Amounts of air pollution are increasing all over the world. Continuing studies show that the

increased carbon dioxide from a variety of factors can affect regional weather. What is

one possible effect of air pollution?

Hurricanes are very powerful storms that form over the ocean. They bring heavy rain and

wind and potential storm surges, which cause flooding. Why do hurricanes form in oceans

with southern latitudes?

Developers want to remove water from the ground on a piece of land and then build

houses on it. There is a layer of limestone under the surface of this piece of land. Which

landform could form under these circumstances?

Ms. Mack wants to move her filing cabinet from one side of the classroom to the other.

She pushes the cabinet as hard as she can, but it does not move. Which best explains

why the cabinet may not be moving?

Turtle Beach is made up of coarse-grained dark sand. Nearby rocks in the area form

mountains near the coastline. Which of the following statements describe what forces

helped shape the coastline?

Mason lives in Arizona, a place that sometimes experiences extreme temperatures in his region of the United States. He knows that different kinds of air masses influence temperature. Why would the range of temperatures be more extreme in his part of the country?

In the middle of an ocean, areas called “gyres” can form where systems of currents come together and all move in the same direction. In the center of a gyre, patches of trash can gather. Which of these assists in the formation of gyres?

Most springs contain fresh drinking water, but Salt Spring in Ocala, Florida contains

minerals. These minerals give the water a slightly salty taste. Which spheres interact to

cause this phenomenon?

Tina is trying to determine whether she would have a greater gravitational attraction to the moon or to the cat next to her on the couch. Which statement about Tina’s gravitational attraction is true?

Beau moved to Miami, Florida from Calgary, Canada. He noticed that the climates in these two places are very different. For which of the following reasons might these two cities experience different climates?

Carolina is reading a book about the ocean as she is traveling from California to New Zealand. There is an illustration that shows the surface current patterns around the world. She notices that the currents in New Zealand and those at home flow in opposite directions. Which of the following factors does not cause the surface currents to go in two different directions?

Olivia looked outside one morning and saw that the grass had moisture on the blades. She knew it had not rained the night before, so she wondered how the moisture had collected on the grass to form the dew. What conditions must exist for dew to form?

The Santa Ana winds blow across in California during the fall and winter. They form when cold desert air sinks down and away from high-pressure areas over the mountains. The air mass compresses and quickly heats up while losing humidity. The winds gain speed as they squeeze through the canyons. Which type of wind pattern are the Santa Ana winds?

A private company is using a cave in a remote area in the mountains to illegally dump toxic chemicals from a factory. What could result from the actions of the company?

Energy transfer at Earth’s surface can occur when heat is transferred directly from the ground to the air. Which process best explains what causes this to happen?

Both wave action and glaciers cause erosion and deposition. How each action is carried out, however, differs. What conclusion can be made about the major difference in the way glacial and wave erosion and deposition take place?

Veterinarians care for animals that are hurt, and also help to keep animals healthy. They help many different animals from dogs and cats to fish and hermit crabs. Which of Earth’s spheres do these animals belong to?

Miranda created a diorama to demonstrate how the Earth system works. Which of the following best describes what an Earth system is?

Global wind belts are formed from the unequal heating of Earth’s surface and the rotation of Earth. What is the result of Earth’s rotation on global wind patterns?

Power plants are often located next to a river. These plants can reach extremely high temperatures. Water from the nearby river is used to cool the equipment. Afterward, the water exits the power plant and flows back into the river. How does the water exiting the power plant differ from the water entering the power plant?

Ocean currents can move across the surface of the ocean or move thousands of feet below the surface. What causes the movement of currents deep below the surface of the ocean?

Miko is blowing up balloons for her little sister’s birthday party. One of the balloons slips out of her hand before she ties it off, and it shoots through the air until it is empty. Which statement explains what causes the balloon to accelerate?

Lester is making a model of a delta in his science class. He uses a pan to represent the ocean, water to represent a river, and sand to represent sediment. How do Earth’s spheres interact to form a delta?

Jon lived in Florida. He liked to swim in the ocean and to explore along the beach. Which Florida landforms would he be visiting during these activities?

A local meteorologist displays a map of a jet stream traveling across the United States. The jet stream is a fast-moving current of air found high in the troposphere. The meteorologist predicts that the jet stream will move south of Baltimore in the next few days. What kind of weather will the jet stream most likely bring to Baltimore?

Energy and matter move throughout Earth’s spheres as interactions occur. Which part of the water cycle would be affected by a change in the biosphere, such as a forest fire?

The lifeguards at a local pool want to protect swimmers from sunburn. They conduct a survey to find out the number of people who have received a severe sunburn in the past month. Which is responsible for causing sunburns?

Darci is hiking on a summer day. As the day heats up, many clouds begin to form in the sky that were not there before. Which explains why the amount of clouds increased?

A zoologist was studying cheetahs in the wild and was especially interested in learning about how they move. The zoologist plotted the movement of one of the cheetahs. What information does this graph provide about the cheetah’s motion?

Andrew plays trumpet in the concert band. He holds the trumpet still at his side until it is time for him to play. When it is time, he brings the trumpet up to his mouth and starts to play. Which statement correctly connects the motion of the trumpet with Newton’s first law of motion?

Local and global winds on Earth are caused by the unequal heating of the atmosphere, land, and oceans. Which of the following is a local wind pattern?

A meteorologist forecasts the weather for the next two days for the city of Middletown. Which of these might explain the change in the weather overnight?

Coastlines are constantly changing from weathering, erosion, and deposition. Officials in a coastal city want to reduce the erosion and protect the beach. The city decides to add a large pile of rocks off shore. Which of these explains how these rocks will solve the problem?

A geology class took a field trip to Ruby Beach to observe and study the landforms. Which of the landforms on the beach was formed by constructive forces?

Energy from the sun influences global patterns in the atmosphere, oceans, and land. Which type of currents form in the atmosphere and ocean due to energy from the sun?

Each part of the water cycle contributes to the weather. Water continually moves through Earth’s systems, including the hydrosphere and atmosphere. What is the name of the process that occurs when molecules of water are heated by the sun?

Carlos likes to bowl. He timed how long it took for his ball to travel the length of a an 18-m lane in the bowling alley. He plotted the final distance and time on a line graph. Carlos drew a line from this point to the origin of the graph. How far down the lane was the ball after 2 s?

Jun lives in a state that has a humid subtropical climate. Which factor affects the climate of a given area?

Mount Etna erupted in March 2017. Researchers are studying the effects of the eruption in the vicinity. Which statement best explains what will happen in the area surrounding the volcano?

When air masses collide in the atmosphere, different types of fronts can form. Which type of front forms when a warm air mass gets caught between two cold air masses?

The atmosphere reflects some of the sun’s energy, absorbs some, and traps some near Earth’s surface. Most scientists think that human activity has been enhancing the greenhouse effect. There is evidence that increasing temperatures are causing the sea level to rise and polar icecaps to melt. Which of these explains the greenhouse effect on Earth?

Before Mrs. Hernandez decides what to wear for the day, she wants to know what the temperature is going to be. Which type of energy is most closely related to temperature?

Sinkholes are extremely dangerous because they occur quickly and without warning. Sinkholes are a result of both mechanical and chemical weathering. More sinkholes form each year in Florida than in any other state. Which of these explains why sinkholes occur so often in Florida?

Which of Earth’s spheres contains Earth’s weather and is the foundation for different climates around the world?

Hailey is creating a computer model to show what happens to energy from the sun when it reaches the Earth's surface. Hailey will need to include methods of heat transfer in her model. What type of heat transfer takes place from the sun to Earth?

Ken notices several patterns on a wind-belt map that shows how global winds travel. Which explains why global winds do not move in straight paths?

During winter vacation, you learn that a polar jet stream is traveling across the United States. The forecaster says there will be big changes in the weather as the jet stream moves past your town in Florida. Look at the map. Predict what will happen in Florida due to the jet stream.

Emilize is looking at a poster comparing land breezes and sea breezes. Which is the major driving force that causes these wind patterns?

Mr. Milton has a candy shop. He uses a double boiler to slowly melt chocolate into a liquid so that he can mold it into all sorts of fun shapes to sell. A double boiler consists of two pans with one on top of the other. The lower pan has boiling water that heats the upper pan. Food, such as chocolate, is melted by the boiling water in the lower pan. Which process does Mr. Milton use to melt the chocolate in a double boiler?

People travel from all over the world to see more than 30 glaciers at Glacier National Park in Alaska. Which factor causes glacial movement downhill?

The densest water in the ocean is known as the Antarctic Bottom Water. It is formed along the Antarctic ice shelves where water freezes on the ocean's surface. The Antarctic Bottom Water plays a big role in the global circulation of ocean waters around the world. This dense water is carried along the ocean floor, delivering oxygen and nutrients to the deepest parts of oceans. Which of these conditions describes the Antarctic Bottom Water?

After studying the Earth’s spheres, Jamal became interested in the hydrosphere and decided to investigate it further. He began to study the hydrosphere's interactions with other spheres. What is the relationship between the hydrosphere and the cryosphere?

How does latitude affect the temperature around the equator?

Leo has been learning about wind, clouds, temperature, and precipitation in school. What is the name for the long-term temperature, wind, clouds, and precipitation patterns in an area?

Every living organism needs water. Earth is about three-quarters water. Earth’s water is found in oceans, precipitation, rivers, lakes, water vapor, and ice. Which form is most abundant on Earth?

On her way to school Tuesday morning, Ana got soaking wet during a surprise rainstorm. She was not carrying an umbrella or rain jacket because the climate in her town was normally very hot and dry. What are the main factors that influence the amount of precipitation in an area or region?

Jackie is creating a chart that shows where the water is in the hydrosphere. She created a graphic showing that most of Earth’s water was salt water and could be found in the oceans, while only 3% of the water on Earth is fresh water. Look at the graphic. Most of the fresh water is tied up in one of two different forms. In what form is 70% of Earth’s fresh water found?

Arturo recently read about watersheds and the direction rivers flowed in the United States. Arturo studied his map of the country and identified rivers and their flow direction. Look at the picture and identify what the black line drawn on the map represents.

Justin wanted to explain the water cycle to his class. He created a chart with labels and illustrations. He knew that plants had a place in the water cycle. What part do plants play in the water cycle?

Fatima drew a diagram of the water cycle to share with her class. She wanted to be able to explain the source of energy for the water cycle, so she looked it up in an encyclopedia. What provides the energy that drives the water cycle?

Roberto lives inland in North America. He measured the temperature and precipitation during one winter month and calculated the average daily temperature and precipitation amount for each week. He recorded his results in a chart. The front that moved over Roberto’s area the last week of the month was humid. Based on the chart and your knowledge of fronts, what kind of front would this most likely be?

How does the Gulf Stream affect the air masses above the ocean water?

Arizona often has hot, dry weather. Casey wonders what would cause weather like this and looks up the different kinds of air masses. What kind of air mass would most likely bring this sort of weather?

The picture shows global wind patterns. Which type of wind is labeled 2 on the map?

How does the Sun transfer energy to Earth?