Uneven
heating
of the earth can happen on a local level as well as a global level. During the day, air above land heats more quickly than air above the water. The warmer air is less dense and the cooler, denser air moves toward the coast, causing a sea breeze.
How does the sun cause convection currents?
The sun
heats the air near the earth’s equator
, which becomes less dense and rises upward. As it rises, it cools and becomes less dense than the air around it, spreading out and descending toward the equator again.
How does the sun’s energy drives convection within the oceans?
The central core of the Earth is the internal source of energy that drives convection currents within the lithosphere, which in turn drive plate movement. The sun is the
external
source of energy that causes convection currents, which drive the winds, ocean currents, and the water cycle.
What causes convection currents in the ocean?
Convection currents are the result of
differential heating
. Lighter (less dense), warm material rises while heavier (more dense) cool material sinks. … Convection also plays a role in the movement of deep ocean waters and contributes to oceanic currents.
What are convection currents in the sun?
Convection motions within the solar interior
generate magnetic fields that emerge at the surface as sunspots
, and loops of hot gas called prominences. Most solar energy finally escapes from a thin layer of the Sun’s atmosphere called the photosphere, which is the part of the Sun observable to the naked eye.
What would happen if there were no convection currents?
If for some reason convection stopped, air would not circulate, and
weather would stop
. Air wouldn’t flow over the waters, suck up moisture and then rain it out on land. Without this rain, all plants and crops would die.
Does the sun affect wind turbines?
Wind energy comes from the sun
. It is true – wind energy is simply a converted form of solar energy! The sun’s radiation warms different parts of the earth, oceans, and other bodies of water, at different rates. … The result of this air exchange is wind.
What are the two main categories of ocean currents?
Currents. There are two main types of ocean currents:
currents driven mainly by wind and currents mainly driven by density differences
. Density depends on temperature and salinity of the water.
What are three types of convection?
- Natural convection.
- Forced convection.
What is the effect of convection currents?
Convection currents
drive the movement of Earth’s rigid tectonic plates in the planet’s fluid molten mantle
. In places where convection currents rise up towards the crust’s surface, tectonic plates move away from each other in a process known as seafloor spreading (Fig. 7.21).
How does temperature change create convection currents?
When the molecules are heated, they move faster and move apart, causing them to be less dense and rise.
When the warm air rises and the cool air sinks
, convection currents are created.
How are convection currents important to the earth?
Convections currents in the earth’s mantle are thought to be
the driving force of plate tectonics
. Where the hot magma is brought near the surface by the convection currents a divergent boundary is created. The divergent boundaries form new oceans and widen existing oceans.
How is convection current produced?
Convection currents are the
result of differential heating
. Lighter (less dense), warm material rises while heavier (more dense) cool material sinks. It is this movement that creates circulation patterns known as convection currents in the atmosphere, in water, and in the mantle of Earth.
What would happen to convection currents of the Earth cooled?
If the Earth’s interior cools down, then the production of convection currents and the transfer of heat would stop. This event will cause
the mantle to sink down due to the pull of gravity
.
Why is convection current in the asthenosphere important?
Convection currents generated within the asthenosphere
push magma upward through volcanic vents and spreading centres to create new crust
. … According to the theory of plate tectonics, the asthenosphere is the repository for older and denser parts of the lithosphere that are dragged downward in subduction zones.
What would happen if the atmosphere and oceans did not move?
The
lack of atmosphere would chill the Earth’s surface
. We’re not talking absolute zero cold, but the temperature would drop below freezing. Water vapor from the oceans would act as a greenhouse gas, raising the temperature.
