GRY 142 Test 1 Exam|Questions With Correct Answers|Verified
Environmental Spheres - lithosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere/cryosphere, biosphere
Latitude - Distance north or south of the equator
Longitude - Distance east or west of the prime meridian
Equator - An imaginary circle around the middle of the earth, halfway between the North
Pole and the South Pole 0 degrees latitude
Prime Meridian - The meridian, designated at 0° longitude, which passes through the
Royal Observatory at Greenwich, England.
Graticle - illustrated lines of latitude and longitude
Solar Altitude Angle - the vertical angle between the sun and the horizon (90-arc
distance)--Arc distance = distance in degrees between the latitude in question and the
declination of the sun)
Zenith Angle - the angle formed between a line perpendicular to the earth's surface and
the position of the sun in the sky
Solar Declination - the latitude where the sun is directly overhead at noon
March Equinox - equator faces sun directly; neither pole tilts toward sun; all regions on
earth experience 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness
, December Solstice - northern hemisphere tilts away from sun and has shortest day and
longest night; southern hemisphere tilts toward sun and has longest day and shortest night
September Equinox - equator faces sun directly; neither pole tilts toward sun; all regions
on earth experience 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness
June Solstice - Northern Hemisphere tilts toward sun and has longest day and shortest
night; Southern Hemisphere tilts away from sun and has shortest day and longest night
Circle of Illumination - The great circle that separates daylight from darkness.
Map essentials - title, date, legend, scale, direction, location, data source, projection
type
Most important map features - Size and shape
Map Equivalence - Maintains size of areas
Map Conformality - Distorts size to depict proper size (proper angular relationships are
maintained across the map)
Cylindrical Projections - "wrap" globe in a cylinder that touches the globe only at the
equator
Distortion is greatest away from the circle of tangency or standard parallel
Mercator Projection - A conformal cylindrical projection designed for oceanic navigation
Relatively undistorted at low latitudes
Size distortion increases rapidly in mid and high latitudes
Environmental Spheres - lithosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere/cryosphere, biosphere
Latitude - Distance north or south of the equator
Longitude - Distance east or west of the prime meridian
Equator - An imaginary circle around the middle of the earth, halfway between the North
Pole and the South Pole 0 degrees latitude
Prime Meridian - The meridian, designated at 0° longitude, which passes through the
Royal Observatory at Greenwich, England.
Graticle - illustrated lines of latitude and longitude
Solar Altitude Angle - the vertical angle between the sun and the horizon (90-arc
distance)--Arc distance = distance in degrees between the latitude in question and the
declination of the sun)
Zenith Angle - the angle formed between a line perpendicular to the earth's surface and
the position of the sun in the sky
Solar Declination - the latitude where the sun is directly overhead at noon
March Equinox - equator faces sun directly; neither pole tilts toward sun; all regions on
earth experience 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness
, December Solstice - northern hemisphere tilts away from sun and has shortest day and
longest night; southern hemisphere tilts toward sun and has longest day and shortest night
September Equinox - equator faces sun directly; neither pole tilts toward sun; all regions
on earth experience 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness
June Solstice - Northern Hemisphere tilts toward sun and has longest day and shortest
night; Southern Hemisphere tilts away from sun and has shortest day and longest night
Circle of Illumination - The great circle that separates daylight from darkness.
Map essentials - title, date, legend, scale, direction, location, data source, projection
type
Most important map features - Size and shape
Map Equivalence - Maintains size of areas
Map Conformality - Distorts size to depict proper size (proper angular relationships are
maintained across the map)
Cylindrical Projections - "wrap" globe in a cylinder that touches the globe only at the
equator
Distortion is greatest away from the circle of tangency or standard parallel
Mercator Projection - A conformal cylindrical projection designed for oceanic navigation
Relatively undistorted at low latitudes
Size distortion increases rapidly in mid and high latitudes
