2.3 - Monitoring the Atmosphere

Question 1

What is the greenhouse effect?

Answer 1

• When radiant energy from the sun reaches the Earth’s surface , much of it is reflected back into space. However, some of it is trapped near the Earth’s surface by a layer of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
• The greenhouse effect creates temperatures on Earth that allow living things to survive
• This is not a new phenomenon, simply a growing problem that has made itself more prominent because of human activity (the enhanced greenhouse effect).

Question 2

What are some examples of greenhouse gases?

Answer 2

Water vapour, CO2, methane and nitrogen oxides are all greenhouse gases

Question 3

What is the enhanced greenhouse effect?

Answer 3

The creation of more greenhouse gases, caused by human activities such as burning fossil fuels and land clearing

Question 4

What is global warming?

Answer 4

An effect that is the trapping of more heat, due to the enhanced greenhouse effect, increasing the average temperature of the Earth’s climate system

Question 5

What is climate change?

Answer 5

• Caused by global warming, climate change has a dramatic effect on living things.
• Effects include more violent storms, flooding of coastal areas from melting ice caps and greater ranges in the spread of diseases

Question 6

What is the ozone layer?

Answer 6

A concentrated layer of ozone (O3(g)) in the atmosphere absorbs UV radiation from the Sun, protecting organisms on Earth from damaging rays.

Question 7

What are some results of the thinning of the ozone layer in recent decades?

Answer 7

In recent decades, the ozone layer has been thinning, causing increased occurrence of skin cancer, damaging plants and affecting plankton populations

Question 8

What caused the thinning of the ozone layer?

Answer 8

The thinning of the ozone layer is caused by human use of chlorofluorocarbons (CFC’s). CFCs have been used in refrigerators and aerosol cans. CHlorine atoms from CFCs destroy ozone by reacting with O3(g) to form O2(g).

Question 9

Why are ozone holes the worst over the poles?

Answer 9

Ice particles speed up the reaction between chlorine atoms (from CFC’s) and ozone to form oxygen (causing the thinning of the Ozone Layer), which means that the holes are the worst over the North and South Poles.

Question 10

Why has the thinning of the ozone layer slowed down?

Answer 10

The thinning of the ozone layer has been slowing down in recent years because of international agreements banning CFCs (ex. Montreal Accord, Paris Agreement)