9. Atmosphere and change Flashcards
Climate change
long-term sustained change in the average global climate.
Natural greenhouse effect
the property of the Earth’s atmosphere by which long wavelength heat rays form the Earth’s surface are trapped or reflected back by the atmosphere.
Enhanced greenhouse effect
this results from human activities which increase the concentration of naturally occurring greenhouse gases and leads to global warming and climate change.
Global warming
the increase in the average temperature of the Earth’s near-surface air in the 20th and early 21st centuries and its projected continuation.
Tipping point
the point at which the damage caused to global systems by climate change becomes irreversible.
Insolation
the heat energy from the sun consisting of the visible spectrum together with ultraviolet and infrared rays.
Energy balance
the balance between incoming solar radiation and outgoing terrestrial radiation.
Solar constant
the amount of solar energy received per unit area, per unit time and on a surface at right-angles to the sun’s beam at the edge of the Earth’s atmosphere.
Sensible heat
the heat energy that causes a change in temperature of a substance but does not contribute to a change in state.
Conduction
the transfer of heat by contact.
Convection
the transfer of heat by the movement of a gas or a liquid.
Latent heat
the quantity of heat absorbed or released by a substance undergoing a change of state, such as water vapour condensing into water droplets.
Evaporation
the change in state from a liquid into a vapour.
Condensation
the change instate form a gas to a liquid.
Ground heat
the warming of the subsurface of the Earth.
Albedo
the proportion of solar radiation that is reflected by a particular body or surface.
External forcings
processes both outside and within the atmosphere that can force changes in climate.
Solar forcing
radiative forcing caused by changes in incoming solar radiation.
Global dimming
a worldwide decline of the intensity of the sunlight reaching the Earth’s surface, caused by particulate air pollution and natural events, for example volcanic ash.
Global brightening
an increasing amount of sunlight reaching the Earth’s surface caused by an intensification of solar radiation.
Ice sheet
a thick layer of ice covering extensive regions of the world, notably Antarctica and Greenland.
Troposphere
the lowest layer of the atmosphere.
Tropospheric ozone
human produced ozone, a result of air pollution.
Positive feedback
when an increase of one phenomenon results in an increase in another.
Heatwave
a prolonged period of excessively hot weather.
Thermal expansion
as sea and ocean temperatures increase, the water molecules near the surface move further apart, so the water volume increases and the sea level rises.
Low-carbon economy
where significant measures have been taken to reduce carbon emissions in all sectors of the economy.
Community energy
energy produced close to the point of consumption.
