A systems approach to climate Flashcards
What are the components of climate?
Atmosphere Earth's Surface Biosphere Ocean Cryosphere
What are some fluxes of the atmosphere?
- Atmospheric moisture: vapour, clouds, precipitation - Water cycle
- Energy exchange
- Gaseous composition (energy absorption/transmission)
- Pressure and winds
Dynamic atmosphere means movement (flux) of gases, water, particles, energy
What are some fluxes of the Earth’s surface?
Radiative heat flux
Sensible heat flux
Moisture flux
Latent heat flux
What are some fluxes of the biosphere?
Vegetation contributes to surface roughness
Carbon storage and fluxes
Moisture flux (evapotranspiration)
What are some fluxes of the ocean and cryosphere?
Absorbs and emits radiation and gases
70% of the planet’s surface is ocean- energy water gas and nutrient fluxes
Poles = sea ice, ice sheets, polar land masses underlain by permafrost
Oceans are encouraged to be in motion because of differential heat and differential water density due to salinity differences (circulating horizontally and vertically).
What is albedo?
A reflection of incoming solar radiation.
What is sensible heat flux?
The conductive heat flux from the Earth’s surface to the atmosphere.
What is moisture flux?
Transport of water vapour by the wind
What is latent heat flux?
Extra heat in rising water vapour which when condensing into clouds, is released
Many other features contribute to radiative forcing ….
Mt Pinatubo (Philippines) 1992 ash and aerosols caused global climate cooling (-ve forcing) over several years
Con trains also a radiative forcing component
Smog produced by industry or by agricultural fires (burn off fields for nutrients)
Bright ash clouds and smog -> negative forcing via reflection of incoming radiation
Sooty smog -> positive forcing (absorbs radiation and warms)
Two biggest fluxes are:
Energy
Carbon
Central to the issue of current global warming
Rates of feedbacks vary
“Fast feedbacks”
Water vapour, clouds- instantaneous (hours, days)
Snow, sea ice - seasonally
Vegetation/ carbon changes - minutes/ hours, seasonally
Rates of feedbacks vary
“Slower feedbacks”
Vegetation (drought, treeline shifts)- decades/ centuries
Ocean carbon cycle, change the conveyor belt, other terrestrial changes (e.g mountain glaciers)- centuries
Continental ice sheets (e.g to melt the Greenland ice sheet)- millenia
