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Energy flow in global systems

Ten questions of mixed difficulty, covering Global systems. Print it, or work through it on screen — the answer key starts on its own page.

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Energy flow in global systems

Science 10 · maddyhelps.com

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Circle the best answer for each question. Show your work in the space provided.

  1. Almost all the energy driving Earth's climate comes from

    1. a) the Moon
    2. b) Earth's interior
    3. c) burning fuels
    4. d) the Sun

  2. Energy leaves Earth almost entirely as

    1. a) convection into space
    2. b) infrared radiation into space
    3. c) conduction through the atmosphere
    4. d) visible light

  3. Albedo is a measure of how much solar radiation a surface

    1. a) absorbs
    2. b) reflects
    3. c) produces
    4. d) transmits as sound

  4. Ocean currents affect climate mainly by

    1. a) moving thermal energy from the equator towards the poles
    2. b) changing the amount of sunlight received
    3. c) raising sea level
    4. d) creating greenhouse gases

  5. The equator receives more solar energy per square metre than the poles because

    1. a) there is less atmosphere
    2. b) sunlight strikes it more directly, spreading over less area
    3. c) it is closer to the Sun
    4. d) the Sun is hotter there

  6. Ice cores are useful evidence about past climate because

    1. a) trapped air bubbles preserve samples of ancient atmosphere
    2. b) ice contains fossils
    3. c) ice reflects sunlight
    4. d) ice grows one layer per century

  7. A biome is

    1. a) a large region defined by its climate and the community adapted to it
    2. b) a weather pattern lasting a week
    3. c) a single ecosystem
    4. d) a type of soil

  8. Of these, the factor that does <b>not</b> directly affect a region's climate is

    1. a) elevation
    2. b) the time of day
    3. c) proximity to a large body of water
    4. d) latitude

  9. The greenhouse effect warms Earth because greenhouse gases

    1. a) absorb the infrared Earth re-emits and send some of it back
    2. b) reflect sunlight to space
    3. c) produce heat themselves
    4. d) block incoming sunlight

  10. Of these, the greenhouse gas released in the largest quantity by human activity is

    1. a) ozone
    2. b) carbon dioxide
    3. c) methane
    4. d) nitrous oxide

Answer key · Energy flow in global systems

Science 10 · maddyhelps.com

  1. d) the Sun — Geothermal heat and tides contribute a tiny amount. Solar radiation supplies essentially everything that drives weather, ocean currents and life.
  2. b) infrared radiation into space — Space is a vacuum, so only radiation can carry energy away. Earth is far cooler than the Sun, so it radiates in the infrared rather than in visible light — and that is exactly the band greenhouse gases absorb.
  3. b) reflects — Fresh snow has a high albedo and reflects most of what hits it; dark ocean has a low albedo and absorbs it. Melting ice therefore exposes a darker surface, which absorbs more — a feedback loop.
  4. a) moving thermal energy from the equator towards the poles — The oceans and the atmosphere together redistribute the energy imbalance between equator and poles. It is why western Europe is far milder than its latitude alone would suggest.
  5. b) sunlight strikes it more directly, spreading over less area — The curvature of Earth means polar sunlight arrives at a shallow angle and spreads over a larger area, and passes through more atmosphere on the way. The distance difference is negligible.
  6. a) trapped air bubbles preserve samples of ancient atmosphere — Each annual layer traps a little air, so a core is a dated record of atmospheric composition going back hundreds of thousands of years. Tree rings, sediment layers and coral give overlapping records that agree with it.
  7. a) a large region defined by its climate and the community adapted to it — Plot average temperature against annual precipitation and the biome is largely predictable. Climate decides the biome, not the other way round.
  8. b) the time of day — Time of day changes the weather from hour to hour but averages out over the long run. Latitude, elevation, ocean proximity, ocean currents and mountain ranges all shape the long-term pattern.
  9. a) absorb the infrared Earth re-emits and send some of it back — Short-wavelength sunlight passes through and warms the surface, which re-radiates longer-wavelength infrared that the gases absorb. Without the effect Earth would average about −18 °C, so the effect itself is not the problem — the enhancement is.
  10. b) carbon dioxide — Methane traps more heat per molecule, but far less of it is released. Quantity and potency are separate questions, and a good answer keeps them apart.