Chapter 15 Study Guide

What percentage of the atmosphere is composed of oxygen?

• 12 percent

• 21 percent

• 58 percent

• 78 percent

A ratio that compares the amount of water vapor the air contains to the maximum amount that the air could hold at that temperature is

• temperature inversion

• radiation

• relative humidity

• convection

The lowest layer of Earth’s atmosphere, the one directly above the ground, is called the

• troposphere

• stratosphere

• thermosphere

• mesosphere

What is the source of the energy that drives air movement in the troposphere and influences weather and climate?

• ocean

• volcanoes

• ozone layer

• sun

Carbon-containing fuels, or fossil fuels, formed millions of years ago from the remains of

• gases in the atmosphere

• chlorofluorocarbons

• living organisms

• volcanic eruptions

How does carbon monoxide affect human health?

• It interferes with the body’s ability to deliver oxygen to cells.

• It irritates the throat and air passages.

• It helps the respiratory system function more efficiently.

A(n) ______ can trap smog close to the surface. It happens when a layer of cool, dense air stays near the ground and under a layer of warm air.

• temperature inversion
• acid deposition
• air mass
• convection current

Normal precipitation has a pH of about 5.6. What pH might acid precipitation have?

• 4.6

• 7

• 9.6

• 12.6

Pollutants are removed or changed chemically before they leave factory smokestacks by a(n)

• chlorofluorocarbon

• scrubber

• inversion

• catalytic converter

Ozone depletion was caused by the following chemicals, which were used in refrigerators and aerosol spray cans.

• catalytic converters

• fossil fuels

• chlorofluorocarbons

• scrubbers