asteroid passed through the gap between Earth and the ring of geosynchronous satellites that orbit earth. Geosynchronous objects orbit around the earth with a period equal to one sidereal day. Asteroid 2012 DA14 passed at about 17,200 miles above the Earth’s surface. The asteroid was discovered in February 2012 by astronomers at the LaSagra observatory in southern Spain. (http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news177.html)( http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news174.html) (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/geosynchronous)
Words: 687 - Pages: 3
ago. The Earth’s vast history is divided in four major eras: the Precambrian, the Paleozoic, the Mesozoic and the Cenozoic. The Precambrian era covers most of our planet’s history and lasted from Earth’s inception until 542 million years ago. It was during this era that the Earth became solid, the atmosphere became breathable and life emerged. There is little evidence about the events that led to the creation of our planet billions of years ago. Most of the knowledge we have about Earth’s beginnings
Words: 1415 - Pages: 6
precipitation. Once the water reaches the ground, one of two processes may occur; 1) some of the water may evaporate back into the atmosphere or 2) the water may penetrate the surface and become groundwater. Groundwater either seeps its way to into the oceans, rivers, and streams, or is released back into the atmosphere through transpiration. The balance of water that remains on the earth's surface is runoff, which empties into lakes, rivers and streams and is carried back to the oceans, where the cycle begins
Words: 2875 - Pages: 12
Opponents claim that “the Hinode mission best represents the greatest investment mankind can make. In the Hinode mission, the cost of human life is not at stake…” However, it has already been stated that the Hinode poses a risk of plummeting into Earth’s atmosphere as a projectile. If this happens there is a significant chance of human endangerment depending on from where it descends. Opponents conclude that “the Hinode mission would be able to collect data from the sun, its sunspots, solar flare
Words: 624 - Pages: 3
varies as a function of latitude. Insolation decreases with increased latitude. 3. How does insolation explain why the equator hotter than the poles? The sun shines on the equator 100% of the time. 4. What effect does tilting the Earth’s rotational axis have on the distribution of solar radiation (insolation)? It causes seasons. 5. Why it can be winter in the U.S. when it is summer in Australia? Because of the way the Earth tilts toward the sun. When it is summer in the US
Words: 829 - Pages: 4
gasses and water vapour in the atmosphere affects the earth’s climate. It is so named because it acts like a glass greenhouse for plants by preventing the incoming heat from the sun from leaving causing warming of the earth just as the inside of a greenhouse warms. The Greenhouse Effect can also be likened to being under a blanket in the sunshine; the body under the blanket will heat up and the blanket will keep the heat from escaping causing warming. The earth’s climate is driven by this continuous
Words: 450 - Pages: 2
The origin of life and earth is still one of the greatest mysteries scientists have yet to solve. Modern day science and technology allow us to make theoretically correct assumptions about the past. According to research, it is evident that the earth’s environment and life have been evolving since the beginning of time, which is still evident today as ecosystems and environments continue to change. Three theories that help explain the evolutionary history of our natural world and ongoing environmental
Words: 2203 - Pages: 9
• The study of the earth and its features and of the distribution of life on the earth, including human life and the effects of human activity. Latitude: is a geographic coordinate that specifies the north-south position of a point on the Earth's surface. Latitude ranges from 0° at the Equator to 90° (North or South) at the poles. Latitude is used together with longitude to specify the precise location of features on the surface of the Earth. [pic] Some important Latitudes are: • Equator
Words: 842 - Pages: 4
doesn’t keep warming up because 51% of the energy is absorbed by land and oceans whereas the other 49% is reflected back into the atmosphere. 6% of the Sun’s radiation is reflected by the atmosphere, 20% of the Sun’s radiation is reflected by the clouds, 4% of the Sun’s radiation is reflected by the Earth’s surface, and 19% of the Sun’s radiation is absorbed by the atmosphere and clouds. Also because the Sun doesn’t
Words: 839 - Pages: 4
Green House Gases Green house gases act as a blanket locking in heat emissions affecting the earth’s climate. Human acts such as; burning fossil fuels and energy for deforestation is large contributors to an increase in green house gases. Humans are pouring carbon dioxide (CO2) in to the atmosphere much faster than plants and oceans can absorb it. This has been going on for years and because of the build up of emissions, it is impossible to prevent
Words: 1166 - Pages: 5
