulfur dioxide is liberated.
negative logarithm of the concentration of hydrogen ions).
The smelting of metal sulfide ores to obtain the
According to this measurement scale solutions with
pure metals. Metals such as zinc, nickel, and copper
RecordpHs less than 7 are described as being
Location acidic,
Amount (mm) whileDate
a pH
are all commonly obtained in this manner.
1-year Rainfall greater than 7.0 is considered
Cherrapundi, India alkaline.
26,470 1861
Volcanic eruptions - although this is not a
1-month Rainfall Precipitation
Cherrapundi,normally
India has a pH
9300between 5.01861to 5.6
(July)
widespread problem, a volcanic eruption can add a lot
because of natural atmospheric reactions involving carbon
Average Annual Rainfall Mt. Waialeale, Hawaii, USA 11,680 of sulfur to the atmosphere in a regional area.
dioxide.
Ocean spray.
24 hr. Rainfall ForBelouve,
comparison,
La Reuniondistilled
Island water,
1350pure of any other
Feb 28,
stub stances, would have a pH of 7.0. Precipitation is
1964 After being released into the atmosphere, sulfur
Lowest Annual Average
considered to be
Arica, acidic when its pH falls
Chile 0.8 below 5.6 (which dioxide can either be deposited on the Earth’s surface
Rainfall in the form of dry deposition or it can undergo the
is 25 times more acidic than pure distilled water).
Greatest 1 Month following reactions to produce acids that are
Tamarack, California, USA 9910 1911 (Jan)
Snowfall In the 17th century, scientists noted the ill effects that
incorporated into the products of wet deposition:
industry
Greatest Snowfall Single and acidic pollution was having on vegetation and
Feb 13-19,
Mt. Shasta, California, USA 4800 SO2 + H2O »»» H2SO3
Storm people. However, the term acid rain was first 1959 used two
centuries later when Angus Smith published a book called H2SO3 + 1/2O2 »»» H2SO4
Precipitation extreme weather records.
70 srivenraman@gmail.com
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
tissues weakening their structure. Weakening their and transpiration. So we use a composite term
structure. evapotranspiration. The rate of evapotranspiration at any
The combination of these effects can lead to plants instant from the Earth’s surface is controlled by four
that have reduced growth rates, flowering ability and factors:
yields. It also makes plants more vulnerable to diseases, Energy availability: The more energy available the
insects, droughts and frosts. greater the rate of evapotranspiration. It takes about 600
The effects of acidic deposition on humans can be calories of heat energy to change 1 gram of liquid water
as follows: into a gas.
Toxic metals, such as mercury and aluminum, can The humidity gradient away from the surface: The
be released into the environment through the rate and quantity of water vapor entering into the
acidification of soils. The toxic metals can then end up atmosphere both become higher in drier air.
in the drinking water, crops, and fish, and are then The wind speed immediately above the surface:
ingested by humans through consumption. If ingested Many of us have observed that our gardens need more
in great quantities, these metals can have toxic effects watering on windy days compared to calm days when
on human health. One metal, aluminum, is believed to temperatures are similar. This fact occurs because wind
be related to the occurrence of Alzheimer’s disease. increases the potential for evapotranspiration. The process
Increased concentrations of sulfur dioxide and of evapotranspiration moves water vapor from ground or
oxides of nitrogen have been correlated to increased water surfaces to an adjacent shallow layer that is only a
hospital admissions for respiratory illness. few centimeters thick. When this layer becomes saturated
evapotranspiration stops. However, wind can remove this
Research on children from communities that receive a
layer replacing it with drier air, which increases the potential
high amount of acidic pollution show increased
for evapotranspiration.
frequencies of chest colds, allergies, and coughs.
Water availability: Evapotranspiration cannot occur
Evaporation and Transpiration
if water is not available.
Water is removed from the surface of the Earth to
On a global scale, most of the evapotranspiration of
the atmosphere by two distinct mechanisms: evaporation
water on the Earth’s surface occurs in the subtropical
and transpiration.
oceans.
Evaporation can be defined as the process where
In these areas, high quantities of solar radiation
liquid water is transformed into a gaseous state.
provide the energy required to convert liquid water into a
Evaporation can only occur when water is available. gas.
It also requires that the humidity of the atmosphere be
Evapotranspiration generally exceeds precipitation on
less than the evaporating surface (at 100 % relative
middle and high latitude landmass areas during the summer
humidity there is no more evaporation).
season.
The evaporation process requires large amounts of
Once again, the greater availability of solar radiation
energy. For example, the evaporation of one gram of water
during this time enhances the evapotranspiration process.
requires 600 calories of heat energy.
Transpiration is the process of water loss from plants Oceans
through stomata. Stomata are small openings found on Seen from space, the planet Earth appears blue
the underside of leaves that are connected to vascular plant because large bodies of saline water known as the oceans
tissues. dominate the surface.
In most plants, transpiration is a passive process Oceans cover approximately 70.8 % or 361 million
largely controlled by the humidity of the atmospheric square kilometers (139 million square miles) of Earth’s
and the moisture content of the soil. surface with a volume of about 1370 million cubic
Of the transpired water passing through a plant only kilometers (329 million cubic miles).
1 % is used in the growth process. Transpiration also The average depth of these extensive bodies of sea
transports nutrients from the soil into the roots and carries water is about 3.8 kilometers (2.4 miles). Maximum depths
them to the various cells of the plant and is used to keep can exceed 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) in a number of areas
tissues from becoming overheated. known as ocean trenches.
Some dry environment plants do have the ability to The oceans contain 97 % of our planet’s available
open and close their stomata. This adaptation is necessary water. The other 3 % is found in atmosphere, on the
to limit the loss of water from plant tissues. Without this Earth’s terrestrial surface, or in the Earth’s lithosphere in
adaptation these plants would not be able to survive under various forms and stores as Hydrologic Cycle
conditions of severe drought. Surface Percent of Area Area
It is often difficult to distinguish between evaporation Earth’s Total Square Square
Surfacea Area Kilometers Miles
72 srivenraman@gmail.com
CONCEPTS OF GEOGRAPHY
covering about 30 % of the Earth’s surface area (about kilometers (7 million square miles). This icepack
15 times the size of the United States). shrinks by around 85 % six months later in March
The ocean floor of the Pacific is quite uniform in Physical and Chemical Characteristics of Seawater
depth having an average elevation of 4300 meters (14,100 Most of the dissolved chemical constituents or salts
feet) below sea level. found in seawater have a continental origin.
This fact makes it the deepest ocean region on These chemicals were released from continental
average. The Pacific Ocean is also home to the lowest rocks through weathering and then carried to the oceans
elevation on our planet. The deepest point in the by stream runoff.
Mariana Trench lies some 10,911 meters (35,840 feet)
Only six elements and compounds comprise about
below sea level as recorded by the Japanese probe,
99 % of sea salts: chlorine (Cl-), sodium (Na+), sulfur
Kaiko, on March 24, 1995.
(SO 4 -2 ), magnesium (Mg +2 ), calcium (Ca +2 ), and
About 25,000 islands can be found in the Pacific potassium (K+).
Ocean region. This is more than the number for the other
The relative abundance of the major salts in
four ocean regions combined.
seawater are constant regardless of the ocean. Only the
Many of these islands are actually the tops of amount of water in the mixture varies because of
volcanic mountains created by the release of molten rock differences between ocean basins because of regional
from beneath the ocean floor. differences in freshwater loss (evaporation) and gain
Relative to the Atlantic Ocean, only a small (runoff and precipitation).
number of rivers add terrestrial freshwater runoff to The chlorine ion makes up 55 % of the salt in
the Pacific Ocean. seawater.
In fact, the surface area of the Pacific is about Calculations of seawater salinity are made of the
1000 % greater than the land area that drains into it. parts per 1000 of the chlorine ion present in one
Some of the major rivers flowing into this ocean region kilogram of seawater.
include the Colorado, Columbia, Fraser, Mekong, Río
Typically, seawater has a salinity of 35 parts per
Grande de Santiago, San Joaquin, Shinano, Skeena,
thousand.
Stikine, Xi Jiang, and Yukon.
Seawater freezes at a temperature that is slightly
Some of larger adjacent seas connected to the
colder than fresh water (0.0° Celsius).
Pacific are Celebes, Tasman, Coral, East China, Sulu,
South China, Yellow, and the Sea of Japan. The freezing temperature of seawater also varies
with the concentration of salts. More salt the lower the
Southern Ocean or Antarctica Ocean
initial freezing temperature.
The Souther n Ocean surrounds Antarctica
At a salinity of 35 parts per thousand, seawater
extending to the latitude 60° South.
freezes at a temperature of -1.9° Celsius.
This ocean region occupies about 4 % of the Earth’s
Seawater also contains small amounts of dissolved
surface or about 20,327,000 square kilometers (7,846,000
gases. Many of these gases are added to seawater from
square miles).
the atmosphere through the constant stirring of the sea
Relative to the other ocean regions, the floor of surface by wind and waves.
the Southern Ocean is quite deep ranging from 4000 to
The concentration of gases that can be dissolved
5000 meters (13,100 to 16,400 feet) below sea level over
into seawater from the atmosphere is determined by
most of the area it occupies.
temperature and salinity of the water.
Continental shelf areas are very limited and are
Increasing the temperature or salinity reduces the
mainly found around Antarctica. But even these areas
amount of gas that ocean water can dissolve.
are quite deep with an elevation between 400 to 800
meters (1300 to 2600 feet) below sea level. Some of the important atmospheric gases found
in seawater include: nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide
For comparison, the average depth of the
(in the form of bicarbonate HCO3), argon, helium, and
continental shelf for the entire planet is about 130 meters
neon.
(425 feet).
Compared to the other atmospheric gases, the
The Southern Ocean’s deepest point is in the South
amount of carbon dioxide dissolved in saturated
Sandwich Trench at 7235 meters (23,3737 feet) sea level.
seawater is unusually large.
Seas adjacent to this ocean region include the Amundsen
Sea, Bellingshausen Sea, Ross Sea, Scotia Sea, and the Some gases found within seawater are also involved
Weddell Sea. in oceanic organic and inorganic processes that are
indirectly related to the atmosphere. For example,
By about September of each year, a mobile
oxygen and carbon dioxide may be temporally generated
icepack situated around Antarctic reaches its greatest
or depleted by such processes to varying concentrations
seasonal extent covering about 19 million square
at specific locations within the ocean.
VENKAT RAMAN REDROWTU 73