AST 2002 Chapter Notes - Chapter 7: Runaway Greenhouse Effect, Global Warming, Subduction
Document Summary
Chapter 7 earth and the terrestrial worlds. Tectonics and volcanoes both require heat: sedimentary rock forms the ocean floor and is made up of long periods worth of build up. Geological features are built up and broken down by erosion: ozone (o3) protects us from the sun"s harmful uv rays and is relatively rare. The x rays are absorbed higher in the atmosphere: visible light is most of the sun"s radiation and is the primary source of earth"s surface heat, without the greenhouse effect, the earth"s surface would not be as warm. This effect only happens when greenhouse gases are in the atmosphere to absorb infrared light. These include: water vapor, carbon dioxide, and methane. 7. 2 the moon and mercury: geologically dead: the lunar maria are the smooth surfaces of the moon that have not been impacted. However the volcanoes are no longer active: mercury has cliffs up to three kilometers and stretching hundreds across the surface.
