The Evolution of the Atmosphere

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  • Created by: Zara
  • Created on: 13-01-13 19:54
What amount of nitrogen is in the atmosphere?
78%
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What amount of oxygen is in the atmosphere?
21%
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What types of other gases are in the atmosphere?
Mainly carbon dioxide, noble gases and water vapour
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What was the Earth's surface originally made of?
Molten
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When the molten cooled down, what formed and what kept happening?
A thin crust formed, but volcanows kept erupting
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The volcanoes gave out a lot of ...?
Gas
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What do we think the gas formed?
The oceans and the atmosphere
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What was the early atmosphere mainly made of?
Carbon dioxide
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What other things might have been in the atmosphere?
Small amounts of methane, water vapour and ammonia
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When did the oceans form?
When the water vapour condensed
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After a while, a lot of the ........ .......... dissolved into the oceans?
Carbon dioxide
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The green plants and algae also absorbed some of the ....... ...... and produced ...... by photosynthesis?
The green plants and algae absorbed some of the carbon dioxide and produced O2 by photosynthesis
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When plants and algae died, what were they buried under?
Layers of sediment, along with skeletons and the shells of marine organisms
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What happened to the carbon and hydrocarbons inside the plants and algae?
They became 'locked up' in sedimentary rocks as insoluble carbonates (limestone) and fossil fuels
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When we burn fossil fuels today, what happens?
The 'locked up' carbon is released and the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere rises
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What did the build up of oxygen in the atmosphere do?
It killed off some early organisms that couldn't tolerate it. But it allowed more complex organisms to evolve and flourish
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What else did oxygen create?
The ozone layer
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What did the ozone layer do?
It blocked harmful rays from the Sun and enabled even more complex organisms to evolve - like us
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Is there a lot of carbon dioxide left now?
No
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

What amount of oxygen is in the atmosphere?

Back

21%

Card 3

Front

What types of other gases are in the atmosphere?

Back

Preview of the front of card 3

Card 4

Front

What was the Earth's surface originally made of?

Back

Preview of the front of card 4

Card 5

Front

When the molten cooled down, what formed and what kept happening?

Back

Preview of the front of card 5
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