Earth Systems Science
Textbook Exam Questions
Course Introduction
Earth Systems Science is an interdisciplinary field that examines the Earth as an integrated system composed of interacting spheres including the atmosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere, biosphere, and human influences. The course explores how energy and matter move through these systems, shaping global processes such as climate, weather, plate tectonics, and the carbon and water cycles. Through case studies, data analysis, and modeling, students gain insights into the dynamic interactions that drive natural phenomena, the impact of human activity on planetary systems, and the importance of Earth system science in addressing environmental challenges and sustainability.
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EARTH 1st Edition by Graham R. Thompson
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Chapter 1: Earth Systems
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Q1) The __________ is a mixture of gases, mostly nitrogen and oxygen.
Answer: atmosphere
Q2) The Earth's core is composed of hot, partially molten granite.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q3) The biosphere consists solely of the thin zone on the surface of the continents that is inhabited by life.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q4) The increased carbon dioxide level has raised the Earth's average temperature by __________°C since the Industrial Revolution.
Answer: 0.6
Q5) The core is:
A) the least dense layer of the Earth.
B) the densest layer of the Earth.
C) the same density as the crust.
D) composed of liquid magma.
Answer: B
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Chapter 2: Minerals
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Q1) The basic unit of all silicates is the __________.
A) oxygen chamber
B) silicate triangle
C) silicate chain
D) silicate tetrahedron
Answer: D
Q2) Which of the following describes a crystal?
A) a substance whose atoms are arranged irregularly
B) a substance whose atoms are arranged in a regular, orderly, periodically repeated pattern
C) any pure substance
D) any solid containing randomly oriented sodium and chlorine ions
Answer: B
Q3) __________ is the color of a fine powder of a mineral.
Answer: Streak
Q4) From __________ __________, metals or other elements can be recovered profitably.
Answer: ore minerals
Q5) Ninety-two percent of the Earth's crust is composed of __________ minerals.
Answer: silicate
4
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Chapter 3: Rocks
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Sample Questions
Q1) About 5 percent of the Earth's crust is made of:
A) igneous rock.
B) metamorphic rock.
C) sedimentary rock.
D) ultramafic rock.
Answer: C
Q2) The interaction between limestone and the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and that dissolved in the oceans are an important determinant to global climate.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q3) Bioclastic sediment consists of:
A) broken shell fragments and similar remains of living organisms.
B) dissolved ions.
C) precipitated minerals.
D) solidified magma.
Answer: A
Q4) As peat is buried and compacted by overlying sediment, it converts to __________.
Answer: coal
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Chapter 4: Geologic Time: a Story in the Rocks
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Q1) __________ are atoms of the same element that have the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons.
Q2) Fish, amphibians, and reptiles all evolved during the __________ Era/Eon.
A) Cenozoic
B) Mesozoic
C) Paleozoic
D) Proterozoic
Q3) A/an __________ is an unconformity in which the sedimentary layers above and below the unconformity are parallel.
Q4) Dinosaurs roamed the Earth during the:
A) Paleozoic Era.
B) Mesozoic Era.
C) Cenozoic Era.
D) Proterozoic Eon.
Q5) The principle of __________ __________ states that species succeeded one another through time in a definite and recognizable order.
Q6) The thin, sooty iridium-rich layer found at the end of the Permian is an example of a
Q7) During a __________ __________, many life-forms on Earth die out suddenly.
Page 6
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Chapter 5: Geologic Resources
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Q1) A/an __________ __________may consist of tens of kilometers of interconnected subterranean passages that follow ore veins or coal seams.
Q2) Coal reserves are thought to be sufficient to last a few __________.
A) years
B) decades
C) centuries
D) millennia
Q3) Placer deposits form by differential settling.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Bauxite is an example of a:
A) disseminated ore deposit.
B) residual ore deposit.
C) placer deposit.
D) submarine hydrothermal ore deposit.
Q5) Mining of sand and gravel has made more money than mining of gold.
A)True
B)False
Q6) __________ is any rock sufficiently enriched in one or more minerals to be mined profitably.
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Chapter 6: The Active Earth: Plate Tectonics
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Q1) At a convergent boundary, asthenosphere rock oozes upward to fill the gap between separating plates.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The __________ __________ is the undersea mountain chain located halfway between North and South America to the west, and Europe and Africa to the east.
Q3) The mantle makes up about __________ percent of the Earth's volume.
A) 8
B) 80
C) 20
D) 0.8
Q4) According to the theory of isostasy, the __________ is in floating equilibrium on the __________.
A) core, asthenosphere
B) asthenosphere, mantle
C) lithosphere, asthenosphere
D) inner core, outer core
Q5) The layer of the Earth that is as hot as the surface of the Sun is the inner
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Chapter 7: Earthquakes and the Earths Structure
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Q1) A/an __________ is a sea wave generated by an underwater earthquake.
Q2) __________ are small earthquakes that precede a large quake by an interval ranging from a few seconds to a few weeks.
Q3) When energy from stress is used to deform rock and give it a permanent new shape, such as a fold, this process is called:
A) elastic deformation.
B) fracture.
C) plastic deformation.
D) slippage.
Q4) During the process of __________, soil loses its shear strength and becomes a fluid.
A) liquefaction
B) liquidation
C) subduction
D) fault creeping
Q5) __________ __________ are body waves that can travel through air, liquid, and solid material.
Q6) Earthquakes are detected and measured with a device called a/an
Q7) Surface waves radiate from the __________ along the Earth's surface.
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Chapter 8: Volcanoes and Plutons
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Q1) Shield volcanoes are relatively small compared to other volcanoes.
A)True
B)False
Q2) A pluton with an outcrop area of more than 100 square kilometers is a:
A) batholith.
B) volcanic neck.
C) dike.
D) stock.
Q3) If lava solidifies before the gas in it escapes, the bubbles are preserved as holes called __________.
Q4) Volcanic eruptions have no effect on global climate.
A)True
B)False
Q5) Explosively erupted rock particles or magma form __________ rock.
Q6) A __________ is a pluton with an outcrop area of less than 100 square kilometers.
A) batholith
B) volcanic neck
C) dike
D) stock
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Chapter 9: Mountains
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Q1) If tectonic forces fracture the Earth's crust, rocks on opposite sides of the fracture may move past each other to create a fault.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The Himalayas were formed by convergence of the __________ plate and the __________ plate.
A) Antarctic, Indian
B) Pacific, Eurasian
C) Indian, Eurasian
D) Antarctic, Pacific
Q3) Subduction of oceanic crust at a continental margin creates __________.
A) underthrusting
B) a Himalayan margin
C) an Andean margin
D) an island arc
Q4) If tectonic forces stretch the crust over a large area, many thrust faults may develop, allowing numerous grabens to settle downward along the faults.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 10: Weathering, Soil, and Erosion
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Q1) A __________ accumulates beneath many cliffs as the result of frost wedging.
A) litter
B) topsoil
C) caliche
D) talus
Q2) A type of mass wasting in which a segment of bedrock slides downslope along a fracture is called __________.
A) creep
B) debris flow
C) rockslide
D) fall
Q3) The __________ is the maximum slope or steepness at which loose material remains stable.
A) dip slope
B) mass wasting angle
C) angle of repose
D) slip slope
Q4) The removal of weathered material is __________.
Q5) Frost wedging is an example of __________ weathering.
Q6) The combined O and A soil horizons are also called __________.
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Chapter 11: Fresh Water: Streams, Lakes, Ground Water, and Wetlands
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Q1) Artesian aquifers develop:
A) where the water table in the lower part of the aquifer is under pressure.
B) in the unsaturated zone.
C) in granite rock.
D) only in deserts.
Q2) Niagara Falls is an example for temporary base level.
A)True
B)False
Q3) A eutrophic lake:
A) has a high nutrient supply.
B) is generally shallow enough so sunlight reaches the bottom.
C) forms when sewage and phosphate detergents flow into a lake.
D) all of these
Q4) Most streams carry the largest part of their load as bed load.
A)True
B)False
Q5) If a stream cuts through the narrow neck of land separating two meanders, the abandoned meander loops may become isolated to form a/an __________
Q6) __________ is the steepness of a stream. Page 13
Downward stream erosion is called __________.
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Chapter 12: Water Resources
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Q1) Excessive removal of ground water can cause __________, the sinking or settling of the Earth's surface.
Q2) A/an __________ pollutant can be consumed and destroyed by organisms.
A) nonbiodegradable
B) biodegradable
C) radioactive
D) toxic organic
Q3) The largest use of water in the United States is for:
A) cooling of electric plants.
B) industrial processes.
C) domestic use.
D) agriculture.
Q4) The use of microorganisms to treat a contaminated aquifer is called __________.
A) bioliquidation
B) bioremediation
C) biostratigraphy
D) biohydration
Q5) After all of the oxygen in a waterway is consumed, __________ __________ take(s) over.
Q6) A __________ __________ is a canal or pipe constructed to use water.
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Chapter 13: Glaciers and Ice Ages
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Q1) A glacier forms wherever the amount of snow that falls in winter equals the amount that melts in summer.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The relative rates of basal slip and plastic flow depend on the __________ of the bedrock underlying the glacier and the __________ of the ice.
A) steepness, age
B) thickness, thickness
C) steepness, thickness
D) age, steepness
Q3) A glacier that covers an area of 50,000 square kilometers or more is a/an
Q4) A/an __________is a massive, long-lasting accumulation of compacted snow and ice that forms on land.
Q5) Ground moraines record the extent of continental glaciers of the most recent ice age.
A)True B)False
Q6) __________ is sediment that was deposited directly by a glacier.
Page 16
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Chapter 14: Deserts and Wind
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Q1) The effects of abrasion by windblown sand and silt:
A) form blowouts.
B) are responsible for the delicate caps on high desert pinnacles.
C) are concentrated close to the ground.
D) form playa lakes.
Q2) Human mismanagement can cause the conversion of semiarid land to arid land in a process called __________.
A) dissertation
B) desiccation
C) desertification
D) dissolution
Q3) Buttes and mesas are common in the Colorado Plateau because:
A) these landforms are composed of evaporite deposits.
B) these landforms commonly form at the base of bajadas.
C) chemical weathering rounds the edges of rock outcrops.
D) through-flowing rivers carve out these features.
Q4) The day after a flash flood, a desert wash may contain only a tiny trickle, and within 24 hours, it may be completely dry again.
A)True
B)False
Page 17
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Chapter 15: Ocean Basins
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Q1) Oceanic crust is mostly composed of __________.
Q2) Atolls are volcanic peaks on the ocean floor.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Oceans cover about __________ percent of the Earth's surface.
A) 91
B) 81
C) 71
D) 61
Q4) The depth of the central parts of the ocean basins is about __________ kilometers.
A) 6
B) 5
C) 4
D) 3
Q5) Beyond the Mid-Oceanic Ridge system are flat, level, featureless submarine surfaces called __________ __________.
Q6) Active continental margins do not have continental rises.
A)True
B)False
Page 18
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Chapter 16: Oceans and Coastlines
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Q1) Surface currents are mostly __________-driven.
A) gravity
B) sand
C) zooplankton
D) wind
Q2) An emergent coastline forms where sea level __________ or coastal land
A) falls, sinks
B) falls, rises
C) rises, sinks
D) rises, rises
Q3) The salinity of the oceans has been relatively constant throughout geologic time because salt is removed at the same rate at which it has been added.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Ocean waves steepen near shore because:
A) the lower portion of the wave slows down as it drags against the sea floor.
B) the wave length increases.
C) they speed up.
D) the lower part of the wave speeds up as it reflects off the sea floor.
Page 19
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Chapter 17: The Atmosphere
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Q1) In the __________, temperature increases with altitude, because ozone absorbs ultraviolet radiation.
A) troposphere
B) stratosphere
C) mesosphere
D) thermosphere
Q2) The atmosphere:
A) becomes less dense with increasing altitude.
B) becomes more dense with increasing altitude.
C) remains at constant density with increasing altitude.
D) becomes less dense throughout the troposphere and then more dense in the stratosphere.
Q3) Which of the following statements about dioxin is true?
A) Dioxin concentrates and accumulates in human muscle tissue.
B) Scientists have proven that vary small doses of dioxin in the environment are carcinogenic.
C) Large amounts of dioxin are intentionally manufactured in the United States.
D) The EPA has argued that dioxin is the most toxic chemical known.
Q4) Acidity is expressed on the __________ scale.
Q5) __________ were the earliest photosynthetic life-forms on Earth.
Page 20
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Chapter 18: Energy Balance in the Atmosphere
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Q1) The Earth emits higher energy radiation than the Sun does.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Ocean currents:
A) play no role in determining the average temperature of a region.
B) are the only factor that determines the average temperature of a region.
C) play a major role in determining the average temperature of a region.
D) play a role in determining the average temperature of a region during the summer months only.
Q3) __________ absorbs infrared radiation in the atmosphere.
A) Oxygen
B) Nitrogen
C) Carbon dioxide
D) Helium
Q4) __________ is the transport of heat by collisions between atoms and molecules.
Q5) __________ measures the total energy in a sample.
A) Temperature
B) Heat
C) Conduction
D) Specific heat
21
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Chapter 19: Moisture, Clouds, and Weather
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Q1) High-altitude clouds composed of ice crystals are called __________ clouds. A) cirrus
B) stratus
C) cumulus
D) cumulonimbus
Q2) Hail falls only from cirrus clouds.
A)True
B)False
Q3) A/an __________ __________forms when a warm air mass is trapped between two colder air masses.
Q4) A/an __________ is a seasonal wind caused by uneven heating and cooling of land and sea.
Q5) A high-altitude wind system traveling south from the Equator toward the South Pole would:
A) not be affected by the Earth's spin because only surface winds are deflected.
B) be deflected to the west by the Earth's spin.
C) be deflected to the east by the Earth's spin.
D) be accelerated southward by the Earth's spin.
Q6) When air blows against a mountainside, it is forced to rise by a process called
Page 22
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Chapter 20: Climate
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Q1) Surface winds moving toward the equator are deflected by the Coriolis effect, so they blow from the __________ in the Northern Hemisphere and from the __________ in the Southern Hemisphere.
A) northeast, southwest
B) northeast, southeast
C) northwest, southeast
D) northwest, southwest
Q2) Storm fronts pass over cities more quickly than they do over the surrounding countryside.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Because of the urban heat island effect, warm air rises over a city, a local __________ zone develops, and rainfall is __________ than in the surrounding countryside.
A) high-pressure, greater
B) high-pressure, less
C) low-pressure, greater
D) low-pressure, less
Q4) The __________ biome consists of conifers that can survive extremely cold winters.
Page 23
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Chapter 21: Climate Change
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Q1) The Mount Pinatubo eruption in 1991:
A) warmed the atmosphere by releasing carbon dioxide.
B) cooled the atmosphere by releasing ash and sulfur compounds.
C) warmed the atmosphere by releasing ash and sulfur compounds.
D) cooled the atmosphere by releasing carbon dioxide.
Q2) The Mesozoic was a relatively warm era.
A)True
B)False
Q3) The Sun produces energy by __________ __________.
Q4) Water molecules containing <sup>16</sup>O are __________ and evaporate __________ than those containing <sup>18</sup>O.
A) lighter, more easily
B) lighter, at a lower rate
C) heavier, more easily
D) heavier, at a lower rate
Q5) There is evidence that extreme cold periods 600 to 700 million years ago froze the oceans from pole to pole and covered the continents with glaciers, leading to a
__________.
Q6) When fossil fuels burn, carbon is released into the atmosphere as __________
Page 24
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Chapter 22: Motions in the Heavens
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Q1) In Aristotle's model, celestial __________ surround Earth.
A) prisms
B) cubes
C) spheres
D) ellipsoids
Q2) An eclipse of the Moon occurs:
A) when the Moon lies directly between the Sun and Earth.
B) when the Earth's shadow is cast on the Moon.
C) when the Moon's shadow is cast on the Earth.
D) during the new moon.
Q3) Absorption spectra can be used to detect:
A) the chemical composition of a star.
B) temperature and pressures in the core of a star.
C) the mass of a star.
D) the age of a star.
Q4) Ptolemy modified the geocentric model to explain the retrograde motion of the planets.
A)True
B)False
Q5) __________ are celestial bodies that revolve around stars.
Page 25
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Chapter 23: Planets and Their Moons
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Q1) Europa is a moon of __________.
Q2) Comets are composed mainly of:
A) rock and ice.
B) gaseous volatiles.
C) liquid water.
D) helium.
Q3) The chemical composition of Jupiter is most similar to that of __________.
A) the Sun.
B) the Earth.
C) the Moon.
D) Io.
Q4) A glowing object that appears in the sky, traveling slowly around the Sun in an elongated orbit, is called a/an ____________________.
Q5) Spacecraft have photographed volcanic eruptions on __________, one of Jupiter's moons.
Q6) Which of the following orders of sizes is correct?
A) Uranus > Earth > Mercury
B) Jupiter > the Moon > Earth
C) Pluto > Saturn > the Moon
D) Saturn > Mars > Earth
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Chapter 24: Stars, Space, and Galaxies
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Q1) The major reason for differences in temperature and luminosities among main-sequence stars is that some:
A) have a higher ratio of hydrogen to helium.
B) are younger than others.
C) are more massive than others.
D) are older than others.
Q2) When a star larger than 1.44 solar masses dies, a/an __________ explosion occurs after helium fusion has ended and after iron fusion has occurred.
Q3) Population II stars are originally composed of:
A) mostly heavy elements inherited from population I stars.
B) only hydrogen and helium.
C) mostly hydrogen and heavy elements.
D) mostly helium with small amounts of hydrogen and smaller amounts of heavy elements.
Q4) The __________ __________ of a star is its brightness as seen 10 parsec away from Earth.
Q5) A graph that plots absolute magnitudes versus temperatures is called a/an __________ diagram.
Q6) During a full solar eclipse, the __________ appears as a halo around the Sun.
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