Solutions for Chapter 23: Economics, Environment, and Sustainability

That portion of the ocean where there is no sunlight.

A narrow knifelike ridge separating two adjacent glaciated valleys.

Dunes forming scalloped rows of sand oriented at right angles to the wind. This form is intermediate between isolated barchans and extensive waves of transverse dunes.

A massive star that has collapsed to such a small volume that its gravity prevents the escape of all radiation.

The total amount of sediment a stream is able to transport.

Mountains formed in part by igneous activity associated with the subduction of oceanic lithosphere beneath a continent.

A hill or ridge of wind-deposited sand.

A mountain valley that has been widened, deepened, and straightened by a glacier.

A tentative explanation that is tested to determine if it is valid.

A region outside the orbit of Neptune where most short-period comets are thought to originate.

Atoms combine in order that each may have the electron arrangement of a noble gas; that is, the outer energy level contains eight neutrons.

A span on the geologic time scale between the eons of the Precambrian and Mesozoic era from about 540 million to 248 million years ago.

The material upon which a soil develops.

A temporary lake in a playa.

Stars rich in atoms heavier than helium. Nearly always relatively young stars found in the disk of the galaxy.

The nature of the change in atmospheric pressure over the past several hours. It can be a useful aid in short range weather prediction.

A collective term for breakers; also, the wave activity in the area between the shoreline and the outer limit of breakers.

Describes a mineral’s toughness or its resistance to breaking or deforming.

Two belts of winds that blow almost constantly from easterly directions and are located on the equatorward sides of the subtropical highs.

A common term for a desert stream course that is typically dry except for brief periods immediately following a rain.