Changing Climate Flashcards
Definition of Ice age
A period of time when Earth has permanent ice sheets
Definition of Quaternary
The time period in the Earth’s history that began about 2.6 million years ago and continues today , includes the Pleistocene epoch and the Holocene epoch.
Definition of Pleistocene
Relating to or denoting the first epoch of the Quaternary period, between the Pliocene and Holocene epochs
Definition of Holocene
Relating to or denoting the present epoch, which is the second epoch in the Quaternary period and followed the Pleistocene
Definition of Glacial period
A colder period in Earth’s history with ice advance
Definition of Inter glacial period
A warmer period in Earth’s history with ice retreat
How old is the ice that scientists can study?
800,000 years ago
What do lighter layers of snow show? Dark snow?
Snow laid down in summer and Dark Snow show winter snow
What are the two types of oxygen that scientists are looking for?
Oxygen-16 and Oxygen-18
Which type suggests it was warmer? Colder?
Lots of Oxygen-16 means the Earth was colder and Oxygen-18 means it was hotter
What does large amounts of carbon dioxide in the ice suggest about Earth’s temperature?
Lots of carbon dioxide suggest the climate was hot
How do we know that this data is reliable?
Because the data from the ice which dates back to the 1950s matches the actual data taken during that time period.
How is sea ice measured?
Satellite photos and submarine radar
What is meant by sea ice maximum/minimum?
Sea ice maximum is the maximum area that ice covers in the arctic over a year. The ice minimum is the minimum area that ice covers in the arctic over a year
How much smaller has the area covered by sea ice become since 1979?
13.3% smaller every 10 years
Reliability?
It is modern technology so it is very reliable
What can paintings and diaries tell us about climate change?
What was going on and how the climate was.
How reliable is this data?
It is not that reliable
What are the greenhouse gases
Carbon dioxide
Methane
Halocarbons
Nitrous oxide
Source of Carbon dioxide
Burning fossil fuels (coal, gas) to make electricity. Industry, cars, deforestation
Source of methane
Landfill sites, rice production and farm animals
Source of Halocarbons
Air-conditioning, refrigerators, aerosols and foam packaging
Source of Nitrous oxide
Agricultural fertilisers and car exhausts
What are Sun spots
They are dark spots on the Sun’s surface
What causes sun spots
Caused by magnetic storms
What do sun spots do to earths temperature
Temporarily increase it
How long are the sun spot cycles
11 years
What events are sun spots linked to
Little ice age
How do eruptions change earths climate
The sulfur dioxide reacts with water in the atmosphere which reflects a lot of energy from the sun making the earth cooler. With the earth being cooler, less evaporation happens meaning less rain.
What are Milankovitch’s three ideas?
Precession, Tilt and Eccentricity
What is Eccentricity
100,000 - 24,000 years
When the Earth is further away the Earth is really cold but then it gets much closer so the climate gets hotter.
What is Precession
19-24,000 years
Changes the severity of the seasons and which hemisphere is closer to the sun.
What is tilt
41,000 years
Makes the summers colder and the winters not as cold.
Why is the sea rising
Polar ice sheets are melting, the antarctic ice sheets especially as it is not sea ice.
The water is expanding because of the heat - Thermal expansion
Melting glaciers
Why is sea level rise an issue
Because lots of land around the globe will flood permanently, which reduces the land area on the Earth and could destroy major cities like London and New York.
50% of world’s population live within 60km of the coast
Some of the fastest growing cities are coastal, so the proportion of the world’s population living on the coast is increasing
How is weather more extreme
More frequent
More rain during storms
Tropical storms are becoming more intense in some areas
They are resulting in higher levels of precipitation
Droughts are becoming more severe and are lasting longer
Why is the weather more extreme
Warmer sea temperatures fuel tropical storms
Warmer air can hold more water vapour
Intense storms can have knock on effects and disrupt global weather patterns
Lake Chad
Shrunk by over 80%
Lake may dry out
Many people are joining terrorist groups so that they can get food and water
Very close to famine - very limited amount of food
Lack of security of income
Results of more extreme weather
People starve Vietnam exports less rice Drought is more common The price of rice increases The London Eye is temporarily closed People are forced to move The ocean becomes more acidic Extreme rainfall floods crop Coastal towns are flooded
How will climate change affect the UK Economically
Tourism - Brings in money from tourists
Agriculture - Allows the UK to grow other crops which couldn’t have been grown before
Flooding - Can cause lots damage to infrastructure
Transport
Food prices
How will climate change affect the UK Environmentally
Water contamination
Species and habitats
How will climate change affect the UK Socially
Cold related deaths - It is less likely to happen
NHS - puts stress on them
Water security - Drinkable water is hard to find
Environmental refugees - happens because the climate becomes too hard to live in
