FORM
ONE - GEOGRAPHY DIRECTORY
SUBJECT
MATTERS TO COVER
- Concept of geography
- Importance of geography
- The solar system
- The concept of a solar system
- The sun
- Solar energy
- The planets
- Other bodies in the solar system
- The Earth
- The importance of parallels and meridians
- Major features of the earth’s surface
- Continents
- Water bodies
- Weather
- The concept of weather
- Elements of weather
- Weather stations
- Climate
- Concept of climate
- Weather and climate
- Impact of climate
- Map work
- Concept of a map
- Components of a map
- Quantitative information about maps
- Uses of maps
1.
CONCEPT OF GEOGRAPHY
MEANING
OF GEOGRAPHY PHENOMENA
-
(Not
present in form four exams)
IMPORTANCE
OF GEOGRAPHY
-
(Not
present in form four exams)
2.
THE SOLAR SYSTEM
THE
CONCEPT OF A SOLAR SYSTEM
-
(Note
that Pluto is no longer considered a planet)
ORDER
OF THE PLANETS
-
1.
Mercury 2. Venus 3. Earth 4. Mars 5. Jupiter 6. Saturn 7. Uranus 8.
Neptune
The
Four Inner Planets From the Sun Namely Mercury, Venus, Earth and
Mars; are Referred To As ''TERRESTRIAL Planets'' Because:
-
They
are all relatively small, rocky in composition and clustered together
close to the sun and they are visible to the naked eyes, which means
they resemble Earth
EXAMPLES
OF CELESTIAL BODIES
-
Asteroids,
moons, planets and stars
APHELION
-
The
position of the Earth when it is furthest from the Sun
ASTEROIDS
-
Rocky
planetary bodies which orbit the sun
ECLIPSE
-
Occurs
when three heavenly bodies (e.g. planets/stars) are in one line and
one of them is a source of light such as when the moon comes between
the Sun and Earth
EQUINOX
-
Occurs
twice a year, when the tilt of the Earth's axis is inclined neither
away from nor towards the Sun, the centre of the Sun being in the
same plane as the Earth's equator
METEORITES
-
Pieces of hard matter such as rocks falling from outer space
THE
MILKY WAY
-
The
galaxy which contains our solar system and the planet Earth, it is
our galaxy
-
Tides
are highest during an eclipse
-
The
sun is the main source of light, heat and energy for Earth
-
The
lunar eclipse is evidence which proves that the Earth is spherical
THE
EARTH
THE
ROTATION OF THE EARTH CAUSES
-
Day
and night, difference of one hour between two meridians of 15°, the
deflation of winds and ocean currents, the daily rising and falling
of ocean tides
-
Earths
movements are caused by isostatic adjustment
-
Day
and night are caused by the rotation of the Earth
-
The
Earth shape is a flattened sphere called a GEOID or oblate spheroid
-
The
rotation of the Earth causes the deflection of winds and ocean
currents
-
PANGEA
was divided into two parts called LAURASIA and GONDWANA
-
The
four seasons which occur on the earth’s surface are result of the
revolution of the earth
DEFLECTION
-
Due
to spinning effect of the earth, water and air currents do not travel
in straight lines
CORIOLIS
EFFECT (FERREL’S LAW)
-
Is an apparent deflection of moving objects when they are viewed from
a rotating reference frame
-
The
Earth has an angle of inclination of 66½ degrees which causes the
variation in the length of day and night
THE
IMPORTANCE OF PARALLELS AND MERIDIANS
CHRONOMETER
-
Is
a clock which is precise enough to be used as a portable time
standard; it can therefore be used to determine longitude by means of
celestial navigation
LATITUDE
-
Angular
distance east or west of the prime meridian, used for north-south
measurement
LONGITUDE
-
Is
the geographic coordinate used for east-west measurement
MERIDIAN
(LINE OF LONGITUDE)
-
Is
an imaginary arc on the Earth's surface from the North Pole to the
South Pole that connects all locations running along it with a given
longitude
PRIME
MERIDIAN
-
Is
the meridian (line of longitude) at which the longitude is defined to
be 0° which runs through Greenwhich UK
SUMMER
SOLSTICE
-
Occurs
exactly when the Earth’s axial tilt is most inclined towards the
sun at its maximum of 23° 26’.
-
In
the Southern Hemisphere it occurs on December 22, in the Northern
Hemisphere it occurs June 22
GREAT
CIRCLE
-
A
circle in the surface whose plane passes through the centre of the
globe, used to plot routes for ships and planes across great
distances
HORSE
LATITUDES
-
Sub-tropic
latitudes between 30º and 35º in both the North and South
Hemispheres
CIRCLE
OF LATITUDE
-
An
imaginary east-west circle connecting all locations that share the
same latitude
TROPIC
OF CAPRICORN (SOUTHERN TROPIC)
-
Marks
the southerly latitude at which the sun can appear directly overhead
at noon, occurs during the December solstice
TROPIC
OF CANCER (NORTHERN TROPIC)
-
Marks
the northerly latitude at which the sun can appear directly overhead
at noon, occurs during the June solstice
WINTER
SOLSTICE
-
Occurs
exactly when the Earth's axial tilt is farthest away from the sun at
its maximum of 23° 26'.
-
In
the Northern Hemisphere, the Winter Solstice occurs on December 21,
in the Southern Hemisphere it occurs June 22
3.
MAJOR FEATURES OF THE EARTH’S SURFACE
CONTINENTS
-
(Not
present in form four exams)
WATER
BODIES
--
(Not
present in form four exams)
4.
WEATHER
THE
CONCEPT OF WEATHER
ATMOSPHERE
-
A
blanket of air or other gasses which surrounds planets including
Earth
MESOSPHERE
-
The
middle layer of the Earth’s atmosphere
TROPOPAUSE
-
Is the atmospheric boundary between the troposphere and the
stratosphere
TROPOSPHERE
-
The
lowest portion of the Earth’s atmosphere
ORDER
OF LAYERS OF THE ATMOSPHERE FROM LOWEST TO HIGHEST
-
Troposphere
- Ends at the tropopause – Lowest
-
Stratosphere
-
Mesosphere
-
Thermosphere
-
Exosphere
- Highest
ELEMENTS
OF WEATHER
HOW
TO CALCULATE FAHRENHEIT AND CELSIUS
[°C]
= ([Given °F] − 32) × 5 ⁄ 9
[°F]
= [Given°C] × 9 ⁄ 5 + 32
TYPES
OF RAINFALL
-
Convectional
rainfall, cyclonic rainfall, orographic rainfall
CONVECTIONAL
RAINFALL
-
Occurs when the atmosphere becomes heated more than its surroundings
leading to upward motion, rain falls from convective clouds like
cumulonimbus clouds
CYCLONIC
RAINFALL
-
Occurs who masses of air with different density (moisture and
temperature) meet, warmer air rises over cold air which produces
precipitation (rain)
OROGRAPHIC
RAINFALL
-
Is
caused when masses of air pushed by wind are forced up the side of
elevated land formations like mountains
WEATHER
STATIONS
-
The
suitable area to set up a weather station is on fairly level ground
in an open space
5.
CLIMATE
CONCEPT
OF CLIMATE
CLIMATE
-
Is
the temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind, rainfall, and
other meteorological elements in a given region over long periods of
time
CLOUDS
-
Small
particles of condensed water at the lower part of the atmosphere
CONSTANT
VOLUME GAS THERMOMETER
-
Measures temperature by the variation in volume/pressure of a gas
DESERTIFICATION
-
Is
the process of forming desert by increased heat on the Earths surface
causing evaporation or by the destruction of forests
DEW
-
Is
water in the form of droplets that appears on thin, exposed objects
in the morning or evening
DOLDRUMS
-
It
is an area with low pressure in the tropics
DROUGHT
-
A
prolonged lack of moisture in an area as a result of a long period
without rainfall
FOG
-
Is
a cloud that is in contact with the ground
FRONT
-
The
zone separating two air masses
HAIL
-
Is
a form of solid precipitation which consists of balls or irregular
lumps of ice
HUMIDITY
-
Is
the amount of water vapor in the air
HYGROMETERS
-
Are
instruments used for measuring relative humidity
INTER-TROPICAL
CONVERGENCE ZONE (ITCZ)
-
The
zone between the maritime and continental air masses
LAND
BREEZES
-
Occur
at night due to the fact that land temperatures drop faster than
water (because of different specific heat values), so it is cooler on
the land than water
MACROCLIMATE
-
Refers
to the regional climate of a broad area
MAXIMUM
TEMPERATURE THERMOMETER
-
Used
to measure the highest temperature reached in a day
MICROCLIMATE
-
A
detailed small scale study of weather elements within a natural
environment
MIST
-
Is
a phenomenon of small droplets suspended in air
POLAR
FRONT
-
Where
cold air from the Polar Regions meets warmer air from lower latitudes
RELATIVE
HUMIDITY
-
Is
the amount of water vapor that exists in a gaseous mixture of air and
water vapor
SEA
BREEZES
-
During
the day the breeze comes from the sea because the land is warmer and
air travels from areas of high pressure to areas of low pressure
SLEET
-
A
mixture of snow and rain
TRADE
WINDS
-
Winds
blowing from horse latitudes to the equatorial belts.
-
Found
in the tropics in the lower troposphere.
-
Used
in the past for trade and conquest by Europeans
TROPICAL
CYCLONE
-
A
low pressure center with develops in low altitudes
TSUNAMI
-
A
strong wave in the ocean caused by an earthquake or by a volcanic
eruption
WEATHER
-
The
state of the atmosphere measured by hot or cold, wet or dry, calm or
storm, clear or cloudy
-
Hurricanes and typhoons are tropical cyclones
-
Salinity of ocean water increases with an increased
rate of evaporation of ocean water
-
Wind blows from areas of high pressure to areas of
low pressure
WEATHER
AND CLIMATE
-
(Not
present in form four exams)
IMPACT
OF CLIMATE
-
(Not
present in form four exams)
6.
MAP WORK
CONCEPT
OF A MAP
CHOROPLETH
MAP
-
Is a thematic map in which areas are shaded or patterned in
proportion to the measurement of the statistical variable being
displayed on the map, such as population density or per-capita income
ATLAS
-
Is
a collection of maps; it is typically a map of the Earth or a region
of the Earth
COMPONENTS
OF A MAP
CONTOURS
-
Lines
that are drawn on the map joining different places with the same
height above sea level
ISOBAR
-
Is
a line connecting points of equal atmospheric pressure
ISOBETH
-
Is
a line joining all place with equal depth in the ocean
ISOHEL
-
Is
a line of equal or constant solar radiation
ISOHYET
-
Is
a line joining points of equal precipitation on a map
ISONEPH
-
Is
a line indicating equal cloud cover
TIME
ZONE
-
Is
a region on Earth, more or less bounded by lines of longitude, that
has a uniform, legally mandated standard time, usually referred to as
the local
time
QUANTITATIVE
INFORMATION ABOUT MAPS
ESSENTIALS
OF A MAP
-
Key
(legend or reference), scale, margin (frame), title, indication of
north direction
WAYS
OF SHOWING TOPOGRAPHICAL FEATURES ON A MAP
-
Using
contours, hill shading, layer colouring, form lines, hachure,
benchmarks, spot height, trigonometrical stations (points)
TECHNIQUES
OF EXPRESSING SCALE OF A MAP
-
Linear
scale, statement (verbal) scale, representative fractional scale (RF
scale)
USES
OF MAPS
-
(Not present in study guide)
see also :
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