Science Vocab #9

Front 1

litter

Back 1

very top layer of fertile soil made of dead leaves and grass

Front 2

topsoil

Back 2

crumbly, topmost layer of soil made up of clay and other minerals and humus

Front 3

subsoil

Back 3

layer of soil below topsoil that has less plant and animal matter than topsoil and contains mostly clay and other minerals

Front 4

bedrock

Back 4

rock that makes up Earth's crust

Front 5

erosion

Back 5

process by which water, ice, wind, or gravity moves weathered particles of rock and soil

Front 6

nutrient depletion

Back 6

situation that arises when more soil nutrients are used than the decomposers can supply

Front 7

fertilizer

Back 7

substance that provides nutrients to help crops grow better

Front 8

desertification

Back 8

advance of desert-like conditions into areas that previously were fertile

Front 9

drought

Back 9

long period of low precipitation

Front 10

land reclamation

Back 10

process of restoring land to a more natural, productive state

Front 11

municipal solid waste

Back 11

waste produced in homes, businesses, schools and in a community

Front 12

incineration

Back 12

burning of solid waste

Front 13

pollutant

Back 13

substance that causes pollution

Front 14

leachate

Back 14

polluted liquid produced by water passing through and dissolving chemicals from buried wastes in a landfill

Front 15

sanitary landfill

Back 15

landfill that holds nonhazardous waste such as municipal solid waste

Front 16

recycling

Back 16

process of reclaiming and reusing raw materials

Front 17

biodegradable

Back 17

capable of being broken down by bacteria and decomposers

Front 18

hazardous waste

Back 18

a material that can be harmful not properly disposed of

Front 19

emissions

Back 19

pollutants that are released into the air

Front 20

photochemical smog

Back 20

a brownish thick haze that's a mixture of ozone and chemicals formed when pollutants react with sunlight

Front 21

ozone

Back 21

form of oxygen that has 3 oxygen atoms in each molecule instead of the usual two

Front 22

temperature inversion

Back 22

a condition in which a layer of warm air traps polluted air close to Earth's surface

Front 23

acid rain

Back 23

rain or another form of precipitation that's more acidic than normal

Front 24

radon

Back 24

colorless, odorless, radioactive gas

Front 25

ozone layer

Back 25

layer of the upper atmosphere that contains a higher concentration of ozone than the rest of the atmosphere

Front 26

chlorofluorocarbon

Back 26

human-made gases containing chlorine and fluoride that are the main cause of ozone depletion

Front 27

groundwater

Back 27

water that fills the crack and spaces in underground soil and rock layers

Front 28

pesticide

Back 28

chemical that kills insects other crop destroying organisms

Front 29

sewage

Back 29

water and human wastes that are washed down sinks, toilets, and showers

Front 30

sediment

Back 30

small, solid pieces of material that come from rocks or the remains of organisms, earth materials deposited by erosion

Front 31

greenhouse gas

Back 31

gases in the atmosphere that traps energy

Front 32

fossil fuels

Back 32

coal, oil, or natural gas that forms over millions of years from the remains of ancient organisms

Front 33

global warming

Back 33

a gradual increase in the average temperature of the atmosphere thought to be caused by an increase in greenhouse gases from human activites