Homework Clinic
Science Clinic => Geography => Topic started by: leo leo on Aug 22, 2018
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What is a cause of atmospheric circulation?
A) The temperature of Earth's surface
B) Conduction currents
C) The amount of reflection of solar radiation
D) The Coriolis Effect
Question 2
How does the analysis of seismic waves reveal information about the nature of Earth's interior?
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Answer to Question 1
D
Answer to Question 2
The nature of the layers, their properties, and the forces that influence them have been learned largely by the study of shock waves associated with distant earthquakes. Seismic waves, low-frequency pulses of energy generated by earthquakes, can spread rapidly into Earth in all directions and then return to the surface. Sensitive seismographs have allowed researchers to study the ways seismic waves refract and bounce off abrupt transitions between Earth's inner layers.
If Earth were uniform (homogenous) throughout, seismic waves would radiate from the site of an earthquake in straight lines. If the density, or rigidity, of Earth increased smoothly with depth, seismic wave velocity would increase evenly with depth, and the waves would gradually bend upward toward the surface. If Earth were layered inside, some seismic waves would be reflected at the boundaries between layers, whereas others would bend. Seismic evidence shows that Earth is layered.