- Industry: Earth science
- Number of terms: 10770
- Number of blossaries: 1
- Company Profile:
The UK charity dedicated to the protection of the marine environment and its wildlife.
The prediction of the Rayleigh-Jeans law that the energy radiated by a blackbody at extremely short wavelengths is extremely large, and the total energy radiated is infinite, whereas in reality it must be finite.
Industry:Earth science
The process by which radiant energy is absorbed and converted into other forms of energy. A substance that absorbs energy may also be a medium of refraction, diffraction, or scattering; these processes, however, involve no energy retention or transformation and are to be clearly differentiated from absorption.
Industry:Earth science
The process by which small particles suspended in a medium of a different index of refraction diffuse a portion of the incident radiation in all directions. In scattering, no energy transformation results, only a change in the spatial distribution of the radiation. Also called scatter. Along with absorption, scattering is a major cause of the attenuation of radiation by the atmosphere. Scattering varies as a function of the ratio of the particle diameter to the wavelength of the radiation. When this ratio is less than about 1/10, Rayleigh scattering occurs in which the scattering coefficient varies inversely as the fourth power of the wavelength. At larger values of the ratio of particle diameter to wavelength, the scattering varies in a complex fashion described by the Mie theory; at a ratio of the order of 10, the laws of geometric optics begin to apply.
Industry:Earth science
The process of accumulation and sinking of warm surface waters along a coastline. A change of air flow of the atmosphere can result in the sinking or downwelling of warm surface water. The resulting reduced nutrient supply near the surface affects the ocean productivity and meteorological conditions of the coastal regions in the downwelling area.
Industry:Earth science
The range of length scales over which energy is transferred and dissipation due to molecular viscosity is negligible. The power spectrum has power law behavior over the inertial range. In two dimensional turbulence the power spectrum is theoretically proportional to k^(-3) in which k is the wavenumber, and in three dimensional turbulence the power spectrum is theoretically proportional to k^(-5/3). The latter is known as the Kolmogorov minus 5/3 law.
Industry:Earth science
The rate of change of movement measured in metres/second (m/s) in metric.
Industry:Earth science
The ratio of circumference of the sphere (of an aerosol particle) to the wavelength of incident radiation. For Rayleigh scattering, the particle radii are smaller than about one-tenth the wavelength of the scattered radiation. For Mie scattering the particle radii are on the order of the size of the wavelength of the incident radiation. See both Rayleigh scattering and Mie scattering.
Industry:Earth science
The ratio of the amount of heat transfer applied to a body to the change in temperature produced by this heat, usually expressed as the heat energy required to raise the temperature of a specific substance by 1°C at constant pressure and volume.
Industry:Earth science
The resultant current produced by waves being deflected at an angle by the shore. Also called littoral current. In this case the current runs roughly parallel to the shoreline. The longshore current is capable of carrying a certain amount of material as long as its velocity remains fairly constant; however, any obstruction, such as a submarine rock ridge or a land point cutting across the path of the current will cause loss of velocity and consequent loss of carrying power.
Industry:Earth science
The return water flow of swash. This sheet of water flows back to ocean because of gravity.
Industry:Earth science
