Climate Change

Question 1

As mountain ranges form, _______ climates change.

Answer 1

Regional

Question 2

What is the difference between regions with large bodies of water, and those regions without large bodies of water?

Answer 2

When surrounded by large bodies of water, you get more moderate climate, when you have fewer large bodies of water you get harsher winters and hotter summers.

Question 3

Explain how eccentricity, precession and tilt contribute to interglacial and glacial periods.

Answer 3

Earth’s orbit around the sun changes due to eccentricity, tilt and its wobble.

Question 4

What is Albedo?

Answer 4

A measure of how much of the suns radiation is reflected by a surface.

Question 5

Ice and snow have high Albedo (therefore it’s ____)

Answer 5

Cold

Question 6

Grass and trees have a low albedo (therefore it’s _____)

Answer 6

Warm

Question 7

What is the albedo effect?

Answer 7

An increase in the earths temperature causes ice to melt, so more radiation is absorbed by earths surface, leading to further increases in temperature.

Question 8

The albedo effect is a ______ feedback loop

Answer 8

Positive

Question 9

In terms of climate, what is considered a short period of time?

Answer 9

10s to 100s of years.

Question 10

How can volcanoes affect climate short term?

Answer 10

More dust in the air inhibits the suns energy from reaching that area causing it to cool down

Question 11

What is El Niño?

Answer 11

Change in prevailing winds lead to a change in the direction of ocean currents which causes drastic changes in climate.

Question 12

What are proxy records?

Answer 12

Stores of information in tree rings, ice cores, and fossils that can be measured to give clues to what the climate was like in the past.

Question 13

The suns radiation reaches earths surface at different _______

Answer 13

Intensities

Question 14

Water and land absorb energy at _________

Answer 14

Different rates

Question 15

Water absorbs _____ thermal energy than air

Answer 15

More

Question 16

Thermal energy is _______ from areas that receive _______ of radiation to areas that receive _______ radiation

Answer 16

Transported, a lot, less

Question 17

Is cold or hot air more dense?

Answer 17

Cold

Question 18

Is hot or cold water more dense?

Answer 18

Cold

Question 19

What does the uneven heating of air or water create?

Answer 19

Currents

Question 20

A circular current in air and other fluids (water) caused by the _____ of warm fluid as cold fluid _______

Answer 20

Rising, sinks

Question 21

As warm air rises, it creates an area of ____ pressure below it

Answer 21

Low

Question 22

As cool air falls, it creates an area of ____ pressure

Answer 22

High

Question 23

Air flows from areas of high pressure to areas of low pressure - this makes air currents or ______

Answer 23

Wind

Question 24

High and low pressure along with the rotation of the earth causes winds that curve around the globe in the ____________ almost all the time

Answer 24

Same direction

Question 25

As water travels to the poles, it gets colder and saltier and therefore ____ dense

Answer 25

More

Question 26

Dense water at the poles will _______ to the ocean floor

Answer 26

Sink

Question 27

Warm ocean currents ______ the air above them which moves to the land and produces rain

Answer 27

Heat

Question 28

Cold ocean currents ______ the air above them causing cool, dry air to reach the land creating desert areas

Answer 28

Cool

Question 29

What is the greenhouse effect?

Answer 29

It is a natural process that has been happening for hundreds of years. Gases and clouds absorb infrared radiation emitted from earths surface and radiate it, heating the atmosphere and earths surface.

Question 30

What are greenhouse gases?

Answer 30

Any gas in the atmosphere that absorbs lower energy infrared radiation

Question 31

Name the greenhouse gases

Answer 31

``` Oxygen Nitrogen Carbon dioxide Water vapour Methane Ozone Nitrous oxide ```

Question 32

Which gases have the highest contributions to the greenhouse effect?

Answer 32

Carbon dioxide Water vapour Methane

Question 33

What is a positive feedback loop?

Answer 33

A continuous cycle of cause and effect A produces more of B which in turn produces more of A

Question 34

What are 3 examples of positive feedback loops?

Answer 34

Water vapour + temp CO2 + temp Albedo effect

Question 35

What is negative feedback loops?

Answer 35

A Self regulation system that works to maintain stability Ex. Thermostat

Question 36

When was the industrial era?

Answer 36

1750

Question 37

What does anthropogenic mean?

Answer 37

Human influenced

Question 38

What are the anthropogenic gases?

Answer 38

Carbon dioxide Methane Nitrous oxide Chlorofluorocarbons

Question 39

What anthropogenic sources cause carbon dioxide?

Answer 39

Burning fossil fuels (coal, gasoline) | Deforestation

Question 40

What anthropogenic sources causes methane?

Answer 40

Agricultural activities-rice farming, cattle ranching Landfills and sewage treatment plants- methane is created when organic material decays Coal mining and natural gas extraction

Question 41

What anthropogenic sources cause Nitrous oxide?

Answer 41

Management of livestock feed and waste Use of nitrogen fertilizers

Question 42

What anthropogenic sources causes CFCs?

Answer 42

No natural sources of CFCs Leaks out of refrigerators and ACs

Question 43

How does an increase in atmospheric CO2, affect the global temperature?

Answer 43

More GHG causes more infrared radiation back to earth causes higher temps

Question 44

As the surface of the earth warms up from the suns energy it gains ______ energy and then converts it to ________ _______ radiation

Answer 44

Thermal, low-energy infrared

Question 45

The amount of energy ______ by earths system is equal to the amount of energy earths system _______ from the sun

Answer 45

Radiated, absorbs

Question 46

Because of this balance of energy, earths global temperature stays ______ _______

Answer 46

Fairly consistent

Question 47

The balance between energy _______ from the sun and energy _______ from earth ensures that earths global temperature remains fairly consistent

Answer 47

Absorbed, emitted

Question 48

Without a climate system, the earth would still reach an energy ______ however, earth would be much _____

Answer 48

Equilibrium, colder

Question 49

The energy from the sun is ______ ______ near the earths equator since it hits earths surface directly

Answer 49

More intense

Question 50

Energy from the sun is ______ _____ near the earths equator since it hits earths surface directly

Answer 50

More intense

Question 51

Energy from the sun is ______ ________ near the two poles since energy hits earths surface at an angle and spreads over a larger area

Answer 51

Less intense

Question 52

What is weather?

Answer 52

Atmospheric conditions, including temperature, precipitation, wind and humidity in a particular location over a short period of time.

Question 53

What is climate?

Answer 53

The usual pattern (the average) of the weather in a region over a long period of time (usually 30 years) The climate of a region determines the types of plants and animals that live there

Question 54

What are the factors affecting the climate?

Answer 54

``` Distance from equator (latitude) Presence of large bodies of water Presence of ocean and air currents Land formations Height above sea level (altitude) ```

Question 55

What is the climate system?

Answer 55

The complex set of components that interact with each other to produce earths climate

Question 56

What components include the climate system?

Answer 56

Atmosphere Hydrosphere Lithosphere Living things

Question 57

What is the climate system lowered by?

Answer 57

The sun

Question 58

The energy that earth receives from the sun interacts with the components of the climate system to produce ____ _____

Answer 58

Climate zones

Question 59

What happens when radiation contacts a particle of matter?

Answer 59

1. The radiation may be absorbed by the particle to gain energy 2. The radiation may be transmitted through the particle 3. The radiation may be reflected off the particle